Only a few other families could influence urban or national destinies to such an extent in the modern era. By the age of 21, James and his brother Thomas Jr. had raised over $100,000 operating a nursery, lumber yard, and construction supply business, Old tennis rackets, books and an abandoned box left in the house, along with a map and a US flag. His was the largest mansion in Pittsburgh. The couple moved back in with the widowed Mrs. Negley when Sarah was pregnant with their first child in 1844. [8], Coordinates: .mw-parser-output .geo-default,.mw-parser-output .geo-dms,.mw-parser-output .geo-dec{display:inline}.mw-parser-output .geo-nondefault,.mw-parser-output .geo-multi-punct{display:none}.mw-parser-output .longitude,.mw-parser-output .latitude{white-space:nowrap}40277.47N 79554.99W / 40.4520750N 79.9180528W / 40.4520750; -79.9180528. In it he mentions his wife twice, book-ending the chapter with comments about her at beginning and end. emotionally. For $200 a year (paid three months in advance) Sarah Jane would have studied reading, writing, arithmetic, grammar, composition, geography, astronomy with the use of globes, natural philosophy, chemistry, history, and plain and ornamental needle work. 63 years old, died in the Veterans Administration Medical Center, West Roxbury, on June 23, 2009 after a long battle with cancer. This was a woman who had the means to do anything she wanted, and then some. Interestingly, Thomas Mellon heaps unreserved praise upon his new mother-in-law, whom he found to be ".agreeable and pleasanta kind mother possessed of superior qualities and sound, practical good sense." He would later claim that never was there ".the slightest unpleasantness or misunderstanding ever occurred between us" throughout their lives. Judge Mellon's private memoirs were made public by his family, providing invaluable insights into the private life of this couple. History of the Mansion. He had a personal fortune of $1.4billion in his lifetime, mostly through inherited wealth. The 1994 book Architecture after Richardson reports that the house was torn down in 1941 for no reason that I have found as of yet. Was there anything there, the pastor and building committee wondered, that a parish with little money could procure for a new church building? The mansion was acquired by the congregation of Temple Sinai in 1946 and still serves as a synagogue today. He died on December 1, 1933, before the new building was completed. suicide? History - treasures.pitt.edu A number of . But she seems to have remained the same quiet, pleasant, self-possessed, keen-eyed observer of the world whom Thomas Mellon met in 1841. Federal law was on "Pross" Mellon's side since the federal kidnapping statute specifically exempted parents. List of richest Americans in history - WikiMili.com We can't even guess what Sarah Jane thought of her suitor, for she did not record her impressions for posterity. Honoring family and accomplishments mattered. No admission fee is charged. Mellon organized the Citizens' Committee on City Plan, which sought to improve Pittsburgh through better urban planning and zoning. Everything was velvety, expensive, plush, posh, polished, hand-painted and eminently BREAKABLE. Father Bob Lubik, who coincidentally is an old friend of mine and the wildest priest you will ever meet, has a complete history on the Mount Saint Peter Church in New Kensington on his blog, including this taken from the December 1995 issue of The Barque of Peter: At that time the Mellon mansion, in suburban Pittsburgh, fifteen miles distant, was being razed and its furnishings sold. Despite admonishments from his parents, James didn't come home. Historic Pittsburgh Mansions of the Golden Age - Arcadia Publishing Andrew Mellon was the most famous brother, serving as U.S. Treasury . Richard was born in 1899. Eagel Rock is one of my favorite Gilded Age mansions, and I hate having to write that it no longer exists. Mount Saint Peter Church is a Roman Catholic Church at 100 Freeport Road in New Kensington, Pennsylvania. His brother, Andrew William Mellon, right, was the US Ambassador to Britain and the US treasury secretary, Matthew Mellon, pictured with his ex-wife British-born Tamara Mellon (left and right). Macdonald, assumed control of Idlewild Park in Ligonier, Pennsylvania. The homes owner made his money through investment in such prosperous industries as oil, coal, and steel. 2 DISTINGUISHED DAUGHTERS OF PENNSYLVANIA AWARDS; 3 9 - 4 THE PENNSYLVANIA MANUAL; 4 Harriet Duff Phillips' daughter was similarly honored in 1976: courtship in his memoirs: Apparently she was "all right otherwise" because Thomas Mellon decided to pursue Sarah Jane. So while I'm sad the house is gone, because I could picture it being a breathtaking museum and tourist attraction, there's solace in knowing the land became a park for Pittsburgh, and the stones and wood became a church that to this day gives us a tiny glimpse of what once stood majestically at 6500 Fifth Avenue. The land was then given to the city to become what is known now as Mellon Park, while the carriage house is the Phipps Garden Center. The modern urban landscape grew up to surround it, but the graveyard was there first. After Richard Mellon and his wife died in the 1930s, their son Richard King Mellon, lived there briefly before retreating to Ligonier. A retired manufacturer in the curtain industry he w served from 18991910 as president of the Pittsburgh Reduction Company, renamed the Aluminum Company of America (Alcoa) in 1907, and was heavily invested in the Pittsburgh Coal Company, today part of CONSOL Energy, where he clashed with John L. Lewis and the United Mine Workers. Other seasonal visitors, such as industrialist James R. Mellon, opted