Bernard Baruch

Bernard Mannes Baruch (August 19, 1870 – June 20, 1965) was an American financier, stock market and commodities speculator, statesman, and presidential adviser. After his success in business, he devoted his time toward advising a range of American presidents including Woodrow Wilson and John F. Kennedy on economic matters for over 40 years; this is why Baruch was highly regarded as an elder stateman. Described as a man of immense charm who enjoyed a larger-than-life reputation that matched his considerable fortune, he is remembered as one of the most powerful men of the early 20th century.

Miscellaneous facts

• His Winter residence was his 17,500 acre (70 km²) Hobcaw Barony on the Coast of South Carolina, which was turned into a wildlife refuge after his death. At Hobcaw House he was host to such world leaders as Winston Churchill and President Roosevelt, who visited for a month in 1944. Other guests included World War I General "Blackjack" Pershing and Mrs. Woodrow Wilson.

:Latitude (33.35) Longitude (-79.18)

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• He made a $50,000 contribution to Woodrow Wilson's 1912 presidential campaign. He was richly rewarded with information from government officials which aided in his personal investment decisions.
• Baruch endured days of grilling testimony from Alger Hiss, Councel for the Senate Munitions Committee (the Nye Committee), answering "innuendo" about personal finances and wartime profitteering.
• It is a common misconception that Baruch coined the term "Cold War" in a speech made on April 16, 1947. While this is widely received as true, it is in fact false; it was coined by dystopian author George Orwell.
• Baruch owned a tungsten (Wolfram) mining community named Atolia in California's Mojave desert. During the years 1906 to 1926, Baruch spent one month a year at Atolia. The once thriving community of 4000 individuals became a ghost town when, after World War I, tungsten was no longer considered a strategic material, and lower-cost sources were developed.
• Baruch College, in Manhattan, New York has a statue of Bernard Baruch sitting on a bench inside of its entrance center. This statue is often mistaken to be a real person.
• He was on the cover of TIME magazine a total of three times in his life.
• His grave is at Flushing Cemetery, Flushing, Queens County, New York, USA

:Latitude (40.7522) Longitude (-73.7994)

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