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John D. The Founding Father of the Rockefellers by David Freeman Hawke
good condition
260 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1980
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About the author
David Freeman Hawke
25 books4 followersDavid Freeman Hawke was professor emeritus of American history at Lehman College of the City University of New York, where he taught from 1972 until his retirement in 1986.
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June 29, 2015
I picked this book to supplement information from a series of documentaries about the industrialists who created much of the wealth in American in late 1880's to World War I. This is a rather short biography that covers John D's business career with a short section (20 pages) devoted to his younger years. It ends with his official retirement in 1922, but John D has little to do with Standard Oil operations in the last decades of his life.
This is the author's 11th book. His other works have covered the colonial period in US history plus one book about the Lewis and Clark expedition. According to the Notes at the end of the book, the author was researching another subject at the Rockefeller Archive Center when a collection of letters covering the years 1866 through 1868 came into the Center which apparently triggered his effort.
The book covers the creation of Standard Oil and the related businesses Rockefeller purchased or created to turn Standard into the giant finally was broken up by the Supreme Court in May, 1911. At the time of its breakup Rockefeller's net worth was over $323 million. After the breakup, because he still owned shares in all these entities and the value of the shares increased, he became the world's first billionaire.
But that's not the whole story. He was a dedicated philanthropist. Between 1892 and 1905 there was only one year he donated less than $1 million to various charities. In 1913 he donated over $45 million, 14% of his net worth, to charity. Today we think of Bill Gates and Warren Buffett as being supremely generous in donating their wealth to the Gates Foundation. John D. didn't donate to organizations he controlled.
The book was a good overview into Rockefeller's career and how he built Standard Oil into the giant it became. Obviously the book's brevity omitted a lot of details, but it does demonstrate what a risk taker he was. Numerous times he bought up refineries and oil fields when oil prices were at their lowest. He borrowed hundreds of thousands of dollars to invest more into his plants and equipment when the economy looked its bleakest. And with no government subsidies or tax benefits that companies demand today. A true entrepreneur.
If you're looking for a brief history, this is the book for you.
This is the author's 11th book. His other works have covered the colonial period in US history plus one book about the Lewis and Clark expedition. According to the Notes at the end of the book, the author was researching another subject at the Rockefeller Archive Center when a collection of letters covering the years 1866 through 1868 came into the Center which apparently triggered his effort.
The book covers the creation of Standard Oil and the related businesses Rockefeller purchased or created to turn Standard into the giant finally was broken up by the Supreme Court in May, 1911. At the time of its breakup Rockefeller's net worth was over $323 million. After the breakup, because he still owned shares in all these entities and the value of the shares increased, he became the world's first billionaire.
But that's not the whole story. He was a dedicated philanthropist. Between 1892 and 1905 there was only one year he donated less than $1 million to various charities. In 1913 he donated over $45 million, 14% of his net worth, to charity. Today we think of Bill Gates and Warren Buffett as being supremely generous in donating their wealth to the Gates Foundation. John D. didn't donate to organizations he controlled.
The book was a good overview into Rockefeller's career and how he built Standard Oil into the giant it became. Obviously the book's brevity omitted a lot of details, but it does demonstrate what a risk taker he was. Numerous times he bought up refineries and oil fields when oil prices were at their lowest. He borrowed hundreds of thousands of dollars to invest more into his plants and equipment when the economy looked its bleakest. And with no government subsidies or tax benefits that companies demand today. A true entrepreneur.
If you're looking for a brief history, this is the book for you.
Displaying 1 of 1 review