John davison rockefeller biography

John D. Rockefeller: Early Years contemporary Family

John Davison Rockefeller, decency son of a traveling purveyor, was born on July 8, 1839, in Richford, New Dynasty. Industrious even as a fellow, the future oil magnate justified money by raising turkeys, merchandising candy and doing jobs provision neighbors.

In 1853, the Industrialist family moved to the Metropolis, Ohio, area, where John double-dealing high school before briefly artificial bookkeeping at a commercial college.

In 1855, at age 16, he found work as untainted office clerk at a City commission firm that bought, oversubscribed and shipped grain, coal near other commodities.

(He considered Sep 26, the day he begun the position and entered rank business world, so significant stray as an adult he depend this “job day” with inspiration annual celebration.) In 1859, Industrialist and a partner established their own commission firm.

That same year, America’s twig oil well was drilled break through Titusville, Pennsylvania. In 1863, Altruist and several partners entered probity booming new oil industry overstep investing in a Cleveland refinery.

In 1864, Rockefeller married Laura Celestia “Cettie” Spelman (1839-1915), an River native whose father was far-out prosperous merchant, politician and reformist active in the Underground Insist upon.

(Laura Rockefeller became the namesake of Spelman College, the historically black women’s college in Siege, Georgia, that her husband helped finance.) The Rockefellers went slash to have five children, three daughters (three of whom survived to adulthood) and one son: John D. Rockefeller, Jr., Edith Rockefeller McCormick, Elizabeth Rockefeller Strapping, Alta Rockefeller Prentice and Bad feeling Rockefeller, who died when she was 13 months old.

John Circle.

Rockefeller: Standard Oil

In 1865, Rockefeller borrowed money to pay for out some of his partners and take control of probity refinery, which had become loftiness largest in Cleveland. Over excellence next few years, he erred new partners and expanded emperor business interests in the adolescent oil industry.

At the offend, kerosene, derived from petroleum most important used in lamps, was enhancing an economic staple. In 1870, Rockefeller formed the Standard Cheese off Company of Ohio, along grow smaller his younger brother William (1841-1922), Henry Flagler (1830-1913) and nifty group of other men. Closet Rockefeller was its president alight largest shareholder.

Standard Oil gained a-ok monopoly in the oil effort by buying rival refineries standing developing companies for distributing obscure marketing its products around authority globe.

In 1882, these a variety of companies were combined into rank Standard Oil Trust, which would control some 90 percent weekend away the nation’s refineries and pipelines. In order to exploit economies of scale, Standard Oil outspoken everything from build its discharge oil barrels to employ scientists to figure out new uses for petroleum by-products.

Rockefeller’s enormous resources and success made him spick target of muckraking journalists, swap politicians and others who alleged him as a symbol pencil in corporate greed and criticized rank methods with which he’d type his empire.

As The Modern York Times reported in 1937: “He was accused of quelling out competition, getting rich cabal rebates from railroads, bribing joe public to spy on competing companies, of making secret agreements, fairhaired coercing rivals to join birth Standard Oil Company under warning of being forced out medium business, building up enormous fortuity on the ruins of alcove men, and so on.”

In 1890, the U.S.

Congress passed nobility Sherman Antitrust Act, the chief federal legislation prohibiting trusts instruct combinations that restrained trade. Glimmer years later, the Ohio Unrivalled Court dissolved the Standard Distressed Trust; however, the businesses in prison the trust soon became property of Standard Oil of In mint condition Jersey, which functioned as spiffy tidy up holding company.

In 1911, back end years of litigation, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled Standard Deface of New Jersey was plod violation of anti-trust laws streak forced it to dismantle (it was broken up into betterquality than 30 individual companies).

John Pattern. Rockefeller: Philanthropy and Final Geezerhood

Rockefeller retired from day-to-day abrupt operations of Standard Oil accomplish the mid-1890s.

Inspired in baggage by fellow Gilded Age financier Andrew Carnegie (1835-1919), who unchanging a vast fortune in ethics steel industry then became elegant philanthropist and gave away integrity bulk of his money, Philanthropist donated more than half efficient billion dollars to various instructional, religious and scientific causes rebuke the Rockefeller Foundation.

Among monarch activities, he funded the origin of the University of Metropolis and the Rockefeller Institute keep watch on Medical Research (now Rockefeller University).

In his personal life, Rockefeller was devoutly religious, a temperance champion and an avid golfer. Cap goal was to reach primacy age of 100; however, sand died at 97 on Possibly will 23, 1937, at The Casements, his winter home in Ormond Beach, Florida.

(Rockefeller owned legion residences, including a home disintegration New York City, an funds in Lakewood, New Jersey tolerate an estate called Kykuit, aged Dutch for “lookout,” set burden 3,000 acres near Tarrytown, Another York.) He was buried take care Lake View Cemetery in Cleveland.

Citation Information

Article Title

John D.

Rockefeller

Author

History.com Editors

Website Name

HISTORY

URL

https://www.history.com/topics/early-20th-century-us/john-d-rockefeller

Date Accessed

January 16, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

December 19, 2023

Original Published Date

April 9, 2010