 Mr. Dixon, the contractor who, in 1877, arranged the transport of the London obelisk, denied the newspaper accounts.However, in March 1877, Mr. Henry G. Stebbins, Commissioner of the Department of Public Parks of the City of New York, undertook to secure the funding to transport the obelisk to New York.However, when railroad magnate William H. Vanderbilt was asked to head the subscription, he offered to finance the project with a donation of over $100,000.