Cornelius Vanderbilt: photo, biography, quotes, sayings

2024 Author: Howard Calhoun | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:16

If you trace the history of all known large capitals, those that are now called "old money", then most often a person with dubious moral principles, but with great charisma, will stand at the origins of the first profits. And this applies to any of the modern princes, lords and senators. It is worth remembering Russian history, even not so distant, to understand: in some hundred years, the descendants of people who made a fortune in the 90s of the last century, if they don’t have titles, will surely become respected people on all continents. Unless, of course, capital will increase. Sometimes pampered descendants simply squander their fortune. This is what happened to the legacy of America's first richest man.

Everyone knows the name Cornelius Vanderbilt in the US, his operations are included in economic textbooks, coaches and teachers of personal growth strategies shake his name. But his history and the history of the family ends with his son. This is not what the billionaire dreamed of.

The Van der Bilt family

Cornelius was fourtha child in the family, his full name sounds like Cornelius Vanderbilt Jr., he received his name in honor of his father. The birthplace was a family farm, it happened in May 1794. Like all Americans, the Van der Bilts were émigrés, eager to get their lives back on track. No one dreamed of millions. It is good and hard to work in order to feed the family and earn money for a peaceful old age - perhaps this was the only financial motivation for the family. The surname Vanderbilt originally consisted of three components: Van der Bilt. Over time, the gaps were smoothed out, and the surname acquired continuity both in pronunciation and spelling.

The father of the future tycoon made money on a small farm by taking a job in the port. In his understanding, maritime, port life is a very heavy burden, in which there is only dirty work and small earnings. He inspired this thought to his fourth son, but the boy understood everything in his own way. In his dreams, sea life meant freedom, we alth and unlimited possibilities. With a strong temper since childhood, Cornelius Vanderbilt dreamed of leaving school at 11 in order to start his own business. And he even left its walls, but did not reach the port immediately, until the age of 16 he worked hard on a family farm. But even if he wanted to continue his studies, he would not succeed. He made his first business and scandal within the walls of an educational institution.

First experience of trading and blackmailing

Before going for the first million, Cornelius Vanderbilt showed a scandalous character, enterprise and toughness in solving problems. It happened even within the walls of an educational institution, where the young money-grubber comprehended reading and arithmetic.

The teachers at the local school were no different from the surrounding hard workers, except for the ability to write, read and count. The rest of the list of "virtues" was ordinary, and drunkenness occupied the first line. Having once noticed one of his teachers suffering from a hangover, Cornelius decided to alleviate the suffering and offered maize vodka of dubious origin as a treatment. Of course, it cost some money. The teacher could not resist and confessed to the “savior” his sin, especially since the drink he brought was cheaper than in all the surrounding saloons.

How long this symbiosis lasted, history is silent, but one day an unlucky teacher decided to escape from the tenacious paws of a student. It was then that the true nature of the business shark was revealed: Cornelius Vanderbilt said that he would tell the whole story to the headmaster and all the people around him, on whom the teacher's tenure depends. Tom had to give up immediately. The story eventually became clear, a huge scandal erupted, the teacher was expelled in disgrace, Cornelius left on his own.

Later he said: "If I spent time studying, I would not have had time to earn anything at all." Such an attitude towards school philosophically makes him related to all the nouveaux riches of the period of industrialization of America.

Business for 10 bucks

Vanderbilt Cornelius did not think long about how to make money and where to get start-up capital. He asked his parents for ten dollars to buysailboat. The amount for farmers is quite large, and the father could not decide on such an adventurous step, especially when it came to the port and everything connected with it. But the mother knew her son very well and preferred to satisfy his request, but with the condition that she first work on the farm. To get start-up capital, Cornelius had to work hard at the household: carry stones, dig up the ground, plant plants and so on - there is always a lot of work on the ground. Having fulfilled all the promises, he received from his mother her personal savings.

First craft

Without putting things aside and without doing reflection, the sixteen-year-old newly-minted sailor immediately went to buy a sailboat. The purchased ship was fragile, barely kept afloat, but the captain was determined to become the main carrier in the New York port area. The competition for the transportation of residents from one coast to another was huge, it was the only way to get from one part of the city to another. Many undertook a voyage several times a day, floating taxis fought for each passenger and for a place in the sun among themselves. Cornelius Vanderbilt was too young, and, according to experienced drivers, it was not difficult to deal with him.

During the first time, his ship tried to sink every night. Finding out what was the matter, Vanderbilt realized that the bottom was being punched in the boat. The anger was great, fists and swearing were used. Crazy pressure did its job - they began to fear him. A huge growth of under two meters, a tinned throat and a reserve helped to instill fear in their opponents.non-literary words and phrases that clearly proved their advantage in the dispute.

