Ivyhurst - President William H. Taft and the Downeys

Photograph

Greene Connections

Name/Title

Entry/Object ID

2011.2.187

Description

Dated 4 November 1919. [Left-Right]: Helen Louise "Nellie" (Herron) Taft, President William H. Taft, Ella Jean "Jennie" (Wilson) (Lindsey) Downey and Robinson Franklin Downey at the Downey home, known as "Ivyhurst," in Waynesburg, Greene County, Pennsylvania. Ivyhurst was the home of Robinson Franklin Downey (1849-1923) and his wife, Ella Jean "Jennie" (Wilson) (Lindsey) Downey (1860-1934), prominent citizens with influential political ties. Ivyhurst played host to such celebrities as President William H. Taft, Woodrow Wilson's Vice President Thomas Marshall, newspaper tycoon William Jennings Bryan, and Mrs. Calvin Coolidge. After the death of Mrs. Downey, Ivyhurst passed into the ownership of Waynesburg College, which used it to house the Music Department until 1967, when Ivyhurst was sold and destroyed to make room for a gas station. The home was located on the corner of Greene and Washington streets in Waynesburg, today the location of Community Bank. Original, no photographer listed.

Collection

Greene County Historical Society Collection

Made/Created

Date made

Nov 4, 1919

Lexicon

Search Terms

Downey family, Politics, Presidents' spouses--United States, Presidents--United States, Waynesburg (Pa.)--Houses--Ivyhurst, Waynesburg (Pa.)--Streets--Greene Street, Waynesburg (Pa.)--Streets--Washington Street

Other Names and Numbers

Other Number

GCHS-AN027-0001-0149

Relationships

Related Person or Organization

Person or Organization

Downey, Robinson Franklin [1849-1923]

Person or Organization

Wilson, Ella Jean [1860-1935]

Web Links and URLs

DOWNLOAD high-resolution JPG image, DOWNLOAD high-resolution TIFF image

Provenance

Provenance Detail

Greene County Places Series - Greene County Historical Society Collection, Waynesburg - Places - Greene County Historical Society Collection

Notes

Archived at the Greene County Historical Society (918 Rolling Meadows Road, P.O. Box 127; Waynesburg, Pennsylvania 15370). Researched and digitized for the Greene Connections: Greene County, Pennsylvania Archives Project between 2005-2014. Source Citation: [Left-Right]: Helen Louise "Nellie" (Herron) Taft, President William H. Taft, Ella Jean "Jennie" (Wilson) (Lindsey) Downey, and Robinson Franklin Downey at the Downey home (known as "Ivyhurst") in Waynesburg, Greene County, Pennsylvania; dated 4 November 1919; item no. GCHS-AN027-0001-0149, Greene County Historical Society Collection; Greene Connections Archives Project (GreeneConnections.com).