It would be very strange if the rubric of the "Success Story" lacked the name of such a person as John Davison Rockefeller, who is known, first of all, for becoming the first person in the history of planet Earth, whose fortune exceeded one billion dollars.

It is very noteworthy that the story of his success began in a small provincial town in North America and this man owes his success solely to his talent and perseverance.

John was born in Richford, New York, to a Protestant family. His father, William Avery Rockefeller, was first a lumberjack, and then became a traveling salesman who supplied the residents of the surrounding area with miraculous elixirs and potions. Dad was rarely at home, he devoted a lot of time to trade, alcohol and riotous women. But in his memoirs, John speaks of his parent as a good father, who devoted a lot of time to his son in his free time and, in particular, taught him to trade. William, as they would say now, arranged for his son a kind of training by buying and selling various services of his son. Subsequently, John highly appreciated these lessons. And from communication with his father, he made a firm conviction that alcohol and tobacco are a vice, and this is very bad. And looking at how his mother suffers from the frequent betrayals of her husband, he decided as a child that he would never do this.

The neighbors thought Father John was very a strange person, who does not want to work, but simply a quitter. However, William managed to save some money and buy land and invest some funds in various businesses. He willingly shared with his son his knowledge of the principles of doing business and the fundamental criteria for achieving success.

John's mother, Eliza Davison, led everything household(there were six children in the family. John is the second child in the family), was very sensitive to religion and resignedly accepted the hardships of life: regular lack of money (the husband was often absent at home, which required austerity) and betrayal of her husband.

Subsequently, John said that he began to be engaged in commerce from early childhood. Many consider it disgusting that the future millionaire bought candy in the store, and then sold them piece by piece to his sisters. Is it disgusting to cash in on your relatives ?! It all depends on how you look at it from what angle. Do you also think the boy's actions are terrible? Then try to answer the following questions:

  • Are sweets a must?
  • the girls had money (they also bought sweets from John) and what prevented them from buying sweets in the shop themselves?
  • the candy in the shop was not sold by the piece, but by weight. Girls buying one candy at a time spent less money than if they bought these sweets in the store, which means that they believed that they were making a good deal. If both parties believe that they have received the expected benefits, then what is immoral here?

So back in early childhood not from books, but from his own practical experience, John understood what the laws of surplus value are and how they work. I believe it is very important for a future success story to understand how money works.

At the age of seven, he began to breed and feed turkeys for sale, helped neighbors (not gratuitously) dig potatoes.

And what is remarkable, he recorded all the results of his commercial activities in a notebook. A stingy boy? Business is not possible without accounting and planning. Little John knew what was a revelation for many of today's businessmen - success is impossible without consideration and planning.

Everything that he could earn, the boy kept in a porcelain piggy bank, which allowed him to start lending at the age of thirteen - it was at this age that he issued his first loan to a familiar farmer. Fifty dollars at 7.5 percent per annum. Expensive? But the farmer took it, which means he thought it was profitable for him. Money should not just lie - it should work and be profitable. This is one of the rules of success. Money should work.

If you want a success story, don't go to school

In the same year, when he issued the first loan in his life, he went to school for the first time. Many years later, recalling this period of his life, John wrote that it was very difficult for him to study, and the completion of the lessons required simply titanic work. But the boy had a goal and he successfully graduated from high school and went to college with the goal of mastering the basics of accounting and commerce. But, as often happens with non-ordinary people, he quickly realized that education does not bring him closer to success, but turns him into a diligent employee who will work for other people all his life.

He is completing a three-month accounting course and is looking for a job.

Just at this time, the Rockefeller family moves to Cleveland. John has been looking for a job for a month and a half and eventually becomes an assistant accountant for a small real estate and shipping company. Hardworking and punctual, he attracts the attention of the owners of the enterprise and when the chief accountant leaves the company, the owners offer Rockefeller to take this place. But, the predecessor received 2,000 dollars a year, and John is offered only 600. And he leaves the company. If you do not value your work, then others will not appreciate it either. This is another rule of thumb for achieving success - value your work and don't let others devalue it. If you don’t do this, you will have neither success nor a success story. This was the first and last work when John worked for uncle.

It so happened that it was at this time that a businessman from England, John Maurice Clarke, was looking for a partner with a capital of at least 2,000 dollars to create and conduct a joint business. The young Rockefeller, at that time, had a gold reserve of $ 800. The missing amount had to be borrowed from daddy Rockefeller at 10% (Remember the interest that John announced to a familiar farmer) per annum.

