A self made man. Founder of Standard Oil and the richest man in the world.

A devout baptist who loved his wife and family dearly. He worked hard and created an empire of wealth.

His Father was constantly traveling and selling cancer cures while having another family in another city.

His mother taught him to work hard and to be a good puritan Christian. He was good at numbers and became a good book keeper then a partner in a commodities firm and then began dealing in Oil to produce kerosene.

He focused on creating refineries in Clevelend, bought out his partners and eventually created the corporation Standard Oil with an initial 10,000 shares.

The oil boom was in Pennsylvania but the prices had wild fluctuations. John had the long term in view and was able to secure lower shipping rates from the railroads by promising consistent shipments.

He was very involved with his church, delivering sermons, helping clean, attending the social events and teaching his children to be good Christians. A very devout man who was devoted to his wife and children.

As his wealth grew the attacks against him grew as well. That he cheated in business that he was unfair and monopolistic.

Corporations at the time were not allowed at a federal level but only state by state and weren’t allowed to own property in other states. They setup trustees and share holders so that according to the letter of the law it was obeyed.

When Rockefeller brought in a new firm he paid a fair price, he wanted to create a bigger and better company and wanted the best managers he could find. He paid well, often 10 to 20 percent more then the industry average. But he could not countenance organized labor or unions at all.

He would spend hit time in meetings listening, sometimes closing his eyes but would come up with a plan or idea that often seemed prescient. He liked to be able to trust people to get the job done.

He died in 1937 at the age of 98. The world changed while he was alive and he was a powerful force in its change. His legacy and charities are still a powerful force today.