John McShain (December 21, 1896 – September 9, 1989) was a

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

building contractor A general contractor, main contractor or prime contractor is responsible for the day-to-day oversight of a construction site, management of vendors and trades, and the communication of information to all involved parties throughout the course of ...

known as "The Man Who Built Washington". Born in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

, the son of Irish immigrants, McShain graduated from

St. Joseph's Preparatory School St. Joseph's Preparatory School, known as "St. Joseph's Prep" or simply "The Prep", is an urban, private, Catholic, college preparatory school run by the Jesuits in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. It was founded in 1851. Curriculm The ...

in 1918 after having attended

La Salle College High School , motto_translation = Character and Knowledge , location = 8605 Cheltenham Avenue , city = Wyndmoor , county = ( Montgomery County) , state = Pennsylvania , zipcode ...

for several years. He later graduated from

La Salle University La Salle University () is a private, Catholic university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The university was founded in 1863 by the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools and named for St. Jean-Baptiste de La Salle. History L ...

, earning a bachelor's degree.

Early life and education

John McShain was born in

on December 21, 1896. His father founded a successful construction company, which he was forced to take over at age 21 following his father's death in 1919.

Building construction

Under McShain's management, the company became one of the leading builders in the United States. From the 1930s to the 1960s, the company worked on more than one hundred buildings in the Washington, D.C. area. The company built or was the prime contractor for a number of landmark structures including

The Pentagon The Pentagon is the headquarters building of the United States Department of Defense. It was constructed on an accelerated schedule during World War II. As a symbol of the U.S. military, the phrase ''The Pentagon'' is often used as a metony ...

, the

Jefferson Memorial The Jefferson Memorial is a presidential memorial built in Washington, D.C. between 1939 and 1943 in honor of Thomas Jefferson, the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence, a central intellectual force behind the A ...

, the

John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts (formally known as the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, and commonly referred to as the Kennedy Center) is the United States National Cultural Center, located on the Potom ...

, the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The libra ...

annex, Washington National Airport, the

Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception is a large minor Catholic basilica and national shrine in the United States in Washington, D.C., located at 400 Michigan Avenue Northeast, adjacent to Catholic University. ...

, and the 1949–52 reconstruction of the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in ...

. Of his many construction projects, McShain also built the Franklin D. Roosevelt Library in

Hyde Park, New York Hyde Park is a town in Dutchess County, New York, United States, bordering the Hudson River north of Poughkeepsie. Within the town are the hamlets of Hyde Park (CDP), New York, Hyde Park, East Park, Staatsburg, and Haviland, New York, Haviland. ...

. His career as a building contractor garnered McShain significant wealth. He started the John McShain Charities as his philanthropy arm. McShain acquired the Barclay Hotel on Philadelphia's

Rittenhouse Square Rittenhouse Square is a neighborhood, including a public park, in Center City Philadelphia. The park is one of the five original open-space parks planned by William Penn and his surveyor Thomas Holme during the late 17th century. The neighborho ...

and became part owner of the Skyscraper By The Sea, the 400-room Claridge Hotel in

Atlantic City, New Jersey Atlantic City, often known by its initials A.C., is a coastal resort city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States. The city is known for its casinos, boardwalk, and beaches. In 2020, the city had a population of 38,497.

Thoroughbred racing

In 1952, John McShain established Barclay Stable in the United States and in 1955 expanded its operations to Ireland. Based in

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delawa ...

, his racing stable met with reasonable success at

New York State New York, officially the State of New York, is a state in the Northeastern United States. It is often called New York State to distinguish it from its largest city, New York City. With a total area of , New York is the 27th-largest U.S. sta ...

tracks and

Monmouth Park Monmouth Park Racetrack is an American race track for thoroughbred horse racing in Oceanport, New Jersey, United States. It is owned by the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority and is operated under a five-year lease as a partnership with ...

, notably with Turbo Jet II. However, his greatest racing success came in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

, where in 1958 he was the

British flat racing Champion Owner The Champion Owner of flat racing in Great Britain is the owner whose horses have won the most prize money during a season. The list below shows the Champion Owner for each year since 1894. Prior to 2015 the period for deciding the championship s ...

. McShain's colt Ballymoss won numerous prestigious races including Ireland's Irish Derby Stakes, England's St. Leger Stakes and France's

Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe The Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp Racecourse in Paris, France, over a distance ...

. Ballymoss was voted 1958

European Horse of the Year The Cartier Racing Awards are awards in European horse racing, founded in 1991, and sponsored by Cartier. The award winners are decided by points earned in group races (40%) plus the votes cast by British racing journalists (30%) and readers of the ...

honors and in 1981 the

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island. ...

honored him with his image on a

postage stamp A postage stamp is a small piece of paper issued by a post office, postal administration, or other authorized vendors to customers who pay postage (the cost involved in moving, insuring, or registering mail), who then affix the stamp to the f ...

. McShain also owned the

filly A filly is a female horse that is too young to be called a mare. There are two specific definitions in use: *In most cases, a ''filly'' is a female horse under four years old. *In some nations, such as the United Kingdom and the United States, t ...

Gladness, who had victories in the

Goodwood Cup The Goodwood Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Goodwood over a distance of 2 miles (3,2 ...

and the

Ascot Gold Cup The Gold Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 2 miles 3 furlongs and 210 yards (4,01 ...