And on April 27, a historic event takes place - John Davison Rockefeller becomes a junior partner in the Clark & ​​Rochester enterprise. The newly created company trades in hay, pork, grain ... Trades in whatever is bought.
And then what can be called a gift of fate happens - the Civil War begins in the United States. I understand your indignation - how can you call the war a gift ?! But, I will remind you that we are talking about a success story. For the business of a young company, the beginning of the war opened up great opportunities: war requires not only blood and lives, it takes everything. And hay, and pork, and cartridges ... That's it.

For such a business, the company's capital was clearly not enough, and John persuades the bank manager to issue an unsecured loan. How did it happen? The story and young Rockefeller do not expand on the incentives that pushed the hand and pen of the bank chief. It is believed that Rockefeller was so sincere and convincing that the bank manager could not resist. Have you ever received a bank loan? Have you ever seen a sentimental bank manager? Or maybe people worked as bank managers in those distant times ?!

As a junior companion and businessman, John Rockefeller decided to marry Laura Celestine Spelman, a simple teacher whom he met during his student days. Like all women of that time, Laura was overly pious and at the same time, unusually practical. Many years later, Rockefeller said that if it were not for the advice of my wife, then I would have remained a poor man. Was it true? Of course it was! Laura may not be business savvy, but a like-minded wife is not just a secret to success. This is a rocket that will carry any normal man to the very pinnacle of success and to several lines in history, if not civilization, then business, for sure.

How the success stories began

The world was entering the oil age. The kerosene lamps were already burning and the great minds of the world were developing their own internal combustion engines. Civilization slowly but surely walked towards the twentieth century - the age of motors.

It was during this period that John met the chemist Samuel Andrews, who was fascinated by the problems of oil distillation and was confident in the enormous prospects of the emerging industry. In those days, the conversation was only about the possibilities of kerosene lighting of premises and streets. A huge number of people, cities and towns ... A huge market, which no one has yet controlled.

At this time in the press there was a message about a "fresh" oil field, which was discovered by Edwin Drake. The offer was risky, but very tempting. Rockefeller teamed up with Andrews, and then both of them, already as companions, turned to Clark. As a result, the Andrews & Clark oil refining company was established with the aim of building an oil refinery, which the partners named "Flats". They decided to transport oil by rail.

For the Rockefeller success story, oil and railways are keywords... And the point is not that oil was transported by rail. There are 12 golden rules on how to achieve success from your first billionaire. I present to your attention rule number 13, about which the author did not like to dwell on.

In the new company, Rockefeller led the search for oil fields. The work is difficult and not always rewarding. During this period, John thought about the fact that there are a huge number of small enterprises scattered around the country that are engaged in the extraction and processing of oil. Terrible market chaos. But if all these small enterprises are united under one sign and a roof ... It was with this idea that John Rockefeller came to his partners. it historical fact.

And now the main recipe in the success story by John Rockefeller - read carefully!

Under the laws of the time, corporations were not allowed to own property outside the state where the company was incorporated. And this was a big problem - for potential investors it is not interesting to invest little money in a huge number of objects. The investment object becomes much more attractive if the property can be combined.

And Rockefeller figured out how to get around the laws. The business plan (if you can call it that) for the future company was prepared very carefully: they even thought about the question that employees should not receive a salary in money, they were given shares - this should, according to Rockefeller, make them work harder and more productively.

The following historical fact testifies to the thoroughness of the plan's elaboration: barrels were required to transport oil. The barrels could be bought for $ 2.50, but the companions started their own production, which allowed them to get the same barrels for the price of $ 1. For a small enterprise, the price of a barrel was not significant. However, the partners were planning a business in which hundreds of thousands of barrels were needed.

The next item on the plan was the organization of transportation of oil and refined products. Rockefeller carefully studied all transport companies operating in the region, their competitive advantages and weakness. A separate plan was drawn up, which involved the creation conflict situations among transport workers and using the consequences of these conflicts for their own purposes. Rockefeller created problems for transport workers, and then helped solve them.

Even before Standard Oil was formed, the plan reduced the cost of transporting one barrel of oil from $ 2.40 to $ 1.65. This "small" advantage, multiplied by tens of thousands of barrels, became the key to the very great success of the future super company.

There were a number of secret agreements between the Rockefeller company and the transport workers: a low price for Rockefeller and a high price for any other company. Under such conditions, competitors had no chance of success. Employees of competing oil and refining companies were bribed.

In 1870, the Standard Oil Company was registered with a registered capital of $ 1 million. And in this new company, John D. Rockefeller's share was 27%. And from that moment on, between the producers and refiners of oil began real war, behind the scenes of which Standard Oil was hiding, which organized this war.

