Family
Marjorie Merriweather Post was a pioneering businesswoman, a visionary collector and museum founder, and a generous philanthropist. The passion she brought to these areas of her life was equally evident in her personal life. Over the course of eighty-six years, Marjorie was a devoted daughter, loving wife, and caring mother and grandmother. Her characteristic generosity lives on in the generations of Post family members who have followed in her footsteps.
Parents
Marjorie Merriweather Post was born on March 15, 1887 in Springfield, Illinois. She was the only child of Charles William (C.W.) Post (1854-1914) and Ella Merriweather Post (1853-1912)
Husbands
Post married and divorced four times, with each of the marriages playing a significant role in her life and the eventual founding of Hillwood. Her marriages to Edward Close, E.F. Hutton, and Joseph Davies spanned 14 to 20 years each. She took her maiden name, Marjorie Merriweather Post, after her last divorce in 1964.
Edward Bennett Close (1882-1955) on December 3, 1905
Edward Francis (E.F.) Hutton (1875-1962) on July 7, 1920
Joseph E. Davies (1876-1958) on December 15, 1935
Herbert Arthur May (1892-1966) on June 18, 1958
Daughters
Marjorie had three daughters: two with her first husband Edward Close and one with her second husband E.F. Hutton. Her oldest daughter, Adelaide Riggs, was the president of the foundation that Post established to support Hillwood when it opened to the public as a museum in 1977. Post’s youngest daughter Nedenia (Dina Merrill) is still living and serving as director emeritus at Hillwood.
Adelaide Breevort Close, b. July 26, 1908, Greenwich, Ct; d. December 31, 1998
Eleanor Post Close, b. December 12, 1909, Greenwich, Connecticut; d. December, 2006
Nedenia Marjorie Hutton, b. December 29, 1923, New York City
Grandchildren
Marjorie Merriweather Post had eight grandchildren and many more great-grandchildren. Today, family members, most notably granddaughter Ellen MacNeille Charles, Adelaide’s daughter, as president, continue to support and serve Hillwood, Post’s legacy in Washington, D.C.
