John D. Rockefeller, was born on July 8, in the year 1839, in New York. He was a very hardworking and business oriented person, a move which consequently made him to earn money through raising turkeys, doing jobs for neighbors, and selling candy. John studied bookkeeping as soon as his family moved to Cleveland in Ohio (Rockefeller, 2015). In the year 1885, at the age of 16 years, a Cleveland Commission firm employed him as an office clerk. The firm bought, shipped and sold, coal, grain and other types of commodities. In the year 1859, Rockefeller together with his partner came together and started their own firm.

In the year 1863, Rockefeller, together with other partners, entered the new oil industry, through investing in one of the Cleveland refineries. In the year 1864, Rockefeller made the best decision in his life, through marrying Laura Celestia, whose father was a wealthy merchant, a politician and also an adversary who was active in the Underground Railroad (Rockefeller, 2015). In the year 1865, Rockefeller borrowed money from his friends and family, where he bought out some of his partners’ stakes in the oil company, thus making him to take total control of the refinery. After a few years, Rockefeller acquired new partners who helped in growing the oil industry. During that time, Kerosene, which was derived from petroleum had become one of the bestselling commodities in the country. In the year 1870, Rockefeller together with his younger brother formed an oil company in Ohio, which was commonly known as the Standard Oil Company. Rockefeller became the major shareholder in the company, hence becoming the company’s president.

Reference

Rockefeller, J. D. (2015). John D. Rockefeller on making money: Advice and words of wisdom on building and sharing wealth. New York: Skyhorse Publishing.