George Peabody (February 18, 1795, South Denverz (Peabody since 1868) , Massachusetts November 4, 1869, London ) was an American , then a British businessman and banker, a major philanthropist, one of the richest people in the world of his time.
| George Peabody | |
|---|---|
| Date of Birth | |
| Place of Birth | |
| Date of death | |
| A place of death | |
| Citizenship | |
| Awards and prizes | US Congress Gold Medal |
Content
- 1 Biography
- 2 Bibliography
- 3 notes
- 4 References
Biography
George Peabody came from an English Yemeni Puritan family. His parents lived very poorly, George was one of eight children, and at age 11 he had to drop out of school and start working as an apprentice in a grocery store. Four years later, he became an assistant in matters with his brother, and another year later, with an uncle who had his own business in Georgetown, DC. After serving as a volunteer at Fort Warbarton, Maryland during the Anglo-American War of 1812, he partnered with his comrade-in-arms comrade Elisha Riggs at a haberdashery store in Georgetown: Riggs provided capital while Peabody managed trading. Thanks to Peabody's commercial talents, their business soon became very profitable. A small business importing clothes from Europe developed very successfully, and Peabody and Riggs soon moved to New York . George was able to provide not only himself personally, but also significantly help his family - it was he who educated the youngest children, and also bought the family house. After Riggs retired around 1830, Peabody became the head of one of the largest commercial firms in the then world. Around 1837, he established himself in the market of the British capital, London, as a merchant and money broker in Wonford Court (in the City of London), and by 1843 withdrew from American business.
By this time, Peabody became known for his large donations to various public institutions in the United States and Great Britain [3] . So, he allocated 50,000 pounds for educational purposes to his native Denverz, 200,000 pounds for the foundation and support of a research institute in Baltimore, various amounts to Harvard University , 700,000 pounds for trustees of the Peabody Education Foundation, whose goal was to spread education in the southern states of the USA, £ 500,000 for housing for the working class in London. He was highly granted Queen Victoria the title of baronet, but refused it. In 1866, he founded the Peabody Museum of Archeology and Ethnology at Harvard University and the Peabody Museum of Natural History at Yale (he donated $ 150,000 each to the other). ) In total, George Peabody donated over $ 8 million (about $ 158 million in 2017 equivalent).
In 1867, the US Congress awarded him a special expression of gratitude. Peabody died in London; his body was sent to America in a British warship , after his arrival he was buried in his hometown.
Bank (now a division of Deutsche Bank ), the financial conglomerate JPMorgan Chase , Morgan Stanley Bank Holding trace their roots to Peabody Bank [4] .
- This article (section) contains text taken (translated) from the eleventh edition of the Encyclopedia Britannica , which went into the public domain .
Bibliography
- Hanaford, Phebe Ann. The Life of George Peabody: Containing a Record of Those Princely Acts of Benevolence Which Entitle Him to the Esteem and Gratitude of All Friends of Education and the Destitute, Both in America, the Land of His Birth, and in England, the Place of His Death - BB Russell, 1870.
- Parker, Franklin. George Peabody: A Biography. - 2nd. - Nashville: Vanderbilt University Press, 1995 .-- ISBN 0-8265-1256-9 .
Notes
- ↑ 1 2 Encyclopædia Britannica
- ↑ 1 2 SNAC - 2010.
- ↑ The Philanthropy Hall of Fame, George Peabody
- ↑ Ron, Chernov. The House of Morgan: an American banking dynasty and the rise of modern finance. - New York: Atlantic Monthly Press, 1990. - ISBN 0871133385 .
Links
- Peabody, George // Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary : in 86 volumes (82 volumes and 4 additional). - SPb. , 1890-1907.