Thomas Robins (inventor)

Thomas Robins, Jr.
Born	(1868-09-01)September 1, 1868 West Point, New York
Died	November 4, 1957(1957-11-04) (aged 89) Stamford, Connecticut
Education	Princeton University
Known for	Conveyor belt
Spouse(s)	Winifred Hamilton Tucker
Parent(s)	Thomas Robins, Sr.

Thomas Robins, Jr. (September 1, 1868 - November 4, 1957) was an American inventor and manufacturer.^[1]

Biography

He was born in September 1, 1868, in West Point, New York to Thomas Robins, Sr. He attended Princeton University.^[2]

Career

In 1891 he began work on a conveyor belt for carrying coal and ore for Thomas Edison and his Edison Ore-Milling Company in Ogdensburg, New Jersey.^[3] His conveyor belt received the grand prize at the Paris Exposition in 1900, and first prizes at the Pan-American Exposition and Saint Louis Exposition.^[2]

Based on his invention he started the Robins Conveying Belt Company and of the Robins New Conveyor Company (now ThyssenKrupp Robins).^[3] In 1915 he was appointed to the Naval Consulting Board.^[2]

Personal life

On April 26, 1894 he married Winifred Hamilton Tucker (1868-1952)^[4] in Boston, Massachusetts. They lived together at 40 East 66th Street in New York City and had a home in Old Saybrook, Connecticut. Together with his wife, he had:

• Thomas Robins III "Jr" (1897-1977),^[5] who in 1939 married Louisa Winslow Cogswell (1899-1962), an artist.^[6] Her grandparents were Mary Van Rensselaer Cogswell (1839-1871) and Andrew K. Cogswell (1839-1900). After her death, he married Eileen Burden Maynard (1910-1970), daughter of Cynthia Roche (1884–1966) and the granddaughter of James Roche, 3rd Baron Fermoy (1852–1920) and Frances Ellen Work (1857–1947)^[5]
  • Louisa Robins (1920-1992), who married Austin Goodyear (1920-2005) in 1939.^[7] After their divorce, Goodyear married Sara Suleri^[8]
    • Grace Rumsey Goodyear (b. 1941), who in 1962 married Franklin Delano Roosevelt III (b. 1938), grandson of Franklin Delano Roosevelt and Eleanor Roosevelt^[9][10]
      • Phoebe Louisa Roosevelt (b. 1965)
      • Nicholas Martin Roosevelt (b. 1966)
      • Amelia "Amie" Roosevelt (b. 1966)
    • Cullen Goodyear, a noted triathlon athlete^[11]
    • Thomas R. Goodyear, who was married to Barbara Marshall (1946-2007)^[12]
  • Mary Van Rensselaer Robins (1919-2006), who married Dr. Stephen Goodyear (1915-1998),^[13] They divorced in 1963^[14] and in 1964, Mary married Julian McKee (1918-2006)^[5][15]
  • Anne Davis Robins, who married Evan W. Thomas II^[6][16][17] in 1943^[18]
    • Evan Welling Thomas III (b. 1951)
• Samuel Davis Robins, who married Emma Lawrence Jacob^[19] in 1925. She was the daughter of Bartholomew Jacob. One of Robin's groomsen was Frederic W. Lincoln Jr.^[20] Jacob later married Joseph R. Busk^[21] in 1937^[22]
  • Samuel Davis Robins, Jr. (1926-2010)^[19] who was married to Winifred Anne Willis^[23] in 1950^[24] and Ruth R. McCollester,^[21] in 1979; both of whom he divorced. His companion at the time of his death was Mary Hooker Judson^[19]
    • Samuel Davis Robins III^[21]
    • Leah Anne Robins^[21] (b. 1956)^[23]
    • Abigail Cope Robins^[21]

He died on November 4, 1957, at the Nestledown Convalescent Home in Stamford, Connecticut, aged 89.^[1]

References