Mary Todhunter Clark Rockefeller (June 17, 1907 – April 21, 1999) was the first wife of

Nelson A. Rockefeller Nelson Aldrich "Rocky" Rockefeller (July 8, 1908 – January 26, 1979) was the 41st vice president of the United States, serving from 1974 to 1977 under President Gerald Ford. He was also the 49th governor of New York, serving from 1959 to 197 ...

, the 49th

governor of New York The governor of New York is the head of government of the U.S. state of New York. The governor is the head of the executive branch of New York's state government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor ...

and the 41st

vice president of the United States The vice president of the United States (VPOTUS) is the second-highest ranking office in the Executive branch of the United States government, executive branch of the U.S. federal government, after the president of the United States, and ranks f ...

. She served as the first lady of New York from 1959 until the Rockefellers' divorce in March 1962. After their divorce, Nelson Rockefeller remained governor and would later become the 41st vice president of the United States, serving under President

Gerald Ford Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr. (born Leslie Lynch King Jr.; July 14, 1913December 26, 2006) was the 38th president of the United States, serving from 1974 to 1977. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, Ford assumed the p ...

Early life

Known as ''Tod'' to her family, Mary was born in the Germantown section of

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

on June 17, 1907. She was the daughter of Elizabeth Williams (

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

Roberts) Clark and Percy Hamilton Clark, an attorney and noted

cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...

er. Among her siblings were two brothers, John R. Clark and Dr. Thomas W. Clark. Her maternal grandfather was George B. Roberts, a former president of the

Pennsylvania Railroad The Pennsylvania Railroad ( reporting mark PRR), legal name as the Pennsylvania Railroad Company, also known as the "Pennsy," was an American Class I railroad that was established in 1846 and headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. At its ...

. Tod attended 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 ...

Middleburg, Virginia Middleburg is a town in Loudoun County, Virginia, United States, with a population of 673 as of the 2010 census. It is the southernmost town along Loudoun County's shared border with Fauquier County. Middleburg is known as the "Nation's Horse ...

and studied at the Sorbonne in France, but didn't graduate, instead returning to Philadelphia where she made her debut and became active in the

Junior League The Association of Junior Leagues International, Inc. (Junior League or JL) is a private, nonprofit educational women's volunteer organization aimed at improving communities and the social, cultural, and political fabric of civil society. With ...

Career

In 1932, Mary began volunteering at the Bellevue School of Nursing in Manhattan, which was administered with

Bellevue Hospital Bellevue Hospital (officially NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue and formerly known as Bellevue Hospital Center) is a hospital in New York City and the oldest public hospital in the United States. One of the largest hospitals in the United States ...

. She served on the school's board for many years, including a stint as the board president.

Personal life

On June 23, 1930, Mary married Nelson Rockefeller, a grandson of

John D. Rockefeller John Davison Rockefeller Sr. (July 8, 1839 – May 23, 1937) was an American businessman and philanthropist. He was one of the List of richest Americans in history, wealthiest Americans of all time and one of the richest people in modern hist ...

, at St. Asaph's Episcopal Church in

Bala Cynwyd Bala Cynwyd ( ) is a community and census-designated place in Lower Merion Township, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located on the Philadelphia Main Line in Southeastern Pennsylvania and borders the western edge of Philadelphia at U.S. Rou ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

, with a reception at the home of her parents, a few days after Nelson had graduated from

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College ( ) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, Dartmouth is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the America ...

. They had five children: * Rodman Clark Rockefeller (1932–2000) *

Ann Rockefeller Roberts Ann Rockefeller Roberts (May 12, 1934 – December 18, 2024) was a Native American activist. She was the eldest daughter of Nelson A. Rockefeller, the 49th governor of New York and the 41st vice president of the United States. Life and career Ro ...

(1934–2024), a founder and president of the Fund of the Four Directions. *

Steven Clark Rockefeller Steven Clark Rockefeller (born April 19, 1936) is an American professor, philanthropist and a fourth-generation member of the Rockefeller family. He is the second oldest son of former U.S. Vice President Nelson A. Rockefeller and Mary Rockefe ...

(b. 1936), a former dean of

Middlebury College Middlebury College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Middlebury, Vermont, United States. Founded in 1800 by Congregationalism in the United States, Congregationalists, Middlebury w ...

. * Mary Rockefeller Callard (b. 1938), Michael's twin. * Michael Clark Rockefeller (1938–1961), who

disappeared An enforced disappearance (or forced disappearance) is the secret abduction or imprisonment of a person with the support or acquiescence of a state followed by a refusal to acknowledge the person's fate or whereabouts with the intent of placing ...

during an expedition in the

Asmat Asmat may mean: *Asmat people, ethnic group in New Guinea *Asmat languages, of New Guinea *Asmat Regency, Indonesia *Asmat subregion Asmat subregion is a subregion in the northwestern Anseba region (Zoba Anseba) of Eritrea Eritrea, offi ...

region of southwestern

Netherlands New Guinea Dutch New Guinea or Netherlands New Guinea (, ) was the Western New Guinea, western half of the island of New Guinea that was a part of the Dutch East Indies until 1949, later an overseas administrative territorial entity, overseas territory of ...

. Mary divorced her husband on March 16, 1962 in

Reno, Nevada Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada–California border. It is the county seat and most populous city of Washoe County, Nevada, Washoe County. Sitting in the High Eastern Sierra foothills, ...

on grounds of extreme mental cruelty. A year later, "Happy" Murphy became the governor's second wife. She died at her home on the

Upper East Side The Upper East Side, sometimes abbreviated UES, is a neighborhood in the boroughs of New York City, borough of Manhattan in New York City. It is bounded approximately by 96th Street (Manhattan), 96th Street to the north, the East River to the e ...

of Manhattan in 1999 at the age of 91.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rockefeller, Mary Todhunter Rockefeller family Clark banking family 1907 births 1999 deaths People from Philadelphia First ladies and gentlemen of New York (state)