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Louise Whitfield Carnegie

American philanthropist (1857–1946)

Louise Whitfield Carnegie
Born	Louise Whitfield March 7, 1857 New York City, New York, U.S.
Died	June 24, 1946 (aged 89)
Resting place	Sleepy Hollow Cemetery
Spouse	Andrew Carnegie ​ ​ (m. 1887; died 1919)​
Children	Margaret Carnegie Miller
Parent	John D. Whitfield Fannie Davis
Relatives	Henry Davis Whitfield (brother) Andrew Carnegie Whitfield (nephew)

Louise Whitfield Carnegie (March 7, 1857 – June 24, 1946) was an American philanthropist. She was the wife of Scottish-American industrialist and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie.

Biography[edit]

Early life[edit]

Louise Whitfield was born on March 7, 1857, in the Chelsea neighborhoodofNew York City. Her parents—John D. Whitfield (died 1878), a prosperous New York City textile merchant, and Fannie Davis—descended from families who emigrated from England in the 1600s.^[1]

Reaching relative success, John moved the family from Chelsea to Gramercy Park and finally to a brownstone on West 48th Street and Fifth Avenue.

Adult life[edit]

At the age of 23, Whitfield met Andrew Carnegie, himself aged 45, through her father.^[1]

On April 22, 1887, Whitfield (now 30) married Carnegie (51) at her family's home in New York City in a private ceremony officiated by a pastor from the Church of the Divine Paternity, a Universalist church to which the Whitfields belonged.^[2] As wedding gifts from her husband, Louise received a home (formerly owned by Collis Potter Huntington) at 5 West 51st Street and an annual income of approximately $20,000.^[3] Louise signed a prenuptial agreement, renouncing any claims to Andrew’s fortune. In return, Andrew gave her stocks and bonds that amounted to an independent annual income of US$20,000 (equivalent to $678,222 in 2023).^[1]

Ten years later, in 1897, Louise gave birth to the couple's only child, Margaret Carnegie. Louise and her daughter were members of the Brick Presbyterian Church and later the Church of the Divine Paternity (now the Fourth Universalist Society in the City of New York) for whom she and her husband funded their organ.^[4][5]

Carnegie died at the age of 89 in Manhattan on June 24, 1946.^[1] She was buried in Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, in Sleepy Hollow, New York.

Philanthropy[edit]

Louise was an influential member of the board of The Carnegie Corporation until her death. She advised Andrew Carnegie as they jointly helped the creation of over 2,500 libraries between 1883 and 1929.^[1]

After Andrew's death in 1919, Louise continued making charitable contributions to organizations including American Red Cross, the Y.W.C.A., the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, numerous World War II relief funds, and $100,000 to the Union Theological Seminary. She spent her summers at Skibo Castle.

References[edit]

Bibliography[edit]

• Hendrick, Burton Jesse, and Daniel Henderson. 1950. Louise Whitfield Carnegie; The Life of Mrs. Andrew Carnegie. New York: Hastings House.
• Krass, Peter. 2002. Carnegie. New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons.
• Nasaw, David. 2006. Andrew Carnegie. New York: Penguin Press.
• "Mr. Carnegie's Wedding" The New York Times, April 23, 1887.
• "Mrs. Carnegie Dies; Steel Man's Widow", The New York Times, June 25, 1946.
• "Rites in Home for Mrs. Carnegie", The New York Times, June 28, 1946.