[134], Rockefeller died of arteriosclerosis on May 23, 1937, less than two months shy of his 98th birthday,[135] at "The Casements", his home in Ormond Beach, Florida. WebHow did John Rockefeller gain his wealth? [71] Its share of world oil refining topped out above 90% but slowly dropped to about 80% for the rest of the century. WebBy 1858, Rockefeller had more responsibilities at Hewitt & Tuttle. Learn about John D. Rockefeller's historic-preservation of early American history at Williamsburg. On Gates' advice, Rockefeller became one of the first great benefactors of medical science. A devout Baptist, Rockefeller turned his attention increasingly during the 1890s to charities and benevolence; after 1897 he devoted himself completely to philanthropy. His hair never grew back, but other health complaints subsided as he lightened his workload. [72] Despite the formation of the trust and its perceived immunity from all competition, by the 1880s Standard Oil had passed its peak of power over the world oil market. The refinery was directly owned by Andrews, Clark & Company, which was composed of Clark & Rockefeller, chemist Samuel Andrews, and M. B. Clark's two brothers. John D. Rockefeller is reported to be the wealthiest man in America with about $150,000,000 and an income of $25,000 per day. In 1867, Henry Morrison Flagler became a partner, and the firm of Rockefeller, Andrews & Flagler was established. [39] Rockefeller went steadily ahead in business from there, making money each year of his career. Osgood left the company in 1904 and devoted his efforts to operating competing coal and coke operations. He was a faithful congregant of the Erie Street Baptist Mission Church, taught Sunday school, and served as a trustee, clerk, and occasional janitor. John D. Rockefeller (1839-1937), founder of the Standard Oil Company, became one of the worlds wealthiest men and a major philanthropist. John D. Rockefeller is reported to be the wealthiest man in America with about $150,000,000 and an income of $25,000 per day. He ran it until 1897 and remained its largest shareholder. [28] John did his share of the regular household chores and earned extra money raising turkeys, selling potatoes and candy, and eventually lending small sums of money to neighbors. Without her keen advice, I would be a poor man."[40]. Continuing to apply his work ethic and efficiency, Rockefeller quickly expanded the company to be the most profitable refiner in Ohio. Due to be drafted to serve the Union in the Civil War in 1863, the 23-year-old Rockefeller did what many men of means had done: He paid for someone to serve in his place. She documented the company's espionage, price wars, heavy-handed marketing tactics, and courtroom evasions. These included, among many others, Continental Oil, which became Conoco, now part of ConocoPhillips; Standard of Indiana, which became Amoco, now part of BP; Standard of California, which became Chevron; Standard of New Jersey, which became Esso (and later, Exxon), now part of ExxonMobil; Standard of New York, which became Mobil, now part of ExxonMobil; and Standard of Ohio, which became Sohio, now part of BP. To critics Rockefeller replied, "In a business so large as ours some things are likely to be done which we cannot approve. We have abundant evidence that Rockefeller's consistent policy was to offer fair terms to competitors and to buy them out, for cash, stock, or both, at fair appraisals; we have the statement of one impartial historian that Rockefeller was decidedly "more humane toward competitors" than Carnegie; we have the conclusion of another that his wealth was "the least tainted of all the great fortunes of his day."[137]. The family relocated to Strongsville, a town near Cleveland, Ohio, in 1853, and six years laterafter attending and later dropping out of Clevelands Central High School, taking a single business class at Folsom Mercantile College, and working as a bookkeeperRockefeller established his first enterprise, a commission business dealing in hay, grain, meats, and other goods. [86], In 1902, facing cash flow problems, John Cleveland Osgood turned to George Jay Gould, a principal stockholder of the Denver and Rio Grande, for a loan. WebROCKEFELLER, JOHN D. (8 July 1839-23 May 1937), industrialist and philanthropist, rose from his position as an assistant bookkeeper for a Cleveland commission merchant to become one of the wealthiest men in the U.S. through his efforts in developing the STANDARD OIL CO. Born on a farm near Richford, NY. In 1884, Rockefeller provided major funding for Atlanta Baptist Female Seminary in Atlanta for African-American women, which became Spelman College. In full retirement at age 63, Rockefeller earned over $58million in investments in 1902. In 1870 Rockefeller established the Standard Oil Company. In 1892 the Ohio Supreme Court held that the Standard Oil Trust was a monopoly in violation of an Ohio law prohibiting monopolies. He borrowed heavily, reinvested profits, adapted rapidly to changing markets, and fielded observers to track the quickly expanding industry. [125] Through this, he supported work in the social studies; this was later absorbed into the Rockefeller Foundation. Standard's most potent weapons against competitors were underselling, differential pricing, and secret transportation rebates. John D. Rockefeller (1839-1937), founder of the Standard Oil Company, became one of the worlds