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Phoebe Elizabeth Apperson Hearst (December 3, 1842 – April 13, 1919) was an American philanthropist, feminist and
suffragist Suffrage, political franchise, or simply franchise, is the right to vote in public, political elections and referendums (although the term is sometimes used for any right to vote). In some languages, and occasionally in English, the right to v ...
. Hearst was the founder of the University of California Museum of Anthropology, now called the
Phoebe A. Hearst Museum of Anthropology The Phoebe A. Hearst Museum of Anthropology (formerly the Robert H. Lowie Museum of Anthropology) is an anthropology museum located in Berkeley, California, on the University of California, Berkeley, campus. History Founded in 1901 under the pa ...
, and the co-founder of the National Parent-Teacher Association.


Early life

She was born Phoebe Elizabeth Apperson in St. Clair, Missouri, in Franklin County, the daughter of Drucilla (Whitmire) and Randolph Walker Apperson. In her early years, Phoebe studied to be a teacher. Her childhood consisted of helping her father with finances at his store, learning French, and playing the piano. In 1860, businessman
George Hearst George Hearst (September 3, 1820 – February 28, 1891) was an American businessman, miner, and politician. After growing up on a small farm in Missouri, he founded many mining operations, and is known for developing and expanding the Hom ...
met Phoebe when he returned to St. Clair to care for his dying mother. When they married on June 15, 1862, George Hearst was 41 years old, and Phoebe was 19.


Family life

Soon after their marriage, the couple left Missouri and moved to
San Francisco, California San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...
, where Phoebe gave birth to their only child,
William Randolph Hearst William Randolph Hearst Sr. (; April 29, 1863 – August 14, 1951) was an American businessman, newspaper publisher, and politician known for developing the nation's largest newspaper chain and media company, Hearst Communications. His flamboya ...
. As a very successful miner who later became a U.S. senator, George often left Phoebe alone during his work. She and her son were close and had many similar interests, including art and design. After Phoebe's death in 1919, William inherited a $10 million fortune.


Philanthropy

In the 1880s, she became a major benefactor and director of the Golden Gate Kindergarten Association and the first president of the Century Club of California. In 1902, Hearst funded the construction of a building to provide teacher training and to house kindergarten classes and the association's offices. The association had 26 schools at the time of the
San Francisco earthquake At 05:12 Pacific Standard Time on Wednesday, April 18, 1906, the coast of Northern California was struck by a major earthquake with an estimated moment magnitude of 7.9 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of XI (''Extreme''). High-intensity sha ...
in 1906. Hearst was a major benefactor of the
University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...
, and its first woman
regent A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state '' pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy ...
, serving on the board from 1897 until her death. That year, she contributed to the establishment of the National Congress of Mothers, which evolved eventually into the National Parent-Teacher Association. In 1900, she co-founded the all-girls National Cathedral School in
Washington, DC ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan ...
. A nearby public elementary school bears her name. Hearst funded the Hearst Library in Anaconda, Montana, in 1898. She maintained it until 1904. Hearst became a close friend of Dr.
William Pepper William Pepper Jr. (August 21, 1843July 28, 1898), was an American physician, leader in medical education in the nineteenth century, and a longtime Provost of the University of Pennsylvania. In 1891, he founded the Free Library of Philadelphia ...
, provost of the
University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...
, who was also a medical doctor who treated her for a heart condition. In 1896, in her first major act of museum philanthropy, she donated more than two hundred objects to the Penn Museum, many of them items such as Anasazi ceramics excavated from the Cliff Palace site of
Mesa Verde Mesa Verde National Park is an American national park and UNESCO World Heritage Site located in Montezuma County, Colorado. The park protects some of the best-preserved Ancestral Puebloan archaeological sites in the United States. Established ...
, Colorad

