Adele W. Paxson
Encyclopedia
Adele Warden Paxson was an American socialite, philanthropist, conservationist, and a Champion
breeder
of Thoroughbred
racehorses
.
Born Adele Corning Warden, she was the daughter of Helen Corning and her husband Clarence Warden. On January 3, 1936, she married attorney Henry Douglas Paxson, a partner in a Philadelphia law firm with Richardson Dilworth
. The couple had two daughters, Mary Helen and Sally. Their firstborn, Mary Helen, died in an automobile accident in France. Although Adele Paxson is frequently recorded as Mrs. Henry D. Paxson, her husband was known as Doug, short for his middle name.
With a lifelong passion for music, engendered by her mother, Adele Paxson was Chairperson of Philadelphia's Academy of Vocal Arts
and with her husband established the Bucks County Opera. She also served as Chairperson of the Opera Company of Philadelphia
. In 1993 she received the Voice Education Research Awareness Award (V.E.R.A.) from the Voice Foundation of Philadelphia. http://www.voicefoundation.org/vera.html
An advocate for the protection of farm lands from real estate developers, Adele Paxson made a donation to a conservancy of conservation easements totaling more than 300 acres (121.4 ha) from her Buckingham
and Solebury
farms valued at $10 million. http://www.davidhanauer.com/buckscounty/sprawl/ http://www.buckinghampa.org/land%20preservation/land%20preservation.htm
Paxson was a member of the Heritage Club of the Central Bucks Family YMCA
through her support of the Endowment Fund and included the YMCA in her estate plans. http://websitest.daxko.com/websites/Central_Bucks/images/YMCA/AnnualReport2005.pdf
A founding supporter, Adele Paxson donated more than $1 million to help construct the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts
in Philadelphia. http://www.kimmelcenter.org/news/annualreport/8.php
. Near the community of Lahaska
, Elm Grove is an original Colonial Province of Pennsylvania
property, it was granted
to Henry Paxson's family in 1680 by Governor William Penn
.
An avid horsewoman, Adele Paxson began riding while still a young girl. As an adult, she rode frequently and was a competitor in the Devon Horse Show
.
At Elm Grove Farm, the Paxsons bred field hunter
horses as well as Thoroughbred
s for flat racing
. She and her husband served as Masters of Foxhounds
at the Huntingdon Valley
Hunt Club. While Adele Paxson owned many champion hunter horses, she gained national recognition with her flat-racing Thoroughbreds. In addition to the Elm Grove Farm breeding operation, Adele Paxson maintained a racing stable in Florida and a barn at the Aiken Training Track in Aiken, South Carolina
. Of her numerous successful racehorses, the best know is the 1978 American Co-Champion Two-Year-Old Filly, Candy Éclair
. Adele Paxson was the breeder of Heavenly Cause
who was voted the 1980 American Champion Two-Year-Old Filly. That year she received the Thoroughbred racing industry's highest honor, the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Breeder
.
In an interview following Adele Paxon's death, Rick Abbott, who managed her racing and breeding operation during the 1990s said of her: "the welfare of the horses always came first," and that "money was not a concern. Working with her was the most gratifying thing I have ever done."
In failing health, during the latter part of the 1990s Adele Paxson began selling off her racehorses and in early December 2000 Rick Abbott oversaw the sale of her remaining bloodstock at the Fasig-Tipton
Midlantic mixed auction in Timonium, Maryland.
Confined to a nursing home for the better part of 2000, Adele Paxson died on December 27 at age eighty-seven from complications of pneumonia
at a hospital in Doylestown, Pennsylvania
, hospital.
Eclipse Award
The Eclipse Award is an American thoroughbred horse racing award named after the 18th century British racehorse and sire, Eclipse. The Eclipse Awards, honoring the champions of the sport, are sponsored by the National Thoroughbred Racing Association , Daily Racing Form and the National Turf Writers...
breeder
Horse breeding
Horse breeding is reproduction in horses, and particularly the human-directed process of selective breeding of animals, particularly purebred horses of a given breed. Planned matings can be used to produce specifically desired characteristics in domesticated horses...
of Thoroughbred
Thoroughbred
The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word thoroughbred is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed...
racehorses
Horse racing
Horse racing is an equestrian sport that has a long history. Archaeological records indicate that horse racing occurred in ancient Babylon, Syria, and Egypt. Both chariot and mounted horse racing were events in the ancient Greek Olympics by 648 BC...
.
