Laura Spelman Rockefeller: Difference between revisions

Laura Spelman Rockefeller
Laura Spelman Rockefeller
Born	Laura Celestia Spelman; September 9, 1839; Wadsworth, Ohio, U.S.
Died	March 12, 1915 (aged 75); Pocantico Hills, New York, U.S.
Resting place	Lake View Cemetery; Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.
Spouse	John Davison Rockefeller (m. 1864)
Children	Elizabeth, Alice, Alta, Edith, and John Jr.
Relatives	See Rockefeller family

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Laura Celestia "Cettie" Spelman Rockefeller (September 9, 1839 – March 12, 1915)^[1] was an American abolitionist, philanthropist, school teacher, and prominent member of the Rockefeller family. Her husband was Standard Oil co-founder John D. Rockefeller. Spelman College in Atlanta and the Laura Spelman Rockefeller Memorial were named for her.^[2]

Early life

Laura Celestia Spelman was born in Wadsworth, Ohio to Puritan descendant Harvey Buell Spelman (1811–1881) and Lucy Henry (1818–1897), Yankees who had moved to Ohio from Massachusetts. Laura's maternal step-grandmother, as well as her two aunts, were members of the Yale family, relatives of inventor Caroline Ardelia Yale.^[3]^[4]

Laura's father Harvey was an abolitionist who was active in the Congregationalist Church, the Underground Railroad, and in politics. The Spelmans eventually moved to Cleveland. Laura had an elder adopted sister, Lucy Maria "Lute" Spelman (c. 1837–1920).^[5] Laura was the valedictorian of her graduating class at Central High School in Cleveland at the age of 14.^[6]

Personal life and career

In Cleveland, Lute and Laura Spelman met John Davison Rockefeller while attending accounting classes together. He was the eldest son of William Avery "Bill" Rockefeller (1810–1906) and Eliza Davison (1813–1889).^[7]

Laura Spelman later attended Oread Institute in Worcester, Massachusetts and planned to become a schoolteacher. After moving to Ohio to teach, she married John Rockefeller in 1864. After the wedding, Spelman remained active in the church (she joined Rockefeller's congregation, the Northern Baptists) and with her family. As the family business, Standard Oil, began to thrive, she further devoted her time to philanthropy and her children.^[8]

They were the parents of five children:

Elizabeth ("Bessie") (August 23, 1866 – November 14, 1906),
Alice (July 14, 1869 – August 20, 1870),
Alta (April 12, 1871 – June 21, 1962),
Edith (August 31, 1872 – August 25, 1932), and
John Jr. (January 29, 1874 – May 11, 1960).^[9]

Throughout their lives, the Rockefeller family continued to donate ten percent of their income to charity, including substantial donations to Spelman College, founded to educate Black women.^[2] Laura Spelman Rockefeller died on March 12, 1915, at 75 of a heart attack, at the family estate Kykuit in Pocantico Hills, New York near the Hudson River.^[1]^[10]

Legacy

John D. Rockefeller established the Laura Spelman Rockefeller Memorial Fund. He donated large amounts to the fund and charitable organizations then shifted his focus to giving to social sciences.^[11] Spelman College was named after Laura Spelman Rockefeller due to her significant financial contribution to the institution. Throughout her life, she was dedicated to social and educational causes, particularly for women and African Americans.^{[citation needed]}

References

^ ^a ^b "Mrs. Rockefeller Dies at Pocantico: Succumbs to Heart Attack After Taking a Glass of Milk from Her Nurse. Mr. Rockefeller in South: Expected to Arrive Here Today with Son – Oil Man Attributed His Success to Wife" (PDF). The New York Times. March 13, 1915. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
^ ^a ^b Klein, Maury (April 11, 2003). The Change Makers: From Carnegie to Gates, How the Great Entrepreneurs Transformed Ideas Into Industries. Macmillan. p. 248. ISBN 9780805069143. Retrieved March 3, 2020 – via Google Books.
^ Rodney Horace Yale (1908). "Yale Genealogy and History of Wales". Milburn & Scott Company. pp. 195–282–283.
^ Henry genealogy : the descendants of Samuel Henry of Hadley and Amhers, Mass, Press of T.R. Marvin & Son, Boston, 1915, p. 74-75
^ "Lucy Maria Spelman | Sister-in-Law of John D. Rockefeller Dies at Pocantico Hills" (PDF). The New York Times. February 9, 1920. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
^ "Laura Spelman Rockefeller 1839-1915" (PDF). New York City Trust. May 2009. p. 2. Retrieved January 17, 2024. ...Miss Laura Celestia Spelman took her place on the stage of the Cleveland, Ohio, Central High School and delivered the valedictory address.
^ Segall, Grant (February 8, 2001). John D. Rockefeller: Anointed with Oil. Oxford University Press. p. 13. ISBN 9780195121476. Retrieved March 3, 2020 – via Google Books.
^ Stasz, Clarice. The Rockefeller Women: Dynasty of Piety, Privacy, and Service. New York: St. Martin's Press. (1995).
^ "J.D. Rockefeller Jr. Dead at Age of 86; Philanthropist Who Made Career of Giving Millions Succumbs in Tucson" (PDF). The New York Times. May 12, 1960. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
^ "Mrs. Rockefeller Leaves $1,500,000 Will Bequeathes $450,000 to Relatives and Remainder to Seven Institutions. Many Legacies of Jewels Husband, Son, and Daughter, as Trustees and Executors, to Apportion Gifts to Charity" (PDF). The New York Times. April 18, 1915. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
^ "Legitimizing the Social Sciences: The Laura Spelman Rockefeller Memorial in the 1920s".