to purchase or erect winter residences rather than be confined to a hotel room. If we know our history, we know who we came from and what was important to them. Along with being a successful bank and industrialist, he was a philanthropist like the rest of the Mellon family and deeply invested in his community. Did she sympathize with the Judge's quest to connect with their lost children? Art and industry (From our Archives) - The Magazine Antiques Mellon Residence in Shadyside Within the East End is Shadyside, a neighborhood in Pittsburgh that boomed in the second half of the 1800s. undemonstrative. Richard B. Mellon. My childish deductive reasoning skills led me to assume that this family must be like some PBS high-brow version of Mr. [TOMT] [Story] Brothers who played tag to death : r/tipofmytongue - reddit Keep in mind that the Fricks primary residence at the time, Clayton, had a mere 23 rooms (in comparison). described as, Sarah's daughter, Cordelia Scaife May, scrupulously shunned publicity but left a legacy brimming with gossip. PDF History and Organization - CMU - Carnegie Mellon University In 1911 the architectural firm of Alden and Harlow designed the terraced gardens just below the mansion. Mellon Park, established in 1943, was once part of the estate of Richard B. Mellon, owner of the largest mansion in the city. [1], The Walled Garden is surrounded by walls of brick and limestone and is one of Gothic design. Didnt he know how badly I would want to walk through it? As to the rest, we must imagine and wonder, for we have no miniature dollhouses to prompt imagination. Heinz History Center, Allegheny Conference on Community Development Photographs. The Judge author and descendant James Mellon describes a dark and sturdily decorated Victorian interior. By the end of his six months a'wooing, Thomas Mellon no doubt wryly ruminated over the observations of his close friend Richard Beatty, who had passed over Sarah Jane for a younger Negley sister because Sarah was ".too independent for him, had no elasticity in her composition, and did not seem to appreciate gentlemen's attentions." This isn't an unusual circumstance 'In 1899, the Union Trust Company of Pittsburgh was organized by the Mellon family, to be followed by the Union Savings Bank. Mellon Park, 'a prime example of landscape design,' is up for historic He and his wife, Jennie Taylor King, were the major donors to the Cathedral of Hope, the new home for the East Liberty Presbyterian Church, which they and their parents had attended. But in fact, it's not unusual for rural communities like old Negleytown to have had their own burial grounds. Postcard of bridge spanning Lake Bouquet leading to Flower Island at Idlewild Park. Several other architects added their own touch to the landscape, including the Olmsted Brothers and some seventeen years after the garden began, Vitale and Geiffert. He has served as a Trustee of both Foundations since 2005. 29 vintage silver prints (9 x 13 inches) mounted to album leaves, printed title-page. There are some claims that they were re-interred on the spot beneath the marker in Highland Park, having been moved there. What Pittsburghers do remember about the Mellons are the salacious details. marital woes brought him a lifetime of embarrassment. The girls are probably grateful to be inside and removed from the elements, because Pittsburgh's industrial climate clearly did their complexions no favors! jubilated a practical minded committee, upon learning that all they surveyed could be theirs merely for the cost of hauling it away! James Mellon founded the City Deposit Bank, becoming its president in 1898. On January 2, 1870, he opened the T. Mellon & Sons' Bank with his sons Andrew W. and Richard B.Mellon, William Larimer and Sparkes, Boyden, , 1948. So it's not a stretch to say that we have the Mellon family money to thank for LSD. Is this really a burial ground? 'The institution helped finance the construction of the Ligonier Valley Railroad. Richard Mellon Scaife, the billionaire philanthropist whose fortune was almost entirely misapplied, died 82 years too late on Independence Day, July 4, 2014. Simple theme. The park was established in 1943, on the grounds of the former estate of Richard B. Mellon. On his deathbed, these were Richard's last words to his brother. [6], The Mellon Park Tennis Center is a year-round facility that offers classes for younger children ages 47 and other age groups up to adults. She flatly ignored attempts at flattery and flirtation, leaving poor frustrated Thomas lamenting that he was made to feel "that to talk love would be out of place and might subject me to to ridicule.". You couldn't live in Pittsburgh without knowing that. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. The grand staircase is the altar. What did Sarah Jane think of this girl's supposed affinity for the otherworldly? On what was described as a stormy and "bleak" November evening in Pittsburgh, Sarah Cordelia Mellon, 24, married Alan Magee Scaife, 27, at East Liberty Presbyterian Church. Mellon Bank, then Pennsylvania's largest banking institution, dis-invested in the Pittsburgh region during its time of need in the early 1980s. Adherence to Law. This magical drug mansion in Upstate New York is where the - Medium homestead of Alexander Negley, where are interred about fifty early Vitale and Geiffert were behind the planning of this garden. Bedrooms were on the second floor and formal entry, parlor, dining room, study and kitchen occupied the first floor. I sat there stunned anew. The specifics of Sarah Mellon and Alan Scaife's extravagant 1927 wedding still leave readers slack-jawed in amazement. Three of our most recent grants are highlighted below. The Mellon The