Philanthropist who gifted the city of St. Petersburg, Florida with the Museum of Fine Arts; today the museum's collection includes works by Monet, Cezanne, Vigee-LeBrun, Tiffany, Rodin, Gauguin, Steuben, and Renoir. The daughter of inventor Edward Acheson, Margaret was raised in New York City but the family established winter residence in St. Petersburg and she eventually settled in the area. Thanks to her generosity, the museum opened in 1965; she later donated further funds (from the sale of the family's Hudson River estate) for additions to the museum, including a sculpture garden (where her ashes were interred at her request). She refused to place her name on the museum or charge admission, insisting she wanted all people to be able to enjoy the cultural resource. Said Stuart during the planning phase of the museum: "If one child has a better life because he visited our museum, it will be worthwhile."
Margaret was the seventh of nine children. She attended boarding schools, graduated from a ladies' seminary, and then studied interior design, bookbinding, and the dramatic arts. She briefly appeared on Broadway and was once an understudy to Lynn Fontanne. She married New York City building contractor Lyall Stuart in 1930 and they divorced in the mid-1950s.
She fell ill and died in New York City after a visit to her beloved Metropolitan Museum of Art, the charter of which she had used as a model for establishing the museum she founded.
Margaret was the seventh of nine children. She attended boarding schools, graduated from a ladies' seminary, and then studied interior design, bookbinding, and the dramatic arts. She briefly appeared on Broadway and was once an understudy to Lynn Fontanne. She married New York City building contractor Lyall Stuart in 1930 and they divorced in the mid-1950s.
She fell ill and died in New York City after a visit to her beloved Metropolitan Museum of Art, the charter of which she had used as a model for establishing the museum she founded.
Philanthropist who gifted the city of St. Petersburg, Florida with the Museum of Fine Arts; today the museum's collection includes works by Monet, Cezanne, Vigee-LeBrun, Tiffany, Rodin, Gauguin, Steuben, and Renoir. The daughter of inventor Edward Acheson, Margaret was raised in New York City but the family established winter residence in St. Petersburg and she eventually settled in the area. Thanks to her generosity, the museum opened in 1965; she later donated further funds (from the sale of the family's Hudson River estate) for additions to the museum, including a sculpture garden (where her ashes were interred at her request). She refused to place her name on the museum or charge admission, insisting she wanted all people to be able to enjoy the cultural resource. Said Stuart during the planning phase of the museum: "If one child has a better life because he visited our museum, it will be worthwhile."
Margaret was the seventh of nine children. She attended boarding schools, graduated from a ladies' seminary, and then studied interior design, bookbinding, and the dramatic arts. She briefly appeared on Broadway and was once an understudy to Lynn Fontanne. She married New York City building contractor Lyall Stuart in 1930 and they divorced in the mid-1950s.
She fell ill and died in New York City after a visit to her beloved Metropolitan Museum of Art, the charter of which she had used as a model for establishing the museum she founded.
Margaret was the seventh of nine children. She attended boarding schools, graduated from a ladies' seminary, and then studied interior design, bookbinding, and the dramatic arts. She briefly appeared on Broadway and was once an understudy to Lynn Fontanne. She married New York City building contractor Lyall Stuart in 1930 and they divorced in the mid-1950s.
She fell ill and died in New York City after a visit to her beloved Metropolitan Museum of Art, the charter of which she had used as a model for establishing the museum she founded.
