Abigail Greene Aldrich Rockefeller (October 26, 1874 – April 5, 1948) was an American socialite and philanthropist. She was a prominent member of the Rockefeller family through her marriage to financier and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller Jr., the son of Standard Oil co-founder John D. Rockefeller Sr.. Her father was Nelson W. Aldrich who served as the Senator of Rhode Island. Rockefeller was known for being the driving force behind the establishment of the Museum of Modern Art. Early life Abigail Greene Aldrich Rockefeller was born in Providence, Rhode Island, as the fourth child to Senator Nelson Wilmarth Aldrich and Abigail Pearce Truman Chapman. The majority of her childhood was divided between Providence and Warwick Neck in Rhode Island, and Washington, D.C. Owing to her father's prominence as a congressman, Rockefeller was introduced at an early age to elevated political circles. The figures that her parents entertained included Senator William Allison, Senator Eugene Hale, Senator William P. Frye, General Ambrose Burnside, William McKinley, Mary Lee, and Elizabeth Bacon Custer. Her early education came at the hands of Quaker governesses. From 1891 to 1893 she was enrolled at Miss Abbott's School for Young Ladies in Providence, Rhode Island. There she studied English composition and literature, French, German, art history, ancient history, gymnastics, and dancing. In November 1893 she made her social debut at her coming-out party, which sparked her lifelong love of social events. On June 30, 1894, on a trip fostered by her father, Rockefeller sailed to Liverpool, beginning a lifetime of extensive European and later Asian travel. Her initial four-month sojourn included stops in England, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, and France. This and future trips featured visits to numerous art galleries, informing her future discernment as an art collector. Marriage to John D. Rockefeller Jr. In late 1894, she met John Davison Rockefeller Jr., the only son of Standard Oil co-founder John Davison Rockefeller Sr. and schoolteacher Laura Celestia "Cettie" Spelman, at a friend's house in Providence. Their long courtship is documented in her engagement books, which were used to formally detail her meetings with potential suitors. In early 1895, they began to share walks together on Sunday afternoons. These meetings progressed further until late August 1901, when they became engaged. They married on October 9, 1901, in the major society wedding of the Gilded Age, in front of around a thousand of the elite personages