As mentioned above, in those days, oil was transported in wooden barrels on open railway platforms. The oil evaporated and the buyer received only a part of the shipped cargo - the most valuable volatile oil fractions evaporated.

The Rockefeller group, secretly, owned the transport company Union Tanker Car Company, and the transport company had a patent for sealed metal tank cars (in such containers, oil is transported at the present time). The shipping company allocated such wagons to Standard Oil's competitors, and John Rockefeller monitored competitors' shipments, volumes and consumers. And as soon as a competitor began to invest in the development of his business, received loans and expanded the sales market, the command followed - not to allocate cars. Competitors went bankrupt, and Standard Oil bought up bankrupts at a paltry price. Rockefeller has used this tactic of business expansion for many years. Competitors could not even imagine who organized their bankruptcy and who is the real owner of the transport company.

Just because of the collusion between Standard Oil and transport workers, the state treasury lost more than fifty million dollars annually. The remaining independent oil companies afloat approached the state with a proposal to build a pipeline. The state authorities supported the idea and construction began in 1878. The pipe could break the monopoly that Rockefeller had been building for so many years.

Standard Oil's response to the decision to build the Riverside pipeline was the recruitment of gangs who attacked construction workers and blew up already assembled sections of the pipeline. The oil pipeline was nevertheless completed. In response, Rockefeller's company built four of these pipelines and announced paltry charges for pumping oil. The rival pipeline went bankrupt and was bought out, again at the lowest price, by Standard Oil. It is clear that as soon as the competitor was eliminated, the prices for oil transportation increased significantly.

Why were the authorities silent? He was not silent. A Pennsylvania grand jury issued an indictment against Rockefeller and Flegler for organizing gang attacks. A demand was sent to New York for the arrest of John Rockefeller. However, for reasons not understandable (ha-ha), this judicial act was not enforced.

Success - in all its splendor

This is where the real success began. Rockefeller negotiated with transport workers throughout the country and bought up small oil producing and refining companies. The competitors had little choice: go broke or transfer property to the Rockefeller empire for a fraction of the shares. Thus, by 1880, more than 95% of all oil production and refining in North America was in the hands of John. Having become a monopoly, Rockefeller raised oil prices.

And ten years later, the Sherman Anti-Monopoly Act required Standard Oil to be split into a number of small and independent companies. Rockefeller complied: 34 small businesses were created. And in each of these businesses, John Rockefeller had a controlling stake. Almost every modern American oil company has a success story that begins with Standard Oil. More precisely, their stories are the success stories of John Davison Rockefeller.

Prior to the separation, Standard Oil brought its main owner more than $ 3 million annually. And besides Standard Oil, John Rockefeller owned 16 railway transport companies, 6 metallurgical enterprises, 6 shipping companies, a dozen companies that traded in real estate, a group of banks (9 units) and many other properties, such as orange groves and huge land plots.

What else can you say about John Rockefeller and his success story?

He was a very religious person (?) And from his very childhood he donated ten percent of his income annually to the Baptist Church. In 1905, 10 percent was $ 100 million.

He lived long life and died at the age of 97 (and dreamed of living to be 100). He began (gradually) to withdraw from business management back in 1897 and concentrated all his efforts on charity: the University of Chicago and the Rockefeller Medical Institute were built with his money, etc., etc., etc.

Before dying, he gave over $ 500 million to charities. But this was not the whole fortune: the son inherited about 460 million.

In 2007, Forbes magazine tried to measure Rockefeller's wealth in modern terms. It turned out to be 318 billion. That year, Bill Gates was at the top of the list with a fortune of only 50 billion.

Finally, John Davison Rockefeller's 12 Golden Rules of Success.



Success stories - it always makes you think about how a person managed to achieve this very success, in what ways and by what means. If you read this post completely and carefully, then, quite possibly, you felt some disappointment: a Christian entrepreneur, highly moral principles and collusion, bandits, tax evasion on an especially large scale. And it's all one person - John Davison Rockefeller. It is up to you to decide who he was, as always. One big life like any big story, it is made up of small stories. Can these stories be considered success stories, or should we shyly keep silent about them? To each his own. There was just such a person and this person lived. And these are no longer success stories - this is a historical fact.

Almost similar stories, but such different fates. You can look at the path to success or. And think ...

Many hated and cursed him, wanted him to lose all his money, but John Davison Rockefeller Sr. still increased his fortune with each passing year. The most interesting thing is that most of all this man was proud of his morality: he followed strict rules all his life, raised his children the way they once raised him.

