Giving
The Local History Fund was created by Albert Wolfe, who helped to create the Parkersburg Area Community Foundation in 1963. The purpose of this fund is to support projects related to the preservation of local history and the dissemination of information about local historical sites.
Mr. Wolfe was the son of the late Katherine V. (White) and William H. Wolfe. Born in Parkersburg, Mr. Wolfe left the area to attend college and graduated from Princeton University and Harvard Law School. In 1940, he became a partner with the Boston law firm of Rackemann, Sawyer, and Brewster, where he remained for his entire career. His specialty was in real estate law, with a particular focus on historic preservation and conservation laws.
Although he lived in New England for most of his life, Mr. Wolfe maintained close ties with the Mid-Ohio Valley. The Wolfe family assisted many charitable organizations in the Parkersburg area. Mr. Wolfe donated the land for the Presbyterian Church in Parkersburg, erected in 1961. His sister, Elizabeth Wolfe Eddy donated the Cook House, located at Thirteenth Street and Murdoch Avenue, to the Junior League of Parkersburg.
In addition to his ongoing involvement with civic affairs in the Parkersburg area, Mr. Wolfe was prominently involved in activities related to historic preservation in New England and nationally. He was counsel for the Society for the Preservation of New England Antiquities, he chaired the Cambridge Historical Commission, served on the Massachusetts Historical Commission, and was a trustee for the National Trust for Historic Preservation.