George Gordon Meade Easby
Encyclopedia
George Gordon Meade Easby (1918 - December 11, 2005) was the great-grandson of U.S. Civil War
General George Gordon Meade
of the Union Army
and a descendant of seven signers of the U.S. Declaration of Independence
. Easby's mother was a descendant of Nicholas Waln, who came to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
, in 1683 with William Penn
aboard the ship Welcome and was later given the area now known as Frankford
.
Easby was a multi-talented person, from being a Hollywood actor/producer to a cartoonist
after World War II, and from serving the government as a U.S. State Department
employee for twenty-five years to being a radio talk host. He was also a major art/antique collector, who inherited more than 100,000 antiques and personal items, many of which had been in his family for centuries. His collection includes items belonging to Gen. George Meade, a chair and other high valued items belonging to Napoleon Bonaparte as well as jewelry belonging to Joséphine de Beauharnais
. Many pieces from his collection have been loaned to the White House
and U.S. State Department for its diplomatic reception rooms. Some of his pieces are also housed at the Philadelphia Museum of Art
.
George Easby lived nearly all of his life at his family's Baleroy Mansion in the Chestnut Hill
section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is said to be one of the most actively haunted houses in the United States
. His father, May Stevenson Easby, and his mother, Henrietta Large Easby, moved into Baleroy Mansion in the late 1920s when Easby was only about 11 years old. He also had a younger brother at the time named May Stevenson Easby Jr. who died mysteriously at the approximate age of 10.
Easby was a graduate of Chestnut Hill Academy
and studied illustration for five years at the Philadelphia College of Art
. Easby has been known to many as an extremely kind and generous person. He died on December 11, 2005, at Keystone Hospice in Wyndmoor
, PA, at the age of 87, leaving no siblings or children. He was buried at Laurel Hill Cemetery
in Philadelphia.
Union (American Civil War)
During the American Civil War, the Union was a name used to refer to the federal government of the United States, which was supported by the twenty free states and five border slave states. It was opposed by 11 southern slave states that had declared a secession to join together to form the...
General George Gordon Meade
George Meade
George Gordon Meade was a career United States Army officer and civil engineer involved in coastal construction, including several lighthouses. He fought with distinction in the Second Seminole War and Mexican-American War. During the American Civil War he served as a Union general, rising from...
of the Union Army
Union Army
The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...
and a descendant of seven signers of the U.S. Declaration of Independence
United States Declaration of Independence
The Declaration of Independence was a statement adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, which announced that the thirteen American colonies then at war with Great Britain regarded themselves as independent states, and no longer a part of the British Empire. John Adams put forth a...
. Easby's mother was a descendant of Nicholas Waln, who came to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, in 1683 with William Penn
William Penn
William Penn was an English real estate entrepreneur, philosopher, and founder of the Province of Pennsylvania, the English North American colony and the future Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. He was an early champion of democracy and religious freedom, notable for his good relations and successful...
aboard the ship Welcome and was later given the area now known as Frankford
Frankford, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Frankford is a large and important neighborhood in the lower Northeast section of Philadelphia situated about six miles northeast of Center City. Although its borders are vaguely defined, the neighborhood is bounded roughly by the original course of Frankford Creek, now roughly Adams to Aramingo...
.
Easby was a multi-talented person, from being a Hollywood actor/producer to a cartoonist
Cartoonist
A cartoonist is a person who specializes in drawing cartoons. This work is usually humorous, mainly created for entertainment, political commentary or advertising...
after World War II, and from serving the government as a U.S. State Department
United States Department of State
The United States Department of State , is the United States federal executive department responsible for international relations of the United States, equivalent to the foreign ministries of other countries...
employee for twenty-five years to being a radio talk host. He was also a major art/antique collector, who inherited more than 100,000 antiques and personal items, many of which had been in his family for centuries. His collection includes items belonging to Gen. George Meade, a chair and other high valued items belonging to Napoleon Bonaparte as well as jewelry belonging to Joséphine de Beauharnais
Joséphine de Beauharnais
Joséphine de Beauharnais was the first wife of Napoléon Bonaparte, and thus the first Empress of the French. Her first husband Alexandre de Beauharnais had been guillotined during the Reign of Terror, and she had been imprisoned in the Carmes prison until her release five days after Alexandre's...
. Many pieces from his collection have been loaned to the White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
and U.S. State Department for its diplomatic reception rooms. Some of his pieces are also housed at the Philadelphia Museum of Art
Philadelphia Museum of Art
The Philadelphia Museum of Art is among the largest art museums in the United States. It is located at the west end of the Benjamin Franklin Parkway in Philadelphia's Fairmount Park. The Museum was established in 1876 in conjunction with the Centennial Exposition of the same year...
.
George Easby lived nearly all of his life at his family's Baleroy Mansion in the Chestnut Hill
Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Chestnut Hill is a neighborhood in the Northwest Philadelphia section of the United States city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.-Boundaries:Chestnut Hill is bounded as follows:...
section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is said to be one of the most actively haunted houses in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. His father, May Stevenson Easby, and his mother, Henrietta Large Easby, moved into Baleroy Mansion in the late 1920s when Easby was only about 11 years old. He also had a younger brother at the time named May Stevenson Easby Jr. who died mysteriously at the approximate age of 10.
Easby was a graduate of Chestnut Hill Academy
Chestnut Hill Academy
Chestnut Hill Academy, commonly referred to as CHA, is a Pre-K to 12 all-male independent college preparatory school located in northwest Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
and studied illustration for five years at the Philadelphia College of Art
University of the Arts (Philadelphia)
The University of the Arts is one of the United States' oldest universities dedicated to the arts. Its campus makes up part of the Avenue of the Arts in Center City, Philadelphia...
. Easby has been known to many as an extremely kind and generous person. He died on December 11, 2005, at Keystone Hospice in Wyndmoor
Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania
Wyndmoor is a census-designated place in Springfield Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, USA. The population was 5,498 at the 2010 census.-Geography:...
, PA, at the age of 87, leaving no siblings or children. He was buried at Laurel Hill Cemetery
Laurel Hill Cemetery
Laurel Hill Cemetery, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is the second major garden or rural cemetery in the United States. It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1998, one of only a few cemeteries to receive the distinction....
in Philadelphia.
External links
- Sightings - Haunted Mansion (episode #3022 aired on TV April 23, 1995)
- Sightings - Alien abduction of twins; artificial intelligence; haunted mansion; intervention by angels
- PeoplePeople (magazine)In 1998, the magazine introduced a version targeted at teens called Teen People. However, on July 27, 2006, the company announced it would shut down publication of Teen People immediately. The last issue to be released was scheduled for September 2006. Subscribers to this magazine received...
, Spirited Welcome, Halloween Treats October 31, 1994 Vol. 42 No. 18 - Meade Family Genealogy