Rockefeller is the most famous American entrepreneur, oil tycoon, philanthropist and philanthropist. The name of this man went down in American history as a synonym for great wealth and is a household name. He is known for being the first one whose fortune exceeded one billion dollars. Rockefeller owned two percent of the US economy. To this day, he is considered the richest man in modern history.
early years
John Davison Rockefeller was born on May 23, 1937, in the city of Richford, New York, in a Protestant family. John was the second child in the family, his parents had six children. His father, William Avery Rockefeller, was known as a strange man. At first he worked as a lumberjack, and then he began to wander and sell medicinal potions and elixirs. He avoided physical labor and was rarely at home.
Rockefeller's mother, Eliza Davison, was a housewife and a believing Baptist. She was meek and patient with the constant lack of money and the absence of her husband. Eliza taught her children religiosity, hard work and thrift.
Despite the windy character, John's father, William saved up a small amount of money, and bought a land plot for $ 3, 100. At the risk of it, he also invested in not always successful enterprises. John, recalling his father, said that it was he who taught him trade and understanding how money works. Also, the future billionaire, seeing the drunkenness and betrayal of his father, concluded that alcohol, tobacco and rampant life is a vice. As a boy, he decided that he would not lead such a life.
At the age of seven, John began to earn money by digging potatoes for neighbors and feeding turkeys for sale. He wrote down all the income from his work in a small book. From his first payday a little businessman bought himself a big ledger. There he began to record his income and expenses, without losing sight of anything. He kept this account book for life, as a memory of his first commercial achievements.
After graduating from high school, the young man enters Cleveland College of Commerce, where he studies the basics of commerce and accounting. But soon the future businessman leaves college, considering studying there a waste of time. He decides to study the basics of commercial activity at three-month accounting courses.
Carier start
In his first and last employment, Rockefeller got a job very early - at 16 years old. He was taken as an assistant accountant in a company engaged in shipping and real estate, with a salary of $ 17. For good work and diligence, John was soon promoted to an accountant with a salary of $ 25 per month. And after some time, the director of the company resigned and John was appointed manager of this company with a salary of $ 600. But the young man was not satisfied with such a small reward. The previous director was paid $ 2, 000, so he decided that he was worth more and quit. In 1857, Rockefeller became aware that an entrepreneur from England was looking for a business associate with a capital of $ 2, 000. Rockefeller had only accumulated $ 800. He asked him to borrow the missing amount from his own father at 10% per annum. So John Rockefeller became a junior partner in the company Clark and Rochester, which was engaged in agricultural trade.
Oil business
In the second half of the 19th century, kerosene lamps became very popular in the USA. This greatly increased the demand for raw materials for their production - oil. At that time, a fateful meeting for Rockefeller occurred with the chemist Samuel Andrews. He was an oil refining specialist. John Rockefeller, with his instinct for a businessman, immediately felt the enormous prospects of the oil market. Rockefeller persuaded his business partner, Clark, to combine his capital with the capital of Samuel Andrews. So the Andrews and Clark oil refining company was created.
In 1870, John Rockefeller founded his own oil company, Standard Oil, which later made him the richest man in the world. Rockefeller’s business went uphill due to his organization, enterprise and ability to negotiate with the “right” people. He always sought lower prices for the supply of raw materials and freight. An interesting fact was that John, at the stage of establishing his business, did not pay wages to his employees. He motivated them with shares of the company, believing that they would work better this way, being part of the enterprise. Rockefeller then began to buy up smaller oil companies and soon became a monopolist.
Thus, by 1880, Rockefeller owned 95% of America’s total oil production. Standard Oil raised oil prices and became the largest company in the world at that time.
Charity
John Rockefeller was very religious. From childhood, he was a parishioner of the Baptist Church. Starting to receive his first income, he transferred ten percent to the needs of the church. The oil tycoon has never betrayed this habit. In his entire life, Rockefeller transferred more than $ 100 million. In addition, the magnate donated about $ 80 million to the University of Chicago. In 1901, Rockefeller founded and then sponsored the New York Medical Research Institute. Within its walls, the causes, methods of treatment and prevention of various diseases were clarified. He was also the sponsor of many American colleges and schools, which received money in the amount of 325 million dollars. Then the Rockefeller Foundation was founded, and its founder was considered the most generous benefactor in American history.
condition
At that time, Rockefeller received three million dollars in net profit per year from his Standard Oil company. In addition, he owned: 16 railway companies, 9 real estate companies, 6 steel mills, 6 steamboats, 9 banks and three orange orchards.