Born Adele Corning Warden, she was the daughter of Helen Corning and her husband Clarence Warden. On January 3, 1936, she married attorney Henry Douglas Paxson, a partner in a Philadelphia law firm with Richardson Dilworth
Richardson Dilworth
Richardson K. Dilworth was an American Democratic Party politician, born in the Pittsburgh area, who served as the 91st Mayor of Philadelphia from 1956 to 1962.-Education and early career:...
. The couple had two daughters, Mary Helen and Sally. Their firstborn, Mary Helen, died in an automobile accident in France. Although Adele Paxson is frequently recorded as Mrs. Henry D. Paxson, her husband was known as Doug, short for his middle name.
With a lifelong passion for music, engendered by her mother, Adele Paxson was Chairperson of Philadelphia's Academy of Vocal Arts
Academy of Vocal Arts
The Academy of Vocal Arts is a school dedicated to providing free higher education to aspiring opera singers. The school was founded in 1934 by Helen Corning Warden and is located at 1920 Spruce Street in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.-History:...
and with her husband established the Bucks County Opera. She also served as Chairperson of the Opera Company of Philadelphia
Opera Company of Philadelphia
The Opera Company of Philadelphia is an American opera company in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and is the city's only company producing grand opera. The organization produces four fully staged opera productions annually, encompassing works from the seventeenth through the 21st century...
. In 1993 she received the Voice Education Research Awareness Award (V.E.R.A.) from the Voice Foundation of Philadelphia. http://www.voicefoundation.org/vera.html
Philanthropy
Adele Paxson supported numerous cultural institutions in a variety of areas. In 1934, her mother, Helen Warden, founded the Academy of Vocal Arts in Philadelphia to support and train young opera singers in a 4-year program. Adele Paxson followed in her mother's footsteps, serving as the institution's Chairperson as did her own daughter, Sally Paxson Davis. http://www.avaopera.org/about/ In addition to her lifelong support, Adele Paxson bequeathed $7 million to the Academy for endowment and renovations. http://www.women-philanthropy.umich.edu/donors/donors_nz.htmlAn advocate for the protection of farm lands from real estate developers, Adele Paxson made a donation to a conservancy of conservation easements totaling more than 300 acres (121.4 ha) from her Buckingham
Buckingham Township, Bucks County, Pennsylvania
Buckingham Township is a township in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 20,075 at the 2010 census. Buckingham takes its name from Buckingham in Buckinghamshire known as Bucks County in England...
and Solebury
Solebury Township, Pennsylvania
Solebury Township is a township in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 8,692 at the 2010 census.The Solebury School is located in the township, off U.S...
farms valued at $10 million. http://www.davidhanauer.com/buckscounty/sprawl/ http://www.buckinghampa.org/land%20preservation/land%20preservation.htm
Paxson was a member of the Heritage Club of the Central Bucks Family YMCA
YMCA
The Young Men's Christian Association is a worldwide organization of more than 45 million members from 125 national federations affiliated through the World Alliance of YMCAs...
through her support of the Endowment Fund and included the YMCA in her estate plans. http://websitest.daxko.com/websites/Central_Bucks/images/YMCA/AnnualReport2005.pdf
A founding supporter, Adele Paxson donated more than $1 million to help construct the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts
Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts
The Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts is a large performing arts venue located on Broad Street, along the stretch known as the "Avenue of the Arts", in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is owned and operated by Kimmel Center, Inc., an organization which also manages the Academy of Music in...
in Philadelphia. http://www.kimmelcenter.org/news/annualreport/8.php
Thoroughbred horse racing
Adele Paxon's husband inherited Elm Grove Farm on Old York Road in Holicong, Bucks County, PennsylvaniaBucks County, Pennsylvania
- Industry and commerce :The boroughs of Bristol and Morrisville were prominent industrial centers along the Northeast Corridor during World War II. Suburban development accelerated in Lower Bucks in the 1950s with the opening of Levittown, Pennsylvania, the second such "Levittown" designed by...
. Near the community of Lahaska
Lahaska, Pennsylvania
Lahaska is an unincorporated community in central Bucks County, Pennsylvania, United States. It lies just east of Buckingham and west of New Hope on Route 202. Lahaska is home to one of the most popular shopping areas in the region, Peddler's Village, as well as Buckingham Friends School, a...
, Elm Grove is an original Colonial Province of Pennsylvania
Province of Pennsylvania
The Province of Pennsylvania, also known as Pennsylvania Colony, was founded in British America by William Penn on March 4, 1681 as dictated in a royal charter granted by King Charles II...
property, it was granted
Land grant
A land grant is a gift of real estate – land or its privileges – made by a government or other authority as a reward for services to an individual, especially in return for military service...
to Henry Paxson's family in 1680 by Governor William Penn
William Penn
William Penn was an English real estate entrepreneur, philosopher, and founder of the Province of Pennsylvania, the English North American colony and the future Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. He was an early champion of democracy and religious freedom, notable for his good relations and successful...