Rockefeller's ancestors were Huguenots and lived in fickle France. In the 17th century, they left this country, fleeing the Inquisition and the royal dragoons, who hunted for heretics. In Germany, the Rockfeil family changed their surname in the German manner. The emigrants were hardworking, loyal to each other, but indifferent to strangers. Their faith demanded it, and John Rockefeller never broke these rules.

In the next century, the Rockefellers continued their journey and ended up in the New World. There they stayed in a New York state town like Richford. And in 1839, John Rockefeller was born. John's father, William Avery Rockefeller, was very fond of money, earning it in any honest and dishonest ways. He pretended to be both deaf and dumb, and as a herbalist, traded in various glass, won prizes at shooting competitions, etc. William always left to work for several months, always dressed well and gradually increased his small fortune. And little John looked at his father and studied.

He was a practical youth and, looking at his relatives, made many useful conclusions. From his mother, for example, he inherited hard work, honesty, discipline, his father taught him to love money, John's grandfather did not achieve anything, was talkative and self-willed, and the boy did not want to be the same. Even as a child, young Rockefeller started doing business: he caught turkey poults and after a while he sold, bought sweets and then sold them to his own sisters at a premium. All of John's money was in the piggy bank. A little later, the boy gave them to his father at interest.

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Almost no one knew the human side of John Rockefeller. Such people try not to obey emotions, feelings, because their main goal is to get rich. But several situations in John's life perfectly prove that he was a sensitive boy.
While the young man is receiving secondary education, his father escapes from the creditors he has deceived and leaves his family. Later he changes his last name and leaves for another woman. At sixteen, John travels to Cleveland and starts looking for work. Many owners of firms and companies refuse him. Six weeks later, he was recruited by Hewitt and Tuttle as an assistant accountant. Rockefeller came to work early in the morning (at 6:30), and finished his working day after 22:00. The future oil tycoon was very fond of working and in a short period of time established himself as a competent professional. Therefore, after the manager of the company stopped working, John was immediately appointed to this position. True, his salary was set almost 3 times less than his predecessor. Rockefeller was very offended by this, and he left the firm. He never worked for anyone again.

At this time, John Maurice Clarke wants to start his own business and is looking for a person who could invest another $ 2,000. An English entrepreneur and John Rockefeller become partners and create the Clark & ​​Rochester trading house. During civil war they managed to make good money. After a while, John begins to extract oil.
Before Rockefeller was twenty-five, all his acquaintances thought that he only loved money. But it was not so. One girl had been waiting for John for nine years. He met Laura Celestia Spelman at school. Then the young man confessed his love to her, but the girl replied that he should first find himself Good work and achieved something in life.

John Davison Rockefeller (John Davison Rockefeller; 1839 - 1937) - American entrepreneur, investor and oil tycoon. He is the first billionaire in history. He is the founder of the largest oil company, Standard Oil Company, which dominated the oil industry and was the first American business trust. He transformed the oil industry and defined the structure of modern philanthropy. The Standard Oil Company was founded in 1870, which he ran until he officially left the company in 1897. Standard Oil began with a partnership in Ohio formed by John Rockefeller, his brother William Rockefeller, Henry Flegler, Jabez Bostwick, chemist Samuel Andrews and Stephen Harkness. With the growing importance of components such as gasoline and kerosene in life, Rockefeller's wealth grew to an unprecedented size and he became the richest man in the world and the first American with a fortune of more than $ 1 billion. Considering the rate of inflation, he is considered the richest man in history.

John Rockefeller had four daughters and one son named John Davison Rockefeller Jr.

In honor of Rockefeller, an asteroid in the main belt, discovered in 1918, is named: (904) Rockefellia.

John Rockefeller was born on July 8, 1839 in Richmond, New York, USA, and was the second of six children to William Avery Rockefeller (November 13, 1810 - May 11, 1906) and Eliza Davison (September 12, 1813 - March 28, 1889). Genialists trace some of his ancestors to the French Huguenots who moved to Germany in the 17th century. His father worked as a lumberjack, and then became an itinerant trader, declaring himself a homeopathic physician and selling various kinds of herbal elixirs. Locals called the merry merchant "Big Bill" or "Devil Bill". He was an opponent of the usual, traditional foundations, as a result of which he chose a wandering lifestyle and rarely met with his family. Eliza was a housewife and a devout Baptist. She struggled to keep the family afloat as her husband did not show up for long periods. She also put up with his double life which included flirting and bigamy. Lean by nature, she taught her son prudence and economy. Young Rockefeller listened to his mother and did household chores.

Despite the absence of his father, the young Rockefeller beat a rather serious and diligent boy with good behavior. His contemporaries described him as serious, religious, methodical, and careful. He was an excellent participant in any controversy and always expressed himself accurately and clearly. He also deeply loved music and even dreamed of musical career... But still, his main advantage was his bookkeeping ability.

