Dorothy Payne Whitney (January 23, 1887 - 1968) was an American-born social activist and philanthropist and a member of the prominent Whitney family. January 23 is the 23rd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1887 is a common year starting on Saturday (click on link for calendar). ... 1968 was a leap year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1968 calendar). ... Beginning with William Collins Whitney, an extremely wealthy businessman who was the breeder of twenty-six stakes winners, the Whitney name became synonymous with thoroughbred horse racing in the United States. ...

Born in Washington, DC, at age 17 she came into a major inheritance following the death of her extremely wealthy father, businessman and statesman, William C. Whitney. Aerial photo (looking NW) of the Washington Monument and the White House in Washington, DC. Washington, D.C., officially the District of Columbia (also known as D.C.; Washington; the Nations Capital; the District; and, historically, the Federal City) is the capital city and administrative district of the United... William Collins Whitney (July 5, 1841 - February 2, 1904) was an American political leader and financier. ...

Her first marriage in 1911 was to Willard Dickerman Straight (1880-1918) an orphan from Oswego, New York who went to Cornell University and by the age of 30 was a powerful man amongst the international community trading in Peking, China. He died at the age of thirty-eight of influenza during the great epidemic while serving with the United States Army in France during World War I. Straight's will requested his wife to continue his philanthropic work in support of Cornell and in 1925 she built Willard Straight Hall, a student union building dedicated to her late husband's memory. Oswego is a city located in Oswego County, New York. ... For other uses of the name Cornell, see Cornell (disambiguation). ... Beijing (Chinese: 北京; pinyin: Běijīng; Wade-Giles: Pei-ching; Postal System Pinyin: Peking), is the capital city of the Peoples Republic of China. ... Negatively stained flu virions. ... The Spanish Flu Pandemic, also known as the Great Influenza Pandemic, the 1918 Flu Epidemic, and La Grippe, was an unusually severe and deadly strain of influenza, a viral infectious disease, that killed some 25 million to 50 million people world-wide in 1918 and 1919. ... The Army is the branch of the United States armed forces which has primary responsibility for land-based military operations. ... Ypres, 1917, in the vicinity of the Battle of Passchendaele. ... Philanthropy involves the donation or granting of money to various worthy charitable causes. ...

One of the wealthiest women in America in the early 20th century, Dorothy Whitney Straight was a philanthropist, social activist, suporting women's trade unions, educational and charitable organisations such as the Junior League of New York, becoming the first president of the Association of Junior Leagues International Inc. in 1921. She was also a founder with her husband of the weekly magazine The New Republic and the New School for Social Research. A philanthropist is someone who devotes his or her time, money, or effort towards helping others. ... The Association of Junior Leagues International is an organization of 294 Junior Leagues in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and the United Kingdom. ... The New Republic is an American journal of opinion published weekly and with a circulation of around 100,000. ... New School University is an institute of higher learning in New York City. ...

Records of Dorothy Payne Whitney's in New York City, reveal the extent of her philanthropic work. She was a benefactor of the arts, feminist, and pacifist causes as well as social and labour reform. She lent financial support to progressive alternative education plus scholarly research. In 1937, she created in her father's name the William C. Whitney Foundation. Midtown Manhattan, looking north from the Empire State Building, 2005 New York City (officially named the City of New York) is the most populous city in the United States, and is at the center of international finance, politics, communications, music, fashion, and culture. ...

It was through the Cornell connection that in 1920 she met Major Leonard K. Elmhirst, from a Yorkshire landowning family, who was then studying Agriculture at Cornell University, and was seeking support for Cornell's Cosmopolitan Club which provdied amenities for foreign students. They married in April 1925, and embarked on ambitious plans to recreate rural community life at Dartington Hall in Devon. Yorkshire as a traditional county. ... For other uses of the name Cornell, see Cornell (disambiguation). ... Dartington Hall is a medieval hall built in 1388 for John Holand, Earl of Huntingdon, half-brother to Richard II. After John was beheaded, the Crown owned the estate until it was bought by 1559 by Sir Arthur Champernowne, Vice-Admiral of the West under Elizabeth I. The Champernowne family...

At Dartington she led the artistic developments, although she and Leonard also continued their world wide interests.

Children with Willard Dickerman Straight:

1. Whitney Willard Straight (1912-1979)
2. Beatrice Whitney Straight (1914-2001)
3. Michael Whitney Straight (1916-2004)

Children with Leonard K. Elmhirst: Beatrice Whitney Straight (August 2, 1914 – April 7, 2001) was an American theater and film actress. ...

1. Ruth Elmhirst
2. William Elmhirst

References

Bibiliography: Dartington, Anon, Publ. Webber & Bower 1982. The Elmhirsts Of Dartington, The Creation Of A Utopian Community, Michael Young, Publ. Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1982 For the Major League Baseball player, Michael Young, see Michael Young (baseball player). ...