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The Jane Crossley Affair

             Jane Crossley was the widow of John W. Crossley, a well-known carpet manufacturer and merchant.[1] She entrusted twenty-seven thousand dollars to her brother, Henry B. Adams, a partner with Crossley in the carpet business. A New York Times article suggests that Mrs. Crossley knew she was speculating, but the prospect of riches seems to have blinded her to caution: “Mrs. Jane Crossley conceived a desire to speculate in order to increase her fortune” giving her brother ... $27,000 to invest for her in speculative stocks.”[2] An undated clipping from the New York Tribune says the money was transferred “at various times” which seems to suggest that initially the investments performed well.  In 1891 or 1892 Adams chose A. Delmont Jones as his broker and the Crossley fortune was invested in Staten Island Rapid Transit and St. Paul, Minnesota and Manitou Railroad bonds. Much more risky was an investment in oil stocks. Jones sold the oil stocks at “a great loss and sold the Manitou bonds without Mrs. Crossley’s knowledge.” Adam had taken an eight thousand dollar mortgage on Jones’ furniture to secure the investment, realizing six thousand dollars at its sale. Jane Crossley sued her brother to recover her money resulting in a “mixed up and complicated” case.[3]

            There is insufficient record to expand on Jones’ role. I suspect that he sold the railway bonds to cover some of his own debts. His debts were accumulating and fraudulent claims were unraveling. If so, he paid for that mistake by losing his very expensive furniture.

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