wealthiest men and a major philanthropist. He and Carnegie gave form and impetus through their charities to the work of Abraham Flexner, who in his essay "Medical Education in America" emphatically endowed empiricism as the basis for the US medical system of the 20th century. John D. had spent a lifetime trying to bury the truth about a relative whose actions threatened the entire empire he had worked so hard to build. He adhered to total abstinence from alcohol and tobacco throughout his life. His father was of English and German descent, while his mother was of Ulster Scot descent. He quickly found success as it became the largest refinery in the area, and In 1879, the New York State Legislature's Hepburn Committee investigations into "alleged abuses" committed by the railroads uncovered the fact that Standard Oil was receiving substantial freight rebates on all of the oil it was transporting by railroad and was crushing Standard's competitors thereby. The cartel offered preferential treatment as a high-volume shipper, which included not just steep discounts/rebates of up to 50% for their product but rebates for the shipment of competing products. [115] Rockefeller also provided financial support to such established eastern institutions as Yale, Harvard, Columbia, Brown, Bryn Mawr, Wellesley and Vassar. Pennzoil and Chevron have remained separate companies. [47], While other refineries would keep the 60% of oil product that became kerosene, but dump the other 40% in rivers and massive sludge piles,[48] Rockefeller used the gasoline to fuel the refinery, and sold the rest as lubricating oil, petroleum jelly and paraffin wax, and other by-products. [14][15][16] He was a devout Northern Baptist and supported many church-based institutions. His final year provided him $58 a month. [109] Rockefeller also gave considerable donations to Denison University[110] and other Baptist colleges. The oldest existing building on Spelman's campus, Rockefeller Hall, is named after him. [116] It claims a connection to 23 Nobel laureates. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. And God was good to me everyday. Within two years it is the largest refinery in the area. [127], Rockefeller supported the passage of the 18th Amendment, which banned alcohol in the United States. [115] In keeping with the historic missions of the Baptists, it was especially active in supporting black schools in the South. From the different reports and the different historians opinions, I feel that Rockefeller and his business negatively impacted society. Due to be drafted to serve the Union in the Civil War in 1863, the 23-year-old Rockefeller did what many men of means had done: He paid for someone to serve in his place. Whale oil had become too expensive for the masses, and a cheaper, general-purpose lighting fuel was needed. The University of Chicago has long accorded John D. Rockefeller the official designation of "Founder," and that accolade may offer some historical compensation to Rockefeller's more conventional and hostile sobriquet of "robber baron." This was probably the greatest amount of wealth that any private citizen had ever been able to accumulate by his own efforts. In 1902, an audit showed Rockefeller was worth about $200millioncompared to the total national GDP of $24billion then. Webrmond Beach, Fla., May 23.--John D. Rockefeller Sr., who wanted to live until July 9, 1939, when he would have rounded out a century of life, died at 4:05 A.M. here today at The Casements, his Winter home, a little more than two years and a month from his cherished goal. Seldom has history produced such a contradictory figure. They had four daughters and one son together. [77] In 1887, Congress created the Interstate Commerce Commission which was tasked with enforcing equal rates for all railroad freight, but by then Standard depended more on pipeline transport. All the fortune that I have made has not served to compensate me for the anxiety of that period. [65] Despite improving the quality and availability of kerosene products while greatly reducing their cost to the public (the price of kerosene dropped by nearly 80% over the life of the company), Standard Oil's business practices created intense controversy. Rockefeller believed in the Efficiency Movement, arguing that: "To help an inefficient, ill-located, unnecessary school is a waste it is highly probable that enough money has been squandered on unwise educational projects to have built up a national system of higher education adequate to our needs, if the money had been properly directed to that end. Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. During his first year, he received $31 a month, which was increased to $50 a month. John D. Rockefeller was born in Richford, New York, then part of the Burned-over district, a New York state region that became the site of an evangelical revival known as the Second Great Awakening. He would describe the University of Chicago as "the best investment I ever made." As a result, Rockefeller and his associates owned dozens of separate corporations, each of which operated in just one state; the management of the whole enterprise was rather unwieldy. [27] His church was later affiliated with the Northern Baptist Convention, which formed from American Baptists in the North with ties to their historic missions to establish schools and colleges for freedmen in the South after the American Civil