Autobiography of john d rockefeller

About the Book

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Step into the mind of one of America's most influential and enigmatic figures.

That same year, America’s first oil well was drilled in Titusville, Pennsylvania. In 1911, however, the U.S. Supreme Court declared the new entity in violation of the Sherman Antitrust Act and illegal, and it was again forced to dissolve.

Later Years, Death & Legacy

Rockefeller was a devout Baptist, and once retired from the daily operations of running one of the world’s largest businesses (in 1895, at age 56), he kept himself busy with charitable endeavors, becoming one of the more respected philanthropists in history.

It didn't take much further success to convince Rockefeller to turn his attention full-time to the oil business. (Laura Rockefeller became the namesake of Spelman College, the historically black women’s college in Atlanta, Georgia, that her husband helped finance.) The Rockefellers went on to have five children, four daughters (three of whom survived to adulthood) and one son: John D.

Rockefeller, Jr., Edith Rockefeller McCormick, Elizabeth Rockefeller Strong, Alta Rockefeller Prentice and Alice Rockefeller, who died when she was 13 months old.

In 1865, Rockefeller borrowed money to buy out some of his partners and take control of the refinery, which had become the largest in Cleveland.

Unafraid of hard work, he embarked on a number of small-business ventures as a teenager, landing his first real office job at age 16, as an assistant bookkeeper with Hewitt & Tuttle, commission merchants and produce shippers.

By the age of 20, Rockefeller, who'd thrived at his job, ventured out on his own with a business partner, working as a commission merchant in hay, meats, grains and other goods.

In just over a decade since Standard Oil was incorporated, it had a near monopoly of the oil business in the U.S. and consolidated each division under one giant corporate umbrella, with Rockefeller overseeing all of it. Everything Rockefeller had done to this point had led to the first American monopoly, or “trust,” and it would serve as a guiding light for others in big business following behind him.

John Rockefeller was its president and largest shareholder.

Standard Oil gained a monopoly in the oil industry by buying rival refineries and developing companies for distributing and marketing its products around the globe. In 1870, Rockefeller formed the Standard Oil Company of Ohio, along with his younger brother William (1841-1922), Henry Flagler (1830-1913) and a group of other men.

The overall hierarchy remained chiefly in place, though, and Standard’s board maintained control of the web of spun-off companies.

Just nine years after the company broke itself into pieces in the face of antitrust legislation, those pieces were again reassembled in a holding company. He delves into the people who shaped him, the events that influenced his decisions, and the ethical questions that have since surrounded his legacy.

Rich with personal anecdotes, candid thoughts, and valuable lessons for entrepreneurs and historians alike, Random Reminiscences offers rare insight into the mind of a man who transformed not only his own life but the fabric of American industry.

He used his fortune to fund ongoing philanthropic causes.

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• Article Title: John D.

  Rockefeller Biography

• Author: Biography.com Editors
• Website Name: The Biography.com website
• Url: https://www.biography.com/business-leaders/john-d-rockefeller
• Access Date:
• Publisher: A&E; Television Networks
• Last Updated: August 10, 2020
• Original Published Date: April 2, 2014

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