Duke Endowment Gives $50-Million to Duke U. Medical Center

The Duke Endowment, in Charlotte, N.C., announced yesterday that it plans to give $50-million to the Duke University Medical Center, in Durham, N.C., the Triangle Business Journal reports.

Officials at Duke Hospital said they will use $35-million of the grant money to build an education center and $15-million for a new facility for the institution’s children’s health center.

The Duke Endowment is not part of Duke University, but the two have a long and interconnected history. James B. Duke, a tobacco mogul, created the Duke Endowment in 1924 with $40-million. He left another $67-million to the trust fund when he died in 1925.

A portion of the trust’s money was set aside for what was then called Trinity College, which was renamed Duke University.