As a young man, his family moved first to the village of Moravia in New York State, and then in 1851 to the village of Ovego in the same state where he attended Ovego Academy. In 1853 the family moved to Strongville, a suburb of Cleveland. There, Rockefeller attended Cleveland Central High School and took ten-week business courses at the Folsom Institute of Commerce, where he studied accounting. In September 1855, when Rockefeller was 16, he landed his first job as an assistant accountant at a small firm called Hewitt & Tuttle. He worked hard and, as he later recalled, "admired the methods office work"He was particularly adept at calculating shipping costs, which helped him in his future career. His full salary in the first three months was $ 50 (50 cents a day). And from the very first salary he donated about 6% of his income to charity, which by age 20 had increased to 10% when he became a member of the Baptist Church.

In 1859, John Rockefeller first entered the commission business with partner Maurice B. Clarke, with whom they earned about $ 4,000. Rockefeller persistently went ahead, increasing his capital every year. After a wholesale food business, in 1863 the partners built an oil refinery in the burgeoning industrial estate "The Flats" in Cleveland, Ohio. The plant was directly owned by Andrews, Clark & ​​Company, which was formed from Clark & ​​Rockefeller by adding capital to Samuel Andrews and the two Maurice Clark brothers. The commercial oil business was in its infancy at the time. And probably, even the newly-made partners did not yet imagine the importance and future scale of this industry. Although, Rockefeller, with his prudence and amazing intelligence, probably still guessed about the impending technological and economic revolution. At that time, whale oil, used in lamps and primuses in almost every home, became too expensive, and there was an urgent need for cheaper and more affordable kerosene.

While his brother Frank was fighting in the civil war, Rockefeller went about his business and hired recruits. He gave money to the Union, as did many people in the North who avoided war. In February 1865, the literal translation of "critical" action took place, as oil historian Daniel Yergin describes. John Rockefeller at auction bought out the shares of the Clark brothers for $ 72,500 and founded Rockefeller & Andrews. Rockefeller himself said that "it was the day that defined my career." He was well enlightened to seize the chance to take advantage of the post-war prosperity and the great westward expansion, wrought by railways and an oil-fueled economy. He incurred debt, made a profit, and reinvested it, adjusting to rapidly changing market conditions and putting out onlookers to the rapidly expanding industry.

In 1864, John Rockefeller married Laura Celestia Spelman. They had four daughters and one son. Subsequently, Rockefeller said about his wife: "Her judgment was always better than mine. Without her good advice I would be a poor man. "

Rockefeller became a lifelong member of the then new Republican Party, and a staunch supporter of Abraham Lincoln and the abolitionist wing of the party. He was a devoted member of the Erie Street Baptist Missionary Church, where he taught in Sunday school, and has served as a guardian, clerk, and occasional doorman. Religion was the guiding force throughout his life, and Rockefeller believed that this was the source of his success. As he said, “God gave me money,” and he did not apologize for it. All his life he adhered to the dictum of an English preacher of the 18th century. John Wesley, who said: "Receive All that you can, save All that you can and give to All who you can."

In 1866, his brother William Rockefeller built another refinery in Cleveland and joined John's partnership. In 1867 a new partner joined the partnership and the firm was renamed Rockefeller, Andrews & Flagler. This company became the predecessor of the Standard Oil Company.

By the end of the American Civil War, the city of Cleveland was one of five major oil refining centers in the country (besides Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, New York, and an area in northwestern Pennsylvania). In June 1870 he founded the Standard Oil Company in Ohio, which soon became the largest oil refiner in the state. The company also became the largest exporter of oil and kerosene in the country. In order to reduce transportation costs and be able to manage freight rates, Rockefeller, together with partners, founded the South Improvement Company, which became part of Standard Oil. This made it possible to reduce up to 50% costs for the transportation of products. All these Rockefeller moves caused a huge storm of indignation and protests from independent owners of oil wells, which was expressed in the manifestation of actions of boycotts and vandalism. This entire action was supported by the New York oil company Charles Pratt and Company, led by Charles Pratt and Henry Rogers. As a result, the Rockefeller transport company existed for only a year, but this was enough to save a lot and make a huge profit.

