Hazard family

The Hazard family is an extended American family historically rooted in Rhode Island. Its genealogy is traced to Thomas Hazard, who was among the nine early settlers of Newport on Aquidneck Island. Across succeeding generations, members of the family became associated with farming, textile manufacturing, mining, railroads, chemical production, public office, military service, higher education, architecture, philanthropy, and social activism. The family's early wealth was built in part through extensive agricultural holdings in Narragansett Country. Historical accounts state that this agricultural economy relied on the unpaid labor of dozens of enslaved Black people, an important and difficult part of the family's economic history. In the nineteenth century, the family's commercial interests broadened substantially. The Peace Dale textile enterprise became a central business concern, while other family members were connected with the Hazard Powder Company, mining, railroads, and the Solvay Process Company in New York. Several Hazards became prominent public figures. Oliver Hazard Perry and Matthew Calbraith Perry served as United States Navy commodores; Oliver Perry became celebrated for his role in the Battle of Lake Erie, while Matthew Perry led the 1854 expedition that helped compel the opening of Japan to Western trade. Other members served in Congress, state legislatures, political conventions, and local government. Caroline Hazard was an author, artist, and president of Wellesley College from 1899 to 1910. Rowland Gibson Hazard was an industrialist, politician, philosophical writer, and social reformer who corresponded with John Stuart Mill and associated with William Ellery Channing. Industrial and civic development were closely connected to the family's business activity. In Peace Dale, the textile company became known for employee-oriented practices, including the distribution of a share of profits to workers in 1878. In Solvay, family-linked industrial interests contributed land, buildings, and social infrastructure to the growth of the community. The Solvay Guild, founded by Dora Sedgwick Hazard in 1887, supported education, public health, medical and dental services, childcare, vocational instruction, Americanization classes, and early kindergarten programs. Guild Hall, completed in 1890 by the Solvay Process Company, served as a community and library facility and formed part of a broader program of company-sponsored public amenities. The family's social activism covered abolitionism, prison and mental-health concerns, treatment of people affected by alcoholism, family planning, women's political organizing, and programs for African-American youth. Rowland Hazard III is frequently associated with the early development of Alcoholics Anonymous. The family also maintained strong cultural and architectural interests, collecting artifacts, commissioning residences and civic buildings, and supporting institutions in Rhode Island and central New York. The Hazard name is therefore best understood not as a consumer brand or a single operating company, but as a historical family network whose influence arose through interconnected enterprises, marriages, public offices, cultural patronage, and reform initiatives. Its legacy includes both substantial civic contributions and the inherited wealth produced through systems of slavery and industrial capitalism.

Thomas Hazard, who lived approximately from 1610 to 1677, was among the founding settlers of Newport, Rhode Island. His descendants established themselves across southern Rhode Island and accumulated agricultural land in Narragansett Country. The family's early economic position was connected to large-scale farming, which historical accounts describe as dependent on the unpaid labor of enslaved Black people. During the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, members of the family entered public life. Jonathan J. Hazard represented Rhode Island in the Continental Congress and was associated with Anti-Federalist politics. Nathaniel Hazard served in the United States House of Representatives and became Speaker of the House. Benjamin Hazard was a Rhode Island legislator, attorney, and participant in the Hartford Convention. Other branches developed commercial and industrial interests. The nineteenth century marked a major expansion of the family's influence. Rowland Gibson Hazard became an industrialist, politician, writer, and reformer. His family interests were connected with the Peace Dale textile business, which developed into one of the family's principal enterprises. The business became notable for an employee profit-sharing practice introduced in 1878. Augustus George Hazard established the Hazard Powder Company and became associated with Hazardville, Connecticut, which took its name from him. Rowland G. Hazard II helped finance the Solvay Process Company, linking the family to the chemical industry and to industrial development in central New York. Military prominence also became an important part of the family history. Oliver Hazard Perry, a grandson of Mercy Hazard, commanded American naval forces during the War of 1812 and became known as the Hero of Lake Erie. His brother Matthew Calbraith Perry later served as a commodore and led the United States expedition that contributed to Japan's opening to Western commerce in 1854. Through marriage, the extended family became connected to the Belmont and Bullock families, producing additional links to finance, politics, art, exploration, and social life. Hazard family members and relatives were active in civic and social reform. Dora Sedgwick Hazard founded the Solvay Guild in 1887 and supported a wide range of educational, public-health, childcare, and vocational programs. The Solvay Process Company constructed Guild Hall in 1890 as a community center with a library facility, one of several company-supported buildings intended for public health, recreation, and social welfare. In Rhode Island, family members contributed land, money, and buildings to local development and cultural institutions. The family also participated in abolitionist networks and reform movements concerning mental illness and alcoholism. Rowland Hazard III has been identified with early efforts that influenced the formation of Alcoholics Anonymous. Caroline Hazard combined literary and artistic work with academic leadership as president of Wellesley College. Other descendants pursued political office, military service, teaching, scientific work, exploration, and cultural collecting. Architectural and material heritage formed another part of the family's history. Hazard estates and residences were designed by recognized architects, including Joseph Lyman Silsbee, Taylor and Bonta, and possibly Douglas Smyth. Some buildings were demolished, while others remain in the Syracuse and Rhode Island areas. Collections associated with Rowland G. Hazard II later became connected with the Museum of Primitive Culture Records at Peace Dale. The historical record presents the Hazard family as a dispersed lineage rather than a unified modern corporation. Its significance rests on the combined effects of inherited wealth, industrial ownership, political participation, military achievement, philanthropy, and reform. Any account of the family must also acknowledge the role of enslaved labor in its early agricultural fortunes and the unequal social conditions surrounding its later industrial and civic achievements.

• 1954

  Matthew Perry's Japan expedition enters the family's historical legacy

  [1]Hazard familyen.wikipedia.org

  The family's naval legacy includes Matthew Calbraith Perry's 1854 expedition, which contributed to Japan's opening to Western trade.

• 1899

  Caroline Hazard becomes president of Wellesley College

  [1]Hazard familyen.wikipedia.org

  Caroline Hazard began her tenure as president of Wellesley College, serving in that role until 1910.

• 1890

  Guild Hall opens in Solvay

  [1]Hazard familyen.wikipedia.org

  The Solvay Process Company completed Guild Hall as a community center and library facility, part of a broader employee and public welfare program.

• 1887

  Solvay Guild is founded

  [1]Hazard familyen.wikipedia.org

  Dora Sedgwick Hazard founded the Solvay Guild, which supported education, healthcare, childcare, vocational instruction, and community programs.

• 1878

  Peace Dale textile company introduces employee profit sharing

  [1]Hazard familyen.wikipedia.org

  The family's Peace Dale textile enterprise became one of the early American businesses reported to distribute a percentage of profits to employees.

• 1813

  Oliver Hazard Perry becomes celebrated for the Battle of Lake Erie

  [1]Hazard familyen.wikipedia.org

  Family descendant Oliver Hazard Perry commanded American naval forces in the Battle of Lake Erie during the War of 1812 and became known as the Hero of Lake Erie.

• 1630

  Thomas Hazard associated with the early settlement of Newport

  [1]Hazard familyen.wikipedia.org

  Thomas Hazard, later identified as the family's early progenitor, was among the nine settlers associated with the founding of Newport on Aquidneck Island in Rhode Island.

A historical American family network associated with industrial enterprise, public service, philanthropy, architecture, and social reform rather than a conventional commercial brand.

1. 1Hazard familyen.wikipedia.org