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Josiah K. Lilly Jr.

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Josiah K. Lilly Jr.
Lilly in 1913
BornSeptember 25, 1893
Indianapolis,Indiana, U.S.
DiedMay 5, 1966(1966-05-05)(aged 72)
Indianapolis, Indiana,U.S.
Resting placeCrown Hill Cemetery,Indianapolis
Alma materUniversity of Michigan
OccupationIndustrialist
Known forPharmaceuticals
Philanthropy
TitlePresident,Eli Lilly and Company
Term1948–1953
PredecessorEli Lilly Jr.
SuccessorEugene N. Beesley
Political partyRepublican
Board member ofLilly Endowment
Spouse
Ruth Brinkmeyer
​
​
(m.1954; died 1965)​
ChildrenRuth(1915–2009)
Josiah Kirby Lilly III(1916–1995)
Parent(s)Josiah K. Lilly Sr.and Lilly Ridgely Lilly
RelativesEli Lillyand Emily Lemen Lilly (grandparents)
Eli Lilly Jr.(brother)

Josiah Kirby "Joe" Lilly Jr.(September 25, 1893 – May 5, 1966) was a businessman andindustrialistwho served as president (1948 –53) and chairman of the board (1953–66) ofEli Lilly and Company,thepharmaceuticalfirm his grandfather, ColonelEli Lilly,founded inIndianapolisin 1876. Lilly, the younger son and namesake ofJosiah K. Lilly Sr.,graduated from theUniversity of Michigan'sSchool of Pharmacyin 1914 where he was a member of the Chi Psi Fraternity. He served in theUnited States ArmyinFranceduringWorld War I.

At Eli Lilly and Company, where his primary focus was marketing and human resources, he served as vice president of marketing, executive vice president of the company, and president of Eli Lilly International Corporation, before succeeded his older brother,Eli Jr.,as company president in 1948 and as chairman of the board in 1953.

During Lilly's five decades with the firm, it grew into one of the largest and most influential pharmaceutical corporations in the world, and the largest corporation in Indiana. Lilly helped improve the company's business processes to increase its efficiency, laid the groundwork for its personnel guidelines, and formed its sales research department. He was the last Lilly family member to serve as company president.

Lilly was also aphilanthropist,as well as a collector. In 1937 Joe, his brother, and their father, founded theLilly Endowment,which remains as one of thelargest charitable foundationsin the world. Lilly was also known for his significant collection of rare books and manuscripts, which he donated toIndiana Universityto form the core collection of theLilly Library,located on the IU campus inBloomington, Indiana.Oldfields,Lilly's estate home and grounds in Indianapolis, are part of the present-dayNewfields.TheSmithsonian Institutionacquired Lilly's gold coin collection.Cape Cod'sHeritage Museums and Gardenswas established in his honor inSandwich, Massachusetts,and holds some of Lilly's other collections.

Early life and education

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Josiah Kirby Lilly Jr., known as "Joe" among friends and family, was the younger son ofJosiah K. Lilly Sr.and Lilly (née Ridgley) Lilly. He was born at the family's home on North Pennsylvania Street inIndianapolis,Indiana, on September 25, 1893. His only sibling,Eli Jr.,was eight years older.[1]Joe's mother suffered frompernicious anemiaand died in 1934; his father died in 1948.[2]

Lilly was the grandson ofColonelEli Lilly,who foundedEli Lilly and Company,a pharmaceutical manufacturing business in Indianapolis in 1876. Joe's father was superintendent of the Lilly laboratory at the time of Joe's birth and succeeded Colonel Lilly as president of the company in 1898. Joe and Eli followed their father into the family business. Each son served as company president and chairman of the board, but Joe was the last family member to serve as its president.[3][4]

Lilly attended theHolderness SchoolinHolderness, New Hampshire,and graduated fromThe Hill SchoolinPottstown, Pennsylvania,in 1912.[5][6]He continued his education with a two-year course at theUniversity of Michigan College of Pharmacy,which he completed in 1914, and then returned to Indianapolis to join the family business.[3][6]

Career

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Eli Lilly and Company

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See also:Eli Lilly and Company

In November 1914, Lilly joinedEli Lilly and Company,where he became head of its newly formed Efficiency Division in 1916. He was responsible for the company's employee relations, payroll, and methods and standards departments. Following his enlistment in theU.S. ArmyduringWorld War I,when he served inFranceas an officer in the medical supply service, Lilly returned to the family business in Indianapolis, where he spent the remainder of his career.[7]

