William Henry Vanderbilt
Eldest son of Cornelius Vanderbilt; railroad magnate and richest American.
Last updated
via Wikipedia: William Henry Vanderbilt · see source
He died on December 8, 1885, in Manhattan after suffering a stroke.[1] As the firstborn child of Commodore Cornelius Vanderbilt, he inherited a significant portion of his father's wealth.[1]
Life and work
A family trip to Europe on the steamship Vanderbilt in 1860 marked a turning point, after which they became close and Billy gained a greater business role.[2] In 1883, reporter John Dickinson Sherman asked Vanderbilt about running limited express trains.[3] Vanderbilt responded that they ran them because they had to, and the interview was published in the Chicago Daily News with his words modified.[3] He stated that incidentally railroads may benefit humanity, but the aim is to earn a dividend.[3]
Cornelius Vanderbilt frequently insulted his son, using terms like "blockhead" and "blatherskite" to describe him.[2] Billy desired to demonstrate his competence to his father but never challenged the Commodore directly.[2] Official records show that Vanderbilt enrolled at Columbia College in the class of 1841 but left without earning a degree.[4]
References
- Wikipedia, "William Henry Vanderbilt" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Wm. H. Vanderbilt Dead. He is Prostrated by Paralysis While Talking to Robert Jarrett, President of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, and Dies Without Speaking. His Vast Wealth Estimated at Two Hundred Millions.", Washin (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "William Henry Vanderbilt" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Stiles, T.J. (2010). "The First Tycoon: The Epic Life of Cornelius Vanderbilt. New York: Vintage Books. . (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "William Henry Vanderbilt" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Watson, "The Truth About that "Public Be Damned" Interview", Lake Benton News, p. 7 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "William Henry Vanderbilt" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Catalogue of Matriculants who Have Not Graduated, 1758-1897", Columbia University, 1897, p. 16 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article William Henry Vanderbilt (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
More in Business Tycoons & Entrepreneurs
Related in Business Tycoons & Entrepreneurs
Links follow this subject's own source article.
Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: William Henry Vanderbilt (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced