Frederick T. Bonham History Page

Frederick entered the Class of 1909 at the University of Tennessee Law School and eventually became business manager and associate publisher of the Knoxville Journal-Tribune. During his years in Knoxville, he was active in civic and social affairs. He was an organizer of the Knox County Red Cross and a charter member of the Cherokee Country Club.

In 1928, Frederick accepted a call from Adolph Ochs, the Tennessean who founded the New York Times, to come work for the newspaper as personnel director. Although he had left Tennessee, Frederick never forgot his Knoxville roots. He was very active in the Tennessee Society, a group of Tennesseans who lived in New York and socialized together.

In 1933 Frederick married Valerie Knapp Langeloth, of the prominent Knapp family of Long Island. Her first husband, John Jacob Langeloth, had died 19 years earlier leaving her an enormous fortune. Part of it was endowed for Valeria Home, a rest and recreation center in Westchester County, New York, for working people who could not afford the expense of a holiday away from home. After Valerie's death in 1952, Frederick sold their mansion on Long Island Sound and moved into the Plaza Hotel in New York City, where he remained for the rest of his life, and took over the role of chairman of the board of Valeria Home.

Dr. Andy Holt, before he became UT president, visited Frederick in New York. The visit gave him an idea that would affect many students at The University of Tennessee. Frederick established two scholarships immediately, the Bonham Journalism Scholarship and the Amanda Minnis Bonham in Journalism in memory of his mother. Both scholarships are awarded annually to Tennessee high school graduates.

He also established the F.T. Bonham Foundation. According to his wishes at the time of his death in 1958, the foundation generated income for members of his family (mainly to pay for their education) for twenty years. In 1978, all the property of the F.T. Bonham Foundation was transferred to The University of Tennessee to establish the Frederick T. Bonham Scholarship Endowment. The endowment is currently valued at more than $1.2 million.

The Frederick T. Bonham Scholarship has three categories of awards that support undergraduate and graduate students campus wide.

Four-year awards of $4,000 each go to approximately 16 students each year.

Scholarships for students in the College of Law range from $200 to $6,000 each.

One year scholarships awarded in variable amounts.

Frederick also donated many pieces of their art collection to the McClung Museum. Among those pieces is the by Harriet Whitney Frishmuth called "The Vine."