Not at all frightened and not discouraged, John Rockefeller continued his onslaught on the oil market, buying up oil wells, seeking significant discounts on transport, concluding secret deals and buying out competitors. Less than four months later, in 1872, an event took place that was called the "Cleveland Conquest" or the "Cleveland Massacre". Rockefeller's company took over 22 of its 26 competitors in Cleveland. Ultimately, even his former opponents, Pratt and Rogers, saw the futility of continuing to compete against Standard Oil. In 1874, they entered into a secret merger agreement with the Standard Oil Company and became Rockefeller's partners. In particular, Rogers became one of the key figures in the creation of the huge Rockefeller corporation Standard Oil Trust. Pratt's son Charles Millard Pratt became General Secretary of Standard Oil. Rockefeller saw himself as the savior of the industry, the "angel of mercy", believing that by absorbing the weak, he made the industry stronger, stable, efficient and competitive. The company has developed in all directions. This growth was reflected in the construction of new pipelines, tank trucks, and the creation of a so-called home delivery network, not forgetting about households. All these measures allowed to keep fuel prices at a sufficiently low level, which contributed to the emergence of difficulties for new competitors to enter the market. New company deciding to enter the market, she inevitably had to lower prices in order to compete with the technologically equipped and rapidly growing Rockefeller company, which would immediately lead to bankruptcy. The development also led to the discovery of more than 300 products based on oil refining. By the end of the 1870s, Standard Oil was already refining 90% of the oil in the United States. And John Rockefeller had already become a millionaire by that time.

In 1877, a hostile relationship began with the main railroad carrier of Standard Oil, the Pennsylvania Railroad. Rockefeller believed that the use of pipelines as an alternative transportation system for transporting oil and petroleum products was more beneficial for the company than rail transport. Oil pipeline construction company started. Pennsylvania Railroad, facing the prospect of losing its main customer and threatening bankruptcy, fought back and established an oil refinery and refinery subsidiary. Standard Oil did not hesitate to make the right decision, organizing its rail transport and thus starting a price war that sharply reduced freight payments and sparked labor unrest. Rockefeller ultimately celebrated the victory and Pennsylvania Railroad sold all of its oil assets to Standard Oil. But for Rockefeller, all this enmity still did not pass without ice. In 1879, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania charged Rockefeller with monopolizing the oil trade, resulting in an avalanche of similar litigation elsewhere and creating the Standard Oil problem.

Gradually, Standard Oil gained almost complete control over oil refining, selling it in a horizontally integrated scheme. But when selling kerosene, a vertical system was used. Kerosene was delivered to customers directly on special tank weights, thereby bypassing the existing network of wholesale intermediaries. The most powerful weapon Standard Oil versus competitors had low prices and unofficial transportation methods. During its entire existence, the company was attacked by journalists and politicians due to its monopoly nature, thereby giving impetus to the revival of the antitrust movement. In 1880, the New York World newspaper published an article in which it was written about the company as follows: "the most cruel, impudent, ruthless, and tenacious monopolist who ever took aim at the country." To his critics, Rockefeller replied: "In a business as big as ours, some things are likely to be done in ways that we cannot foresee or approve of. We correct as soon as we realize them."

As Standard Oil grew, managing it became more complex and cumbersome. In 1882, Rockefeller's lawyers created an innovative company structure by centralizing all subsidiaries into one large corporation, the Standard Oil Trust. The new company became the largest corporation, the size and wealth of which attracted a lot of attention. In total, the corporation includes 41 companies managed by Rockefeller and partners. The public and press were suspicious of the newly formed legal entity, but other firms took up new idea and began to imitate her even more outraged by the already distrustful public. The Standard Oil Trust has gained an aura of invincibility that always prevails against competitors, critics, and political enemies. The company became the largest and richest business structure that was immune to economic booms and busts, increasing its profits every year.

Extensive american empire Standard Oil included 20,000 oil wells, 4,000 miles of pipeline, 5,000 tank trucks and over 100,000 employees. The peak of development of the Standard Oil company came in the 1880s. Subsequently, Rockefeller abandoned his dream of managing all oil refining in the world and said: "We realized that public opinion would be against us if we controlled all oil refining in the world." In the years that followed, foreign competition and new geological surveys abroad destroyed the company's dominance in the global oil market. Still, Standard Oil still held 85% of the market, sourcing oil and its derivatives from Pennsylvania wells. Meanwhile, there was a large-scale oil development in Russia and Asia. Robert Nobel set up his own refining facility in the richer and cheaper Russian fields, building the region's first oil pipeline and the world's first oil tanker. Rich oil deposits have been discovered on the island of Java and Burma. Another factor in the fall of Standard Oil was the invention of the light bulb, which destroyed the dominance of kerosene in households. But the company has adjusted, expanding its presence in Europe, as well as launching natural gas production in the United States. Then gasoline was still considered an unnecessary and unpromising product.

