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The Life of JAMES ROSS MELLON

The Mellons, one of America’s richest families, began humbly with the birth of its patriarch, Thomas Mellon, on a potato farm in Ireland in 1813.He immigrated to Pittsburgh as a child and eventually made the decision to abandon farming and enter the worlds of law and business creating the foundations for a family dynasty, which would include Gulf Oil Corporation, Alcoa and Mellon National Bank. In 1843, Thomas married Sarah Jane Negley.They had eight children, four of whom survived (three died in childhood and one at the age of 27).The survivors were: Thomas Alexander (1844-1899), James Ross (1846-1934), Andrew William (1855-1937), and Richard Beatty (1858-1933). In 1876, the Judge’s eldest sons, James Ross and Thomas A. became business partners in coal, lumber, building materials and real estate operating mostly in the East End of Pittsburgh.They also opened the City Deposit Bank & Trust Company, of which James Ross was the president until his death. In 1867, James married Rachel Huey Larimer, the daughter of General William Larimer, a good friend of the Judge’s and one of the founders of Denver, Colorado. A year later they presented the Judge with his first grandchild, William Larimer Mellon, who eventually became a co-founder of Gulf Oil Corporation. Four more children followed: Sadie and Rachel who died in childhood, Thomas II, and Sarah L. (Holloway), all of whom are entombed in the sixteen crypt turn-of-the-century mausoleum with their parents and grandparents. James and Rachel built their mansion and reared their family across the street from the homes of the Judge and Thomas Mellon on Negley Avenue creating what was locally known as “The Mellon Patch.” James was the first to visit the Judge’s birthplace. After his return, he had a replica of the humble cottage constructed in his back yard. The statue “Motherless,” which stands in front of the mausoleum, also stood as a lawn ornament on the grounds of his estate for many years. It was not purchased as a cemetery sculpture and does not represent the premature death of a Mellon woman. After James’ death, the statue was moved to the cemetery. It was executed by George a Lawson of Edinburgh, Scotland and is dated 1897. Mr. Mellon was President of the Board of Directors of The Homewood Cemetery form 1917 until his death in 1934. His service exerted a profound influence on the development of the cemetery. In 1923, The Homewood Cemetery office building, constructed in 1886, was moved across Dallas Avenue to the corner of Dallas and Aylesboro Avenues to make room for the building of a new office complex which stands today at the Dallas Avenue Gate. James Ross Mellon died in his sleep at the age of 88 in his Pittsburgh home at 400 Negley Avenue. to house

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