Misplaced Pages

Ricardo de Acosta (July 8, 1837 – August 24, 1907) was a Cuban steamship-line executive and sugar refiner.

Early life

Ricardo was born on July 8, 1837, in Matanzas, the capital of the Cuban Matanzas Province (although often written that he was born in Havana). His parents, both Spanish, were Joseph de Acosta and Maria de Acosta.

Acosta spent most of his childhood travelling between Havana and Madrid.

Career

During the Cuban insurrection against Spain, known as the Ten Years' War, Acosta sided with the Cuban rebels, known as the Patriots. Reportedly, he was "arrested and with twenty others was lined up on a cliff to be executed by firing squad," but escaped by jumping into the sea and boarding a nearby American ship headed towards Boston. Once he arrived in Boston, he accepted a position as a Spanish language instructor at Harvard University.

Several years later, Acosta returned to Havana and acquired an interest in the Ward steamship line, which operated ships between New York City, Havana and the Gulf of Mexico. He also invested in a sugar refining business.

Personal life

In 1871, Acosta was married to Micaela Hernández de Alba y de Alba (1853–1921). Micaela, a rich and socially prominent Spanish woman who was reputedly a relation of the Dukes of Alba. She was the only child of Rafael Lino Hernandez y Aloy and Rita Micaela Guadalupe Andrea Juana Hernandez de Alba, and inherited a million dollars. Together, they were the parents of eight children:

• Joaquín Ignacio de Acosta (1871–1886), who died unmarried from an injury to the head during a baseball game.
• Rita Hernandez de Alba de Acosta (1875–1929), who married William Earl Dodge Stokes. They divorced in 1900 and in 1902 she married secondly Philip Mesier Lydig. They also divorced, and she became engaged to Percy Stickney Grant, but he died before they married.
• Maria Cecelia de Acosta (1880–1970), who married Andrew Robeson Sargent, the son of Charles Sprague Sargent, in 1909. She later married composer Theodore Ward Chanler, a son of Winthrop Astor Chanler.
• Ricardo Miguel de Acosta (1881–1945), a Harvard educated lawyer who married Marie de Zaldo, daughter of Frederic de Zaldo, in 1909. He later married Maebella Wright.
• Aida Marta de Acosta (1884–1962), who became the first woman to fly a powered aircraft solo. In 1908 she married Oren Root IIII, a son of Oren Root II and nephew of Elihu Root. They divorced and in 1927 she married secondly Assistant Secretary of War Henry Skillman Breckinridge.
• Enrique "Henry" Jose de Acosta (1886–1911), who died unmarried.
• Ángela Aloysius de Acosta (1891–1978), who married William Sewall in 1910. They divorced in October 1922 and in November 1922 she married Frederick Charleton Shaw, a younger son of Sir Frederick William Shaw, 5th Bt.
• Mercedes de Acosta (1892–1968), who was an author, a scriptwriter, and a social critic. She married artist Abram Poole in 1920, but is best known as the lover of movie star Greta Garbo.

Acosta died of heart disease on August 24, 1907, in New York City. His funeral was held at St. Patrick's Cathedral in Manhattan. In 1910 his widow was living at 1037 Madison Avenue and in 1920 at 830 Park Avenue. Micaela de Acosta died at their daughter's home in Bedford Hills, New York, in December 1921.

References

1. "RICARDO DE ACOSTA DEAD. Was Father of Mrs. Lydig, Who Was Formerly Mrs. W. E. D. Stokes". The Washington Post. 26 Aug 1907. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
2. ^ Cutter, William Richard (1931). American Biography: A New Cyclopedia. American Historical Society. p. 318. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
3. ^ Madsen, Axel (2002). The Sewing Circle: Sappho's Leading Ladies. Kensington Books. p. 42. ISBN 9780758201010. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
4. "ONCE CUBAN EXILE, DE ACOSTA DIES RICH. Forced to Flee by Spaniards, Turns Professor and Then Sugar Refiner". The Pittsburgh Post. 26 Aug 1907. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
5. Pelletreau, William Smith (1907). Historic Homes and Institutions and Genealogical and Family History of New York. Lewis Publishing Company. p. 402. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
6. ^ "RICARDO DE ACOSTA DEAD. Old Time Cuban Patriot Succumbs to Heart Disease". The Times. 30 Aug 1907. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
7. Collis, Rose (2016). Portraits to the Wall: Historic Lesbian Lives Unveiled. Bloomsbury Publishing. p. 32. ISBN 9781474287074. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
8. "MRS. RITA LYDIG DIES UNEXPECTEDLY AT 50; Had Been Under Doctors' Care for Years, but Condition Was Not Thought Critical. PAINTED BY NOTED ARTISTS Married W.E.D. Stokes at 16 --Engaged to Dr. Grant, but Bishop Banned Wedding" (PDF). The New York Times. 20 October 1929. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
9. "MISS DE ACOSTA A BRIDE.; Wedded to A. Robeson Sargent at Her Mother's Residence" (PDF). The New York Times. 7 November 1909. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
10. "DIED. CHANLER --Maria de Acosta". The New York Times. 8 June 1970. Retrieved 21 February 2018.
11. ^ "RICARDO DE ACOSTA; Lawyer 40 Years Was Former Aide to Corporation Counsel" (PDF). The New York Times. 19 March 1945. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
12. "Ricardo de Acosta to Wed Miss de Zaldo" (PDF). The New York Times. 22 October 1909. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
13. "OREN ROOT ENGAGED.; Nephew Of Secretary Root to Wed Miss Ada de Acosta" (PDF). The New York Times. 31 January 1908. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
14. "HENRY J. DE ACOSTA DEAD.; Heart Disease Kills Brother of Mrs. Philip Lydig -- Found by Servant" (PDF). The New York Times. 19 October 1911. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
15. ^ "MISS DE ACOSTA WM. SEWALL'S BRIDE; Daughter of Mrs. Ricardo de Acosta Married to Son of Mrs. W. S. Sewall of Boston" (PDF). The New York Times. 16 November 1910. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
16. "Mercedes de Acosta, 75, Dies; Poet, Playwright and Scenarist" (PDF). The New York Times. 10 May 1968. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
17. ^ "MISS DE ACOSTA TO WED ABRAM POOLE; Daughter of Mrs. Ricardo de Acosta to Marry Artist Who Won Rome Grand Prix. MISS ALMIRALL ENGAGED Architect's Sister Betrothed to Baron R. de F. d'Andevanne of Paris--Hoyt-Warburton Troth" (PDF). The New York Times. 26 March 1920. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
18. Schanke, Robert A. (2003). "Mercedes de Acosta: One of the most rebellious & brazen of Lesbians". www.robertschanke.com. Southern Illinois University. Archived from the original on 24 January 2022. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
19. Vickers, Hugo (1995). Loving Garbo. Pimlico. pp. 5–7. ISBN 9780712659499. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
20. "Ricardo de Acosta". New-York Tribune. 28 Aug 1907. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
21. "MRS. DE ACOSTA DIES AT HOME OF MRS. LYDIG Widow of Ricardo De Acosta Dead at Daughter's House". New York Herald. 6 Dec 1921. Retrieved 22 May 2019.

• 1837 births
• 1907 deaths
• Cuban emigrants
• Immigrants to the United States
• Harvard University staff
• Cuban people of Spanish descent
• 19th-century Cuban businesspeople
• Businesspeople in shipping
• People from Matanzas