War. Many people were impacted in a negative way and his business tactics were not always ethical. He paid towards the freedom of two slaves[102] and donated to a Roman Catholic orphanage. In these negotiations, he learned that posted transportation rates that were believed to be fixed could be altered depending on conditions and timing of freight and through the use of rebates to preferred shippers. In 1862, a barrel (42 gallons) of oil dropped in value from $4.00 to 35 cents. [42] As he said, "God gave me money", and he did not apologize for it. [140], Rockefeller is largely remembered simply for the raw size of his wealth. Standard Oil had gained an aura of invincibility, always prevailing against competitors, critics, and political enemies. His business hurt many of his workers and many other small businesses with the monopoly that he created. His company and business practices came under criticism, particularly in the writings of author Ida Tarbell . Learn about John D. Rockefeller's historic-preservation of early American history at Williamsburg. Born in upstate New York, Rockefeller entered the oil business by investing in a Cleveland, Ohio refinery in 1863. John D. Rockefeller was an American business magnate and philanthropist. [40] In their first and second years of business, Clark & Rockefeller netted $4,400 (on nearly half a million dollars in business) and $17,000 worth of profit, respectively, and their profits soared with the outbreak of the American Civil War when the Union Army called for massive amounts of food and supplies. He came to associate the church with charity. Johann Peter Rockenfeller (baptized September 27, 1682, in the Protestant church of Rengsdorf) immigrated in 1723 from Altwied (today a district of Neuwied, Rhineland-Palatinate) with three children to North America and settled down in Germantown, Pennsylvania. WebAfter dropping out of high school, taking one business class at Folsom Mercantile College, and working as a bookkeeper, Rockefeller establishes his first business, which supplies goods such as hay, grain, and meats. [101] Later in his life, Rockefeller recalled: "It was at this moment, that the financial plan of my life was formed". [citation needed] In February 1865, in what was later described by oil industry historian Daniel Yergin as a "critical" action, Rockefeller bought out the Clark brothers for $72,500 (equivalent to $1million[37] in 2021 dollars) at auction and established the firm of Rockefeller & Andrews. Rockefeller entered the fledgling Oil industry in 1863, by investing in a factory in Cleveland, Ohio. After the war, he donated land for the United Nations headquarters, a gift that figured prominently in the decision to [50], In 1866, William Rockefeller Jr., John's brother, built another refinery in Cleveland and brought John into the partnership. He also had a deep love of music and dreamed of it as a possible career. John D. Rockefeller (1839-1937), founder of the Standard Oil Company, became one of the worlds wealthiest men and a major philanthropist. [24], Eliza was a homemaker and a devout Baptist who struggled to maintain a semblance of stability at home, as Bill was frequently gone for extended periods. [92], The strike, called in September 1913 by the United Mine Workers, over the issue of union representation, was against coal mine operators in Huerfano and Las Animas counties of southern Colorado, where the majority of CF&I's coal and coke production was located. [44] This created an oil-drilling glut, with thousands of speculators attempting to make their fortunes. WebIn 1973 Rockefeller founded the Trilateral Commission, a private international organization designed to confront the challenges posed by globalization and to encourage greater cooperation between the United States and its principal allies (Canada, Japan, and the countries of western Europe). WebRockefeller revolutionized the petroleum industry and, through corporate and technological innovations, was instrumental in both widely disseminating and drastically reducing the production cost of oil. We were in a new business, and if I had not stayed it must have stoppedand with so many dependent on it. There was destitution in the coalfields. However, his mother was more influential in his upbringing and beyond, while he distanced himself further and further from his father as his life progressed. John D. Rockefeller is reported to be the wealthiest man in America with about $150,000,000 and an income of $25,000 per day. He had an elder sister named Lucy and four younger siblings: William Jr., Mary, and twins Franklin (Frank) and Frances. 