John D Rockefeller John Davison Rockefeller was born

John D. Rockefeller

John Davison Rockefeller was born on July 8, 1893 in Richford, New York. Rockefeller had his first job at the age of 16 as a bookkeeper After he became 20 years old, he quit his job and started his own grocery supply business with his friend Maurice Clark.

Their business was very successful mainly because of Rockefeller’s natural business skills and because it was during the civil war when food was needed to feed troops. After realizing groceries were not going to take him far, he saw the potential of oil and began to make his own company.

One key to his early success was the fact that he exported most of the oil at that time because of the demand in other parts of the world. Rockefeller’s business really took off when he partnered with Henry Flagler, both of them saw the potential of oil.

The Standard Oil company was owned by multiple businessmen but Rockefeller owned about a third of the company. Standard Oil had control of over 90% of oil by 1881. This happened largely because of the way Rockefeller was able to control the railroads and negotiate for others Standard companies.

He retired from the oil business in 1897 at the age of 58. The only challenge he had was trying to find what to do with all the money he had at that time. He created the University of Chicago. He started Rockefeller institute for medical research. He donated more than 50 m dollars to schools.

John D. Rockefeller 1839 -1937

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