Commodore Frederick Gilbert Bourne (December 20, 1851 – March 9, 1919) His older sister was Clara Bourne, who married John Loring Whitman.
His paternal grandparents were Benjamin Bourne and Mary (née Hatch) Bourne, herself the daughter of Joshua Hatch, a soldier during the American Revolutionary War who was killed near Crown Point after the evacuation of Fort Ticonderoga in 1777.
Throughout his childhood, Bourne was fond of mechanical work, history, science, and adventure. He was an avid reader, and had a "veracious thirst for knowledge". By age 11, he was also a member of the choir at Holy Trinity Church.
Bourne was educated at public schools in New York before joining the work force at age fourteen. Clark frequently traveled abroad, often to Norway to visit the singer Lorentz Severin Skougaard (with whom he had a relationship despite his marriage to Elizabeth Scriven), and in his place, Clark sent Bourne to Singer board meetings. While president, Bourne also oversaw the construction of the company's headquarters, known as the Singer Building.
Bourne greatly expanded global production as well as international sales of the Singer sewing machine. Bourne was revolutionary to the sewing machine industry. He used the "installment plan" to make sewing machines a household item. Bourne is also remembered "among the most important innovators in building vertically integrated firms". In 1905, and after sixteen years as president, Bourne retired and was succeeded by Douglas Alexander, who served as president for the next forty-four years. Alexander was created a baronet in the 1921 Birthday Honours for his services to the welfare of industrial workers.
Residences
Bourne owned several homes and estates. He maintained an apartment at The Dakota in New York City, which occupied the entire first floor; he owned a 2,000-acre (4 km<sup>2</sup>) country estate named Indian Neck Hall in Oakdale on Long Island next to Idle Hour, the estate of William Kissam Vanderbilt; he owned a 375-acre farm near Montauk, New York, which he used as an undeveloped hunting preserve; an apartment on Jekyll Island, Georgia; and the 7-acre Dark Island in the Thousand Islands in the St. Lawrence River.
Personal life
On February 9, 1875, he was married to Emma Sparks Keeler (1855–1916), the daughter of James Rufus Keeler and Mary Louise (née Davidson) Keeler.
- Frederick Gilbert Bourne Jr (1876–1884).
- Arthur Keeler Bourne (1877–1967), who married Edith Hollins; their son: Arthur Keeler Bourne (1899-1974); divorced. Married Emily Miller, with whom he had three children.
- Louisa D. Bourne (1879–), who died in infancy.
- May Miller Bourne (1881–1975), who married Ralph B. Strassburger, a Pennsylvania businessman and prominent thoroughbred racehorse owner and breeder who owned Haras des Monceaux Thoroughbred horse farm at Lisieux in Lower Normandy, France.
- Marion Bourne (1882–1969), who married Robert George Elbert.
- Alfred Severin Bourne (1883–1956), who married Hattie Louise Barnes.
- Helen Bourne (1884–1887), who died in infancy.
- Florence Bourne (1886–1969), who married Anson Wales Hard (1884-1935). They divorced in 1932 after having seven children.
- George Gault Bourne (1888–1964), who married Nancy Atterbury Potter, a granddaughter of Bishop Alonzo Potter.
- Marjorie Bourne (1890–1962), who married Alexander Dallas Thayer (1888-1968).
- Kenneth Bourne (1891–1898), who died in childhood.
- Howard Davidson Bourne (1893–1918), who died aged 25.
A sailing enthusiast, Bourne served as a Commodore of the New York Yacht Club. He was also a member of the famous Jekyll Island Club (aka The Millionaires Club) on Jekyll Island, Georgia. Bourne owned many boats that he frequently used in New York City and at his summer home in the Thousand Islands. He died one of the wealthiest men in America, leaving an estate valued at $25,000,000.