William Edwards Murray
Before he was 30, William Edwards Murray had made his first million as a New York tax attorney and real estate developer. By the time of his death last week at 81, the Charleston native and internationally known philanthropist had served as the financial lifeline for many of this community's most important institutions.
Leaders from the Medical University of South Carolina and the Spoleto Festival USA, in letters on this page today and yesterday, speak to his importance to those institutions. As former Spoleto Board President William Hewitt also notes, Bill Murray's generosity had a broad reach. The Rev. Dallas H. Wilson Jr. of Agape Ministries talked at Wednesday's funeral service of Mr. Murray's contributions to his East Side programs, not just in terms of financial assistance but his wise counsel. His longtime friend and business associate Raymond C. Geiger recalled that it only took bringing a newspaper story to his attention about the plight of the Cannon Street Y facing mortgage foreclosure and "the note was paid off."
In a "High Profile" in this newspaper five years ago, Mr. Murray's contributions to this community alone from the trusts he managed were estimated at $25 million. He also was listed as a major supporter of the Sloan-Kettering Institute and the Animal Medical Center in New York, the Cancer Research Institute, the Foundation for Neurological Research and the provider of a new laboratory for the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in New York.
He told a reporter that he once wanted to be a doctor, "yet I've probably influenced medicine more as a lawyer than I would have as a doctor." Certainly MUSC leaders can attest to that influence. During the presidency of Dr. James B. Edwards, he became the first person to give MUSC $1 million, and his donations increased substantially over the years. As MUSC President Dr. Raymond Greenberg noted in a previous letter, he later became a major donor to MUSC's wellness center, the Hollings Cancer Center and the Children's Research Institute. The Center for Research on Parkinson's Disease and Related Disorders Research is named in his honor.
His contributions to the Spoleto Festival USA not only resulted in the restoration of a historic property as the festival's headquarters but, according to today's letter from Spoleto General Director Nigel Redden, were instrumental during one financial downturn in ensuring that the festival survived. He also was at the forefront of the restoration of Memminger Auditorium, funding the feasibility study.
The long list of his institutional support in this state includes founding the School of Languages, Cultures and World Affairs at the College of Charleston, Educational TV of South Carolina and Communicare, a statewide program aimed at assisting the medically uninsured. His real estate ventures also included this city and his East Bay Company played a role in the restoration of the Market area. Once at odds with Mayor Joseph P. Riley Jr. over the future of a Cooper River waterfront site he had purchased, a compromise land swap allowed the city to develop its waterfront park. He would later tell a reporter, "... If I were doing it again, I would do it exactly the same because Charleston deserves the park." He also had his own beautification projects, including providing money for ornamental gates at the governor's mansion and landscaping at the Charleston airport.
His reach also was international. He became interested in the Soviet Union as a member of the United Nations Peace Academy, particularly in environmental issues, and became the only American member of the Russian Academy of Science. Described at his funeral service as "larger than life," this no-nonsense businessman also had his lighter side. He authorized his old friend to reveal at his funeral that he once danced with Ginger Rogers.
Certainly he never forgot his roots, sharing his good fortune in ways that will continue to benefit his state and his community medically, culturally and educationally for generations to come.
