John D. Rockefeller

John Davison Rockefeller (July 8, 1839 – May 23, 1937) was an American capitalist most known for his role in the early petroleum industry and the founding of Standard Oil (ExxonMobil is the largest of its descendants). Through a number of widely-criticized business tactics, Rockefeller built Standard Oil into the largest oil refining business in the world, and was for a time himself the richest man in the United States. Much of this wealth was then given away, resulting in his legacy as a great philanthropist.

Standard Oil

In the early 1870s, Charles Pratt and Henry H. Rogers, two of the early pioneers of the emerging U.S. petroleum industry, became involved in conflicts with the infamous South Improvement Company, which was basically a scheme to obtain favorable net rates from the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR) and other railroads through a secret system of rebates. Rockefeller and the South Improvement Company scheme outraged independent oil producers in western Pennsylvania and refineries there and afar alike.

Related Topics:
Charles Pratt - Henry H. Rogers - Petroleum industry - South Improvement Company - Pennsylvania Railroad

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The opposition to the South Improvement Company scheme among the New York refiners was led by Rogers. The New York interests formed an association, and about the middle of March, 1872, sent a committee of three, with Rogers, of Charles Pratt and Company, as head, to Oil City to consult with the Oil Producers' Union there. Their arrival in the oil regions was a matter of great satisfaction. Working with the Pennsylvania independents, they managed to forge an agreement with the PRR and other railroads whose leaders eventually agreed to open rates to all and promised to end their shady dealings with South Improvement. The oil men were most exultant, but their joy was to be short-lived, for Rockefeller had already begun forming his Standard Oil organization and was busy trying another approach, which included frequently buying up opposing interests.

Related Topics:
South Improvement Company - 1872 - Charles Pratt and Company - Oil City - Standard Oil

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Rockefeller approached Charles Pratt with his plans of cooperation and consolidation. Pratt talked it over with Rogers, and they decided that the combination would benefit them. Rogers formulated terms, which guaranteed financial security and jobs for Pratt and himself. John D. Rockefeller quietly accepted the offer on Rogers' exact terms. Charles Pratt and Company (including Astral Oil) became one of the important formerly independent refiners to join Rockefeller's organization in 1874. Pratt's son, Charles Millard Pratt (1858-1913) became Secretary of Standard Oil. Henry H. Rogers became one of Rockefeller's key men.

Related Topics:
Charles Pratt and Company - 1874 - Henry H. Rogers

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