In the late 1920s Lilly and his brother, Eli, established a Planning Department and developed improvements to the company's hiring procedures, employee bonus incentives, working conditions, and efficiency efforts.[8]While Eli served as president of the company from 1932 to 1948, Joe's main interests were sales and marketing. During this period the company's growth was significant: "sales increased from $13 million to $115 million, and the number of employees grew from 1,675 to 6,912."[9]As part of a company reorganization in 1944, Joe became executive vice president, while continuing to maintain responsibilities for the company's marketing effort, including the sales research, marketing, and distribution functions.[10]

The company's increasing size, the complexity of its business, and the resignation of Joe's son, Josiah III, in 1946, caused the company to consider a gradual leadership transition that would separate the company's ownership from its day-to-day management. Prior to his elevation to company president in 1948, Joe was president of Eli Lilly International Corporation. He remained at the helm until 1953 when Eugene Beesley succeeded him to become the first non-family member to serve as the company's president.[11]Lilly was chairman of the board from 1953 until his death in 1966.[12]

Later years

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Following his retirement as company president in 1953, Lilly devoted most of his time to various hobbies.[13]He was known for his philanthropic activities, as well as his collections of rare books and manuscripts, gold coins, antique weaponry, stamps, works of art, and military miniatures.[14][15]

Philanthropy and collections

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Lilly Endowment

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Main article:Lilly Endowment

In 1937 Lilly, his father, J. K., and his older brother, Eli, founded the Indianapolis-basedLilly EndowmentInc. Over the years Joe donated a total of $6 million in Eli Lilly and Company stock to the endowment and Eli contributed stock valued at $2.8 million; however, their father made the largest stock contribution, a total of $86.8 million. As the company's stock value increased, the Lilly Endowment became one of the largestprivate foundationsin the United States.[16]In addition to its other projects theLilly Endowmentfunded some of Joe's special interests, such asBibliography of American Literature,which published its first volume in 1955, and grants to theLilly LibraryatIU Bloomington.[17]

Rare book and manuscript collection

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Lilly was a prolific rare book collector and a member of theGrolier Club.He acquired aFirst Folioof the works ofWilliam Shakespeare,aGutenberg Bible,a double-elephant folio ofJohn James Audubon'sBirds of America,the first printing of theAmerican Declaration of Independence(theDunlap Broadside), and a first edition ofEdgar Allan Poe'sTamerlane.He also acquired ninety-four titles on the "Grolier Hundred," a list of one hundred volumes that have been identified as important in the history of printed books.[18]Lilly owned "thousands" of first editions of significant books of literature, history, and science. His collection was especially strong in American and British literary classics, as well as the history of science and medicine and Americana. The manuscript collections ranged fromRobert Burns's "Auld Lang Syne"to the original manuscript ofJames M. Barrie'sPeter Pan.[15][19]

On November 26, 1954, in a letter written toHerman B Wells,president ofIndiana University,Lilly described his intention to donate his entire general collection of sixty-nine titles to the university. IU announced the donation, which theNew York Timesestimated its worth at $5 million, on January 8, 1956.[19][20]Lilly eventually donated to IU more than 20,000 books and 17,000 manuscripts, in addition to more than fifty oil paintings and 300 prints. The collection is housed in theLilly Librarybuilding on IU's main campus inBloomington, Indiana.[21][22]

Lilly Library

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Main article:Lilly Library

In the late 1950s, Lilly provided the funding for construction of a new special collections library on theIU Bloomingtoncampus. The Lilly Library, which is named in honor of the family, was dedicated on October 3, 1960. It houses the university's rare book and manuscript collections.[21][22]

Death and legacy

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Lilly died atOldfields,his home inIndianapolis, Indiana,on May 5, 1966. He is buried atCrown Hill Cemeteryin Indianapolis.[5][23]

Lilly's children, Ruth and Josiah III, were philanthropists like their father. His daughter donated an estimated $800 million during her lifetime to numerous charitable organizations and non-profit institutions, most of them in Indiana and in Indianapolis.[24]His son contributed money to community projects in theCape Codarea. He also founded theHeritage Museums and GardensatSandwich, Massachusetts,in his father's honor.[25] [26]Eli (Ted) Lilly II,Josiah III's son and Joe Jr.'s grandson, maintains a low profile in the Indianapolis area.[27]