External links

Laura Spelman Rockefeller at Find a Grave

[MrsJDRObit1915-1] "Mrs. Rockefeller Dies at Pocantico: Succumbs to Heart Attack After Taking a Glass of Milk from Her Nurse. Mr. Rockefeller in South: Expected to Arrive Here Today with Son – Oil Man Attributed His Success to Wife" (PDF). The New York Times. March 13, 1915. Retrieved July 3, 2018.

[Change-2] Klein, Maury (April 11, 2003). The Change Makers: From Carnegie to Gates, How the Great Entrepreneurs Transformed Ideas Into Industries. Macmillan. p. 248. ISBN 9780805069143. Retrieved March 3, 2020 – via Google Books.

[3] Rodney Horace Yale (1908). "Yale Genealogy and History of Wales". Milburn & Scott Company. pp. 195–282–283.

[4] Henry genealogy : the descendants of Samuel Henry of Hadley and Amhers, Mass, Press of T.R. Marvin & Son, Boston, 1915, p. 74-75

[LMSObit1920-5] "Lucy Maria Spelman | Sister-in-Law of John D. Rockefeller Dies at Pocantico Hills" (PDF). The New York Times. February 9, 1920. Retrieved July 3, 2018.

[6] "Laura Spelman Rockefeller 1839-1915" (PDF). New York City Trust. May 2009. p. 2. Retrieved January 17, 2024. ...Miss Laura Celestia Spelman took her place on the stage of the Cleveland, Ohio, Central High School and delivered the valedictory address.

[7] Segall, Grant (February 8, 2001). John D. Rockefeller: Anointed with Oil. Oxford University Press. p. 13. ISBN 9780195121476. Retrieved March 3, 2020 – via Google Books.

[8] Stasz, Clarice. The Rockefeller Women: Dynasty of Piety, Privacy, and Service. New York: St. Martin's Press. (1995).

[JDRJrObit1960-9] "J.D. Rockefeller Jr. Dead at Age of 86; Philanthropist Who Made Career of Giving Millions Succumbs in Tucson" (PDF). The New York Times. May 12, 1960. Retrieved July 3, 2018.

[1915Will-10] "Mrs. Rockefeller Leaves $1,500,000 Will Bequeathes $450,000 to Relatives and Remainder to Seven Institutions. Many Legacies of Jewels Husband, Son, and Daughter, as Trustees and Executors, to Apportion Gifts to Charity" (PDF). The New York Times. April 18, 1915. Retrieved July 3, 2018.

[11] "Legitimizing the Social Sciences: The Laura Spelman Rockefeller Memorial in the 1920s".

