Dorothy Douglas Robinson Kidder (June 30, 1917 – September 18, 1995) was an American socialite, philanthropist and political hostess. She was president of the Association of American Foreign Service Women.

Early life and education

Dorothy Douglas Robinson was born in

Manchester, Massachusetts Manchester-by-the-Sea (also known simply as Manchester, its name prior to 1990) is a coastal town on Cape Ann, in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The town is known for scenic beaches and vista points. According to the 2020 populati ...

, the daughter of Monroe Douglas Robinson and Dorothy M. Jordan Robinson (later Chadwick). Her grandparents included Douglas Robinson Jr. and

Corinne Roosevelt Robinson Corinne Roosevelt Robinson (September 27, 1861 – February 17, 1933) was an American poet, writer and lecturer. She was also the younger sister of President of the United States Theodore Roosevelt and an aunt of First Lady of the United States, ...

, and her great-grandfather was Boston businessman

Eben Dyer Jordan Eben Dyer Jordan Sr. (October 13, 1822 − November 15, 1895) was an American business executive, best remembered as the co-founder of the department store chain Jordan, Marsh & Co. with Benjamin L. Marsh in 1841. Early life Jordan was born in ...

. Her aunt

Corinne Alsop Cole Corinne Alsop Cole (born Corinne Douglas Robinson; July 2, 1886 – June 23, 1971) was an American politician who served two terms as a member of the Connecticut House of Representatives. Early life Corinne Robinson was born on July 2, 1886, in ...

and her uncle

Theodore Douglas Robinson Theodore Douglas Robinson (April 28, 1883 – April 10, 1934) was an American politician from New York who served as the Assistant Secretary of the Navy from November 1924 to 1929. He was a member of the Roosevelt family through his mother and was ...

were both in politics. Her first cousins included journalists

Joseph Alsop Joseph Wright Alsop V (October 10, 1910 – August 28, 1989) was an American journalist and syndicated newspaper columnist from the 1930s through the 1970s. He was an influential journalist and top insider in Washington from 1945 to the late 19 ...

and

Stewart Alsop Stewart Johonnot Oliver Alsop (May 17, 1914 – May 26, 1974) was an American newspaper columnist and political analyst. Early life Alsop was born and raised in Avon, Connecticut, from an old Yankee family. Alsop attended Groton School and Yal ...

. Writer Susan Mary Alsop, a relation by marriage, was a close friend and one of her bridesmaids. Robinson attended the

Chapin School Chapin School is an single-sex education, all-girls independent day school on Manhattan's Upper East Side neighborhood in New York City. History Maria Bowen Chapin opened "Miss Chapin's School for Girls and Kindergarten for Boys and Girls" ...

in New York and the

Foxcroft School Foxcroft School, founded in 1914 by Charlotte Haxall Noland, is a college-preparatory boarding and day school for girls in grades 9-12 & PG, located near Middleburg, Virginia, United States. In its century of existence, Foxcroft has educat ...

in Virginia.

Personal life

Dorothy Douglas Robinson married foreign service officer Randolph Appleton ("Randy") Kidder, son of archaeologist Alfred V. Kidder, in 1938. They had a son, Michael, born in Canada, and a daughter, Charlotte, born in Australia. She died from

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma, is a malignant tumor that begins in the lung. Lung cancer is caused by genetic damage to the DNA of cells in the airways, often caused by cigarette smoking or inhaling damaging chemicals. Damaged ...

in 1995, aged 78 years, at her home in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

Her memorial service was held at the

National Cathedral National Cathedral may refer to: * Iglesia Filipina Independiente National Cathedral, a cathedral of the Philippine Independent Church in Manila * National Cathedral of Ghana, a planned interdenominational cathedral in Accra * National Cathedral ...

Career

With her diplomat husband, Kidder lived and worked in Canada, Australia, Brazil, Vietnam, and France from 1938 to 1968. Her husband was appointed U.S. Ambassador to Cambodia in 1964, but was not able to serve. She was president of the Association of American Foreign Service Women in the 1960s, and contributed travel, fashion, and interview articles to the ''Boston Globe'', while she was living in Paris in the 1970s. Kidder's philanthropic efforts focused on the

National Gallery of Art The National Gallery of Art is an art museum in Washington, D.C., United States, located on the National Mall, between 3rd and 9th Streets, at Constitution Avenue NW. Open to the public and free of charge, the museum was privately established in ...

, the

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums, Education center, education and Research institute, research centers, created by the Federal government of the United States, U.S. government "for the increase a ...

, the

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street (Manhattan), 53rd Street between Fifth Avenue, Fifth and Sixth Avenues. MoMA's collection spans the late 19th century to the present, a ...

, the National Arboretum, and the

Kennedy Center The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, commonly known as the Kennedy Center, is the national cultural center of the United States, located on the eastern bank of the Potomac River in Washington, D.C. Opened on September 8, ...

, especially its dance programs. She also founded the Hopeful Fund, to support services for the unhoused population in Washington, D.C. In June of 1988, Kidder gave an "amusing" oral history interview to the

Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training The Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training (ADST) is a United States 501(c)(3) non-profit organization established in 1986 by retired Foreign Service officers, headquartered at the George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Cent ...

, recounting dances with the

Ballets Russes The Ballets Russes () was an itinerant ballet company begun in Paris that performed between 1909 and 1929 throughout Europe and on tours to North and South America. The company never performed in Russia, where the Russian Revolution, Revolution ...

in Sydney, exorcisms in Brazil, and too many gimlets in Saigon, among other adventures. "We had a joint career," she said of her time as a foreign service wife.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kidder, Dorothy Douglas Robinson 1917 births 1995 deaths 20th-century American philanthropists Chapin School (Manhattan) alumni Foxcroft School alumni People from Manchester-by-the-Sea, Massachusetts