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Edward Carter Who the Hell is Edward Carter
'As the creator of The Point, one of the most extraordinary small hotels in the world; former International Delegate of Relais et Châteaux for the United States, Bermuda, the Caribbean and Mexico; and the creator and author of his famous travel monthly, Dr. Carter is respected internationally as an arbiter of style and taste.' See other comments from friends and the press at the end of this piece. Carter was born in suburban Mt. Kisco, New York, the thirteenth great-grandson of Governor William Bradford who came over on the Mayflower and became the first governor of the colonies (and who “created” Thanksgiving Day).
In his youth, Carter's family divided most of their time between their Westchester home and the family's summer residence in the Adirondacks Mountains. Carter atttended Hotchkiss, one of America's most prestigeous prep schools, but, putting photography ahead of his studies, he was kicked out and returned home to graduate from Horace Greeley High School. He then joined the Army, and ended up serving much of his tour of duty on the island of Okinawa, Japan. He stayed on in Okinawa after his military stint to produce what became the first (and last) Okinawa Grand Prix, which boasted over 60 competitors and 250,000 spectators.
The Grand Prix caught the eye of mutual funds guru Bernie Cornfeld who quickly recruited Carter into the ranks of Investors Overseas Services (I.O.S.). Carter went on to break all company records for selling New York's Dreyfus Fund, and soon found himself setting up shop for I.O.S. in places like Malta, Ireland and London, where he helped create and led International Life Insurance (U.K.), Ltd., the inventor of what is today known as Universal Life Insurance.
While in London, Carter received a B.S. in photography and later went on to earn a M.S. and a Ph.D. (summa cum laude) in hospitality and tourism management. After the collapse of I.O.S. in 1970, Carter turned his sights to shipping container leasing and within three years, his Carter Containers, S.A. would become the fastest-growing company in the industry.
All told, Carter lived in and worked in over 31 countries. But it was in 1978 that Carter made a seemingly offhanded purchase that would forever change his life. He bought William Avery Rockefeller's Camp Wonundra, the last of the privately owned “Great Camps of the Adirondacks.” Re-christening it The Point, Carter transformed the run-down estate into one of the most celebrated resorts in the world. Its honors have been numerous - four years in a row it was The Hideaway Report's “Hideaway of the Year,” one of Rene Lecler's 300 Best Hotels in the World, and one of the first American members of France's prestigious Relais et Châteaux. Carter was the head of Relais et Châteaux for much of the Western Hemisphere.
After selling The Point, Carter re-established his home in Europe. There, he consulted to international hotels and airlines, and published his much-lauded private monthly, Edward Carter's TRAVELS© which was seat-pocketed on all British Airways first class sections.
Please email me your travel tales, "postcards," and questions. I'll publish the most interesting, appropriate or outrageous in Correspondence - All the best, Ted (short for Edward)
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| copyright © 2006, EDWARD CARTER |