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Anne Hawley

Anne Hawley, former director of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. (Robin Lubbock/WBUR)
Anne Hawley, former director of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. (Robin Lubbock/WBUR)

Anne Hawley was the director of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum when it was robbed in 1990. She was named in 1989 and had only been on the job for a matter of months when the theft occurred. The fourth director since Mrs. Gardner died in 1924, her mission was to restore vitality to the museum, which had begun to fray because of inadequate fundraising.

Haunted by the loss of the masterworks and concerned that the FBI wasn’t giving the case adequate attention, Hawley took an active role in the probe. She hired a private investigative firm, encouraged Boston’s business and political leaders to get involved and even pursued leads herself.

Before retiring in 2015, Hawley led a $118 million fundraising campaign that built an extension to the museum designed by famed architect Renzo Piano.

— Reported by Kelly Horan


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