Occupation Lawyer, Polo player Role International lawyer | Name Devereux Milburn Parents John G. Milburn | |
 | ||
Born September 19, 1881
Buffalo, New York ( 1881-09-19 ) Died August 15, 1942, Westbury, New York, United States | ||
Rebecca rosoff reel for devereux milburn s stayed for
Devereux Milburn (September 19, 1881 – August 15, 1942) was an American champion polo player in the early to mid twentieth century. He was one of what was known as the Big Four in international polo, winning the Westchester Cup six times. His given name has also been alternatively spelled "Devereaux" in some publications.
Contents
Family and early life
Milburn was born September 19, 1881 in Buffalo, New York. He was the son of New York lawyer and politician John George Milburn and Mary Patty Stocking. His father was notably the chairman of the Pan-American Exposition in 1901 when President William McKinley was assassinated. McKinley later died of his injuries in Devereux Milburn's childhood home, but Milburn was not present during the incident. Milburn started at Oxford University in 1903 where he gained a rowing Blue. He was also on the university swimming team, and guided the Oxford University Polo team to victory in successive Varsity matches, winning by a margin of 14 goals on both occasions. Even swimming and playing polo against the same university on one day was no problem for him.
Career
Milburn served during World War I as a major in the field artillery in France. He served as an Aide-de-camp for Major-General James H. McRae at Chatel-Chehery in 1917. He later practiced law at his father's firm Carter Ledyard & Milburn.
Milburn was featured on the cover of TIME Magazine on September 5, 1927 and was referenced in an article on the upcoming polo season in that edition.
Personal life
Milburn married Nancy Gordon Steele, the daughter of Charles Steele a partner in J. P. Morgan and Company, on November 1, 1913. They had two daughters, Katharyn and Nancy, and two sons, Devereux Jr. and John. John was a combat pilot who died in an airplane crash four months after his father on December 2, 1942.
He had a residence in Old Westbury, NY called Sunridge Hall that was built near his in-laws estate. Milburn also maintained a residence at 627 Magnolia St. in Aiken, SC in the gilded age Aiken Winter Colony. The Aiken Winter Colony was at the nexus of the start of polo in the United States and was a primary center for polo in the early 1900s.
Milburn died on August 15, 1942 at the age of 60 of a heart attack while playing golf at the Meadowbrook Polo Club in Westbury, Long Island.
In popular culture
A visit by Milburn's son John and two air force colleagues to the family home on Long Island features in Paul Auster's true story collection, True Tales of American Life. The story first featured on NPR's National Story Project on All Things Considered.