William Havemeyer was brought to New York under contract to Edmund Seaman to run his sugar bakery on Pine Street.

[4] In 1861, eldest son George W. Havemeyer, age 22, became partner, but died on November 27, 1861, when his clothes were caught in the crank of one of the refinery's large engines.

[citation needed] On Sunday, January 8, 1882, the Havemeyers & Elder refinery was completely destroyed by fire, a loss of $1.5 million.

The late 1870s and 1880s were a time of intense competition in sugar refining, in which the growth of the industry after the Civil War led to overproduction and slim profit margins.

Large refineries, such as Havemeyers & Elder, were producing sugar so efficiently and at such great quantity that supply outstripped demand.

In the face of these harsh conditions, the sugar refiners sought to organize in order to control production and pricing.

On October 27, 1887, after two years of negotiations, an agreement was reached to combine into a "trust," called the Sugar Refineries Company.

Using a small California plant that the Sugar Trust had acquired in 1891, Havemeyer began an aggressive price war to put Spreckels out of business.

In spite of intense competition from Spreckels, the Trust saw profits increase, distributed large dividends, and continued to expand.

Arbuckle coated his beans in a mixture of Irish Moss, Isinglass, Gelatine, Sugar and Eggs to preserve flavor which also enriched the coffee.

Havemeyer bought controlling interest in a coffee business, Woolson Spice Company of Toledo, Ohio, in order to undercut Arbuckle's prices.

After seeking counsel, at his next appearance before the committee, Havemeyer declined to submit his company's books for examination or to answer any further questions.

[24] As a result of the Arbuckle price war, the few independent refineries that were built in the 1890s began to experience financial difficulties.

He did so anonymously, using James H. Post, partner in the independent sugar broker firm B. H. Howell, Son & Company.

[28] Two United States special customs agents, Richard Parr and James O. Brzezinski, tipped off by a disgruntled employee, discovered a concealed spring inserted into the scale which permitted the checker to exert pressure so as to reduce the weight.

The criminal case against the American Sugar Refining Company was brought to federal court in New York in 1908 by District Attorney Henry L. Stimson and Felix Frankfurter, and was won by the government in 1909.

To avoid further litigation and bad publicity, the American Sugar Refining Company agreed to settle the customs fraud case for $2 million in back payment.

He bought carved ivory figures, Japanese lacquered boxes, silk, brocades, and sword guards.

She was most influenced by her close friend Mary Cassatt, who encouraged her to buy works by Edgar Degas and Claude Monet.

In 1889 Havemeyer purchased 90 acres on Palmer Hill Road in Greenwich, Connecticut, on which to build a country home.

A grapery produced Concord grapes, both purple and light green, which won prizes at the Madison Square Garden flower show.

[50] In 1889 the Havemeyers purchased land at the corner of 66th Street and Fifth Avenue and hired architect Charles Coolidge Haight (1841-1917) to design a building for their residence.

These fabric panels adorned the ceiling in Havemeyer's library, which was called the Rembrandt Room as it housed his collection of Dutch paintings.

In the music room, where the Sunday musicales were held, walls were hung with Chinese embroideries and lit by a magnificent Tiffany-designed chandelier, inspired by the wildflower Queen Anne's lace and made of clusters of opalescent blown-glass balls.

Suspended from the ceiling by sparkling chains and fringed with crystal, the stairs floated on a curved piece of cast iron and would tinkle when crossed.

The carriage house and stables were located at 126 East 66th Street, west of Third Avenue, designed in 1895 by Havemeyer's cousin William J. Wallace and S.E.

In 1890 they bought property on St. Mark's Lane in Islip, Long Island, next door to Louisine Havemeyer's sister and brother-in-law, Adaline and Samuel T. Peters.

[56] Havemeyer purchased 500 acres in Commack, Long Island, neighboring the racetrack of Carll S. Burr, who was engaged in breeding and training of trotting horses.

He owned a large stable of trotting horses and established a pheasant shooting preserve on land nearby.

[61] He was at Merrivale Farm with his son Horace for a Thanksgiving visit to shoot pheasant; his wife Louisine remained in New York City to be by her dying mother's bedside.