Standard Oil moved its headquarters to New York City at 26 Broadway and Rockefeller immediately became a central figure in the city's business community. He bought his own home on 54th Street near the mansions of other tycoons such as William Vanderbilt.

In 1890, a new bill was passed, known as the Sherman Act, which marked the beginning of the end of the Rockefeller empire.

In the 1890s, Rockefeller expanded his company by developing and transporting iron ore, which sparked an open feud with steel mogul Andrew Carnegie. Their enmity became the subject of discussion in newspaper articles and the appearance of various cartoons. Rockefeller went further, acquiring contracts for the development of crude oil in Ohio, Indiana and West Virginia as old Pennsylvania oil fields began to play out. Aside from feverish expansion, Rockefeller began thinking about retirement. The day-to-day management of the corporation was transferred to John Dustin Archbold.

One of the most massive information attacks on Rockefeller was associated with the publication of the book by American journalist Ida Tarbell "The History of the Standard Oil Company", in which she claimed that Standard Oil had illegal methods in its activities. These methods included industrial espionage, price wars, heavy-handed marketing tactics, and court evasion. Although her work generated huge backlash against the company, Tarbell claimed she was surprised at its magnitude. She said: "I never had any animosity against their size and wealth. I only wanted them to grow and develop, but only by legal means. But they never played fair game." Rockefeller, answering questions related to "Miss Tarbarrel", as he himself called her, only said: "not a word about that misguided woman." Instead, he started an information campaign to paint his corporation in the best possible light, despite the fact that long time maintained a policy of active silence with the press. He said: "Capital and labor are wild forces that require intellectual legislation to keep them in limitation." In 1908 he wrote and published his memoirs.

Rockefeller remained president of the Standard Oil Company until 1911. This year, the United States Supreme Court ruled that Rockefeller's company had violated the Sherman Antitrust Act. By that time, Standard Oil controlled 70% of the oil refining market share. The court recognized Standard Oil as a monopoly and ruled to split it into 34 separate companies. Now these companies are known under such names as Mobil, Exxon, Chevron. The collapse of the corporation increased Rockefeller's fortune to $ 900 million.

From his very first salary, Rockefeller began to donate part of his earnings to charity. With the growth of his fortune, so did the scale of charity. In 1884, Rockefeller funded the creation of a college for African American women at Atlanta Spelman College. The oldest building on the Spelman College campus is named after him by Rockefeller Hall. Rockefeller also made significant donations to Denison University and other Baptist colleges.

In 1900, he gave $ 80 million to the University of Chicago, transforming a small Baptist college into a world-class institution.

In 1903, the Education Council was created, which was engaged in the development of education for all segments of the population. In keeping with the historical mission of the Baptists, the "black schools" in the South were especially supported. Rockefeller also provided financial support to universities such as Yale university, Harvard, Columbia University, Brown University, Bryn Mawr College, Wellesley College, and Vassar College.

Despite the fact that John Rockefeller was an active supporter of homeopathy, he became one of the great benefactors of medical science. In 1901, he founded the Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research in New York. In 1965, the institute was renamed Rockefeller University, after the decision was made to train and graduate new specialists. Since then, many specialists in their field have studied at the university, among which there were 23 future Nobel laureates.

In 1913, he created the Rockefeller Foundation, to which he gave $ 250 million for the development of health care, medical education and the development of the arts. In 1918, the Laura Spelman Rockefeller Memorial Fund was established to support the development of social sciences... The Foundation later merged with the Rockefeller Foundation. In total, Rockefeller donated approximately $ 550 million.

Rockefeller once said that in his youth he had two big aspirations in life, to make $ 100,000 and live 100 years.

John Davison Rockefeller died on May 23, 1937 at the age of 97 from heart attack at his home in Ormond Beach, Florida, just under 100. He is buried at Lake View Cemetery in Cleveland, Ohio.

John Davison Rockefeller is an American entrepreneur who made his fortune by starting from scratch. He founded Standard Oil, which took the leading position in the American economy and made its founder the richest man in the world.

Rockefeller was born on July 8, 1839, in Richford, New York, and when he was 16 he and his family moved to Cleveland. He was not afraid of hard work, and as a teenager at the age of 16, he looked for work in various small firms... His first job was as an assistant accountant at a small wholesale company, Hewitt & Tuttle (buying goods to sell for a commission) and selling vegetables for export.

At the age of 20, Rockefeller, who was doing well in his job, decided to start his own business with another business partner, engaged in the wholesale of hay, meat and other goods. At the end of the first year of his company's operation, its gross profit totaled $ 450,000.Rockefeller was very careful and thoughtful, tried in every possible way to avoid unnecessary risks, but in the early 1860s he noticed that there was an opportunity to open an oil business due to increased demand for oil. And in 1863 he opens his first refinery near Cleveland. Less than 10 years later, Rockefeller, the founder of Standard Oil, almost completely controlled all the country's refineries.

