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John D. Rockefeller (born July 8, 1839, Richford, New York, U.S.—died May 23, 1937, Ormond Beach, Florida) was an American industrialist and philanthropist, founder of the Standard Oil Company, which dominated the oil industry and was the first great U.S. business trust. He is the major historical figure behind the famed Rockefeller family ...
Civil War begins. Rockefeller, like some other northern businessmen, hires substitutes to avoid fighting. ... September 18, 1873 ... 1952 Winthrop moves to Arkansas, one of the poorest states in ...
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John Davison Rockefeller is born in Richford, New York, the second of six children. His father, William (“Big Bill”) Avery Rockefeller, is a traveling physician and snake-oil salesman, meaning a person who sells fraudulent cures for health ailments. The family later moves to Oswego, New York, followed by a move to Ohio, where Rockefeller attends Cl...
After 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.
Rockefeller builds his first oil refinery, near Cleveland. Within two years it is the largest refinery in the area.
Rockefeller and a few associates, a group that includes American financier Henry M. Flagler, incorporate the Standard Oil Company (Ohio). Because of Rockefeller’s emphasis on economical operations, Standard prospers and begins to buy out its competitors until, by 1872, it controls nearly all the refineries in Cleveland.
Rockefeller and his associates place the stock of Standard of Ohio and its affiliates in other states under the control of a board of trustees, with Rockefeller at the head. They thus establish the first major U.S. “trust,” a type of business monopoly. By 1882 Standard Oil has a near monopoly on the oil business in the United States.
The U.S. Congress passes the Sherman Antitrust Act, hoping to combat monopolies such as Standard Oil.
The Ohio Supreme Court rules that the Standard Oil Trust is a monopoly, which violates state antitrust law. Rockefeller sidesteps the decision by dissolving the trust and transferring its properties to companies in other states.
Rockefeller focuses hereafter on philanthropy, creating educational and charitable institutions.
The companies that once made up the Standard Oil Trust are brought back together in a holding company, Standard Oil Company (New Jersey).
- Co-founded Standard Oil Company. John D. Rockefeller, along with his business partners, including his brother William Rockefeller and several others, co-founded the Standard Oil Company in 1870.
- Implemented vertical integration in the oil industry. One of Rockefeller’s most significant contributions to the oil industry was the implementation of vertical integration.
- Established the Rockefeller Foundation for philanthropy. In 1913, John D. Rockefeller established the Rockefeller Foundation, marking a turning point in his life and legacy.
- Faced the breakup of Standard Oil due to antitrust laws. John D. Rockefeller’s dominance in the oil industry and Standard Oil’s monopolistic practices drew the attention of regulators and led to a significant legal challenge.
John D. Rockefeller, Sr. Rockefeller Archive Center. John D. Rockefeller was born July 8, 1839, in Richford, New York, about midway between Binghamton and Ithaca. His father, William Avery Rockefeller, was a "pitch man" — a "doctor" who claimed he could cure cancers and charged up to $25 a treatment. He was gone for months at a time traveling ...
- American Experience
Apr 9, 2010 · John D. Rockefeller: Early Years and Family . John Davison Rockefeller, the son of a traveling salesman, was born on July 8, 1839, in Richford, New York.Industrious even as a boy, the future oil ...
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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 ...