Later, she also funded a Penn Museum expedition to Russia, and sent the Aztec specialist,
Zelia Nuttall Zelia Maria Magdalena Nuttall (6 September 1857 – 12 April 1933) was an American archaeologist and anthropologist specialised in pre-Aztec Mexican cultures and pre-Columbian manuscripts. She discovered two forgotten manuscripts of this type in ...
, to Moscow for this purpose. In 1901, Phoebe Hearst founded the University of California Museum of Anthropology, later called the Robert H. Lowie Museum of Anthropology and renamed the
Phoebe A. Hearst Museum of Anthropology The Phoebe A. Hearst Museum of Anthropology (formerly the Robert H. Lowie Museum of Anthropology) is an anthropology museum located in Berkeley, California, on the University of California, Berkeley, campus. History Founded in 1901 under the pa ...
in 1992. The original collection comprised 230,000 objects representing cultures and civilizations throughout history. The museum now contains about 3.8 million objects. Throughout her lifetime and as provided in her will, Hearst donated over 60,000 objects to the museum. She also funded expeditions such as the
Pepper–Hearst expedition The Pepper–Hearst expedition of 1895–1897 on the west coast of Florida was sponsored by Dr. William Pepper and philanthropist Phoebe Hearst, and led by the anthropologist Frank Hamilton Cushing. The pre–Columbian finds demonstrate a Shell Ag ...
(1895–1897) on the coast of
Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
, near
Tarpon Springs Tarpon Springs is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. The population was 23,484 at the 2010 census. Tarpon Springs has the highest percentage of Greek Americans of any city in the US. Downtown Tarpon Springs has long been a focal po ...
. Most notable are the 1899 expeditions in Egypt by American archaeologist George A. Reisner and in
Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...
by German archaeologist Max Uhle. These ventures further contributed to the museum's collection. Among these are approximately 20,000 ancient Egyptian artifacts, the largest such collection west of Chicago. Hearst also realized the importance of preserving Native Californian culture. With her support, anthropologist
Alfred L. Kroeber Alfred Louis Kroeber (June 11, 1876 – October 5, 1960) was an American cultural anthropologist. He received his PhD under Franz Boas at Columbia University in 1901, the first doctorate in anthropology awarded by Columbia. He was also the first ...
and his students, including
Robert F. Heizer Robert Fleming Heizer (July 13, 1915 – July 18, 1979) was an Archaeology, archaeologist who conducted extensive Field research, fieldwork and reporting in California, the Southwestern United States, and the Great Basin. Background Robert Flemi ...
, documented Native Californian culture in the form of photographs, audio recordings, texts, and artifacts. This research helped to preserve approximately 250,000 Native Californian artifacts, the most extensive in the world. The museum collection is available to students and researchers for examination. A gallery located on the University of California Berkeley campus is available for public view. Hearst was named to the Mount Vernon Ladies' Association as the second vice-regent representing California. She held that position from 1889 to 1918, contributing much time and money to the restoration of
George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of ...
's home at
Mount Vernon Mount Vernon is an American landmark and former plantation of Founding Father, commander of the Continental Army in the Revolutionary War, and the first president of the United States George Washington and his wife, Martha. The estate is on ...
, furnishing it with Washington-owned objects and improving the visitor experience. The William Randolph Hearst Foundation continues to fund projects at Mount Vernon in her memory. Hearst also donated money to the restoration of
Pohick Church Pohick Church, previously known as Pohick Episcopal Church, is an Episcopal church in the community of Lorton in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States. Often called the "Mother Church of Northern Virginia," the church is notable for its ass ...
in Virginia. Hearst chose a "different way" than radical feminists. While she believed in women having financial freedom, in her support for women's suffrage she did not strongly believe in women gaining political power. She thought women should have the right to vote "to protect homes and children." In 1895, when the Women's Congress resolved for the passage of a federal amendment, Hearst supported it "distantly". She officially declared herself in favor of suffrage in the summer of 1911, saying it would enable "the betterment of conditions affecting children and women particularly."


