Walter Rathbone Bacon (February 22, 1845November 14, 1917) was an American capitalist who organised a system of tramways in Europe.New York Times November 15, 1917 Over his career, Bacon acted as director of Imperial Tramways Company, London Street Tramways Company, Corris Railway Company, Bell Punch Company Ltd., Hull Street Tramways Company, North Metropolitan Tramway Company and Belfast Street Tramways Company.Duncan's Manual of British, Foreign and Colonial Tramway, Omnibus & Electric Railway Companies, 1896, pg. 298The Stock Exchange Book For 1883, 1883, pg. 345The Stock Exchange Book For 1883, 1883, pg. 404The Stock Exchange Book For 1883, 1883, pg. 346The Stock Exchange Book For 1883, 1883, pg. 349'The Hamberg, Altona and District Tramway Company, Ltd.' in Truth, Vol 13, London, April 12, 1883, pg. 524
In 1882, in Bordeaux, France, Bacon married Virginia Purdy Barker, the youngest granddaughter of business magnate, Cornelius Vanderbilt.The Standard, Friday March 10, issue 1785 (London: 1882), p. 1. Accessed through 19th Century British Library Newspapers Part II Bacon and his wife spent most of their time abroad, particularly in London and at Netherdale Estate, their Manor house in Turriff, Scotland. However, after the outbreak of World War I travel to Europe became more difficult and the Bacons remained in New York.American Art News, April 12, 1919
Walter, with his brother Edward R. Bacon, a lawyer, acted as president of the Knickerbocker Apartments at 247 Fifth Avenue, where the two lived with Walter's wife.New York Times November 15, 1917 The Elite of New York, Society List and Club' Register, New York, 1915, pg. 17 The Knickerbocker apartments, in William B. Duncan's former mansion, were sold to the newly formed gentlemen's club, the Knickerbocker Club. The Knickerbocker club was formed out of the Union Club of the City of New York, by a group of members exasperated with the admittance of younger, less traditional members.Tom Miller, The Lost 1882 Knickerbocker Apartments, September 3, 2012 Walter was also a member of Racquet and Tennis Club, in New York and The Reform Club, in London.D. K. MacDowell, Commodore Vanderbilt and his Family: A Biographical Account of the Descendants of Cornelius and Sophia Johnson Vanderbilt, 1989, pg. 69
Walter died in his Fifth Avenue apartment on November 14, 1917.New York Times November 15, 1917 In 1911, Virginia established the Walter Rathbone Bacon Fellowship at the Smithsonian Institution in memory of her husband.
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