1778 Shares issued to John D. Rockefeller

Hired as an assistant bookkeeper with Hewitt and Tuttle, he said “All my future seemed to hinge on that day. &nbsp;What if I had not gotten the job?”. &nbsp;He celebrated Job Day every year considering the date more important than his birthday.

Hailing from relatively modest beginnings, John D. Rockefeller managed to become one of the wealthiest Americans, if not the wealthiest of all times. &nbsp;His rise started with his first partnership which began supplying food to the Union Army. &nbsp;He next got into oil which was starting to be refined into kerosene which was mainly used as a replacement for whale oil which was becoming too expensive for lighting. &nbsp;While there were multiple innovations such as selling all the oil byproducts, Rockefeller became extremely successful because of his ruthless business practices which included buying up unsuccessful refiners, &nbsp;and negotiating discounts and rebates on freight with the railroads. &nbsp;While it did bring the price of kerosene down,&nbsp;

With the formation of the Standard Oil Trust, the Corporation needed a suitable headquarters. &nbsp;A premiere location in Lower Manhattan on Broadway was purchased and the first 10 story building was designed. &nbsp;The building was expanded several times as the company grew larger.&nbsp;

The major expansion happened after World War 1. &nbsp;The site was expanded to encompass more of the block. &nbsp;The building is notable as one of the first skyscrapers erected after the adoption of the new zoning code. The distinctive tower, one of the southernmost spires in the Manhattan skyline is loosely based on the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus, and was intended as a symbol of corporate power and a prominent element in the iconographic program of the building.

The original Standard Oil Building was only ten stories tall, but in 1895, Kimball &amp; Thompson added six new skeleton frame floors and a north extension to the building, making it 280 feet tall. - The Skyscraper Museum

The building is crowned with an aluminum finial which is supposed to represent a mythical Greek lamp of knowledge. &nbsp;According to the architect, it was the second time aluminum was used on a building; the first was the Washington Monument.&nbsp;

Photo shows Standard Oil Building (later Socony Oil Building), 26 Broadway, at Beaver Street, NYC. Elevated view; street below in shadow, 14-bay stone building with square tower at upper left; before Carrere &amp; Hastings' enlargement. Welles Building at lower right.

Photo shows the Standard Oil Building (later Socony Oil Building), 26 Broadway, at Beaver Street, NYC. Elevated vertical view with square at bottom center; Bowling Green and triangle of cars at lower left.

Standard Oil Building

Residence on Millionaires Row

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John D. Rockefeller, Sr.

Utilizing a strategy of creating a more efficient operation by selling most of the refinery byproducts, eliminating &nbsp;competitors by either buying them out or selling kerosene more cheaply than they did, and negotiating rebates on freight, &nbsp;Standard Oil was able to capture 90% of the oil business. &nbsp;The ruthless of their operation did not go unnoticed in the press. &nbsp;

In order to navigate around multiple laws in various states, the Standard Oil Trust was formed which combined all the various companies and the 37 directors into one organization under 9 trustees. &nbsp;Not only was it extremely profitable but it inspired many other companies to adopt the Trust arrangement.&nbsp;

With the passage of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act, which forbade every contract, scheme, deal, or conspiracy to restrain trade, the government began multiple legal actions ending at the Supreme Court with Standard Oil of NJ vs the United States. &nbsp;The company was ordered to be broken up into 43 companies. &nbsp;

Standard Oil Company, Inc., operated as a dominant force in oil production, transportation, refining, and marketing. The company began in a crowded field of refineries in Cleveland who were taking advantage abundance of oil wells in Ohio and western Pennsylvania and the huge market developing for kerosene which was used as a cheap substitute for whale oil for lighting. &nbsp;

Standard Oil Company

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