John D. Rockefeller

 Yazzie Stein

IHSS

Mr.Roddy

April 19, 2022


John D. Rockefeller: Upbringing (1839-1937)


    I thought that reading about John D. Rockefeller was interesting because he grew up in poverty and became the one of the world's wealthiest men, founding the Standard Oil Company in 1870. He seemed to work his way up to this position rather than inherit it, which stood out to me. Seemingly always a businessman at heart, John sold candy, raised turkeys, and did neighbors' jobs to earn money to help support his family. At 16, he worked as a clerk at a Cleveland commissions company. 

Motivated post-college, Rockefeller collaborated with a partner to establish their own commission firm. Later, Rockefeller and many partners involved themselves initially with the oil industry by investing in a Cleveland Ohio refinery in 1863.

I found it interestingly controversial how many critics accused Rockefeller of unethical business strategies, such as predatory pricing and attempting to gain a monopoly in the business by conspiring with railroads to eliminate his opponents, whether these were baseless or not. I found that I was drawn to the fact that he donated over $500 million to multiple philanthropic organizations, community nonprofits, etc. Based on this, he seems like an ethical person, but people are complicated and layered and motivated by outside factors so one can never really know. The article even states that "One of the charitable organizations established by John D. Rockefeller, Sr. was the Rockefeller Sanitary Commission, founded in 1909. Less than 20 years after its creation, the Commission had achieved its primary goals, the successful eradication of hookworm disease across the southern United States."

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