Today in Wheeling History: May 31—Robert Levenson, chairman of the board of Reichart Furniture Co. and one of Wheeling's most influential civic leaders, died at Wheeling Hospital (1990).
Robert Louis Levenson was born on June 20, 1915, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the son of David Joseph and Eva Mae Wilcoff Levenson. A graduate of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, he served during World War II as a squadron navigator with the 716th Squadron of the U.S. Army Air Forces. Flying 50 missions over Europe, he was honorably discharged as a captain and received the Distinguished Flying Cross.
In 1936, Levenson came to Wheeling to join his father's business, Reichart Furniture Co., founded in 1920 at 1115 Main Street. He rose to become president and later chairman of the board. He also co-founded the Bank of Wheeling and the Wheeling Antenna Co. and was an original investor in the Wheeling Ironmen football team. On December 30, 1936, he married Helen Elinoff in Brooke County.
Levenson became a central figure in Wheeling's postwar renaissance. He helped found the Wheeling Area Conference on Community Development in 1953, chaired the city's Urban Renewal Authority, and founded and served as first president of Downtown Wheeling Associates. He was instrumental in building the Wharf Parking Garage, influencing the route of Interstate 470, and spearheading the air pollution control program that made Wheeling the first city in West Virginia to adopt air quality standards. He served as a Wheeling Hospital trustee for more than 27 years and was past president of Temple Shalom. In 1960, he unsuccessfully sought the Republican nomination for West Virginia's 1st Congressional District.
Levenson died on May 31, 1990, at the age of 74. He is buried at Greenwood Cemetery in Wheeling. His papers are preserved at the Ohio County Public Library Archives and Special Collections.
To learn more: Ohio County Public Library Archives, Wheeling WV - Robert L. Levenson Papers (https://tinyurl.com/4ms5cu3c); Ohio County Public Library Archives, Wheeling WV – Reichart Furniture History (https://tinyurl.com/4j824vmt); Find A Grave – Robert Louis Levenson (https://tinyurl.com/4k6abas7); Archiving Wheeling – Wheeling Renaissance [context for Levenson’s planning era] (https://tinyurl.com/5tz6cm8x); Wheeling Intelligencer (https://tinyurl.com/59x9nh22) (https://tinyurl.com/yc3cuetd) (https://tinyurl.com/4fcvk9ce); Wheeling News-Register (https://tinyurl.com/3zdx2k2z) (https://tinyurl.com/4cdkzdd5) (https://tinyurl.com/mv3mhvf9) (https://tinyurl.com/2sbrwjfh)
Photo credits: Ohio County Public Library Archives, Wheeling WV; Find a Grave, Wheeling Intelligencer, Wheeling News-Register, Wikimedia Commonss
Robert Louis Levenson was born on June 20, 1915, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the son of David Joseph and Eva Mae Wilcoff Levenson. A graduate of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, he served during World War II as a squadron navigator with the 716th Squadron of the U.S. Army Air Forces. Flying 50 missions over Europe, he was honorably discharged as a captain and received the Distinguished Flying Cross.
In 1936, Levenson came to Wheeling to join his father's business, Reichart Furniture Co., founded in 1920 at 1115 Main Street. He rose to become president and later chairman of the board. He also co-founded the Bank of Wheeling and the Wheeling Antenna Co. and was an original investor in the Wheeling Ironmen football team. On December 30, 1936, he married Helen Elinoff in Brooke County.
Levenson became a central figure in Wheeling's postwar renaissance. He helped found the Wheeling Area Conference on Community Development in 1953, chaired the city's Urban Renewal Authority, and founded and served as first president of Downtown Wheeling Associates. He was instrumental in building the Wharf Parking Garage, influencing the route of Interstate 470, and spearheading the air pollution control program that made Wheeling the first city in West Virginia to adopt air quality standards. He served as a Wheeling Hospital trustee for more than 27 years and was past president of Temple Shalom. In 1960, he unsuccessfully sought the Republican nomination for West Virginia's 1st Congressional District.
Levenson died on May 31, 1990, at the age of 74. He is buried at Greenwood Cemetery in Wheeling. His papers are preserved at the Ohio County Public Library Archives and Special Collections.
To learn more: Ohio County Public Library Archives, Wheeling WV - Robert L. Levenson Papers (https://tinyurl.com/4ms5cu3c); Ohio County Public Library Archives, Wheeling WV – Reichart Furniture History (https://tinyurl.com/4j824vmt); Find A Grave – Robert Louis Levenson (https://tinyurl.com/4k6abas7); Archiving Wheeling – Wheeling Renaissance [context for Levenson’s planning era] (https://tinyurl.com/5tz6cm8x); Wheeling Intelligencer (https://tinyurl.com/59x9nh22) (https://tinyurl.com/yc3cuetd) (https://tinyurl.com/4fcvk9ce); Wheeling News-Register (https://tinyurl.com/3zdx2k2z) (https://tinyurl.com/4cdkzdd5) (https://tinyurl.com/mv3mhvf9) (https://tinyurl.com/2sbrwjfh)
Photo credits: Ohio County Public Library Archives, Wheeling WV; Find a Grave, Wheeling Intelligencer, Wheeling News-Register, Wikimedia Commonss
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