In nearly a half century of foxhunting, I have never seen a more handsome, elegant, and classically turned-out man astride a horse in the hunting field than Harcourt Lees. Nor did I ever meet a kinder or more pleasant gentleman in the hunting field. For me, he epitomized the grace and courtliness of a bygone age. It was an honor to know him, and I shall never forget him. What follows is the obituary of this sportsman/businessman/civic leader as released. -Ed.
With the passing of Douglas Harcourt Lees Jr. on July 21, Warrenton and Fauquier County, Virginia lost not only a respected businessman and sportsman but also a living link to a simpler time of grace and civility. Mr. Lees, 91, suffered a stroke on July 9 and was hospitalized briefly before returning to “Blackrock,” the Lees’ family home on Springs Road.
Mr. Lees was born in Warrenton on Oct. 14, 1921, the son of Douglas Harcourt Lees Sr. (1884-1958) and Mary Frances Stone Lees (1890-1985), but his roots in Warrenton ran deeper. His grandfather, Sir Harcourt J. Lees (1848-1917) was chosen as an associate and soon after as an incorporator of the Fauquier Club, founded in 1902.
Growing up at “Blackrock,” Mr. Lees became interested at an early age in horses and riding, attending his first Virginia Gold Cup Race in 1931 and first Maryland Hunt Cup Race in 1935, rarely ever missing a race. He followed horseracing and enjoyed foxhunting, becoming a legend in the hunt field riding a number of ex-steeplechase horses and accomplished Thoroughbreds, including William L. Rochester’s Appollon, Mrs. Juan Ceballos’ Frozen Slave and Alfred Hunt’s Manchu Prince.
Mr. Lees served as Master of Foxhounds (MFH) of the Warrenton Hunt from 1968 to 1971 and as a Joint-Master with Mrs. J. H. Tyler Wilson from 1971 until 1978. Mrs. Maximilian A. Tufts joined Mr. Lees and Mrs. Wilson as Joint-MFHs from 1978 to 1981.
Mr. Lees organized joint meets with hunts of Benjamin Hardaway’s Midland Fox Hounds (GA), Wilbur Hubbard’s Kent County Hounds, Green Spring Valley and Elkridge-Harford hunts in Maryland. In November 1979, Mr. Lees organized a joint meet with Elkridge-Harford Hunt at New Covert near Madonna, Maryland for nineteen members of the Warrenton Hunt.
“Harcourt was one of my heroes—a true, old fashioned Southern gentleman,” noted H. Turney McKnight, ex-MFH of the Elkridge-Harford Hunt.
Over the years, Mr. Lees was always a welcome guest at local hunt meets, continuing to foxhunt, often with the Orange County Hounds, until he was eighty. “My father’s last hunt was on December 1, 2001, with Orange County at MFH James L. Young’s Old Denton,” recalled Douglas Lees. “Following that hunt, he attended a funeral and that night went to the PEC Ball.”
“His gallantry was as much a part of his persona as was the twinkle in his eye,” said Kimbrough Nash, current MFH of the Warrenton Hunt. “I had the privilege of riding with him at many different hunts, and no matter the country, the challenges or the quality of the day, Harcourt never flagged in his enthusiasm for the sport that he loved his whole long life. That zeal, which was burnished by his impeccable manners, inspired each of us to sit a little straighter in the saddle.”
Mr. Lees’ involvement with the Virginia Gold Cup Races that started as a boy continued throughout his adulthood, and in 2003 he was awarded the Virginia Gold Cup Medal by Race Chairman and former Warrenton Hunt MFH Dr. William H. Allison for serving for more than fifty years on the VGC executive committee.
“Harcourt Lees was one of the noble sons of Virginia. All who knew him considered him the quintessential gentleman,” recalled Dr. Allison.
Business and Professional Life
After graduating from Episcopal High School in Alexandria, Virginia, Mr. Lees went to work for the Fauquier National Bank (now called The Fauquier Bank). Before the United States entered World War II, Mr. Lees joined the Warrenton Rifles (Company 111 of the 11th Battalion, Virginia Protective Force), a state-authorized military organization tasked with providing home-defense training and security.
Like most of the young men in the VPF, Mr. Lees later served in the regular U.S. Armed Forces. During World War II, he was a sergeant in the 530th Ordinance Tank Maintenance Company, stationed in England, France and Germany. Returning to Warrenton in 1946 after his discharge from the Army, Mr. Lees joined his father at D. H. Lees and Company, an insurance and real estate business located in the circa 1867 Rice Payne building at the corner of Hotel and Culpeper streets.
In 1948, he married Eleanor “Scottie” Torrence Thomson, who also had deep roots in Warrenton on her mother’s side through the Ranlett and Semmes families. The couple enjoyed foxhunting together, as well as raising generations of West Highland White Terriers, which became a family trademark. Their son, Douglas H. Lees III, was born in 1950.
In a business career spanning more than sixty years, Mr. Lees made his mark in the community. He served as a director of the Fauquier National Bank for more than fifty years, as a member of the Warrenton Rotary Club for more than fifty years and its president, and as a member of the Fauquier Club for more than fifty years, serving as president from 1967-69. He was also a long-time member and president of the Fauquier Board of Realtors.
C. Hunton Tiffany, former president of The Fauquier Bank, had a long association with Mr. Lees. “Harcourt was that rare individual who was revered by all who knew him,” recalled Mr. Tiffany recently. “He unaffectedly valued and respected people from all walks of life, as they did him. He contributed in no small measure to the prosperity of The Fauquier Bank during his decades of service on the board, and his business and professional experience provided wise counsel and direction. Harcourt Lees was a man of integrity, virtuous character and great humor, who has lived a life greatly to be admired.”
In addition to his professional affiliations, in 1964 Mr. Lees was one of the founding directors of the Fauquier Historical Society and in 1971 was one of the original incorporators of the Warrenton Improvement League. The work of both organizations—the preservation of historic properties and “…protecting and promoting the traditions, character, quality of life and related values of the Town of Warrenton”—were always among Mr. Lees’ top civic priorities.
In 1980, Scottie Lees was severely injured in a foxhunting accident and confined to a wheelchair until her death in 2000. Throughout this time, Mr. Lees provided the utmost care for Scottie, bringing her to Mass at St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church and to gatherings with friends in order to maintain her connections. Mr. Lees’ devotion to Scottie remains an example of enduring love that will never be forgotten by those who knew them.
Seeking a slower pace, Mr. Lees sold the insurance part of D.H. Lees Co. to Carr & Hyde Inc. in 1993, but continued the real estate sales component of the business until 2007. Even after discontinuing his active business, Mr. Lees drove into town nearly every day to check in at his office, visit with his friends and colleagues and lunch at Jimmie’s Market.
With more time to enjoy other pursuits, he played tennis and fly-fished, a sport he enjoyed with his son Douglas and their friends.
A graveside service for Mr. Lees will be conducted by Rev. J. Richard Winter at the Warrenton Cemetery on Tuesday, July 30 at 4:00 p.m. Following the service, friends are invited to a reception in his remembrance at Black Horse Inn near Warrenton. Mr. Lees is survived by his son, Douglas H. Lees III of Warrenton. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Capital Hospice, 10530 Linden Lake Plaza Suite 200, Manassas, Va. 20109 and The Warrenton Hunt, P.O. Box 972, Warrenton, Va. 20188.
Posted July 23, 2013
