Titan: The Life Of John D. Rockefeller, Sr. Now

Rockefeller entered the business world at 16 as an assistant bookkeeper in Cleveland. By 1870, he co-founded the , which would eventually control nearly 90% of the American oil market. Titan: The Life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr. - Amazon.com

Ron Chernow’s Titan: The Life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr. (1998) is a comprehensive biography that provides a balanced, psychologically insightful portrait of history's first billionaire. Drawing on unrestricted access to Rockefeller’s personal papers, Chernow explores the dual nature of a man who was simultaneously a "rapacious robber baron" and a "saintly philanthropist". Early Life and Origins Titan: The Life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr.

John D. Rockefeller was born in 1839 in Richford, New York, to a family of contrasting influences. His father, William "Bill" Avery Rockefeller, was a flamboyant and absentee "snake-oil" salesman, while his mother, Eliza Davison, was a pious, straitlaced Baptist who instilled in him the virtues of frugality and discipline. This upbringing created a unique psychological blend: Rockefeller developed his father’s "predatory" business instincts and his mother’s unwavering religious devotion. The Rise of Standard Oil Rockefeller entered the business world at 16 as