(Jessie) Marian Koogler McNay, philanthropist and patron of the arts, was born Feb. 7, 1883 in Ohio. In 1884, her family moved to El Dorado, KS where she grew up, the only child of Dr. and Mrs. Marion A. Koogler.  Dr. Koogler purchased large holdings of Butler County land, where oil was later discovered.

 

McNay studied art at the University of Kansas and the Art Institute of Chicago.  She is remembered for her extensive collection of Modern Art.

 

Upon her death in 1950, this collection and McNay’s estate was left in trust to her adopted city of San Antonio, TX, along with plans to turn her home into a museum of modern art.  The Marion Koogler McNay Art Museum continues today as one of the nation’s finest collections.