bertha palmer

Chicago Philanthropist, Socialite

and BusinesswomanMay 22, 1849–May 5, 1918

Marriage & Family

• Born in 1849• Louisville, KY• Wealthy family• 1855 moved to Chicago• At 13 met her future

husband, Potter Palmer

Potter Palmer: Chicago Business Leader

• In 1871 Bertha married Potter Palmer, Chicago merchandising magnate

• Marriage united two of Chicago’s wealthiest families

• Together, his fortune and her works combined to produce some of the most significant contributions to the city’s artistic, social, civic and cultural history


• Quaker merchant from the east

• Came to Chicago after failing twice in business

• Established successful dry goods business in Chicago

• Catered to women• Made customer

service a priority


• Sold his store to Marshall Field so he could dabble in real estate

• Responsible for the initial development of State Street

• Built numerous buildings and the still renowned Palmer House Hotel

The Chicago Fire & Rebuilding of State St.

• 13 days after the hotel was completed, the Great Chicago Fire of 1871 decimates the city

• Palmer House Hotel and all of Palmer’s State Street real estate holdings burn to the ground


• Bertha takes action

• Drives buggy to nearby town

• Wires NY for business loan

• Reconstruction begins


The Palmer House today

A Castle Fit for a Queen

• 1350 N. Lake Shore Drive

• Largest private residence in Chicago at the time

• Took 3 years to build

• Cost $20,000,000 (today’s dollars)


• Designed by Henry Cobb & Charles Sumner Frost

• The first brownstone on Lake Shore Drive• Unobstructed view of Lake Michigan• Potters’ move to LSD attracted other wealthy of

Chicago from the mansions of Prairie Avenue• Marked the establishment of Chicago’s “Gold

Coast” as one of the most desirable areas in the city to live

• Still one of the most affluent areas of Chicago today


Exterior views

Potter’s Gold Coast Mansion

A Castle Fit for a Queen• Fashioned after English

gothic castle• 3 story central hall

under glass dome• Variety of historic styles • Spanish music room• Renaissance library• Ottoman parlor• Grand ballroom 75 feet

long• Dining room that could

seat 50

A Castle Fit for a Queen• Spiral staircase rose 80 feet

into a tower

• Two private elevators

• Multiple turrets and minarets on exterior of building

• Palmers used mansion to entertain 3 U.S. presidents, numerous international guests, and hold receptions during the World’s Fair

• Mansion demolished in 1951

The 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition

• World’s Fair catapulted Bertha to fame

• President of Board of Lady Managers

• Used her post to lobby for greater representation of women at the fair


• Bertha saw to it women had a building of their own to feature their achievements

• Made sure women were represented in all state pavilions too


The Woman’s Building


A postcard from the Fair

A stereograph photo taken at the Fair

An Unrivaled Art Collection

• Bertha traveled to Europe to solicit help from abroad and obtained exhibits from 47 countries

• Met artists and bought paintings for the Fair

• This ignited her passion for French Impressionism which she then began to collect


• Her collection included works of:

• Monet• Degas• Renoir• Picasso


• Priceless paintings which once hung in the Palmer mansion now hang at the Art Institute of Chicago

• Her gift is the most visible legacy of Bertha Palmer to the citizens of Chicago

Other Leading Roles• Though renowned for her

mansion, jewelry, and art Bertha was a strong supporter of the less privileged

• Supported kindergartens before the city included them in the school system

• Lobbied for penny milk for poor children

• Supported better care for the children of imprisoned women

Other Leading Roles

• Supported women’s rights and feminist causes

• Invited business and labor leaders to a national conference at her home

• Financially supported Jane Addams’ Hull House

• Helped hatmakers form a milliner’s union

Other Leading Roles• Appointed by

Pres. McKinley to be U.S commissioner to the 1900 World’s Fair in Paris

• Trustee of Northwestern University

• VP of Chicago Civic Federation

The Death of Potter Palmer

• Husband’s obituary credits Bertha for encouraging Potter to remain in Chicago after the Fire of 1871

• “…It is our duty to stay and devote our fortunes and energies to rebuilding this stricken city…”

The Later Years• Began wintering in Florida

which encouraged other wealthy people to do the same

• Purchased huge tracts of land in Florida spurring boom in Florida real estate

• Became a progressive rancher, farmer and developer

• Introduced innovations in citrus, dairy, farming industries

• Donated thousands of acres to Florida for state parks

The Later Years• So successful in her real

estate dealings in Florida Bertha nearly doubled the $8 million left to her by her husband in 1902.

• By the time she died 16 years later her estate was worth over $15 million

• It was left to her two sons, Honore and Potter Palmer II.

The Passing of a Chicago Icon

• Bertha died in Florida, May 5, 1918

• Her body was returned to Chicago to lie in state at her castle on Chicago’s Gold Coast


• Bertha was buried with husband, Potter Palmer at Graceland Cemetery, Chicago

• Tomb designed in style of Greek temple


• Potters were laid within two large granite sarcophagi with three generations of descendants around them.

• Their tomb is believed by many to be the most magnificent burial place in Graceland

bertha palmer

Education

wealthy of chicago

citizens of chicago

great chicago

palmer mansion

art institute of chicago

florida bertha

bertha married potter

art bertha