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 | relatives = See [[Rockefeller family]]
 }}
-'''Laura Celestia''' "'''Cettie'''" '''Spelman Rockefeller''' (September 9, 1839 – March 12, 1915)<ref name="MrsJDRObit1915"/> was an American [[abolitionist]], [[philanthropist]], school teacher, and prominent member of the [[Rockefeller family]]. Her husband was [[Standard Oil]] co-founder [[John D. Rockefeller]]. [[Spelman College]] in Atlanta, Georgia, and the [[Laura Spelman Rockefeller Memorial]] were named for her.<ref name=Change>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=psQWBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA248 |title=The Change Makers: From Carnegie to Gates, How the Great Entrepreneurs Transformed Ideas Into Industries |first=Maury |last=Klein |author-link=Maury Klein |publisher=[[Macmillan Publishers|Macmillan]] |isbn=9780805069143 |page=248 |date=2003-04-11 |access-date=2020-03-03 |via=Google Books}}</ref>
+'''Laura Celestia''' "'''Cettie'''" '''Spelman Rockefeller''' (September 9, 1839 – March 12, 1915)<ref name="MrsJDRObit1915"/> was an American [[abolitionist]], [[philanthropist]], school teacher, and prominent member of the [[Rockefeller family]]. Her husband was [[Standard Oil]] co-founder [[John D. Rockefeller]]. [[Spelman College]] in [[Atlanta]] and the [[Laura Spelman Rockefeller Memorial]] were named for her.<ref name=Change>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=psQWBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA248 |title=The Change Makers: From Carnegie to Gates, How the Great Entrepreneurs Transformed Ideas Into Industries |first=Maury |last=Klein |author-link=Maury Klein |publisher=[[Macmillan Publishers|Macmillan]] |isbn=9780805069143 |page=248 |date=2003-04-11 |access-date=2020-03-03 |via=Google Books}}</ref>
 ==Early life==
-Laura Celestia Spelman was born in [[Wadsworth, Ohio]], to Puritan descendant Harvey Buell Spelman (1811–1881) and Lucy Henry (1818–1897), [[Yankee]]s who had moved to Ohio from [[Massachusetts]]. Harvey was an abolitionist who was active in the [[Congregational church|Congregationalist Church]], the [[Underground Railroad]], and in politics.  The Spelmans eventually moved to [[Cleveland, Ohio]].  Spelman had an elder adopted sister, Lucy Maria "Lute" Spelman (c. 1837–1920).<ref name="LMSObit1920">{{cite news |title=Lucy Maria Spelman {{!}} Sister-in-Law of John D. Rockefeller Dies at Pocantico Hills |url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1920/02/09/97720734.pdf |accessdate=3 July 2018 |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=February 9, 1920}}</ref>
+Laura Celestia Spelman was born in [[Wadsworth, Ohio]] to Puritan descendant Harvey Buell Spelman (1811–1881) and Lucy Henry (1818–1897), [[Yankee]]s who had moved to [[Ohio]] from [[Massachusetts]]. Laura's maternal step-grandmother, as well as her two aunts, were members of the [[Yale (surname)|Yale family]], relatives of inventor [[Caroline Yale|Caroline Ardelia Yale]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://archive.org/details/yalegenealogyhis00yale/page/282/mode/2up?view=theater&q=rockefeller |title=Yale Genealogy and History of Wales|pages=195–282–283|author=Rodney Horace Yale|publisher=Milburn & Scott Company |year=1908}}</ref><ref>[https://archive.org/details/henrygenealogyde00eldr/page/74/mode/2up?q=rockefeller+russell Henry genealogy : the descendants of Samuel Henry of Hadley and Amhers, Mass], Press of T.R. Marvin & Son, Boston, 1915, p. 74-75</ref>
+Laura's father Harvey was an [[Abolitionism|abolitionist]] who was active in the [[Congregational church|Congregationalist Church]], the [[Underground Railroad]], and in politics. The Spelmans eventually moved to [[Cleveland]]. Laura had an elder adopted sister, Lucy Maria "Lute" Spelman (c. 1837–1920).<ref name="LMSObit1920">{{cite news |title=Lucy Maria Spelman {{!}} Sister-in-Law of John D. Rockefeller Dies at Pocantico Hills |url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1920/02/09/97720734.pdf |accessdate=3 July 2018 |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=February 9, 1920}}</ref> Laura was the valedictorian of her graduating class at [[Central High School (Cleveland, Ohio)|Central High School]] in  Cleveland at the age of 14.<ref>{{cite web |title=Laura Spelman Rockefeller 1839-1915 |url=https://licf.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/LauraSpellmanRockefeller.pdf |date=May 2009 |publisher=New York City Trust |access-date=January 17, 2024 |page=2 |quote="...Miss Laura Celestia Spelman took her place on the stage of the Cleveland, Ohio, Central High School and delivered the valedictory address."}}</ref>
 ==Personal life and career==
-In Cleveland, Lute and Spelman met [[John Davison Rockefeller]] while attending accounting classes together. He was the eldest son of [[William Rockefeller Sr.|William Avery "Bill" Rockefeller]] (1810–1906) and Eliza Davison (1813–1889).<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HGsoQKfXs90C&pg=PA13 |last=Segall |first=Grant |title=John D. Rockefeller: Anointed with Oil |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |isbn=9780195121476 |page=13 |date=2001-02-08 |access-date=2020-03-03 |via=Google Books}}</ref>
+In Cleveland, Lute and Laura Spelman met [[John Davison Rockefeller]] while attending accounting classes together. He was the eldest son of [[William Rockefeller Sr.|William Avery "Bill" Rockefeller]] (1810–1906) and Eliza Davison (1813–1889).<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HGsoQKfXs90C&pg=PA13 |last=Segall |first=Grant |title=John D. Rockefeller: Anointed with Oil |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |isbn=9780195121476 |page=13 |date=2001-02-08 |access-date=2020-03-03 |via=Google Books}}</ref>