Religion

Hearst was raised a member of the Christian Cumberland Presbyterian community in the 1840s. In 1898 she declared her belief in the
Baháʼí Faith The Baháʼí Faith is a religion founded in the 19th century that teaches the essential worth of all religions and the unity of all people. Established by Baháʼu'lláh in the 19th century, it initially developed in Iran and parts of the ...
, and helped play a key role in the spread of the religion in the United States. Hearst had already been an early investor in the initiative of Sarah Farmer using the Greenacre Inn as a summer center of cross-religion gatherings and cultural development shortly after the 1893
Parliament of Religions There have been several meetings referred to as a Parliament of the World's Religions, the first being the World's Parliament of Religions of 1893, which was an attempt to create a global dialogue of faiths. The event was celebrated by another c ...
. In November 1898, Hearst, with
Lua Getsinger Louise Aurora Getsinger (1 November 1871, Hume, New York – 2 May 1916, Cairo, Egypt), known as Lua, was one of the first Western members of the Baháʼí Faith, recognized as joining the religion on May 21, 1897, just two years after Thornt ...
and others, briefly stopped off in Paris, on their way to Palestine, and was shocked to see May Bolles (later Maxwell), later a well known American member of the Baháʼí Faith, bedridden with the chronic malady with which she had been afflicted. Hearst invited Bolles to travel to Palestine with her, believing that the change of air would be conducive to her health. Getsinger disclosed to Bolles the purpose of the journey: a pilgrimage to visit the then head of the Baháʼí Faith:
ʻAbdu'l-Bahá ʻAbdu'l-Bahá (; Persian: ‎, 23 May 1844 – 28 November 1921), born ʻAbbás ( fa, عباس), was the eldest son of Baháʼu'lláh and served as head of the Baháʼí Faith from 1892 until 1921. ʻAbdu'l-Bahá was later canonized as the ...
. The group travelled to Akka and
Haifa Haifa ( he, חֵיפָה ' ; ar, حَيْفَا ') is the third-largest city in Israel—after Jerusalem and Tel Aviv—with a population of in . The city of Haifa forms part of the Haifa metropolitan area, the third-most populous metropol ...
in
Ottoman Palestine Ottoman Syria ( ar, سوريا العثمانية) refers to divisions of the Ottoman Empire within the region of Syria, usually defined as being east of the Mediterranean Sea, west of the Euphrates River, north of the Arabian Desert and south ...
on pilgrimage, arriving on December 14, 1898. They were the very first Westerners to make the pilgrimage and meet ʻAbdu'l-Bahá. Hearst later wrote, "Those three days were the most memorable days of my life." Yet after the first pilgrimage attempts at correspondence on behalf of Hearst by
Lua Getsinger Louise Aurora Getsinger (1 November 1871, Hume, New York – 2 May 1916, Cairo, Egypt), known as Lua, was one of the first Western members of the Baháʼí Faith, recognized as joining the religion on May 21, 1897, just two years after Thornt ...
were leaked naming her involvement in the religion at a time of rising considerations of her son’s political activities and so Hearst dismissed the Getsingers from their stay at her home in 1901.Kindle:6195 Still in the spring of 1901 Hearst also met with Sarah Farmer again, and invested again in Green Acre, as it came to be called, in 1902, and, further, an agent of Hearst acted for Sarah Farmer when she changed her will in 1909 to bequeath Green Acre to the Baháʼís in the event of Farmer's death. Hearst had also been a victim of an incident seeking to extort money from her, which had caused her estrangement from some Bahá'ís. In October 1912, she invited ʻAbdu'l-Bahá, who was travelling throughout the United States, to stay at her home for a long weekend, even though at that time she had become estranged from the Bahá'í community. During his stay, ʻAbdu'l-Bahá mentioned that anyone who tried to extort money or goods from others should not be considered a true Bahá'í.


Death

She died at her home,
Hacienda del Pozo de Verona The Hacienda del Pozo de Verona was a mansion designed by architect A. C. Schweinfurth for philanthropist Phoebe Hearst in the Amador Valley near Pleasanton, California. The Hacienda was originally built between 1894 and 1898, with substantial ...
, in
Pleasanton, California Pleasanton is a city in Alameda County, California, United States. Located in the Amador Valley, it is a suburb in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. The population was 79,871 at the 2020 census. In 2005 and 2007, Pleasanton wa ...
, aged 76, on April 13, 1919, during the worldwide influenza epidemic of 1918–1919, and was buried at
Cypress Lawn Memorial Park Cypress Lawn Memorial Park, established by Hamden Holmes Noble in 1892, is a rural cemetery located in Colma, California, a place known as the "City of the Silent". History Cypress Lawn Memorial Park is the final resting site for several memb ...
in
Colma, California Colma (Ohlone for "Springs") is a small incorporated town in San Mateo County, California, on the San Francisco Peninsula in the San Francisco Bay Area. The population was 1,507 at the 2020 census. The town was founded as a necropolis in 1924. ...
.


References


Further reading

* Nickliss, Alexandra M. ""Phoebe Apperson Hearst's 'Gospel of Wealth,' 1883–1901," ''Pacific Historical Review'' 71#4 (Nov. 2002) pp 575–605. * Nickliss, Alexandra M. ''Phoebe Apperson Hearst: A Life of Power and Politics'' (Bison Books, 2018) * Paul, Rodman Wilson. "Phoebe Apperson Hearst," in Edward T. James et al. eds. ''Notable American Women, 1607–1950: A Biographical Dictionary'' (3 vols., 1971), 2: 171.


External links


Phoebe Apperson Hearst online archive
The Bancroft Library
History of the PTA 1897–1899
The founding of the organization by Phoebe Apperson Hearst and Alice McLellan Birney {{DEFAULTSORT:Hearst, Phoebe 1842 births 1919 deaths American socialites Phoebe Museum founders Philanthropists from California People from Franklin County, Missouri People from San Francisco People from Pleasanton, California Spouses of California politicians University of California regents Converts to the Bahá'i Faith from Protestantism American Bahá'ís 20th-century Bahá'ís Deaths from the Spanish flu pandemic in California American suffragists Activists from California Burials at Cypress Lawn Memorial Park Baháʼí feminists 19th-century American philanthropists California suffrage 19th-century American businesspeople