Lilly's main contributions during his fifty-year career at Eli Lilly and Company included helping to improve its business processes and increase efficiency, establishing the groundwork for its personnel guidelines, and forming a sales research department.[13]According toForbesmagazine, it ranked as the 243rd largest public company in the world in 2016, with sales of $20 billion and a market value of $86 billion (USD).[28]As of 2014 the Lilly Endowment, which he founded with his father and brother, ranked fifth on a list of the largest charitable foundations in total assets ($9.96 billion) and ranked twenty-first in total giving ($333.6 million).[14][29][30]

Lilly's children donated Oldfields, the family's home and gardens, to the Arts Association of Indianapolis in 1967. The residence and its grounds are part of the present-day Indianapolis Museum of Art.[31]The Indianapolis Department of Parks and Recreation acquired Lilly's Eagle Crest property from Purdue University in 1966 and established Eagle Creek Park and Nature Preserve, "the largest city-owned and -operated park and recreation area in the United States."[32][33]

Lilly's rare book and manuscript collections became the core collections of the Lilly Library, a special collections library at IU Bloomington that is named in the family's honor.[21][22]TheSmithsonian InstitutioninWashington, D.C.acquired Lilly's gold coin collection.[34]His military miniatures are part of the collections of Cape Cod's Heritage Museums and Gardens inSandwich, Massachusetts;his nautical models are atMystic Seaport,inMystic, Connecticut.[25][35]

Personal life

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Oldfields,Lilly's former home inIndianapolis

Joe married Ruth Marie Brinkmeyer of Indianapolis on October 15, 1914.[6]The couple had two children,Ruth(1915–2009) andJosiah (Joe) III(1916–1995). Lilly's daughter became a philanthropist. His son joined the family business in 1939 and became superintendent of its Kentucky Avenue plant after serving in the military duringWorld War II;however, he resigned from the company in 1948 and did not succeed his father as president. In 1954, after briefly serving as secretary of the Lilly Endowment, Josiah III resigned and moved to New England.[11][24]

In December 1932, Lilly purchasedOldfields,a French chateau-style home with landscaped gardens, from Hugh McKennan Landon, an Indianapolis businessman. Lewis Ketcham Davis designed the home, which was built circa 1909–13; Percival Gallagher, an associate of theOlmsted Brothers,designed its gardens. Lilly and his wife, Ruth, maintained the home as their primary residence. Oldfields and its landscaped grounds were donated to the Art Association of Indianapolis in 1967 and became a part theIndianapolis Museum of Art.[31]

In 1934, Lilly began acquiring additional land along Eagle Creek inMarion County's Pike Township,northwest of downtown Indianapolis, to create Eagle Crest, a private retreat on 3,469 acres (1,404 hectares) of land. The secluded property included an operating farm and timberland, as well as a nature preserve. In 1936 Lilly moved his collection of rare books and manuscripts from his home to the library he had built on the property, which also included a lodge. In 1958, Lilly donated the property toPurdue University.The Indianapolis Department of Parks and Recreation acquired Eagle Crest from the university in 1966 to establishEagle Creek Parkand Nature Preserve.[32][36][37]

In 1955, Lilly acquired the Indianapolis home ofLyman S. Ayres II,the grandson ofLyman S. Ayres,who founded theL. S. Ayres and Companydepartment stores. Ayres had the Colonial-style home on Kessler Boulevard, West Drive, built in 1941. The Lilly family purchase adjoining property to expand the estate, known as Twin Oaks, to 22 acres (8.9 hectares). Lilly's daughter, Ruth, lived there until her death in 2009, and it remains privately owned.[38]He also maintained a summer home, called Red Oaks, atFalmouth, Massachusetts.[39]