-She later returned to New England to attend [[Oread Institute]], with plans to become a schoolteacher. After returning to Ohio to teach, she married John in 1864. Following her wedding, Spelman remained active in the church (she joined Rockefeller's congregation, the [[Northern Baptist]]s) and with her family. Once the family business, Standard Oil, began to take off, she further devoted her time to philanthropy and her children.<ref>Stasz, Clarice. ''The Rockefeller Women: Dynasty of Piety, Privacy, and Service''. New York: St. Martin's Press. (1995).</ref>
+Laura Spelman later attended [[Oread Institute]] in [[Worcester, Massachusetts]] and planned to become a schoolteacher. After moving to Ohio to teach, she married John Rockefeller in 1864. After the wedding, Spelman remained active in the church (she joined Rockefeller's congregation, the [[American Baptist Churches USA|Northern Baptists]]) and with her family. As the family business, Standard Oil, began to thrive, she further devoted her time to philanthropy and her children.<ref>Stasz, Clarice. ''The Rockefeller Women: Dynasty of Piety, Privacy, and Service''. New York: St. Martin's Press. (1995).</ref>
-Together, they were the parents of five children;
+They were the parents of five children:
 * [[Elizabeth Rockefeller Strong|Elizabeth ("Bessie")]] (August 23, 1866 – November 14, 1906),
 * Alice (July 14, 1869 – August 20, 1870),
@@ Line 32: / Line 34: @@
 * [[John D. Rockefeller Jr.|John&nbsp;Jr.]] (January 29, 1874 – May 11, 1960).<ref name="JDRJrObit1960">{{cite news |title=J.D. Rockefeller Jr. Dead at Age of 86; Philanthropist Who Made Career of Giving Millions Succumbs in Tucson |url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1960/05/12/105433270.pdf |accessdate=3 July 2018 |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=May 12, 1960 |language=en}}</ref>
-Throughout their lives, the Rockefeller family continued to donate ten percent of their income to charity, including substantial donations to [[Spelman College]], founded to educate [[historically black college|Black women]].<ref name=Change/> Laura Spelman Rockefeller died on March 12, 1915, at age 75 of a [[Myocardial infarction|heart attack]], at the family estate [[Kykuit]] in [[Pocantico Hills, New York]].<ref name="MrsJDRObit1915">{{cite news |title=Mrs. Rockefeller Dies at Pocantico: Succumbs to Heart Attack After Taking a Glass of Milk from Her Nurse. Mr. Rockefeller in South: Expected to Arrive Here Today with Son – Oil Man Attributed His Success to Wife. |url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1915/03/13/105035513.pdf |accessdate=3 July 2018 |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=March 13, 1915}}</ref><ref name="1915Will">{{cite news |title=Mrs. Rockefeller Leaves $1,500,000 Will Bequeathes $450,000 to Relatives and Remainder to Seven Institutions. Many Legacies of Jewels Husband, Son, and Daughter, as Trustees and Executors, to Apportion Gifts to Charity. |url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1915/04/18/100150723.pdf |accessdate=3 July 2018 |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=April 18, 1915}}</ref>
+Throughout their lives, the Rockefeller family continued to donate ten percent of their income to charity, including substantial donations to [[Spelman College]], founded to educate [[historically black college|Black women]].<ref name=Change/> Laura Spelman Rockefeller died on March 12, 1915, at 75 of a [[Myocardial infarction|heart attack]], at the family estate [[Kykuit]] in [[Pocantico Hills, New York]] near the [[Hudson River]].<ref name="MrsJDRObit1915">{{cite news |title=Mrs. Rockefeller Dies at Pocantico: Succumbs to Heart Attack After Taking a Glass of Milk from Her Nurse. Mr. Rockefeller in South: Expected to Arrive Here Today with Son – Oil Man Attributed His Success to Wife. |url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1915/03/13/105035513.pdf |accessdate=3 July 2018 |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=March 13, 1915}}</ref><ref name="1915Will">{{cite news |title=Mrs. Rockefeller Leaves $1,500,000 Will Bequeathes $450,000 to Relatives and Remainder to Seven Institutions. Many Legacies of Jewels Husband, Son, and Daughter, as Trustees and Executors, to Apportion Gifts to Charity. |url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1915/04/18/100150723.pdf |accessdate=3 July 2018 |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=April 18, 1915}}</ref>
 ==Legacy==
-John D. Rockefeller established the Laura Spelman Rockefeller Memorial Fund. He donated large amounts to it and it funded charitable organizations and then shifted focus to social sciences funding.<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://resource.rockarch.org/story/history-of-laura-spelman-rockefeller-memorial-legitimizing-social-sciences-1920s/ | title=Legitimizing the Social Sciences: The Laura Spelman Rockefeller Memorial in the 1920s }}</ref>
+John D. Rockefeller established the Laura Spelman Rockefeller Memorial Fund. He donated large amounts to the fund and charitable organizations then shifted his focus to giving to social sciences.<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://resource.rockarch.org/story/history-of-laura-spelman-rockefeller-memorial-legitimizing-social-sciences-1920s/ | title=Legitimizing the Social Sciences: The Laura Spelman Rockefeller Memorial in the 1920s }}</ref>
-Spelman College was named after Laura Spelman due to her significant financial contribution to the institution. Throughout her life, Laura Spelman was dedicated to social and educational causes, particularly for women and African Americans.
+Spelman College was named after Laura Spelman Rockefeller due to her significant financial contribution to the institution. Throughout her life, she was dedicated to social and educational causes, particularly for women and African Americans.{{cn|date=November 2023}}
 ==See also==
@@ Line 61: / Line 63: @@
 [[Category:1915 deaths]]
 [[Category:Rockefeller family]]
+[[Category:Yale family]]
 [[Category:American abolitionists]]
 [[Category:American philanthropists]]
-[[Category:People from Cleveland]]
+[[Category:Educators from Cleveland]]
 [[Category:History of Cleveland]]
 [[Category:People from Wadsworth, Ohio]]

