Woodrow Wilson Sayre (1919 - 2002)

Born 22 Feb 1919 in Philadelphia, Philadelphia Co, Pennsylvania

Ancestors

Husband of Edith Warren (Chase) Sayre — married 16 May 1942 (to 21 Mar 1985) in Milton, Norfolk Co, Massachusetts

Descendants

Died 16 Sep 2002 at age 83 in Tisbury, Martha's Vineyard, Dukes Co, Massachusetts

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Biography

Professor of Philosophy at Tufts University 1957-1964, and at Springfield College, Mass. from 1965. Led first American expedition to the north face of Mount Everest, 1962. He was the grandson of President Woodrow Wilson.

He was born 22 February 1919 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the son of Francis Sayre and Jessie Wilson.^[1]

He attended St. Albans School in Washington, D.C., and was a graduate of Williams College, class of 1940. He was a member of Phi Beta Kappa and Sigma Phi. He earned master's and doctorate degrees from Harvard University.

He married Edith Warren Chase 16 May 1942 In Milton, Massachusetts. She was a graduate of Milton Academy and Smith College, class of 1940 and a member of the Junior League.^[2][3][4]

Woodrow served in the United States Army during World War II, with military service beginning 22 June 1942 in Boston, Massachusetts.^[5] "Wilson Grandson is in Army: Miami Beach, Fla., July 15, (AP)--Woodrow Wilson Sayre, 23, grandson of the first World War President and son of Francis B. Sayre, Commissioner to the Philippines, is a private in the Army here. He is receiving preliminary training preparatory to becoming a link flight trainer instructor."^[6]

In 1952, Woodrow was the Democratic candidate for the 25th congressional district in Covina, California, previously held by Richard Nixon, he lost to the republican candidate.^[7]

In 1964, Woodrow was embroiled in a well-publicized controversy when Tufts University denied him tenure because he had filed to publish enough scholarly works. He appealed the decision, but was denied. Students protested his dismissal, and he later wrote an article "Publish or Perish," in which he discussed the practice of denying tenure to professors who, though they might be excellent teachers, were not able to publish scholarly articles.^[8]

He was married to Patricia Ann Faust sometime in the late 1980s. Woodrow's obituary doesn't list her as a surviving spouse; however, the obit lists Patricia's children as Woodrow's stepchildren. She survived Woodrow by ten years, and she died 4 October 2012.^[9] In her obituary, Woodrow was listed as a deceased spouse and her two children, the same children as are mentioned in Woodrow's obituary, are mentioned in Patricia's obituary as survivors.

He died 16 September 2002 at Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts.^[10]

Obituary:^[11]

Woodrow W. Sayre Was Adventurous Climber, Thinker

"Philosophy professor and mountain climber Woodrow Wilson Sayre died at his home in Vineyard Haven, on Sept. 16. He was 83."

"A Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Williams College, Dr. Sayre served in the United States Air Force from 1942 to 1947 before earning his master's and doctorate degrees from Harvard University. He was then a professor of philosophy at Pomona College in California, at Tufts University in Medford, and at Springfield College in Springfield."

"A maverick in mind, spirit, and heart, Dr. Sayre led a four-man, privately-financed expedition to Mount Everest in 1962. Only 12 attempts on the peak had been made to that point, all of them using bottled oxygen, which Sayre and his team did not use. Though accidents and bad weather stopped the team short of the summit, Sayre himself reached an altitude of 25,500 feet. His book, Four Against Everest, helped popularize climbing by describing its beauties and exhilarations, and dramatizing its unequalled opportunities for both solitude and companionship. Immortal friendships are formed, he wrote, "when you have walked the feather edge of danger with someone, when you have held his life at the end of a rope. The deepest friendships spring from sharing danger as well as safety, failure as well as success.""

"A beloved presence on Martha's Vineyard for many decades, Woodrow Sayre was a master of chess, Scrabble, sailing, crossword puzzles, and duplicate bridge. He served on the Tisbury finance committee, and was a stirring performer in many Island dramatic events."

