Name Frank Gould Children Dorothy Gould Burns | Parents Jay Gould Siblings George Jay Gould I | |
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Born December 4, 1877 ( 1877-12-04 ) Relatives George Jay Gould I, brotherEdwin Gould I, brotherHelen Miller Gould, sisterAnna Gould, sister Spouse Florence La Caze (m. 1923), Edith Kelly (m. 1910) Similar People Jay Gould, Edwin Gould I, George Jay Gould I, Anna Gould, Helen Miller Shepard | ||
Frank Jay Gould (December 4, 1877 – April 1, 1956) was a philanthropist and the son of financier Jay Gould. He was the owner of French Riviera casinos and hotels.
Biography
He was born on December 4, 1877 to Jay Gould and Helen Day Miller (1838–1889)
On December 1, 1901 he married Helen Margaret Kelly and had two daughters, Helen Gould and Dorothy Gould (1904–1969). They divorced in 1908. The Wichita Daily Times, Wichita Falls, Texas, wrote: "Frank Jay Gould and his wife who was Helen Margaret Kelly have separated and it is said Mrs. Gould has brought action looking for a legal separation. Jealousy on the part of Mr. Gould, due, it is said, to the homage paid Mrs. Gould, who is a beautiful woman, by other men."
Gould's second wife was Edith Kelly, whom he married in 1910. Edith was the sister of Hetty Kelly, who was Charlie Chaplin's first true love. Gould's third wife was Florence La Caze (1895–1983). Together they collected impressionist artwork.,
In 1909, he founded the "Virginia Railway and Power Company" in Richmond, Virginia. The company would be renamed "Virginia Electric and Power Company", and known widely by its acronym (VEPCO) in 1925. The company became "Virginia Power" in the 1980s and operates today under the name Dominion Resources, serving Virginia, North Carolina with electric power and half a dozen other Middle Atlantic states providing natural gas services.
He moved to France and developed several casinos and hotels at the French Riviera. He made a great contribution in the development of multiple spa towns like Granville, Bagnoles-de-l'Orne and Juan-les-Pins. In 1926 he opened the famous Hotel "Le Provencal" in Juan-les-Pins.
He died on April 1, 1956 in Juan-les-Pins. The history of his investments in France is described in the documentary film "Hotel Provencal" (2000), by German filmmaker Lutz Hachmeister.