v t e Rockefeller family
children of William Avery Rockefeller Sr.	John Davison Rockefeller (m.) Laura Celestia Spelman William Avery Rockefeller Jr. Franklin Rockefeller
children of John Davison Rockefeller children of William Avery Rockefeller Jr.	Elizabeth Rockefeller (m.) Charles Augustus Strong Alta Rockefeller Edith Rockefeller (m.) Harold Fowler McCormick John Davison Rockefeller Jr. (m.) Abigail Greene Aldrich William Goodsell Rockefeller Percy Avery Rockefeller Ethel Geraldine Rockefeller (m.) Marcellus Hartley Dodge Sr.
children of Elizabeth Rockefeller children of Alta Rockefeller children of John Davison Rockefeller Jr.	Margaret Rockefeller Strong John Rockefeller Prentice Abigail Aldrich Rockefeller (m.) Jean Mauzé John Davison Rockefeller III (m.) Blanchette Ferry Hooker Nelson Aldrich Rockefeller (m. 1st) Mary Todhunter Clark (m. 2nd) Margaretta Large Fitler Laurance Spelman Rockefeller (m.) Mary French Winthrop Rockefeller David Rockefeller (m.) Margaret Rockefeller
children of William Goodsell Rockefeller children of Percy Avery Rockefeller children of Ethel Geraldine Rockefeller	Godfrey Stillman Rockefeller James Stillman Rockefeller Isabel Stillman Rockefeller (m.) Frederic W. Lincoln IV Avery Rockefeller Marcellus Hartley Dodge Jr.
children of John Rockefeller Prentice (1902–1972)	Abra Prentice
children of John Davison Rockefeller III children of Nelson Aldrich Rockefeller children of Laurance Spelman Rockefeller children of Winthrop Rockefeller children of David Rockefeller children of Godfrey Stillman Rockefeller	John Davison Rockefeller IV Hope Aldrich Rockefeller Alida Ferry Rockefeller Rodman Clark Rockefeller Steven Clark Rockefeller Michael Clark Rockefeller Mark Fitler Rockefeller Laura Spelman Rockefeller Marion French Rockefeller Lucy Aldrich Rockefeller Laurance Rockefeller Jr. Winthrop Paul Rockefeller Abigail Aldrich Rockefeller Margaret Dulany Rockefeller Richard Gilder Rockefeller Eileen Rockefeller Godfrey Anderson Rockefeller
children of John Davison Rockefeller IV	Justin Aldrich Rockefeller
children of Rodman Clark Rockefeller	Meile Louise Rockefeller

Authority control databases
International	VIAF WorldCat
National	Germany