Rich in Good Works
Mary M. Emery of Cincinnati
Millard F. Rogers Jr.
9781884836664
237 pages
University of Akron Press
Overview
At the death of her husband in 1906, Mary Muhlenberg Emery (1844-1927) became one of the richest women in the United States. Recognizing her vast responsibility, she embarked on a philanthropic program that endowed or initiated children's programs, hospitals and medical institutions, orphanages, colleges and universities, an art museum, a zoological park, various cultural agencies, and other causes that benefited humankind. Mary Emery's most costly benefactions were directed to the founding of Mariemont, Ohio, a planned community near Cincinnati, and to the formation of a major collection of paintings. Her paintings by such old masters as Titian, Mantegna, Van Dyck, Gainsborough, and Hals were bequeathed to the Cincinnati Art Museum. This well-illustrated biography explores her gifts and life from its beginnings in New York City through family tragedies to the legacy she left behind.
Author Bio
Millard F. Rogers, Jr. holds a M.A. in art history from the University of Michigan. He served twenty years as director of the Cincinnati Art Museum and currently serves as Director Emeritus. His previous publications include: Randolph Rogers, American Sculptor in Rome; Spanish Paintings in the Cincinnati Art Museum; Favorite Paintings from the Cincinnati Art Museum; and Sketches and Bozzetti by American Sculptors, 1800-1950.
