His father was of English and German descent, while his mother was of Ulster Scot descent. 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. 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. John D [21] William Sr. was first a lumberman and then a traveling salesman who identified himself as a "botanic physician" who sold elixirs, described by locals as "Big Bill" and "Devil Bill. [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. What were John D. Rockefellers accomplishments? In 1881 Rockefeller and his associates placed the stock of Standard of Ohio and its affiliates in other states under the control of a board of nine trustees, with Rockefeller at the head. His business hurt many of his workers and many other small businesses with the monopoly that he created. Although it always had hundreds of competitors, Standard Oil gradually gained dominance of oil refining and sales as market share in the United States through horizontal integration, ending up with about 90% of the US market. John D. Rockefeller Was the Richest Person To Ever Live [46] In this environment of a wasteful boom, the partners switched from foodstuffs to oil, building an oil refinery in 1863 in "The Flats", then Cleveland's burgeoning industrial area. David Rockefeller [38], In 1859, Rockefeller went into the produce commission business with a partner, Maurice B. Clark, and they raised $4,000 ($120,637 in 2021 dollars) in capital. On April 20, 1914, a general fire-fight occurred between strikers and troops, which was antagonized by the troops and mine guards. John D. Rockefeller was remembered for his wealth and for the aggressive competitive practices of the Standard Oil Company. WebJohn D. Rockefeller. WebBy 1858, Rockefeller had more responsibilities at Hewitt & Tuttle. 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. While traveling the South, he would donate large sums of money to churches belonging to the Southern Baptist Convention, various Black churches, as well as other Christian denominations. did John D "[143] By the time of his death in 1937, Rockefeller's remaining fortune, largely tied up in permanent family trusts, was estimated at $1.4billion, while the total national GDP was $92billion. Rockefeller revolutionized the petroleum industry and, through corporate and technological innovations, was instrumental in both widely disseminating and drastically reducing the production cost of oil. John D. Rockefeller | Timeline On Gates' advice, Rockefeller became one of the first great benefactors of medical science. [138], Biographer Ron Chernow wrote of Rockefeller:[139], What makes him problematicand why he continues to inspire ambivalent reactionsis that his good side was every bit as good as his bad side was bad. John D. Rockefeller 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. I want to make 'em sharp." 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. American business magnate and philanthropist (18391937), For other people named John D. Rockefeller, see, Business partnership and Civil War service, Strike of 191314 and the Ludlow Massacre. In 1862, a barrel (42 gallons) of oil dropped in value from $4.00 to 35 cents. The camp was burned, resulting in 15 women and children, who hid in tents at the camp, being burned to death. John D. Rockefeller Because of Rockefellers emphasis on economical operations, Standard prospered and began to buy out its competitors until, by 1872, it controlled nearly all the refineries in Cleveland. He admitted that he had made no attempt to bring the militiamen to justice. Standard Oil had gained an aura of invincibility, always prevailing against competitors, critics, and political enemies. [82], Upon his ascent to the presidency, Theodore Roosevelt initiated dozens of suits under the Sherman Antitrust Act and coaxed reforms out of Congress. In February 1914, a substantial portion of the troops were withdrawn, but a large contingent remained at Ludlow. [98][99], The name Rockenfeller refers to the now-abandoned village of Rockenfeld in the district of Neuwied. Many people were impacted in a negative way and his business tactics were not always ethical. John D Philanthropy Roundtable - Biography of John Rockefeller Sr. John D. Rockefeller - Children's Encyclopedia (Ages 8-11), John D. Rockefeller - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up). [67] By 1880, according to the New York World, Standard Oil was "the most cruel, impudent, pitiless, and grasping monopoly that ever fastened upon a country". John D 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. 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]. Coal had previously been used to extract kerosene, but its tedious extraction process and high price prevented broad use. There was no one to take my place. He felt at ease and righteous following Methodist preacher John Wesley's dictum, "gain all you can, save all you can, and give all you can. [3][4] Rockefeller was born into a large family in Upstate New York that moved several times before eventually settling in Cleveland. [citation needed], In 1864, Rockefeller married Laura Celestia "Cettie" Spelman (18391915), daughter of Harvey Buell Spelman and Lucy Henry. Rockefeller finally gave up his dream of controlling all the world's oil refining; he admitted later, "We realized that public sentiment would be against us if we actually refined all the oil. [7][pageneeded][8][b], Rockefeller spent much of the last 40 years of his life in retirement at Kykuit, his estate in Westchester County, New York, defining the structure of modern philanthropy, along with other key industrialists such as steel magnate Andrew Carnegie. 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." Corrections? [121] It also built the Peking Union Medical College in China into a notable institution. Throughout his life, Bill was notorious for conducting schemes. During church service, his mother would urge him to contribute his few pennies to the congregation. A Baptist preacher once encouraged him to "make as much money as he could, and then give away as much as he could". John D. Rockefeller | Timeline It was broken up into 34 separate entities, which included companies that became ExxonMobil, Chevron Corporation, and otherssome of which still have the highest level of revenue in the world. The overproducing of oil and the developing of new markets caused the price of oil to fluctuate wildly. John D. Rockefeller Many people were impacted in a negative way and his business tactics were not always ethical. "But it was simply out of the question. John D. Rockefeller was an American business magnate and philanthropist. 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." It changed its name to Rockefeller University in 1965, after expanding its mission to include graduate education. [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. [71], The company's vast American empire included 20,000 domestic wells, 4,000 miles of pipeline, 5,000 tank cars, and over 100,000 employees. John D Biography: John D. Rockefeller John D. Rockefeller 187072 Within two years it was the largest refinery in the area, and thereafter Rockefeller devoted himself exclusively to the oil business.