187072 He gave money to the Union cause, as did many rich Northerners who avoided combat. A deal brokered by Henry Clay Frick exchanged Standard's iron interests for U.S. Steel stock and gave Rockefeller and his son membership on the company's board of directors. One of the most effective attacks on Rockefeller and his firm was the 1904 publication of The History of the Standard Oil Company, by Ida Tarbell, a leading muckraker. These contemporaries include his former competitors, many of whom were driven to ruin, but many others of whom sold out at a profit (or a profitable stake in Standard Oil, as Rockefeller often offered his shares as payment for a business), and quite a few of whom became very wealthy as managers as well as owners in Standard Oil. [75] Additional fields were discovered in Burma and Java. Rockefeller's charitable giving began with his first job as a clerk at age 16, when he gave six percent of his earnings to charity, as recorded in his personal ledger. Rockefeller entered the fledgling Oil industry in 1863, by investing in a factory in Cleveland, Ohio. Udo Hielscher: Historische amerikanische Aktien, p. 68 74, Laughlin, Rosemary. They thus established the first major U.S. trust and set a pattern of organization for other monopolies. Even more critical, the invention of the light bulb gradually began to erode the dominance of kerosene for illumination. In the end it turned out that the individual segments of the company were worth more than the entire company was when it was one entitythe sum of the parts were worth more than the wholeas shares of these doubled and tripled in value in their early years. He made possible the founding of the University of Chicago in 1892, and by the time of his deathfrom a heart attack in 1937, shortly before his 98th birthdayhe had given it some $35 million. [5] His personal wealth was estimated in 1913 at $900million, which was almost 3% of the US GDP of $39.1billion that year. [41] While his brother Frank fought in the Civil War, Rockefeller tended his business and hired substitute soldiers. WebRockefeller revolutionized the petroleum industry and, through corporate and technological innovations, was instrumental in both widely disseminating and drastically reducing the production cost of oil. [73], Although 85% of world crude production was still coming from Pennsylvania in the 1880s, oil from wells drilled in Russia and Asia began to reach the world market. Due to reduced demand for coal, resulting from an economic downturn, many of CF&I's coal mines never reopened and many men were thrown out of work. It endowed Johns Hopkins School of Hygiene and Public Health,[114] the first of its kind. Rockefeller prevailed and the railroad sold its oil interests to Standard. Billionaire John D. Rockefeller (July 8, 1839 to May 23, 1937) continues to rank as one of the richest men in modern times. [9] His fortune was mainly used to create the modern systematic approach of targeted philanthropy through the creation of foundations that had a major effect on medicine, education, and scientific research. [citation needed] The study, an excerpt of which was published in The Atlantic,[13] had been undertaken by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. US Gross Domestic Product 19131939 Stuck on Stupid: U.S. Economy. A. D. John. August 2, 1896 An article documents Rockefellers life and his rise to wealth, from poverty to possessing millions of dollars. [citation needed], His mother was deeply religious and disciplined, and had a major influence on him in religious matters. ", Rockefeller was an abolitionist who voted for President Abraham Lincoln and supported the then-new Republican Party. He was an excellent debater and expressed himself precisely. John Jr.'s youngest son David Rockefeller was a leading New York banker, serving for over 20 years as CEO of Chase Manhattan (now part of JPMorgan Chase). WebIn the 1860s John D. Rockefeller took note of the expansion of oil production in western Pennsylvania and built an oil refinery near Cleveland, Ohio, in 1863. I, 1879)", "Militia slaughters strikers at Ludlow, Colorado", "Laura Spelman Rockefeller Memorial Foundation", "Text of Rockefeller's Letter to Dr. Butler", "John D. Rockefeller Sr. and family timeline", "John D Rockefeller:Infinitely Ruthless, Profoundly Charitable", "The Richest Man In History: Rockefeller is Born", "Financier's Fortune in Oil Amassed in Industrial Era of 'Rugged Individualism', "Toward a 'Universal Heritage': Education and the Development of Rockefeller Philanthropy, 18841913", Standard Oil Co. of New Jersey v. United States, Standard Oil Co. v. United States (Standard Stations), https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=John_D._Rockefeller&oldid=1138196481, American businesspeople in the oil industry, Wikipedia articles needing page number citations from February 2021, Articles with incomplete citations from February 2021, Short description is different from Wikidata, Wikipedia indefinitely semi-protected pages, All Wikipedia articles written in American English, Articles with incomplete citations from May 2021, Wikipedia articles needing page number citations from January 2023, Articles with unsourced statements from October 2016, Articles with unsourced statements from May 2021, Articles with unsourced statements from December 2017, Articles with unsourced statements from September 2016, Articles with unsourced statements from November 2016, Articles with unsourced statements from December 2020, Articles with unsourced statements from April 2020, Pages using Sister project links with wikidata namespace mismatch, Pages using Sister project links with hidden wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Alice Rockefeller (July 14, 1869 August 20, 1870), Public Diary of John D. Rockefeller, now found in the Cleveland Western Historical Society, This page was last edited on 8 February 2023, at 14:21. American industrialist and philanthropist [17941877]. [132], In his 50s Rockefeller suffered from moderate depression and digestive troubles; during a stressful period in the 1890s he developed alopecia, the loss of some or all body hair.
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