Peter Arrell Browne Widener

Widener was born on November 13, 1834, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to Johannes Widener and Sarah Fulmer. He was named after Peter Arrell Browne, a lawyer in Philadelphia. He attended Central High School in Philadelphia and excelled in mathematics. ==Career==

He began his career as a butcher and established a successful business with a chain of meat stores. He grew to prominence in Philadelphia politics. He served on the Philadelphia Board of Education from 1867 to 1870, as the Philadelphia City Treasurer from 1870 to 1877, and as the Philadelphia City Park Commissioner in 1890. The building caught fire in 1980 and was demolished. in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania In 1897, Widener began construction of Lynnewood Hall, designed by Horace Trumbauer, on a 300-acre plot of land in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania. The estate was opened with a gala held on December 18, 1899. he founded the Widener Memorial Home for Crippled Children, as a memorial to his wife and first son Harry. In 1941, the home was transferred to the School District of Philadelphia is currently used as a public school, Widener Memorial School. He was interred at Laurel Hill Cemetery in Philadelphia. After his death, his estate was valued at $31,589,353. By 1945, the accumulated income plus the current value of the real and personal property totaled $98,368,058. ==Art collection==

Widener assembled an extensive and valuable art collection displayed at Lynnewood Hall. The collection included works from Bellini, Cellini, Degas, Donatello, El Greco, Frans Hals, Gainsborough, Monet, Raphael, Rembrandt, Titian, Van Dyck. Widener was known to overpay to collect the finest art from Europe. About 1905, he purchased the crucifixion panel from Rogier van der Weyden's Crucifixion Diptych ( 1460) in Paris. The following year he sold it to John G. Johnson, who reunited the two halves and later donated them to the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Widener's son Joseph donated more than 2,000 works of art from the collection to the National Gallery of Art in 1942. ==Personal life and family==

He married Hannah Josephine Dunton on August 18, 1858, George Dunton Widener and his son Harry Elkins Widener died during the sinking of the Titanic. His youngest son Joseph Early Widener inherited his father's fortune, managed the family estate, His grandson, George D. Widener Jr., a noted horse racing figure, was also the chairman of the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Widener's eldest brother, George (1820–1901), served as a member of the Philadelphia City Council. The two brothers were, at one time, business partners. ==References==

• Peter Arrell Browne Widener, Pictures in the Collection of P.A.B. Widener at Lynnewood Hall, Elkins Park Pennsylvania., Philadelphia: Privately Printed, 1913