Richard King Mellon: Difference between revisions
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{{Infobox person |
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| name = R.K. Mellon |
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| image = |
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| caption = |
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| birth_name = Richard King Mellon |
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| birth_date = {{Birth date|1899|06|19}} |
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| birth_place = [[Ligonier, Pennsylvania]] |
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| death_date = {{Death date and age|1970|06|3|1899|06|19}} |
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| death_place = [[West Penn Hospital]], [[Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania]] <ref name="RKMellonObit1970"/> |
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| spouse = {{marriage|Constance Prosser|1936}} |
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|children = Richard P. Mellon <br> Seward Prosser Mellon <br> Constance Barber Mellon <br> Cassandra Mellon Milbury |
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|relations = {{plain list| |
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*[[Seward Prosser]] (father-in-law) |
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*[[Richard B. Mellon]] (father) |
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*[[Andrew W. Mellon]] (uncle) |
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*[[Sarah Mellon|Sarah Mellon Scaife]] (sister) |
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}} |
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''See [[Mellon family]]'' |
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| occupation = [[Financier]] · [[Philanthropist]] |
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| known_for = [[Aluminum Company of America]]· RK Mellon Foundation |
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| resting_place = Huntland Downs, [[Ligonier, Pennsylvania]] |
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| alma mater = {{plain list| |
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*[[Shady Side Academy]] |
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*[[Culver Military Academy]] |
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*[[Princeton University]] |
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}} |
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| module = {{Infobox military person|embed=yes |
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|allegiance = {{USA}} |
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|branch = [[File:Flag of the United States Army.svg|25px]] [[United States Army]] |
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| battles = [[World War I]]<br> |
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[[World War II]] |
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| rank = [[File:US-O9 insignia.svg|23px]] [[Lieutenant general (United States)|Lieutenant general]] |
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| awards = [[File:U.S. Army Distinguished Service Medal ribbon.svg|23px]] [[Distinguished Service Medal (U.S. Army)|Distinguished Service Medal]] |
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}} |
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}} |
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'''Richard King Mellon''' (June 19, 1899 – June 3, 1970),<ref name="RKMellonObit1970"/> commonly known as '''R.K.''', was an American financier, general, and philanthropist from the [[Pittsburgh]] suburb of [[Ligonier, Pennsylvania|Ligonier]], [[Pennsylvania]]. |
'''Richard King Mellon''' (June 19, 1899 – June 3, 1970),<ref name="RKMellonObit1970"/> commonly known as '''R.K.''', was an American financier, general, and philanthropist from the [[Pittsburgh]] suburb of [[Ligonier, Pennsylvania|Ligonier]], [[Pennsylvania]]. |
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Revision as of 16:53, 15 October 2021
 | This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (October 2010) |
R.K. Mellon | |
|---|---|
| Born | Richard King Mellon June 19, 1899 |
| Died | June 3, 1970 (aged 70) |
| Resting place | Huntland Downs, Ligonier, Pennsylvania |
| Alma mater | |
| Occupation | Financier · Philanthropist |
| Known for | Aluminum Company of America· RK Mellon Foundation |
| Spouse |
Constance Prosser (m. 1936) |
| Children | Richard P. Mellon Seward Prosser Mellon Constance Barber Mellon Cassandra Mellon Milbury |
| Relatives |
|
| Military career | |
| Allegiance |  United States |
| Service/ |  United States Army |
| Rank |  Lieutenant general |
| Battles/wars | World War I World War II |
| Awards |  Distinguished Service Medal |
Richard King Mellon (June 19, 1899 – June 3, 1970),[1] commonly known as R.K., was an American financier, general, and philanthropist from the Pittsburgh suburb of Ligonier, Pennsylvania.
