Guide to the Robert B. and Thomas D. Carnahan Papers, 1865-1924
- Repository
- Heinz History Center
- Title
- Robert B. and Thomas D. Carnahan Papers
- Creator
- Carnahan, Robert Brown
- Creator
- Carnahan, Thomas
- Collection Number
- MSS 596
- Extent
- .25 linear feet (1 box)
- Date
- 1865-1924
- Abstract
- Robert Brown Carnahan (1826 – 1890) was a lawyer who was the United States district attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania, a member of the Pittsburgh Common Council, and a legal advisor to Mary Schenley for twelve years. Robert and his son Thomas Carnahan were involved in acquiring land (which would later become Schenley Park) from Mary Schenley on behalf of the city of Pittsburgh. Besides the Carnahans, Finley and Francis Torrens, and William A. Herron were all involved with various properties. The records contain both formal and informal correspondence among the lawyers and Schenley.
- Language
- The material in this collection is in English.
- Publisher
- Heinz History Center
- Address
- 1212 Smallman St.
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15222
library@heinzhistorycenter.org
URL: https://www.heinzhistorycenter.org
History
Robert Brown Carnahan (1826 - 1890) was a lawyer who was the United States district attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania, a member of the Pittsburgh Common Council, and a legal advisor to Mary Schenley. Born near Pittsburgh in 1826, Carnahan graduated from Western University (today known as the University of Pittsburgh) in 1845. After studying law in the office of Walter Forward, Carnahan was admitted to the bar in 1848. Carnahan was appointed United States district attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania by President Lincoln in 1861 and continued to serve under Presidents Johnson and Grant.
His son, Thomas D. Carnahan (1850 - 1930), was born in East Birmingham (now Pittsburgh's South Side.) Graduating from Western University in 1872, Thomas wrote for The Pittsburgh Chronicle before being named assistant city attorney in 1888. Thomas became a city solicitor in 1902 and was then elevated to a court judge in Pennsylvania's 5th district (1907 – 1929).
In 1887, the Director of Public Works, Edward Bigelow, decided that the Mt. Airy Tract (originally given to Mary Schenley [1827 - 1903] by her grandfather, James O'Hara) would be a great acquisition for the development of a park in the East End. In 1888, Robert Carnahan, at the request of Bigelow, traveled alone to London to visit Mary Schenley in order to acquire land which would later become Schenley Park. He succeeded, beating out a real estate agent, A. W. Naylor, sent by a syndicate, who also wanted her property. Simultaneously, Finley Torrens, who had received Schenley's power of attorney in 1881, had had charge of Schenley's estate but turned the management over to his son, Francis. Francis was going to make a trip to see Mary Schenley himself to try and persuade her not to sell her land to the city for a park. Obviously, Schenley and the City of Pittsburgh via Carnahan struck a deal and the competing agent was turned around at Mary Schenley's door.
Scope and Content Notes
The documents are contained in one archival box and arranged by topic. The first four folders concern Robert Carnahan personally, the next eight involve Mary Schenley's attorneys, and the final folder is a document on the Republican Party in Pittsburgh with which Thomas Carnahan was affiliated. In relation to Robert Carnahan, there are two photographs – one of himself and one of his step-daughter; there is also a certificate dated and signed by President Andrew Johnson, appointing Carnahan as an attorney of the Western District of Pennsylvania, as well as Carnahan's obituaries and other newspaper clippings about his life and death.
The majority of the remaining documents were composed within a five-year time frame, highlighting the purchase of Mary Schenley's properties for the city of Pittsburgh and their transformation into a park. Edward Bigelow, director of the Pittsburgh Department of Public Works writes to Schenley in 1889, eager for the obtainment and development of her land on behalf of the people of Pittsburgh. He expresses some concern for the varying geography but believes that all of it can and will be used by the city's populace as a place for relaxation and enjoyment. Dated 1892, letters from Thomas Carnahan to W. A. Herron disclose information on the donation of the Fort Pitt Blockhouse in downtown Pittsburgh by Mary Schenley to the Daughters of the American Revolution. There is also mention of Schenley giving properties for a School for the Blind in a personal letter to Robert Carnahan, dated c1893.
Conditions Governing Access
Restrictions: None
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Katharine E. Smith in September 1989.
Preferred Citation
Robert B. and Thomas D. Carnahan Papers, 1865-1924, MSS596, Library and Archives Division, Senator John Heinz History Center
Processing Information
This collection was processed by Sarah Ecklund in September 2011.
Conditions Governing Use
Property rights reside with the Senator John Heinz History Center. Literary rights are retained by the creators of the records and their heirs. For permission to reproduce or publish, please contact the Library and Archives of the Senator John Heinz History Center.
Related Materials
Andrew Carnegie Online Archives, Carnegie Mellon University:
- James B. Scott to Thomas D. Carnahan, July 14, 1890
- James B. Scott to Andrew Carnegie, July 15, 1890
Separated Materials
The medal of honor presented to Velma Mayo Butler, Robert Carnahan's step-daughter, in 1872 has been separated to the museum collection.
Subjects
- Carnahan, Robert Brown
- Carnahan, Thomas
- Herron, William A.
- Schenley, Mary Croghan
- Torrens, Finley
- Torrens, Francis
- Bigelow, Edward Manning
- Schenley Park (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
- Acquisition of property -- Pennsylvania -- Pittsburgh.
- Public lands -- Pennsylvania -- Pittsburgh
- Urban Parks -- Pennsylvania -- Pittsburgh