Sarah B. Cochran
Sarah B. Cochran (née Moore, 1857–1936) was an active philanthropist and a director on multiple corporate boards in western Pennsylvania during the height of the area's coal wealth in the early 20th century. At one time, she was one of the wealthiest women on the East Coast.[1] She was the first female trustee of Allegheny College and financed construction of Linden Hall and the Philip G. Cochran Memorial United Methodist Church, both on the National Register of Historic Places.
Personal life
Sarah Boyd Moore was born on April 22, 1857, in
Sarah's father-in-law, James Cochran, died in 1894,[9] and Sarah's husband died in 1899.[10] Her son, James Philip Cochran, was the expected representative of the family's estate but died on March 5, 1901[11] while preparing for his business career as a student at the University of Pennsylvania.[12][13]
As a widow, Sarah spent time traveling abroad.
Sarah was a semi-invalid for the last fifteen years of her life, after fracturing her hip and arm in an accident at Linden Hall.[20] When Sarah died in 1936, a memorial service themed “The Ministry of Woman” was held at the Philip G. Cochran Memorial United Methodist Church. The service featured ministers speaking about female Biblical figures and about Sarah's life.[21]
Career
Philip G. Cochran was recognized as being one of the most extensive coal and coke operators in Pennsylvania, with large interests in Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia.[22] His death left Sarah to assume many of the business responsibilities and board service roles he had undertaken since his father's death in 1894.[23] Among these were president of the Brown & Cochran Coke Company, Washington Coal & Coke Company, Juniata Coke Company, Dawson Bridge Company, and First National Bank of Dawson.[24]
Under Sarah's leadership, the business grew threefold.[25] At the time of her death on October 27, 1936,[26] Sarah's obituary suggested that she was a founder and stockholder of Cochran Coal & Coke Company of Morgantown, West Virginia; and the First National Bank of Perryopolis.[27] In 1977, the Evening Standard in Uniontown stated that she was “at one time the nation's only coal queen.”[28]
Public Work and Philanthropy
Sarah actively supported education and religious institutions. In 1905 she donated $50,000 to
In 1900 Sarah dedicated a Methodist church in Dawson to the memory of her late husband. This church was later razed when she presented its congregation with plans for a new, Gothic-style stone church. Named the Philip G. Cochran Memorial United Methodist Church, it was officially dedicated on November 20, 1927.[36]
In addition to supporting education and religious institutions, Sarah supported women's suffrage by hosting a suffrage tea featuring Anna Howard Shaw at Linden Hall in 1915.[37] The tea drew 600 male and female guests with proceeds supporting the Fayette County Woman Suffrage Party.[38]
Footnotes
- ^ Daily Courier (Connellsville, PA), 28 October 1936, front page, “Mrs. Sarah B. Cochran's Death Closes Long Life Devoted to Human Needs”
- ^ Philip G. Cochran Memorial United Methodist Church http://www.cochranmemorialumc.org/our-church/susan-b-cochran
- ^ "Phillip G. Cochran Memorial United Methodist Church". Archived from the original on 2017-02-22. Retrieved 2017-02-22.
- ^ "Phillip G. Cochran Memorial United Methodist Church". Archived from the original on 2017-02-22. Retrieved 2017-02-22.
- ^ "Welcome".
- ^ Evening Standard (Uniontown, PA), 14 October 1977, page 26, col 1, “Linden Hall Tours Still On”
- ^ "Phillip G. Cochran Memorial United Methodist Church". Archived from the original on 2017-02-22. Retrieved 2017-02-22.
- ^ "Phillip G. Cochran Memorial United Methodist Church". Archived from the original on 2017-02-22. Retrieved 2017-02-22.
- ^ Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 6 July 1980, F1, “Steelworkers' Mansion Quite a Site” by Sylvia Sachs
- ^ "Phillip G. Cochran Memorial United Methodist Church". Archived from the original on 2017-02-22. Retrieved 2017-02-22.
- ^ "Phillip G. Cochran Memorial United Methodist Church". Archived from the original on 2017-02-22. Retrieved 2017-02-22.
- ^ "Welcome".
- ^ Jordan, John Woolf (1912). Genealogical and Personal History of Fayette and Greene Counties, Pennsylvania. Lewis Historical Publishing Company.
- ^ "Welcome".
- ^ "The Phi Psi Dance". The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.). April 29, 1905. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
- ISSN 2471-2183. Retrieved 2020-04-24.
- ISSN 2471-2183. Retrieved 2020-04-24.
- ^ Babbs, Verity (2023-12-12). "See the Monumental Tiffany Stained-Glass Window the Met Just Acquired". Artnet News. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 6 July 1980, F1, “Steelworkers' Mansion Quite a Site” by Sylvia Sachs
- ^ Daily Courier (Connellsville, PA), 28 October 1936, front page, “Mrs. Sarah B. Cochran's Death Closes Long Life Devoted to Human Needs”
- ^ The Daily Courier (Connellsville, PA), 6 November 1936, page 6, col 3, “Memorial Service at Dawson Church for Mrs. Cochran”
- ^ “The Lady Bountiful of Beechwood Boulevard,” The Pittsburgh Press, 2 August 1908, pg. 43.
- ^ Jordan, John Woolf (1912). Genealogical and Personal History of Fayette and Greene Counties, Pennsylvania. Lewis Historical Publishing Company.
- ^ John Woolf Jordan, James Hadden A Genealogical and Personal History of Fayette and Greene Counties, Vol 3., pg. 736 https://books.google.com/books?id=yM0wAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA736
- ^ "Welcome".
- ^ "Phillip G. Cochran Memorial United Methodist Church". Archived from the original on 2017-02-22. Retrieved 2017-02-22.
- ^ Sarah B. Cochran obituary https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=822177797842095&id=156864401040108&substory_index=0
- ^ Evening Standard (Uniontown, PA), 14 October 1977, page 26, col 1, “Linden Hall Tours Still On”
- ^ "History – Cochran Hall | Alumni | Allegheny College".
- ^ "Artstor".
- ^ "Phillip G. Cochran Memorial United Methodist Church". Archived from the original on 2017-02-22. Retrieved 2017-02-22.
- ^ The Daily Courier (Connellsville, PA), 21 August 1975, page 28 col 1, “Out of the Past.”
- ^ "Phillip G. Cochran Memorial United Methodist Church". Archived from the original on 2017-02-22. Retrieved 2017-02-22.
- ^ The American Educational Review, Vol. 31, pg. 359 https://books.google.com/books?id=UAA5AQAAMAAJ&pg=PA359
- ^ Bethany College Bulletin, Vol. XIV, May 1921, No. 2, pg. 14 https://archive.org/stream/cataloguewithc2122beth/cataloguewithc2122beth_djvu.txt
- ^ "Phillip G. Cochran Memorial United Methodist Church". Archived from the original on 2017-02-22. Retrieved 2017-02-22.
- ^ "Open Fayette County Campaign," The Pittsburgh Post, 30 July 1915, page 9, col. 3
- ^ "Stirring Rally for Suffrage in Fayette," The Gazette Times (Pittsburgh), 30 July 1915, pg. 7
External links and Additional Resources
- Linden Hall
- Philip G. Cochran Memorial United Methodist Church
- Cochran Hall at Allegheny College
- Hess, Kimberly. A Lesser Mortal: The Unexpected Life of Sarah B. Cochran. New Orleans: Books Fluent, 2021.
- Hess, Kimberly. "Sarah Cochran". National Women's History Museum. 2017.