Antonia Hamilton, 74, worked in institutional development

Antonia Wallace Hamilton, 74, a Philadelphia native who worked in institutional development after returning here from Iowa in 1991, died Saturday, Feb. 28, at her Center City home.

Her family and the Philadelphia Medical Examiner's Office confirmed that Mrs. Hamilton's death was a suicide. The cause was drug intoxication, said Jeff Moran, spokesman for the city's Department of Public Health. There will be no further investigation by the medical examiner, Moran said.

In a statement Wednesday, Mrs. Hamilton's family said she had had Alzheimer's disease for 41/2 years. She died "having determined not to see her advancing Alzheimer's through to its end," the family wrote. "She ended her life with the same grace and courage by which she lived."

Mrs. Hamilton's choice comes against a backdrop of discussion over end-of-life issues. Brittany Maynard, 29, a California woman who had terminal brain cancer, ended her life in Oregon last fall, touching off a debate on social media.

Daughter Jenny Bogoni said the family "totally agreed with [Mrs. Hamilton's] decision," finding it "courageous and generous." The one regret, Bogoni said, was that Mrs. Hamilton could not openly talk with a doctor about her choice; Pennsylvania is not among the five states that allow that.

"She had to do it all by herself. That made it much harder," Bogoni said. By going public with her story, the family hopes to kindle a conversation so that others someday may legally seek medical guidance.

Bogoni characterized her mother, a horsewoman in earlier days, as a gutsy person. Mrs. Hamilton liked to live by the words of her riding instructor, Bogoni said: "If you want to take your horse over the jump, you've got to throw your heart over the fence first."

Born in Germantown and reared on the Main Line, Mrs. Hamilton graduated from the Shipley School in 1958. She graduated from Smith College with a bachelor's degree in art history in 1962.

She earned master's degrees, one in history from the University of Virginia in 1968, a second in library science from the University of Michigan in 1971.

She sold real estate in Ann Arbor, Mich., until becoming program director for the University of Iowa Museum of Art in Iowa City in 1975.

Between 1977 and 1991, Mrs. Hamilton held various posts in public relations and institutional development in Iowa. She moved back to the Philadelphia area and began a job in institutional advancement with Swarthmore College in 1992.

She worked for the Chester County Historical Society and as executive director of the Creative Artist Network before becoming director of institutional advancement for Fleisher Art Memorial in 2000. She retired five years later.

Mrs. Hamilton's marriage to David Hamilton ended in divorce. She later married Carter Leidy.

In 2000, she renovated a 19th-century townhouse north of Fitler Square, taking it down to the studs before creating a modern showcase for antiques. She told an Inquirer reporter that she was fascinated by how the home's stairs forked to the left and right at the second-floor level, and bought it on a whim.

Beside her husband and daughter, she is survived by a son, Colin; a sister; and four grandchildren. Her former husband also survives.

Plans for an April memorial service are pending.

Donations may be made to BalletX, a dance company she helped support, 265 S. Broad St., Philadelphia 19107.

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