Margaret Olivia Slocum Sage

Margaret Olivia Slocum Sage, known as Olivia Sage (September 8, 1828 – November 4, 1918), was an American philanthropist known for her contributions to education and progressive causes. In 1869 she became the second wife of industrialist Russell Sage. At his death in 1906, she inherited a fortune estimated at more than $63,000,000, to be used at her discretion.^[1]^: 164

Margaret Olivia Slocum Sage

Margaret Olivia Slocum

September 8, 1828

Syracuse, New York, U.S.

November 4, 1918(1918-11-04) (aged 90)

New York City, New York, U.S.

Troy Female Seminary

Founding Russell Sage College

Russell Sage

(m. 1869; died )

Joseph Slocum
Margaret Pierson Jermain

John Jermain (grandfather)

A former teacher, Sage strongly supported education, both with program and building grants to Syracuse and other universities. She established the Russell Sage Foundation in 1907 and founded Russell Sage College in 1916, as well as endowing programs for women.

Early life and education[edit]

Margaret Olivia Slocum, called Olivia, was born in Syracuse, New York, to Margaret Pierson (née Jermain) and Joseph Slocum. After the Panic of 1837 and the decline of canal traffic following construction of railroads across the state, her father's businesses and warehouses began to fail. Despite her father's financial struggles, Olivia was educated in private schools and graduated in 1847 from the Troy Female Seminary (later called the Emma Willard School, a preparatory school).

Career[edit]

Olivia Slocum supported herself by teaching for 20 years in Syracuse, New York, where she lived with her parents, and in Philadelphia. Her father continued to struggle and in 1857, fatally ill with tuberculosis, sold their family home in Syracuse. Olivia and her mother had to move in with relatives.^[2]

During the Civil War, Olivia Slocum moved to Philadelphia, where she worked as a governess for a wealthy family. She also volunteered in a military hospital.^[2]

Marriage and family[edit]

In 1869 at age 41, Olivia Slocum married 53-year old Russell Sage, a widower, financier and railroad executive. He was a cousin of Colonel Ira Yale Sage of the Yale family. They had no children. She became involved in activities defined by her role as his wife.^[3]

In 1906, Sage died and left his entire fortune of about $70 million to Olivia, with no stipulations on how she may use it.

Crocker, Ruth, Mrs. Russell Sage: Women's Activism and Philanthropy in Gilded Age and Progressive Era America, Indiana University Press, Bloomington, Indiana, 2006, 0-253-34712-2

ISBN

Crocker, Ruth. "From Widow's Mite to Widow's Might: The Philanthropy of Margaret Olivia Sage." Journal of Presbyterian History (American Presbyterians) 74, no. 4, Winter 1996, 253–264.

--------------. "The History of Philanthropy as Life-History: A Biographer's View of Mrs. Russell Sage." In Philanthropic Foundations: New Scholarship, New Possibilities, ed. Ellen Lagemann. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1999, 318–328.

--------------. " 'I Only Ask You Kindly to Divide Some of Your Fortune with Me': Begging Letters and the Transformation of Charity in Late 19th Century America." Social Politics 6, Summer 1999, 131–160.

--------------. "Mrs. Russell Sage: 'Private Griefs and Public Duties'", In Ordinary Women, Extraordinary Lives: Women in American History, ed. Kriste Lindenmeyer. Wilmington, DE: Scholarly Resources, 2000, 147–159.

--------------. Splendid Donation: A Life of Philanthropist Mrs. Russell Sage, Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2003.

de Forest, Robert W. "Margaret Olivia Sage, Philanthropist." The Survey 41, 1918, 151.

at Find a Grave

Margaret Olivia Slocum Sage

Internet Accuracy Project

Margaret Olivia Slocum Sage

Auburn University Libraries

"Mrs. Russell Sage Digital Collection"

Vassar College

Margaret Olivia Slocum Sage