Washington District of Columbia
Biographies

William Wilson Corcoran
December 27, 1798 - February 24, 1888
Transcribed & Furnished by : Peggy Thompson

Source :
A Biographical Record of Boone County, Iowa,
1902, Page 196

William Wilson Corcoran Photograph by Matthew Brady

W. Corcoran       W. Corcoran, the noted philanthropist, was born at Georgetown, District of Columbia, December 27, 1798.       At the age of twenty-five he entered the banking business in Washington, and in time became very wealthy.       He was noted for his magnificent donations to charity. Oak Hill cemetery was donated to Georgetown in 1847, and ten years later the Corcoran Art Gallery, Temple of Art, was presented to the city of Washington. The uncompleted building was utilized by the government as quartermaster's headquarters during the war. The building was completed after the war at a cost of a million and a half dollars, all the gift of Mr. Corcoran. The Louise Home for Women is another noble charity to his credit. Its object is the care of women of gentle breeding who in declining years are without means of support. In addition to this he gave liberally to many worthy institutions of learning and charity.       He died at Washington February 24, 1888.

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