Business Leaders Flashcards
Cornelius “Commodore” Vanderbilt
1794-1877 American from NY - Tycoon, businessman, and philanthropist who built his wealth in railroads and shipping. One of the richest Americans in history.
JP Morgan (John Pierpont Morgan)
1837-1913 from Hartford, CT - American financier, banker, philanthropist - Arranged the mergers that formed GE (from Edison) and US Steel (from Carnegie).
Andrew Carnegie
1835-1919 Scottish-American industrialist - Carnegie Steel Co. - Major philanthropist
John D Rockefeller
1839-1937 from Richford, NY - American business magnate and philanthropist - Co-founder of Standard Oil - After inflation, the richest in history - Founded Uni of Chicago y Rockefeller Uni in Manhattan - Baptist
Samuel Cunard
1787-1865 British-Canadian shipping magnate from Halifax - Founded the Cunard Line, the 1st British trans-Atlantic steamship mail contract, now a cruise line - Knighted in 1859 for supplying ships for the Crimean War
P(hineas) T(aylor) Barnum
1810-91 American showman y businessman from CT - Founded Barnum y Bailey Circus, presented famous hoaxes, freak shows, y wax museums - Sponsored Jenny Lind’s American tour - Later served in CT state legislature - Erroneously quoted as saying “there’s a sucker born every minute “
Cecil Rhodes
1853-1902 British businessman y politician - PM of Cape Colony in S Africa (1890-96) - Founded De Beers diamond co (1888) - Founded colony of Rhodesia (Zimbabwe y Zambia) - Attempted to complete Cape-to-Cairo railroad - Believed whites to be “the first race in the world”
Rothschild Family
Wealthy European Jewish family currently involved in financial services, real estate, mining, etc. - Started by Mayer Amschel Rothschild in the 1760s, who was court Jew to the German Landgraves of Hesse-Kassel in Frankfurt - During 19 century, the family possessed the largest private fortune in modern world history- Frequent subject of conspiracy theories