Standard Oil

When the oil business moved east to Pennsylvania, Rockefeller followed. By the early 1880s. he held a dominant position in oil business nationwide, and his company had a net worth of $ 55 million. Standard's leading position was due to the fact that it was closely associated (or owned) with almost every side of the business. Under the leadership of Rockefeller, the company created its own pipeline system for transporting products. She had her own wagons for transportation, and she also bought thousands of hectares of forest for fuel.

In 1882, Rockefeller founded the Standard Oil Trust, a trust company that would serve as a model for other types of monopolies. Naturally, Rockefeller was appointed head of this company.
But while Rockefeller's power and wealth grew, his reputation in society deteriorated. In the early 1800s, the state began enforcing antitrust laws, paving the way for the Sherman Act, which went into effect in 1890.

In 1895, 56-year-old Rockefeller retired from daily involvement in the affairs of Standard Oil and focused on charitable work. But the new leadership could do little to suppress attacks on Rockefeller and his business.

In 1904, Ayda Tarbell wrote The History of Standard Oil, a book full of condemnation, in which she told the story of Standard Oil's ruthless business conduct. In 1911, the corporation was disbanded under the influence of the Sherman antitrust law.

Subsequent years

John Davison Rockefeller has invested a lot in charity. Collectively, he donated $ 530 million in various ways. His money helped found the University of Chicago, also known as the Rockefeller Institute of Medicine (later Rockefeller University) in New York, and the Rockefeller Foundation.

His wife Laura and Rockefeller had five children, including their daughter Alice, who died in infancy.
Rockefeller died May 23, 1937, Ormond Beach, Florida. However, his legacy lives on to this day: Rockefeller is considered one of America's leading businessmen, whose achievements influenced the formation of the nation as it is today.

John Davison Rockefeller was born on July 8, 1839 in New York. When he was very young, the family moved to Pennsylvania. John D.'s mother raised him in the fear of God and in the strict laws of Baptism.

My father was an entrepreneur. Not always successful, but able to combine frequent risk with hoarding. It is believed that the ostentatious chic and self-centeredness of the parent made John Davison in every possible way avoid such an image, strive for. Often the family lived on debt, which made John D. ashamed of his father (again according to some researchers). But there is also evidence of the future billionaire himself, indicating that his father played a decisive positive role in John's life:

He often bargained with me and bought various services from me. He taught me how to buy and sell. My father just trained me to get rich!

Rockefeller Sr. did not like physical labor, he tried to earn his own mind.

The father told his son about his affairs, explained the principles, and although he himself was not the most successful in business, the son with early years I managed to learn a lot. For example, judging by his future career young man, he learned that morality and fairness in business are very relative concepts, and if there is a goal, then many can be sacrificed for it.

Education at school was given to him with difficulty, but hard work covered all the omissions.

Raising in a religious family (according to) made John Davison a teetotaler who avoided gambling and dancing. As the eldest child, in his youth he had to become the breadwinner of the family. The first job that John D. received was an assistant accountant (before that, the boy worked part-time, feeding turkeys, worked on a farm).

To get the job, John dropped out of college and completed three months of accounting studies. This was his only employment.

After borrowing money from his father (at 10%), Rockefeller became a junior partner in an agricultural company, which he led to the business of refining oil into kerosene (which was becoming a very popular medium for lighting lamps).

Creation of Standard Oil

John D.'s silence inspired the government to legalize the issue of monopolies and dismember the Rockefeller empire. Despite this, John Davison's financial assets only increased from this: having divided Standard Oil into 34 small companies at the request of the authorities, he retained a controlling stake in all. Interestingly, most modern ones are descended from these 34 parts of Standard Oil, for example, ExxonMobil,.

Theodore Roosevelt launched a series of lawsuits against Standard Oil, which he relied on, who was allowed to buy up steel mills in the Rockefeller style to create a monopoly of United States Steel.

Richest man

To this day, John D. is considered the richest man on the planet and the most generous philanthropist (he paid for medical research, Chicago and Rockefeller Universities were founded with his money). Back in 1917, Rockefeller's capital was 20% more than the annual budget of the United States. No other businessman has ever achieved such heights. He sponsored the construction of the UN headquarters in New York, which determined the enormous influence of the United States on this organization.

D. Rockefeller died at the age of 97. His family (clan) is still considered one of the most influential in the world.