Top Ten Rich PeopleThe top ten rich people in American history Wealth is something that most everyone wants, yet very few people actually attain. Some people are fortunate enough to earn a six figure income, and others are blessed with a million dollar income. While these may be exciting to you and me, they are nothing but pocket change to the richest of the rich. Being wealthy is no longer a millionaire’s game, but that played by super wealthy billionaires. So just how much money do the top earners have? Well let’s take a look at the top ten rich people in American history. These top ten rich people lived in various times throughout the past 3 centuries, and a couple of them are still making money today. #1-John D. Rockefeller-$305.3 Billion Rockefeller (1839-1937) revolutionized the oil refinery techniques used. His innovation and ruthless competitive practices gave him total control over the oil industry. #2-Andrew Carnegie-$281.2 Billion Carnegie (1835-1919) was a textile mill bobbin boy who later got into the iron and steel business. He was not only a successful businessman but also a renowned philanthropist. #3-Cornelius Vanderbilt-$168.4 Billion Starting out as a manufacturer of steam powered ferry boats, Vanderbilt (1794-1877) later became a major investor in the railroads. He controlled one of the most lucrative railways routes in the nation, from New York to Chicago. #4-Bill Gates-$121.6 Billion Bill Gates was a natural computer whiz who dropped out of Harvard to start his own software company. By the 1980’s he completed dominated the software industry. #5-John Jacob Astor-$110.1 Billion Astor (1763-1848) was a German immigrant who made a fortune trading furs and Chinese imports. He later invested heavily in the Manhattan real estate market. #6-Stephen Girard-$95.6 Billion Girard (1750-1831) was out to sea by the time he was 13. After staying in Philadelphia he became a shipping tycoon and opened the Girard Bank. #7-Richard B Mellon-$82.3 Billion Born into a banking family, Mellon (1858-1933) ran the family bank, but not until he had achieved other noteworthy successes. He was a successful business owner, investor, and philanthropist. -#8-A. T. Stewart-$80.8 Billion Stewart (1803-1876) was an Irish immigrant who had a genius for retailing. With a $100 gift from a relative he built a retail emporium in New York. He later opened a wholesale business and textile factories. #9-Frederick Weyerhaeuser-$72.2 Billion As a German immigrant, Frederick (1834-1914) made a rapid transformation from a minimum wage earner to a huge success in the timber business. He bought millions of acres of undervalued forestland which proved to be very profitable. #10-Marshall Field-$60.1 Billion Field (1834-1906) was the founder of the ever popular Marshall Field retail stores. Most of his fortune, however, came from a wholesale dry good business that he started in the 1870’s. #11-Sam Walton-$58.6 Billion Sam Walton (1918-1992) opened his first Wal-Mart store in Rogers Arkansas. It was an instant success because of his relentless cost cutting and his friendly demeanor. #12-Jay Gould-$58.2 Billion Gould (1836-1892) earned a ton of money in the stock market. However, unlike today’s investors, he used tactics to manipulate the market, which at that time was not heavily regulated. #13-Henry Ford-$54.3 Billion Ford (1863-1947) revolutionized the car industry. He created the successful model T, the first 8 cylinder engine, and he also created the assembly line system for car manufacturing. #14-Andrew W Mellon-$50.5 Billion Andrew Mellon (1855-1937) was the son of a Pittsburgh banker and was a born financier. He has many accomplishments under his belt including serving as the secretary of the treasury under three different presidents. He also was a major philanthropist and cofounded the prestigious Mellon Foundation with his brother Richard. #15-Warren Buffet-$46 Billion Buffet is currently the second richest American alive today. As a child he was a natural math whiz, and combining that with his obsession for business Buffet turned himself into an investing phenom. He gave away most of his wealth, $35 Billion, to charity, much of which went to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. And that concludes the top ten rich people in American history. return from Top Ten Rich People to getting rich
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