Thomas Warren Field

(Born: 1820 - Died: November 25, 1881)

American educator, botanist, historian and poet. He was born in Onondaga Hill. He was married four times and had two sons and two daughters, at least two of whom were adults by 1881. His first wife was Charlotte E. Weir. After her death, on December 25, 1858, he married Helen Tuttle, who died in a railroad accident a few hours after of their marriage. (Field sued for damages but was denied on the grounds that the marriage had not been consumated.) His third marriage, to Emiline Van Siclen, ended in divorce in 1874 when he caught her having an affair with the editor of the Brooklyn Daily Eagle. (She subsequently married the editor, Thomas Kinsella, who divorced his then wife to do so.) He married his fourth wife, Alice E. Martin, on December 29, 1875. (The Sacramento Daily Union for January 26, 1876 has a brief item about the marriage, and notes “All of his wives have been marvellously beautiful.” About 1843, he moved to Williamsburgh, NY. In 1873, he became the Superintendent of Public Schools for New York, a position he retained until his death. A substantial portion of his library was sold at auction in 1875, forced by financial problems.