For more than 60 years the Richard King Mellon Foundation has invested in the competitive future and quality of life in Southwestern Pennsylvania, and in the protection, preservation, and restoration of America’s environmental heritage.
The Foundation was created in 1947 by Richard King Mellon, president and chairman of Mellon Bank, a conservationist and leading figure in the financial and civic life of Pennsylvania.
Richard King Mellon was born in Pittsburgh on June 19, 1899, the son of Richard Beatty Mellon and Jennie King Mellon. Mr. Mellon served his country in both World Wars and in peacetime, attaining the rank of Lieutenant General, United States Army Reserve, and receiving the Distinguished Service Medal.
He was president of Mellon National Bank and for twenty years Chairman of the Board of Mellon National Bank and Trust Company; as a director, he aided the growth of many of the nation’s leading enterprises, particularly Gulf Oil Corporation and Aluminum Company of America. As President and Governor of T. Mellon and Sons, Mr. Mellon inspired and led the rebirth of Pittsburgh as a great American city; his creative energies forged the Pittsburgh Renaissance, a nationally recognized architectural, civic, social, and educational venture.
In 1936 Mr. Mellon married the former Constance Mary Prosser, who served as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Richard King Mellon Foundation from its inception in 1947 until her death in 1980. A renowned sportsman, Mr. Mellon generously endeavored to preserve the quality of the natural environment and to protect its wildlife. Mr. Mellon died on June 3, 1970.
Program Interests
Commitment to Southwestern Pennsylvania
Seeking to build a vibrant Pittsburgh and Southwestern Pennsylvania, the Richard King Mellon Foundation invests in a broad range of economic development programs in the region. The Foundation recently has supported projects that strengthen Pittsburgh’s urban core by diversifying downtown housing, encouraging good riverfront usage, and creating or maintaining open spaces within the city.
The Foundation also contributes to a variety of endeavors to stimulate business development, to promote economic health in rural areas, to leverage the economic impact of the regional health care, education and cultural assets, and to attract and retain talented people to Southwestern Pennsylvania.
Commitment to the Natural Environment Nationwide
The Foundation has built innovatively on Richard and Constance Mellon’s commitment to the conservation of wildlife habitat, scenic vistas, and historic battlefields throughout the United States. Often working in partnership with state and local governments and conservation agencies, the Foundation has ensured the protection of more than 2 million acres of land at sites in all 50 states. These gifts of land have been donated to the American people for their use and enjoyment in perpetuity.
Geographic Focus
The Foundation does not fund outside the United States. Its funds are committed almost exclusively to Southwestern Pennsylvania.
