1922 Encyclopædia Britannica/Carnegie, Andrew

CARNEGIE, ANDREW (1837–1919), American “captain of industry” and philanthropist (see 5.364), died at Lenox, Mass., Aug. 11 1919. His ideals are shown by his benefactions and are best described by describing them. In 1910 he gave $10,000,000 for establishing an Endowment for International Peace, “to hasten the abolition of international war, the foulest blot upon our civilization.” This Endowment was planned to encourage studies in economics, history and international law so that misunderstandings of peoples be averted by increasing their knowledge of one another. After America entered the World War (1917) the Endowment gathered much international information and furnished it for use at the Peace Conference. In 1910, the Pan-American Union building erected in Washington by Carnegie at a cost of $850,000 was dedicated. In 1911 he established his last and largest endowment, the Carnegie Corp. of New York, and before his death placed in its charge $125,000,000 to be used for promoting civilization in whatever way seems best to the trustees. The variety of its activities is illustrated by the following: American Red Cross ($1,500,000); Knights of Columbus War Work Fund ($250,000); Y.M.C.A. War Work Fund ($250,000); Y.W.C.A. War Work Fund ($100,000); Library Buildings in Army Cantonments ($320,000); Study of Methods of Americanization ($204,000); National Research Council ($5,420,000); Church Pension Fund (nearly $325,000), and Simplified Spelling Board ($110,000). In 1913 the Hague Peace Palace, given by Carnegie and costing $1,500,000, was dedicated. Some of the best known gifts in addition to the above mentioned are: The Carnegie Institute of Pittsburgh, nearly $29,000,000; the Carnegie Institution of Washington, $22,300,000; the Carnegie Hero Fund Commission, $10,500,000; the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, $29,250,000; the Carnegie U.K. Trust, $10,000,000; the Scottish Universities Trust, $10,000,000; the Dunfermline Trust, $3,750,000; the Simplified Spelling Board, $250,000; the Church Peace Union, $2,025,000. By the close of 1918 he had erected 2,811 library buildings (1,946 U.S.A.; 660 Great Britain and Ireland; 156 Canada; 49 elsewhere) at a cost of more than $60,000,000. He had provided 7,689 church organs throughout the world, costing more than $6,000,000. To the Carnegie U.K. Trust, founded in 1913, he transferred the charge of all his existing and future benefactions other, than university benefactions in the United Kingdom. He gave the trustees a wide discretion, and they have inaugurated a policy of financing rural library schemes rather than erecting library buildings, and of assisting the musical education of the people rather than granting organs to churches. In his will he provided that after certain enumerated bequests the residue of his estate (his family having already been provided for) should pass to the Carnegie Corporation. Appraisal of the estate, smaller than had been estimated, was made in 1921 and showed a net value of $22,880,000. Since according to the law of New York only half of an estate can be assigned as public bequests in case husband, wife, parent, or child survive, the residue passing to the Carnegie Corp. was less than $11,000,000. Before his death Carnegie had made public gifts, including those mentioned above, amounting to $350,000,000. If he did not die poor, as he claimed every man should, he at least had given away all but a relatively small portion of his wealth.

His Autobiography appeared in 1920.