Early Life and Work Louis Meredith Howland was born in Paris in 1855, the son of William Edgar Howland and the French-born Louise-Marie Delaroche-La Perrière. Louis Meredth was descended from John Howland, a passenger on the Mayflower. His early years were divided between France and New York, where the Howlands had established themselves as a prominent mercantile family in the shipping firm of Howland & Aspinwall, founded in 1808. Educated in France and Germany, Louis completed his studies at St. John’s Military Academy in Sing Sing, New York.

International Work

He joined the family business, entering the shipping and commission house of Howland & Aspinwall, where he represented the firm’s international interests. His cosmopolitan background made him a natural choice for public service: in 1893 he was appointed General Commissioner for the Exhibit of the State of New York at the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago, where he famously defended the state’s pavilion from enthusiastic autograph-seekers. Later, he was posted to Paris to assist the American commissioner in customs and exhibition matters, combining his commercial expertise with diplomatic tact.

Family Life

Louis’s personal life was more complicated. His marriage to Virginia Lee Lawrence united two powerful old families but ended in divorce after a few years; she died young, leaving three daughters. He later married the violinist Leonora von Stosch, later known as Leonora Speyer, and had two more children before they separated. His final marriage was to Eugénie d’Aumont, a member of the French aristocracy. Louis spent his later years mainly in France and died at La Perrière in 1921.

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