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== Biography ==

== Biography ==

===Early life===

===Early life===

John was born at Richford, New York, the son of William Avery Rockefeller and and Eliza (Davison) Rockefeller. His father, a travelling salesman of dubious medical cures, was supporting a bigamous second family and was seldom home. John was of [[Scots]], [[Yankee]] and [[German Americans|German]] ancestry. His mother was a devoutly religious Baptist, strait-laced, and austere. John was the second of six children and the oldest of three sons. The family moved around a great deal and he attended public schools haphazardly in several towns until he received a good education in Owego, New York and then attended the the excellent Cleveland High School in 1853-55; he now studied hard, and did well in mathematics.  He never attended college, but three months at a local business school gave him the basics of bookkeeping and commercial and banking practice.  

John was born at Richford, New York, the son of William Avery Rockefeller and Eliza (Davison) Rockefeller. His father, a travelling salesman of dubious medical cures, was supporting a bigamous second family and was seldom home. John was of [[Scots]], [[Yankee]] and [[German Americans|German]] ancestry. His mother was a devoutly religious Baptist, strait-laced, and austere. John was the second of six children and the oldest of three sons. The family moved around a great deal and he attended public schools haphazardly in several towns until he received a good education in Owego, New York and then attended the excellent Cleveland High School in 1853-55; he now studied hard, and did well in mathematics.  He never attended college, but three months at a local business school gave him the basics of bookkeeping and commercial and banking practice.  

==Business career==

==Business career==

===First business===

===First business===

His first job, starting at $3.50 a week, was clerking for commission merchants who had a diversified business with railroads, steamship lines, producers, and merchants. Three years later the young man was well known, and trusted in the Cleveland business community. He formed a partnership with a young Englishman, Maurice B. Clark, for handling grain, hay, meats, and other goods. On a combined capital of only $4,000 they had sales the first year, 1859-60, of $450,000 and made a profit of $4,400. Clark & Rockefeller boomed during the Civil War, shipping the army many products of the city and region.  

His first job, starting at $3.50 a week, was clerking for commission merchants who had a diversified business with railroads, steamship lines, producers, and merchants. Three years later the young man was well known, and trusted in the Cleveland business community. He formed a partnership with a young Englishman, Maurice B. Clark, for handling grain, hay, meats, and other goods. On a combined capital of only $4,000 they had sales the first year, 1859–60, of $450,000 and made a profit of $4,400. Clark & Rockefeller boomed during the Civil War, shipping the army many products of the city and region.  

Deeply religious, John not only joined the Erie Street Baptist Church in 1854 but soon became its leading lay figure. He helped with maintenance of the building, served as recording clerk, taught Sunday School, and became one of the five trustees. Starting with his first pay packet he always gave to charities about 10% of what he received. He was opposed to slavery and helped a Cincinnati Negro to buy his slave wife.  By 1860 he was head of the family as his father was largely gone. His family responsibilities and his business role in supplying the army precluded him from volunteering for the army.  

Deeply religious, John not only joined the Erie Street Baptist Church in 1854 but soon became its leading lay figure. He helped with maintenance of the building, served as recording clerk, taught Sunday School, and became one of the five trustees. Starting with his first pay packet he always gave to charities about 10% of what he received. He was opposed to slavery and helped a Cincinnati Negro to buy his slave wife.  By 1860 he was head of the family as his father was largely gone. His family responsibilities and his business role in supplying the army precluded him from volunteering for the army.  

Rockefeller gave $80 million to the [[University of Chicago]] under [[William Rainey Harper]], turning a small Baptist college into a world-class institution by 1900. He later called it "the best investment I ever made." His [[General Education Board]], founded in 1902, was established to promote education at all levels everywhere in the country. It was especially active in supporting black schools in the South. Its most dramatic impact came by funding the recommendations of the [[Flexner Report]] of 1910, which revolutionized the study of medicine in the United States.

Rockefeller gave $80 million to the [[University of Chicago]] under [[William Rainey Harper]], turning a small Baptist college into a world-class institution by 1900. He later called it "the best investment I ever made." His [[General Education Board]], founded in 1902, was established to promote education at all levels everywhere in the country. It was especially active in supporting black schools in the South. Its most dramatic impact came by funding the recommendations of the [[Flexner Report]] of 1910, which revolutionized the study of medicine in the United States.

Despite his personal preference for homeopathy, Rockefeller, on Gates's advice, became one of the first great benefactors of medical science.  In 1901, he founded the Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research in New York.  It changed its name to Rockefeller University in 1965, after expanding its mission to include graduate education.  It claims a connection to 23 Nobel laureates.  He founded the Rockefeller Sanitary Commission in 1909, an organization that eventually eradicated the hookworm disease that had long plagued the American South.  The [[Rockefeller Foundation]] was created in 1913 to continue and expand the scope of the work of the Sanitary Commission, which was closed in 1915.  He gave nearly $250 million to the foundation, which focused on public health, medical training, and the arts.  It endowed the Johns Hopkins School of Hygiene and Public Health, the first of its kind. It built the Peking Union Medical College into a great institution,  helped in World War I war relief,, and it employed [[William Lyon Mackenzie King]] of Canada to study industrial relations. Rockefeller's fourth main philanthropy, the Laura Spelman Rockefeller Memorial Foundation, created in 1918, supported work in the social studies; it was later absorbed into the Rockefeller Foundation. However, all told, Rockefeller gave away about $550 million.