After the first incident, the competitive struggle did not subside, but the guy got a "registration permit". Many more times he would have to deal with issues in this way, but so the legend was forged under the name of Cornelius Vanderbilt. The biography of the tycoon is full of fights, eccentricities, cruelty and the ability to achieve goals.

Strategic dumping

In a short time, realizing that it was unprofitable to play by the general rules and it would not be possible to make money quickly, Cornelius Vanderbilt created his own rules. The ship, named "Speedboat", was rumored to be barely afloat and threatened to sink every minute, but nevertheless, passengers used its services. Three dollars per person - that's how much it cost to move to the other side of New York, and that's how much everyone took. Vanderbilt reduced the fare to one dollar, and passenger traffic increased exponentially. Those eager to cross the river began to fight for a place in his boat and were ready to sit on each other's laps, just to save money.

Twelve months later, Cornelius gave his mother ten dollars he had borrowed, and replenished the family cash desk by a whole thousand. The atmosphere he created among the carriers was not conducive to mutual understanding, the price had to be reduced by everyone, someone went bankrupt. Everyone wanted to get rid of the upstart. Fighting was a regular thing for Vanderbilt, vocabulary replenished with nautical terms and selective obscenities. Nevertheless, Cornelius Vanderbilt made moneyto expand your business.

First Flotilla

Having bought several ships, Vanderbilt picked up a team to match himself: everyone cursed, knew how to intimidate a competitor with a ferocious look, a strong word, and if necessary, with a fist. A small flotilla was actively working, godlessly dumping, he would have occupied the entire market. But in 1812-1815. there was a confrontation between England and America. K. Vanderbilt, risking his ships and his life, continued shipping, only now he was carrying equipment and provisions for the army.

Services to supply the army were not free, in addition, Cornelius set up a speculative scheme: he bought popular goods in one part of New York and sold them in another. He considered the profit from resales to be secondary, but the main goal was enrichment, and therefore this business was also well established. Gradually, he bought up all the floating means of carriers and almost became a monopolist. It took seven years. He became a master of coastal transportation, one of the best suppliers, earned the name Commander, saved up fifteen thousand dollars, but … the era of steamboats has come.

Captain

Cornelius Vanderbilt did not immediately appreciate the prospects of steamships, but realizing, he decided to act for sure. To be successful, he needed knowledge of new ships and their capabilities. As a man who cannot stand half-hearted solutions, he sells his entire fleet and is hired as a captain on the Thomas Gibbons steamship at a salary of one thousand dollars a year. At the same time, he married a modest young lady from a neighboring farm, Sophia Johnson.

Gibbons' steamboat, led by Captain Vanderbilt, was briskly flying from New York to New Jersey. Various cargoes and passengers were transported. After studying all the intricacies of shipping and big business over several years, Cornelius Vanderbilt convinced Gibbons to jointly build a new ship.

New era of business

Vanderbilt invested all his money in the new steamer and made the project himself. The new ship was named Bellona, and Vanderbilt Cornelius, as the leader of the enterprise, revived his own style of doing business - he began to desperately dump. The Belonna fare was only $1, which was four times less than all other carriers.

Competitors, who had the law on their side, sued him several times, bailiffs came for the cunning captain, but every time he eluded them. It was rumored that there are secret cabins on the ship, which only the Commander knows about, and therefore he hides from Themis with such ease. As he rose to the top of the business, he behaved like an invader and a wolf, tearing a competitor to shreds, in fact, as befits a man named Cornelius Vanderbilt.

He also founded another business: he bought a small hotel with a tavern on the river bank, where the respected public could live in anticipation of his steamer and just have a good time. His wife became the owner of the establishment. This continued until 1829. Thirty thousand dollars already accumulated in his pocket, but he was greedy, this K. Vanderbilt, the first million shimmered with invitingprospects are still far ahead. It was time for the big game to begin.

Rejection as a form of income

Cornelius Vanderbilt is a great entrepreneur, and this became clear during the organization of the first monopoly. Eager to start his own business without a partner, he sells his stake in New Jersey and moves to New York. The wife resisted the change of place of residence, but the head of the family convinced her in a very extravagant way: he placed his wife, who did not agree with his decision, for two months in an insane asylum.

Back in New York, he founds a shipping company and does a familiar job: carrying cargo and passengers, but the fare is only twelve cents.

