Born: 26 October 1874, United States
Died: 5 April 1948
Country most active: United States
Also known as: Abby Greene Aldrich
American socialite and philanthropist Abby Rockefeller was one of three women who co-founded New York City’s Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in 1929, with Lillie P. Bliss and Mary Quinn Sullivan. She was also known as Mrs. John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Among other projects, the couple also funded the restoration of Colonial Williamsburg, which includes the Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Folk Art Museum, which opened in 1957 to house her collection.
The daughter of a US senator, she was educated by Quaker governesses and Miss Abbott’s School for Young Ladies. At age 19, she met her future husband, and their 1901 wedding included around 1,000 members of the social elite of the time. They went on to have six children.
A prominent art collector, she, Bliss and Sullivan conceptualized what would become MoMA over lunch in 1928, opening the first exhibition the following year in a rented apartment. They raised funds from the public, corporations and the city’s wealthy residents, and Rockefeller served as the museum’s first treasurer from 1929 to 1934, then First Vice-President from 1934 to 1936 and First Vice-chairman from 1941 to 1945. She also helped shape the museum itself, such as campaigning for MoMA’s film library and the War Veterans’ Art Center.
Following her death, the majority of her estate was donated to MoMA, around $600,000 after taxes. The museum also received various artworks from her, including 1,600 prints. The museum includes the Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Print Room and the Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Sculpture Garden.
Through her philanthropy and leadership positions, she was also a major supporter of the International House of New York, Good Fellowship Council, Bayway Community Cottage and the Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA). She was the director of the YWCA’s Grace Dodge Hotel in Washington D.C. and served as chairman of the Housing Committee for the organization’s War Work Council during World War I.