.
An avid horsewoman, Adele Paxson began riding while still a young girl. As an adult, she rode frequently and was a competitor in the Devon Horse Show
Devon Horse Show
The Devon Horse Show, also known as The Devon Horse Show and Country Fair is an annual horse show which has been held late May through early June in Devon, Pennsylvania since 1896. ....
.
At Elm Grove Farm, the Paxsons bred field hunter
Field hunter
A field hunter, or a fox hunter, is a type of horse used in the hunt field for fox hunting. It may be of any breed, but should possess stamina, a level head, and bravery. The horse should have a safe jump, so as not to get caught on any of the solid obstacles found in the hunt field...
horses as well as Thoroughbred
Thoroughbred
The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word thoroughbred is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed...
s for flat racing
Flat racing
Flat racing is a form of Thoroughbred horse racing which is run over a level track at a predetermined distance. It differs from steeplechase racing which is run over hurdles...
. She and her husband served as Masters of Foxhounds
Fox hunting
Fox hunting is an activity involving the tracking, chase, and sometimes killing of a fox, traditionally a red fox, by trained foxhounds or other scent hounds, and a group of followers led by a master of foxhounds, who follow the hounds on foot or on horseback.Fox hunting originated in its current...
at the Huntingdon Valley
Huntingdon Valley, Pennsylvania
Huntingdon Valley is a village, as well as a suburban mailing address located in Lower Moreland Township, Upper Moreland and Abington Township all in Montgomery County, and in a small section of Upper Southampton Township in Bucks County, Pennsylvania bordering the Fox Chase section of...
Hunt Club. While Adele Paxson owned many champion hunter horses, she gained national recognition with her flat-racing Thoroughbreds. In addition to the Elm Grove Farm breeding operation, Adele Paxson maintained a racing stable in Florida and a barn at the Aiken Training Track in Aiken, South Carolina
Aiken, South Carolina
Aiken is a city in and the county seat of Aiken County, South Carolina, United States. With Augusta, Georgia, it is one of the two largest cities of the Central Savannah River Area. It is part of the Augusta-Richmond County Metropolitan Statistical Area. Aiken is home to the University of South...
. Of her numerous successful racehorses, the best know is the 1978 American Co-Champion Two-Year-Old Filly, Candy Éclair
Candy Éclair
Candy Éclair was an American Thoroughbred racehorse. Bred and raced by prominent Pennsylvanian horsewoman Adele Paxson, she was a granddaughter of the most important sire of the 20th century, Northern Dancer...
. Adele Paxson was the breeder of Heavenly Cause
Heavenly Cause
Heavenly Cause was an American Thoroughbred Champion filly racehorse. Bred by Adele W. Paxson, she was sired by Grey Dawn, the 1964 French Champion Two-Year-Old Colt and 1990 Leading broodmare sire in North America...
who was voted the 1980 American Champion Two-Year-Old Filly. That year she received the Thoroughbred racing industry's highest honor, the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Breeder
Eclipse Award for Outstanding Breeder
Eclipse Award for Outstanding Breeder is an American Thoroughbred horse racing honor for breeders. Created in 1971, it is part of the Eclipse Awards program and is awarded annually.Its Canadian counterpart is the Sovereign Award for Outstanding Breeder....
.
In an interview following Adele Paxon's death, Rick Abbott, who managed her racing and breeding operation during the 1990s said of her: "the welfare of the horses always came first," and that "money was not a concern. Working with her was the most gratifying thing I have ever done."
In failing health, during the latter part of the 1990s Adele Paxson began selling off her racehorses and in early December 2000 Rick Abbott oversaw the sale of her remaining bloodstock at the Fasig-Tipton
Fasig-Tipton
The Fasig-Tipton Company, Inc. is an auction house for Thoroughbred horses founded in 1898 by William B. Fasig and Edward A. Tipton. It is the oldest auction company of its kind in North America....
Midlantic mixed auction in Timonium, Maryland.
Confined to a nursing home for the better part of 2000, Adele Paxson died on December 27 at age eighty-seven from complications of pneumonia
Pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung—especially affecting the microscopic air sacs —associated with fever, chest symptoms, and a lack of air space on a chest X-ray. Pneumonia is typically caused by an infection but there are a number of other causes...
at a hospital in Doylestown, Pennsylvania
Doylestown, Pennsylvania
Doylestown is a borough in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, north of Philadelphia. As of the 2010 census, the borough population was 8,380. The borough is the county seat of Bucks County.- History :...
, hospital.