William T. Golden

William T. Golden, known to most people as a financier, philanthropist, and, in the words of the New York Times, “a main architect of American science policy in the 20th century,” died October 7, 2007.

“The idea was to make a lot of money on Wall Street and then do interesting things,” the Times quotes him as saying. His biography indicates that he lived that idea. Mr. Golden served on more than 100 boards during his lifetime, including chairing the American Museum of Natural History and founding Mount Sinai Hospital. He was responsible for the idea of a science adviser to the United States President, a position created by President Truman and which continues to this day.

Hikers owe much to Mr. Golden’s generosity and his love for hiking and other outdoor activities. In 1989 he bought Black Rock Forest from Harvard University, which had put the forest up for sale. He later turned it over to a consortium—the Black Rock Forest Consortium, of which the Trail Conference is a member—for preservation, public access, and research. Bill, as he preferred to be called, and the Golden Family Foundation were major supporters of the Land Acquisition & Stewardship Fund, which facilitated critical purchases of open space that protected the Shawangunk Ridge Trail.

“Bill Golden will long be remembered as a generous donor to the New York-New Jersey Trail Conference,” says former TC Chairman H. Neil Zimmerman. “He was recipient of our highest award, the Torrey, a protector of the Catskills, and absolutely the person most responsible for saving Black Rock Forest.  I will certainly miss him.”

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