gardens were originally designed in 1912 by Alden and Harlow. Stunned, I started researching the house, asking myself, "You'd remember if you saw that, right? Thomas finally reached his limit. The Mellon family's enormous wealth was accrued primarily by brothers Andrew William Mellon and Richard B. Mellon during the 1920s and 1930s, investing or founding companies that include Mellon Bank, Alcoa, Standard Steel Car Co., Westinghouse Electric Co. and Gulf Oil. Mellon's personal sense of style was exemplified by a hat-rack made of mirrors and buffalo horns and half a taxidermied buffalo head (yes, half), both of which he kept on display as mementos of his youth in the untamed West. She didn't seem to collect much beyond platitudes, trivia and memories in her scrapbooks -- nothing like the grand homes or art that her offspring would acquire. To honour her memory, he built the Larimer Memorial Library (now Larimer Arts Center) and donated it to the city, The introduction of the railroads into North Florida in the 1880s led to an explosion in the winter tourist trade and visitors, such as industrialist James R. Mellon, opted to purchase or erect winter residences rather than be confined to a hotel room, The Mellon family ranked among the wealthiest and most prominent industrialists in the United States by the time of Judge Mellon's death in 1908. The site previously was the location of the mansion of James K. Moorhead, a U.S. wife was herself a good cook and not in the least averse to work.we murder?). The son of Richard B. Mellon, nephew of Andrew W. Mellon, and grandson of Thomas Mellon, he and his sister Sarah Mellon Scaife and cousins Paul Mellon and Ailsa Mellon-Bruce, were heirs to the Mellon fortune, which included major holdings in Mellon Bank, Gulf Oil, and Alcoa. Things were looking up, especially since ".my It is sort of a bittersweet ending to this blog to hear about all the beautiful mansions we will never be able to see again. It was a stones throw from the current Pittsburgh Center for the Arts on Fifth Ave. Here's a link to a pic. By necessity she would have become removed from day-today housework once she and Thomas became pillars of their community and she gravitated to a prominent social role outside the home. Mellon Park Wiki - everipedia.org And even fewer managed to hold onto their money and influence the way the Mellons have. 175 Years Later, The Mellons Have Never Been Richer. Too bad they couldnt take it all, mourned Father Fusco, whose artistic soul revolted at the desecration of priceless stone by a careless wrecking crew. The park is home to the Walled Garden and holds events throughout the year. She would "do." ', 'The Mellons welcomed many famous guests into their home, including Billy Sunday, a former National League baseball player turned evangelist. Stunned, I started researching the house, asking myself, "You'd remember if you saw that, right? Although there are four distinct branches descending from the legendary Judge Thomas Mellon, I'm unsure how many Pittsburghers know (or care) which Mellon is which. Carnegie Mellon would not be Carnegie Mellon without their vision, service, and commitment. Sarah Cordelia Mellon was born on December 2, 1903, the only daughter of Richard Beatty and Jennie King Mellon. The mansion was built by Italian immigrants from New Kensington, PA under the direction of Monsignor Nicola Fusco. The case is often cited in discussions of custody conflicts that result in parental child-napping, and eclipses his many good works, including the, Matthew T. Mellon, Sr., grandson of the eldest of the Mellon sons, obtained a PhD in history and was an American Studies professor at University of Freiburg from 1928-1939. A blend of luxury - PressReader Overall, I learned so much and I never imagined how much of the Gilded Age existed outside of Newport. Mellon Square dedication, October 18, 1955. In 2005, Scaife was number 238 on the Forbes 400, with a personal fortune of $1.2 billion. And I wondered about what kinds of lives those were -- not simply in terms of material possessions, but about how the world must seem to such people. "I have been active in horticulture for years, flora of all kinds," he wrote in his. An urban explorer known as Abandoned Southeast took the photos. The home was built in 1904 for Henry Clay Frick and his family as a summer home in Prides Crossing, Massachusetts. With opalescent glass alone, the panel presents an evocative scene of rippling water, floating lotus flowers, and a footbridge draped with roses. Children followed in rapid succession. The panel's design makes brilliant use of the reforms brought to glassmaking by Louis Comfort Tiffany. Sacred to the memory of those noble Christian pioneers who moulded Other than these glimpses, the public is left with only the name and limited understanding of the life of Sarah Jane Negley Mellon as filtered through others' experiences. James Mellon founded the City Deposit Bank, becoming its president in 1898. The estates gardens and ornate wrought-iron gate remain as traces of the lands former use. She was not playing hard to get. Did Sarah Jane feel "fairly settled"? Potato Head. Biographical Dictionary of American Business Leaders, http://www.mellon.com/aboutmellon/history.html, "R. B. Mellon Dies; Noted Industrial Leader of Nation", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Richard_B._Mellon&oldid=1119087475, This page was last edited on 30 October 2022, at 17:07. Conflicting stories exist as to where Sarah Jane's grandparents Alexander and his wife were buried. It was great reading your blogs. But the youngest of his two sons, Seward Prosser Mellon, made headlines in the mid-1970s related to a horrific custody battle with his ex-wife.