"He was the son of Francis B. Sayre, former commissioner to the Philippines, and of Jessie Wilson Sayre, daughter of President Woodrow Wilson. He is survived by his daughters, Jennifer Sayre of Martha's Vineyard and Martha Sayre Caliri of Braintree; his granddaughter, Mollie Caliri; his stepchildren, Elizabeth Badaracco of Framingham and Jeffrey Sayre of Martha's Vineyard, and his brother, Francis B. Sayre, Jr., retired dean of the Episcopal National Cathedral in Washington, D.C."

"Woodrow Sayre's life was one of intellectual, spiritual and physical adventure. "Mere security is a barren ideal," he wrote. "It is more exciting to discover new lands, and to think what may be just over the next ridge.""

Sources

1. ↑ Philadelphia, Feb. 23 -- "A son was born to Mrs. Francis B. Sayre, daughter of President Wilson, at the Jefferson Hospital here today. Mother and child are doing well. Mrs. Sayre's first child, Francis B. Sayre, Jr., was born in the White House on Jan. 17, 1915. The second, Eleanor Axson Wilson Sayre, was born at Jefferson Hospital, March 26, 1916." The New York Times, February 24, 1919.
2. ↑ The New York Times, Sunday, March 22, 1942.
3. ↑ Woodrow Wilson Sayre Engaged to Wed Edith W. Chase. President Wilson's Grandson, Son of Philippines Official, to Marry Alumna of Smith Special to the New York Times. MILTON, Mass., March 21--Mr. and Mrs. Frederick Chase of this place have announced the engagement of their daughter, Miss Edith Warren Chase, to Woodrow Wilson Sayre, son of Francis Bowes Sayre, United States High Commissioner of the Philippines, and the late Mrs. Jessie Woodrow Sayre. The bridegroom-elect's father, who had been in the Philippines since the surprise Japanese attack on Dec. 7, arrived early this week in Honolulu en route to Washington. Miss Chase is the granddaughter of the late Mr. and Mrs. H. Clifford Gallagher of Milton, and the late Judge and Mrs. Frederick Chase of Hanover, N. H. She was graduated from Milton Academy and in 1940 from Smith College. The prospective bride, who made her debut in the season of 1936-37, is a member of the Junior League. She is associated with the Family Welfare Society in Cambridge. Mr. Sayre is a grandson of the late President Wilson, and the late Mrs. Ellen Louise Axson Wilson, and of the late Mr. and Mrs. Robert Haysham Sayre of Bethlehem, Pa. He was graduated from the St. Albans School in Washington, D. C., and in 1940 from Williams College, where he was a member of Phi Beta Kappa Society. He is now engaged in graduate study in philosophy at Harvard. Plans are being made for a June wedding.
4. ↑ Patriot Ledger, Monday, May 18, 1942, Quincy, MA, page 9.
5. ↑ "United States World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KMNG-KT1 : 5 December 2014), Woodrow W Sayre, enlisted 22 Jun 1942, Boston, Massachusetts, United States; citing "Electronic Army Serial Number Merged File, ca. 1938-1946," database, The National Archives: Access to Archival Databases (AAD) (http://aad.archives.gov : National Archives and Records Administration, 2002); NARA NAID 1263923, National Archives at College Park, Maryland.
6. ↑ The New York Times, Thursday, July 16, 1942.
7. ↑ Covina Argus (Covina, California) 30 May 1952, Fri, Page 11
8. ↑ Boston Record American, Saturday, April 4, 1964, Boston, MA, page 3.
9. ↑ Patricia Faust Sayre Obituary 13 October 2012, Martha's Vineyard Times.
10. ↑ Woodrow Sayre's death record listed "Patricia Faust" as his spouse at the time of his death."Massachusetts Death Index, 1970-2003", database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VZBZ-RGQ : 13 June 2019), Woodrow Wilson Sayre, 2002.
11. ↑ Woodrow Sayre Obituary: Vineyard Gazette Online, Archived Edition: Friday, September 27, 2002.