References

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  1. ^James H. Madison (1989).Eli Lilly: A Life, 1885–1977.Indianapolis:Indiana Historical Society.p.15.ISBN0-87195-047-2.
  2. ^Madison, pp. 83–84, 119–20.
  3. ^ab"J.K. Lilly Jr".Archived fromthe originalon 2008-10-14.
  4. ^Madison, pp. 5–6, 23, 37, 91, 118–20.
  5. ^ab"Josiah K. Lilly of Drug Concern: Board Chairman Dies at 72—Active in Charities".New York Times.May 6, 1966.
  6. ^abcMadison, p. 37.
  7. ^Madison, pp. 37, 45.
  8. ^Madison, p. 49.
  9. ^Madison, pp. 91–92.
  10. ^Madison, p. 112.
  11. ^abMadison, pp. 118–19.
  12. ^Madison, p. 249.
  13. ^abBodenhamer and Barrows, eds., p. 912.
  14. ^abBradley C. Brooks (2004).Oldfields.Indianapolis Museum of Art.
  15. ^abJames H. Capshew (2012).Herman B Wells: The Promise of the American University.Bloomington and Indianapolis: Indiana University Press and Indiana Historical Society Press. p. 245.ISBN9780253357205.
  16. ^Madison, pp. 206–07.
  17. ^Madison, p. 208.
  18. ^Grolier, or, 'Tis sixty years since: A reconstruction of the exhibit of 100 books famous in English literature, originally held in New York, 1903, on the occasion of the club's visit to the Lilly Library, Indiana University, May 1, 1963.Bloomington, IN: Lilly Library (Indiana University Library, Bloomington). 1963.See also:Joel Silver (1993).J.K. Lilly Jr., Bibliophile.Lilly Library publication. Vol. 52. Bloomington, Indiana: Lilly Library.ISBN1879598132.
  19. ^ab"J.K. Lilly Jr." inJoel Silver (1994).Dictionary of Literary Biography.Vol. 141. Detroit: Gale. pp.125–33.See also: Silver,J.K. Lilly Jr., Bibliophile,pp. 33–35.
  20. ^Capshew, p. 246.
  21. ^abcCapshew, p. 248.
  22. ^abc"Online tour: Foyer".Lilly Library, Indiana University Bloomington. 6 December 2013.RetrievedOctober 28,2016.
  23. ^Bodenhamer and Barrows, eds., p. 912. See digital copy of death certificate in"Indiana, Death Certificates, 1899–2011, for Josiah Kirby Lilly".Ancestry.com.RetrievedNovember 4,2016.(Subscription required)
  24. ^abBruce Weber (December 31, 2009)."Ruth Lilly, Drug Heiress and Poetry Patron, Dies at 94".The New York Times.RetrievedOctober 31,2016.
  25. ^abKaren Rubin (July 20, 2016)."Going Places, Far & Near Heritage Museum & Gardens is World-Class Destination Attraction on Cape Cod".Travel Features Syndicate.RetrievedOctober 31,2016.
  26. ^"Josiah K. Lilly III: His quiet legacy touches thousands on Cape Cod".Archived fromthe originalon 2009-09-16.{{cite journal}}:Cite journal requires|journal=(help)
  27. ^"Lilly family".Indianapolis Monthly.Indianapolis, IN. Archived fromthe originalon 2011-07-13.
  28. ^"World's Biggest Public Companies".Forbes.RetrievedOctober 27,2016.
  29. ^Kelly A. Ivcevich."Lilly Endowment, Inc".Learning to Give.RetrievedOctober 26,2016.
  30. ^"Foundation Stats".Foundation Center.RetrievedOctober 26,2016.
  31. ^abBradley Brooks (Spring 2003). "Oldfields: An American Country Estate".Traces of Indiana and Midwestern History.15(2). Indianapolis: Indiana Historical Society: 34, 37.
  32. ^abRobert M. Taylor Jr.; Errol Wayne Stevens; Mary Ann Ponder; Paul Brockman (1989).Indiana: A New Historical Guide.Indianapolis: Indiana Historical Society. p. 419.ISBN0-87195-048-0.
  33. ^Bodenhamer and Barrows, eds., p. 512.
  34. ^Madison, p. 264.
  35. ^Silver, "J.K. Lilly Jr., Bibliophile," p. 7.
  36. ^David J. Bodenhamer and Robert G. Barrows, ed. (1994).The Encyclopedia of Indianapolis.Bloomington and Indianapolis: Indiana University Press. p. 520.ISBN0-253-31222-1.
  37. ^Brooks, "Oldfields: An American County Estate," p. 38. See also"Eagle Creek Park History"(PDF).Indianapolis Department of Parks and Recreation.RetrievedOctober 27,2016.
  38. ^T. J. Baines (June 14, 2014)."Ruth Lilly's Home Opens to Public for First Time".The Indianapolis Star.RetrievedNovember 4,2016.
  39. ^Josiah Kirby Lilly Jr.; David Anton Randall (1966).Eighty-nine Good Novels of the Sea, The Ship, and The Sailor.Bloomington: Lilly Library, Indiana University.OCLC160462.

Sources

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Further reading

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  • Randall, David (June 27, 1966). "J.K. Lilly, America's Quiet Collector".Antiquarian Bookman.37:2679–81.
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Preceded by President of theEli Lilly and Company
1948–1953 		Succeeded by
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