Despite his personal preference for homeopathy, Rockefeller, on Gates's advice, became one of the first great benefactors of medical science.  In 1901, he founded the Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research in New York.  It changed its name to Rockefeller University in 1965, after expanding its mission to include graduate education.  It claims a connection to 23 Nobel laureates.  He founded the Rockefeller Sanitary Commission in 1909, an organization that eventually eradicated the hookworm disease that had long plagued the American South.  The [[Rockefeller Foundation]] was created in 1913 to continue and expand the scope of the work of the Sanitary Commission, which was closed in 1915.  He gave nearly $250 million to the foundation, which focused on public health, medical training, and the arts.  It endowed the Johns Hopkins School of Hygiene and Public Health, the first of its kind. It built the Peking Union Medical College into a great institution,  helped in World War I war relief, and it employed [[William Lyon Mackenzie King]] of Canada to study industrial relations. Rockefeller's fourth main philanthropy, the Laura Spelman Rockefeller Memorial Foundation, created in 1918, supported work in the social studies; it was later absorbed into the Rockefeller Foundation. However, all told, Rockefeller gave away about $550 million.

Oddly enough, Rockefeller was probably best known in his later life for the practice of giving a dime to children wherever he went.  He even gave dimes as a playful gesture to men like tire mogul Harvey Firestone and President Herbert Hoover.  During the Great Depression, Rockefeller switched to giving nickels instead of dimes.

Oddly enough, Rockefeller was probably best known in his later life for the practice of giving a dime to children wherever he went.  He even gave dimes as a playful gesture to men like tire mogul Harvey Firestone and President Herbert Hoover.  During the Great Depression, Rockefeller switched to giving nickels instead of dimes.

==Legacy==

==Legacy==

[[File:Rockefellergrave.JPG|right|thumb|200px| A 70-foot obelisk marks his grave. The structure was created by Joseph Carabelli.]]

[[File:Rockefellergrave.JPG|right|thumb|200px| A 70-foot obelisk marks his grave. The structure was created by Joseph Carabelli.]]

He died on May 23, 1937, 26 months shy of his 100th birthday. Rockefeller is buried in Lake View Cemetery, Cleveland, Ohio. Visitors to the gravesite often place dimes at the base of the stone, perhaps hoping that their money will increase as Rockefeller's did. <ref>[http://cleveland.about.com/od/clevelandattractions/ss/lakeview_2.htm Lake View Cemetery - John D. Rockefeller's Grave, About.com]</ref>

He died on May 23, 1937, 26 months shy of his 100th birthday. Rockefeller is buried in Lake View Cemetery, Cleveland, Ohio. Visitors to the gravesite often place dimes at the base of the stone, perhaps hoping that their money will increase as Rockefeller's did.<ref>[http://cleveland.about.com/od/clevelandattractions/ss/lakeview_2.htm Lake View Cemetery - John D. Rockefeller's Grave, About.com]</ref>

Rockefeller had a long and controversial career in industry followed by a long career in philanthropy.  His image is an amalgam of all of these experiences and the many ways he was viewed by his contemporaries.  These contemporaries include his former competitors, many of whom were driven to ruin, but many others of whom sold out at a profit (or a profitable stake in Standard Oil, as Rockefeller often offered his shares as payment for a business), and quite a few of whom became very wealthy as managers as well as owners in Standard Oil.  They also include politicians and writers, some of whom served Rockefeller's interests, and some of whom built their careers by fighting Rockefeller and the "[[robber baron]]s."

Rockefeller had a long and controversial career in industry followed by a long career in philanthropy.  His image is an amalgam of all of these experiences and the many ways he was viewed by his contemporaries.  These contemporaries include his former competitors, many of whom were driven to ruin, but many others of whom sold out at a profit (or a profitable stake in Standard Oil, as Rockefeller often offered his shares as payment for a business), and quite a few of whom became very wealthy as managers as well as owners in Standard Oil.  They also include politicians and writers, some of whom served Rockefeller's interests, and some of whom built their careers by fighting Rockefeller and the "[[robber baron]]s."

Biographer Ron Chernow wrote of Rockefeller:

Biographer Ron Chernow wrote of Rockefeller:

:What makes him problematic—and why he continues to inspire ambivalent reactions—-is that his good side was every bit as good as his bad side was bad. Seldom has history produced such a contradictory figure."<ref> Chernow, ''Titan'' </ref>

:What makes him problematic—and why he continues to inspire ambivalent reactions—-is that his good side was every bit as good as his bad side was bad. Seldom has history produced such a contradictory figure."<ref>Chernow, ''Titan''</ref>

Notwithstanding these varied aspects of his public life, Rockefeller may ultimately be remembered simply for the raw size of his wealth.  In 1902, an audit showed Rockefeller was worth about $200 million—compared to the total national wealth that year of $101 billion.  His wealth grew significantly after as the demand for gasoline soared, eventually reaching about $900 million, including significant interests in banking, shipping, mining, railroads, and other industries.  By the time of his death in 1937, Rockefeller's remaining fortune, largely tied up in permanent family trusts, was estimated at $1.4 billion.  Rockefeller's net worth over the last decades of his life would easily place him among the very wealthiest persons in history.  As a percentage of the United States economy, no other American fortune—including Bill Gates or Sam Walton—ever came close.

Notwithstanding these varied aspects of his public life, Rockefeller may ultimately be remembered simply for the raw size of his wealth.  In 1902, an audit showed Rockefeller was worth about $200 million—compared to the total national wealth that year of $101 billion.  His wealth grew significantly after as the demand for gasoline soared, eventually reaching about $900 million, including significant interests in banking, shipping, mining, railroads, and other industries.  By the time of his death in 1937, Rockefeller's remaining fortune, largely tied up in permanent family trusts, was estimated at $1.4 billion.  Rockefeller's net worth over the last decades of his life would easily place him among the very wealthiest persons in history.  As a percentage of the United States economy, no other American fortune—including Bill Gates or Sam Walton—ever came close.