New Millionaires
In 1865, America was a young country trying to repair damages from a war it had fought with itself. Badly damaged and unaware of what to do, the promise of our once thriving country was not looking good. The economy was bad as states struggled to replace crops they had destroyed and find jobs for the men who had fought in the war. Many were hurt and unable to work, and others were mentally scarred from fighting their own countrymen, sometimes their own family members. Things were not bad for everyone, though. There were those who knew things could only get better, those who had ideas of prosperity even in these hard times. Some of these men were even able to earn millions of dollars during a time of hardship and pain. Yes, even when the country's fate was undecided, we had new millionaires.John D. Rockefeller was born on July 8, 1839. His father, William Avery Rockefeller was a con man who would often travel to upstate New York and pretend to be a doctor, offering a cure for any kind of cancer for only $25. His father soon became a bigamist and began a new life as Doctor Levingston. Although John was brought up in an odd environment he was a very responsible child. As
a child, he kept what is now known as Ledger A, an account of all the money he had as a child. He would often make money by buying all the penny candies the wholesaler had, and then selling them to the other children for two cents. Though he was basically growing up without any direction from a father, it was obvious he was going to be an intelligent man. William Henry Gaston was born on October 25, 1840 in Prairie Bluff, Alabama. When he was a very small child his family moved to Mississippi and then in 1849 to Plentitude, Texas. While living there his father was a prominent farmer who served two terms on the state legislature. In 1861, Gaston joined a volunteer company being recruited by the Confederate Army. By October 1861 he had been elected Captain. He commanded his company through terrible battles in Virginia in 1862, but came down with typhoid fever. After recovering from it, he was sent to Texas on recruiting duty. As we all know, the United States was able to rebuild itself after the Civil War. Our economy was fixed and our country has become the most powerful in the world. Perhaps none of that would have happened if it hadn't been for these men and men like them that had faith in our country. They were able to show people that even in times of poverty you could rise up and make something from nothing, and that is part of the reason our country is so powerful now. Once he had established a residence in Dallas, Gaston entered a partnership with Aaron C. Camp and the two opened the Gaston and Camp Bank of Dallas. Gaston soon expanded into real estate, merchandising, and stock exchange. When the Dallas Herald was established in 1837 they claimed Gaston was most responsible for Dallas's transformation into a city. They also reported him to be the city's first millionaire. In 1886 he donated 80 acres of land for the State Fair of Texas grounds. Gaston died January 24, 1927 and was buried in Greenwood Cemetery in Dallas. In 1857, after many years practicing law in his hometown, Miller met and married Miss Mary Chess. They had a daughter, Eudora, in 1859, and some years later a s
Some common words found in the essay are:
, Levingston John, Rockefeller York, Standard Oil, County Texas, Civil War, Army October, Dallas Herald, York City, Avery Rockefeller, standard oil, john miller, doctor levingston, country powerful, moved mississippi, rockefeller name, alaska seal, purchasing agent, john rockefeller, albertson county,
Approximate Word count = 1434
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)
|