Biography
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. In 1957, when Fortune prepared its first list of the wealthiest Americans, it estimated that the four cousins were all amongst the richest eight people in the United States, with fortunes of between $400 million and $700 million dollars each. R.K. Mellon served as president and chairman of Mellon Bank. He also served on the board of trustees of the University of Pittsburgh over a span of several decades and was a major benefactor to the university.[2]
Military Service
Mellon served in the United States Army in both world wars and remained active in the United States Army Reserve, receiving the Distinguished Service Medal and rising to the rank of lieutenant general.
Urban Renewal
He is chiefly remembered for his urban renewal efforts in Pittsburgh, undertaken in an unlikely bipartisan (Mellon was a lifelong Republican) partnership with the city's postwar Democratic mayor David L. Lawrence. After returning to the city following World War II, Mellon developed an interest in improving Pittsburgh's severe flooding, pollution, and urban blight. Under the auspices of the Urban Redevelopment Authority of Pittsburgh (URA), massive demolition and redevelopment projects transformed the city, backed politically by Lawrence and financially by Mellon and his companies. Mellon also used his economic power to push companies and landowners to comply with new regulations. In 1955 a redevelopment plan and federal funding were approved to coincide with the construction of a new civic arena (1961-2010). The URA, with the support of R. K. Mellon, callously displaced 8,000 residents, businesses and churches. Government-funded demolition destroyed the fabric of the African American community of the Lower Hill District. During the four decades, which followed the demolition, dozens of acres of land remained vacant. [3] Mellon served as Vice President of American Council to Improve Our Neighborhoods, an organization to promote for-profit private urban renewal projects.[4]
Family
He married Constance (nee Prosser) McCaulley, daughter of New York City banker Seward Prosser, in 1936. Constance was the widow of Vance McCaulley, whom she married in 1929 and who died in 1935.[5] They adopted four children: Richard P. Mellon, Seward Prosser Mellon, Constance Barber Mellon, and Cassandra Mellon Milbury.[1] Richard King Mellon was also the primary financial founder of Carnegie Mellon University's Heinz College, then known as the School of Urban and Public Affairs.
Foundation
The Richard King Mellon Foundation manages his charitable estate and has recently participated in redeveloping industrial brownfields in Pittsburgh.[6]
Maurepas Swamp WMA
In 2001 the foundation donated two tracts of land, totaling 61,633 acres, to the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) for the Maurepas Swamp WMA. Between 2001 and 2011 another 12,000 acres were gained through purchases and donations. In 2012 another 29,630 acres (The MC Davis Tract) was acquired from The Conservation Fund. Subsequent acquisitions of the Rathborne, Boyce, and Crusel tracts now gives the WMA 122,098 acres that all began with the Mellon Foundation donation.[7]
References
- ^ a b c "Richard K. Mellon, Financier, Is Dead". The New York Times. 4 June 1970. Retrieved 7 July 2021.
- ^ Scott, Ronald L., ed. (1960). The Owl 1960. University of Pittsburgh. p. 243. Retrieved August 2, 2014.
- ^ http://www.hilldistrict.org/developers,accessed 3/29/2018; Bob Bauber, triblive, Jan. 22, 2013; Byron W. Woodson Sr., A President in the Family, (Westport, CT, Praeger, 2001),145.
- ^ Joshua Olsen. Better Places Better Lives. p. 66.
- ^ Times, Special to The New York (14 November 1980). "Constance Burrell, 70; Widow of R.K. Mellon". The New York Times. Retrieved 7 July 2021.
- ^ Daparma, Ron (August 31, 2007), "Master developer sought for Hazelwood", Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, Pittsburgh, PA
- ^ Maurepas Swamp WMA - Louisiana Department of Wildlife & Fisheries, Retrieved 2016-08-07
External links
- Pittsburgh Green Story: Richard King Mellon
- Richard King Mellon Foundation
- People, TIME, August 14, 1939
- Fitzpatrick, Dan. "The story of urban renewal," Pittsburgh Post-Gazette May 21, 2000
- Obituary [1]
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