The steamboat runs between New York and Pikssill, on this route, by the time Vanderbilt appeared, there was already a monopolist. And he was forced out of the market. Then he started a competition with the Hudson River Association, using heavy artillery - he did not charge any fare at all. But naive passengers were in for a heavy blow from free travel: the cost of food and drinks on the ship was inflated several times, which partially compensated Vanderbilt for dumping games. The Hudson Rivermen's Association gave in: it was the first time the company had asked a private carrier to shut down its operations. One hundred thousand dollars was offered as compensation, and five thousand dollars each year for ten years. And the Commander agreed!

First million

Vanderbilt transfers its activities and carries passengersto Boston, Long Island, and cities in Connecticut. Business flourishes, by the age of forty Cornelius had already accumulated a fortune of half a million dollars, but the thirst for money was not quenched. The family moved again, now to Long Island. Constantly dumping, the Commander survives competitors, receives compensation, and by 1846 his steamers are moored in all major cities of America. It was this year that K. Vanderbilt made his first million in the shipping business.

Panama Canal

In 1848, gold deposits were discovered in California, and another fever swept America. The easiest way was to get through Panama, the idea to dig a canal was not new, but Vanderbilt was the first to show energy to implement the idea. Alas, there were not enough technical means at that time, and Cornelius solved the issue of reducing travel time for the miners in his own way. Having agreed with the government of Nicaragua, he organized charter flights, thanks to which the seekers of quick profit were on the spot two days earlier than their colleagues who turned to other companies. Each year of passenger transit brought the Commander one million in net income.

The idea of laying the Panama Canal did not leave Vanderbilt. Having once again sold the entire business, Cornelius went in search of partners. This is how Panama's Accessory Transit Co. was founded.

Private life

On the eve of the sixtieth birthday of the head of the Vanderbilt family, in full force, they set off on their own yacht on a trip around Europe. The ship was called "Northern Star",its project and design was handled personally by Cornelius Vanderbilt. Photos of the yacht were published with pleasure in the then press. The taste of the millionaire was specific, and everything related to his personal possessions came out pompous, screaming about luxury. The Commander was very fond of shocking the public, with arrogance reminding others where he came from "into the people" and how many classes he had of education. He was often interviewed by the newspapers of the time, in one of which he stated: "All my life I have been crazy about money, inventing new ways to make them did not leave me time for education."

No less pompous was his house on Staten Island, built to suit all the desires of the tycoon. It was a fantastic mixture of different styles, had three floors, the furnishings were the richest in value and gaudy in decoration. The most provocative art object of the house was a statue signed "Cornelius Vanderbilt". A photo of the mansion was often published in the media of that time.

Railroad tycoon

In 1853, the Vanderbilt family went on a trip, it was the first full vacation of Cornelius. He left two of his cunning employees to manage the affairs of Accessory Transit Co, who, through fraud, seized a controlling stake. The anger of the Commander resulted in a telegram: “Gentlemen! You dare to deceive me. I won't sue you as the judging machine is very slow. I will destroy you. Sincerely, Cornelius Vanderbilt. As he said, so he did - profit from the war forher property returned in triple size. The lawsuit lasted several years, and Cornelius Vanderbilt won. The tycoon's remarks about Themis and former employees were widely quoted in the press.

One day, while traveling by rail, the Commander realized that land transportation was safer and cheaper, and the prospects for the development of this business promised huge profits. Vanderbilt once again sells his entire business and buys the most unprofitable railroad at that time - Harlem.

Buying short rail lines and stocks in other companies, he worked on mergers and acquisitions. By investing in development, he managed to make an extended railway route out of small branches. Thus the New York Central Railroad was formed. Acting in the usual way - by reducing the price of transportation, Cornelius Vanderbilt quickly becomes the owner of two long and profitable railroads - Harlem and New York. During this period, he is fiercely competitive, which only adds pepper to life. During a five-year rail epic, Vanderbilt entangled half of America with railroad tracks, the cost of tickets for his trains was always lower than the rest.

Heirs

The tycoon had 11 children, four of them were boys. By virtue of his upbringing, the father did not pay attention to the girls - they will not bear his last name after marriage, and the family business must be transferred to the son who will continue it. Of the sons, the most promising, even during the life of his fatherthe recognized financial genius was William Vanderbilt. He got almost the entire fortune of Cornelius: $ 90 million. The total legacy was America's largest fortune at the time, $102 million. The remaining 12 million were distributed to charities and other children.

No matter how his contemporaries and descendants treated him, his activities wittingly or unwittingly served the development of the country, even if the main goal was profit, but such was Cornelius Vanderbilt. Quotes from his interviews have been published in books, and many of them have become mantras for entrepreneurs. But the decisive factor in the activities of the magnate was the character and indefatigable ingenuity in "taking funds from the population."