Religion Episcopalian Name Fitz Dixon, | Spouse Edith Robb (m. 1952) Parents Eleanor Widener | |
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Born August 14, 1923 ( 1923-08-14 ) Winter Harbor, Maine
United States Occupation Educator, sportsman, philanthropist Children Edith Eleanor "Ellin" Dixon
George Widener Dixon Died August 2, 2006, Abington Township, Pennsylvania, United States Education Harvard University, Episcopal Academy Resting place St. Thomas\' Church, Whitemarsh, Pennsylvania | ||
Fitz Eugene Dixon Jr. (August 14, 1923 – August 2, 2006) was an American educator, sportsman, and philanthropist.
Biography
He was the son of banker Fitz Eugene Dixon Sr. and wife Eleanor Widener, a member of the wealthy Philadelphia Widener family. His grandfather, George D. Widener, and uncle, Harry Elkins Widener, died in the 1912 sinking of the RMS Titanic. The Dixons built "Ronaele Manor" ("Eleanor" spelled backward), an Elizabethan mansion, in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania, where Fitz Jr. grew up.
Fitz Jr. graduated from Philadelphia's Episcopal Academy, then Harvard University, after which he returned to Episcopal to teach English, French, and Health; he also coached the school's squash, tennis, and 120-pound football teams and served as director of athletics and assistant to the headmaster.
In 1952 he married Edith B. Robb, and they had two children: George Widener Dixon and "Ellin" Dixon (Miller).
On the 1971 death of his mother's surviving brother, George Dunton Widener Jr., Fitz Jr. inherited the childless uncle's entire estate, including the 500-acre (2.0 km2) Erdenheim Farm in Whitemarsh Township, Pennsylvania, and took over the running of the Widener Foundation. The Widener fortune, amassed in the meat-packing and streetcar businesses, saw Fitz Eugene Dixon Jr. listed in Forbes Magazine's 400 Richest Americans in 1985, 1991, and 1995.
One of his best-known civic accomplishments was the 1976 purchase of the iconic Love sculpture that now stands at the head of John F. Kennedy Plaza in Center City Philadelphia. Dixon purchased the statue from the Robert Indiana studio after the artist had removed it from the city when it failed to come up with the $45,000 he had sought for its purchase. Dixon bought the sculpture for $35,000 and donated it to the city. The plaza has since come to be known popularly as LOVE Park.
Dixon became an owner of and investor in Philadelphia professional sports franchises, including the Eagles, the Phillies, the Flyers, and the Wings, but his most notable sports investment was the Philadelphia 76ers. He served as vice chairman for the Flyers when they won the Stanley Cup in 1974 and 1975. In 1976 Dixon purchased the Philadelphia 76ers from Irv Kosloff for $8 million and a few months later brought Julius "Dr. J." Erving to the team for $6.6 million. In his brief stint as owner, the team made it to the NBA finals twice but never won a championship. He sold the team to Harold Katz in 1981.
Dixon bred thoroughbred racehorses at Erdenheim Farm, and was a member and one-time Chairman of the Pennsylvania Horse Racing Commission. He was a member of the association that owned Man o' War. Dixon was also a patron of equestrian show jumping, having owned such horses as Jet Run and Rhum IV, who competed and medaled in domestic, Pan American, World Cup, and Olympic events.
He served on the boards of the Fairmount Park Commission, the Philadelphia Art Commission, and the Delaware River Port Authority, and was at times chairman of all three.
He also served on the boards of several universities, including as chairman at Widener University, Lafayette College, Philadelphia College of Art, and Temple University. The Dixon Halls, North and South, at Widener University were enabled by his gift to establish an alternative apartment living experience for upper-class students. Temple University's Dixon Hall, built in 1983 on the university's Ambler campus, is named in his honor. Dixon Hall, a residence hall at Kutztown University of Pennsylvania, is also named after him. He was also selected in 1982 as the founding chairman of the board of governors of the State System of Higher Education, which was founded to bring together several former teachers' colleges and Indiana University of Pennsylvania. In 1993, the system's headquarters, the Dixon University Center, was named in his honor. The Dixon Trophy, awarded each season by the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference to the league’s most successful program, is also named for him.
Dixon died of melanoma on August 2, 2006, in Abington, Pennsylvania, near Philadelphia, where he was interred at Saint Thomas Church in Whitemarsh Township, Montgomery County. A memorial service was held at Saint Paul's Episcopal Church in Elkins Park. He was survived by his wife of 54 years, his two children, three grandchildren, and one great-grandchild.