Keyserling family papers - Part II

Born in Lithuania, William Keyserling (1869-1951) immigrated in 1888 to the United States and settled in Beaufort, South Carolina. He established himself with the Macdonald, Wilkins Co., a cotton ginnery and wholesale warehouse located on St. Helena Island, advancing from cotton gin machinist to business partner. In 1907 Keyserling married New Yorker Jennie Hyman (1881-1935). The couple initially lived on St. Helena Island but later moved to Beaufort where Jennie was active in the town's civic affairs, becoming a member of the Parent Teacher Association, the Civic League, and the Clover Club, a women's literary and social group. The Keyserlings had four children: Leon Keyserling (1908-1987), Beth Keyserling Rosenfarb (1909-1978), Rosalyn Keyserling Schreiber (1910-1944), and Herbert Keyserling (1915-2000).

Leon Keyserling attended Columbia University and Harvard Law School. He worked as Senator Robert F. Wagner's chief legislative aide from1933 to 1937 and helped draft major New Deal legislation. From 1946 to 1953 he served on President Truman's Council of Economic Advisors and became its chairman. After leaving government service in 1953, Keyserling practiced as a lawyer and private consulting economist, working with various national organizations, governments, firms, and individuals. In 1971 Keyserling retired to devote his time as president and director of the Conference on Economic Progress (CEP), a nonprofit research organization dealing with U.S. economic development and national economic policies.

Herbert Keyserling attended the College of Charleston and the Medical College of South Carolina. From 1941 to 1946 he served as a medical officer in the U.S. Navy Medical Corps attached to the First Marine Division, participating in several landings and battles during World War II, including the landing on Guadalcanal, the first major U.S. offensive in the Pacific. Upon his discharge he returned to Beaufort, opening his own private practice and joining the Beaufort Memorial Hospital as a member of the medical staff, becoming chief of staff shortly thereafter. In 1996 he retired after fifty years of practice but remained on Beaufort Memorial Hospital's emeritus staff until his death in 2000. In 1944 Herbert married native New Yorker, Harriet Hirschfeld (1922-2010). A graduate of Barnard College she was the first woman to serve on the Beaufort County Council and a sixteen-year member of the South Carolina House of Representatives, representing House District 124. She was a leader in promoting better public education and enhanced cultural opportunities in South Carolina. The couple had four children: Judith Keyserling (1946-2012), Billy Keyserling (1948- ), Beth Keyserling Kramer (1952- ), and Paul Keyserling (1952- ).

Judith Keyserling worked in marketing, public relations, and fundraising. She was director of marketing and public relations for The Washington Ballet, vice president of marketing and public relations at the Milwaukee Symphony, and executive vice president of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund. In 2006 she founded her own marketing firm, Keyserling+associates, with offices in Beaufort and Washington, D.C.

Billy Keyserling worked in Washington, D.C. as a legislative and administrative assistant in the United States House and Senate. He was an assistant to South Carolina Representative John Jenrette Jr. and to Senator Fritz Hollings; he directed Hollings presidential campaign in 1984. In 1989 he returned to Beaufort and shortly thereafter was elected to the South Carolina House of Representatives where he served for two terms before serving one term on Beaufort City Council. In 2008 he was elected mayor of Beaufort.

Beth Keyserling Kramer is a licensed marriage and family therapist and a licensed professional counselor in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina.

Paul Keyserling is a filmmaker, photographer, and independent media production professional based in Beaufort, South Carolina.