Philanthropy

A devout

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

, McShain was a major benefactor to Wheeling Jesuit University. In 2000, the newly constructed admissions center was dedicated to the memory of him and his wife. McShain served on the

Board of Directors A board of directors (commonly referred simply as the board) is an executive committee that jointly supervises the activities of an organization, which can be either a for-profit or a nonprofit organization such as a business, nonprofit orga ...

of a number of major American corporations and educational institutions including St. Joseph's University,

Catholic University Catholic higher education includes universities, colleges, and other institutions of higher education privately run by the Catholic Church, typically by religious institutes. Those tied to the Holy See are specifically called pontifical uni ...

, and

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private research university in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll in 1789 as Georgetown College, the university has grown to comprise eleven undergraduate and graduate ...

. John also attended

, an urban Jesuit high school in North Philadelphia. McShain was also a benefactor to

, his alma mater. He helped plan the construction of La Salle's original academic building, College Hall. McShain Hall at LaSalle was named after him. La Salle University also has a student award named after McShain, given out annually. The John McShain Award is offered to a member of the senior class who maintained an excellent scholastic record and is considered by faculty and staff to have done the most for the public welfare of La Salle. Through the John McShain Charities, Sister Pauline McShain continued her parents' tradition of financial support for various Catholic organizations such as the

Neumann University Neumann University is a private Roman Catholic liberal arts college in Aston, Pennsylvania. It is sponsored by the Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia. History The roots of Neumann University began in 1855 when Bishop (later Saint) John ...

scholarship program.

Personal life

In 1927, McShain married Mary J. Horstmann (1907–1998). Over the years, the McShains began visiting Ireland and in 1956 acquired

Kenmare House Kenmare House is located on the east shore of Lough Leane and was the principal residence of the Brownes of Killarney, Earls of Kenmare. History Sir Valentine Browne and his son, also Valentine Browne, were the first members of the family ...

together with in

Killarney Killarney ( ; ga, Cill Airne , meaning 'church of sloes') is a town in County Kerry, southwestern Ireland. The town is on the northeastern shore of Lough Leane, part of Killarney National Park, and is home to St Mary's Cathedral, Ross Cast ...

County Kerry County Kerry ( gle, Contae Chiarraí) is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and forms part of the province of Munster. It is named after the Ciarraige who lived in part of the present county. The population of the co ...

. He and his wife extensively renovated the building and renamed it Killarney House. In 1973, they gave Innisfallen Island and the ruins of its historic abbey to the government of Ireland. Five years later, McShain sold Killarney House and the greater part of the estate to the Irish State for a price well below market value, having been assured that the house and estate would be incorporated into

Killarney National Park Killarney National Park ( ga, Páirc Náisiúnta Chill Airne), near the town of Killarney, County Kerry, was the first national park in Ireland, created when the Muckross Estate was donated to the Irish Free State in 1932. The park has sinc ...

. McShain and his wife reserved the house and surrounding 52

acres The acre is a unit of land area used in the imperial and US customary systems. It is traditionally defined as the area of one chain by one furlong (66 by 660 feet), which is exactly equal to 10 square chains, of a square mile, 4,840 square ...

for their use. McShain died in 1989 and his wife lived in the house until her death in 1998, when the house and surrounding land reverted to the Irish State. They are buried together in

and commemorated with medallions at the Cathedral-Basilica of Sts. Peter and Paul. Their only child, Pauline McShain, became a Roman Catholic religious sister of the Society of the Holy Child Jesus. Having been empty for several years, the building fell into some disrepair. In July 2011,

Leo Varadkar Leo Eric Varadkar ( ; born 18 January 1979) is an Irish politician who has served as Taoiseach since December 2022, and previously from 2017 to 2020. He served as Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment from June 2020 to D ...

, the Irish

Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport The Minister for Transport ( ga, An tAire Iompair) is a senior minister in the Government of Ireland and leads the Department of Transport. The current Minister for Transport is Eamon Ryan, TD. He is also Minister for the Environment, Clima ...

, announced a €7 million restoration of the manor. In 2018, his nieces Mary Anne O'Donnell, Judy White and nephew Robert McShain, along with his wife Janet, eight of their nine children and assorted other cousins and distant relatives attended the grand opening of the new Killarney House National Park dedication ceremony. Pauline McShain died on March 8, 2019 from complications of

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severit ...

References

External links

John McShain papers
at

Hagley Museum and Library The Hagley Museum and Library is a nonprofit educational institution in unincorporated New Castle County, Delaware, near Wilmington. Covering more than along the banks of the Brandywine Creek, the museum and grounds include the first du Po ...

John McShain photograph collection
at

Killarney House reference at the Parliament of Ireland

* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20061111194950/http://www.nbm.org/blueprints/winter97/page4/page4.htm National Building Museum, Washington, DC article: ''Building the Nation's Capital''
TIME magazine article November 14, 1949 titled ''White House Man''
* Brauer, Carl M., ''The Man Who Built Washington: A Life of John McShain'' (1996)

Hagley Hagley is a large village and civil parish in Worcestershire, England. It is on the boundary of the West Midlands and Worcestershire counties between the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley and Kidderminster. Its estimated population was 7,162 in 2 ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:McShain, John 1896 births 1989 deaths American construction businesspeople American racehorse owners and breeders American Roman Catholics British racehorse owners and breeders Irish philanthropists Knights of Malta St. Joseph's Preparatory School alumni La Salle University alumni Businesspeople from Philadelphia People from Washington, D.C. Killarney American people of Irish descent 20th-century American businesspeople Owners of Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe winners 20th-century American philanthropists