155 years ago today, on January 10, 1870 (December 9, 1869 lunar calendar), Rockefeller founded Standard Oil. January 10, 1870 - Rockefeller founded Standard Oil. Who is the richest American in history? Forbes, the world-famous financial magazine, recently gave the answer. The total personal assets quoted in the Forbes list are all data at the peak of the list of rich people. To more accurately reflect their impact on the US economy, Forbes compared the US GDP at that time to convert everyone's personal assets into 2006 dollars. Therefore, if John Rockefeller were still alive today, his personal assets would be several times that of Gates. 1 John Davidson Rockefeller 1839 - $1.9373053 quadrillion 2 Andrew Carnegie 1835 - $1.9192812 quadrillion 3 Cornelius Vanderbilt 1794 - $1.8771684 quadrillion 4 John Jacob Aosta 1763 - $1.8481101 quadrillion 5 Stephen Gerald 1750 - $183.1956 trillion 6 Richard Mellon 1858 - $193.3823 trillion 7A.T. Stewart 1803 - $187.6808 trillion 8 Frederick Wellhauser 1834 - $191.4722 trillion 9 Marshall Field 1834 - $190.6601 trillion 10 Sam Walton 1918 - $199.2586 trillion 11 Jay Gould 1836 - $189.2582 trillion 12 Henry Ford 1863 - $194.7543 trillion 13 Bill Gates 1955-530 Billion Dollars 14 Andrew Mellon 1855- $193.7505 trillion 15 Warren Buffett 1930- $46 billion John D. Rockefeller (1839-1937) American industrialist, super-capitalist, and founder of the Mobil Oil Company (Standard Oil). Born in Richford, New York, his father, William Avery Rockefeller, was an unlicensed traveling doctor, and his mother, Eliza Davidson, was a devout Baptist. Due to his lack of responsibility, his father spent many years wandering outside as a drug dealer, which made life difficult for the family. His mother, Eliza, took on the heavy task of supporting the family and raised five children alone. As a child, he carefully fed the little turkeys he caught and selected them to sell at the market. At the age of 12, he saved $50 and lent the money to his neighbors to collect principal and interest. In 1855, due to his father's reasons, he could not continue to attend school, just two months before the July 16 high school graduation ceremony. John followed his father's advice and spent 40 yuan to attend a three-month course at Folsom College of Commerce in Cleveland. He then joined Hewitt-Tuttle as a double-entry bookkeeper. In 1858, with $800 in savings and $1,000 borrowed from his father at a profit, he partnered with Clark to form Clark-Rockefeller Company, which was mainly engaged in agricultural products. He did not participate in the Civil War, but made huge profits during the war. In 1862, the company's profit reached $17,000. In 1863, Andrews, a refining expert, persuaded Rockefeller to invest in the refinery, and Andrews-Clark Company was established. In 1865, due to differences in the opinions of the partners, the company was broken up and auctioned. Rockefeller successfully bid for $72,500 and changed the name to Rockefeller-Andrews Company. In 1866, the Rockefeller Company of New York was formed and was responsible for the export business. In 1867, Henry Morris Ferragler joined the company and the company was renamed Rockefeller-Andrews-Ferragler Company. In 1870, the internal merger of the company led to the establishment of the Standard Oil Company. Rockefeller was president and his assets were $1 million. Rockefeller said: "One day, all refining and barrel business will belong to Standard Oil." Less than two years later, he annexed more than 20 refineries in the area and controlled 90% of the state's refining industry, all major pipelines and all the oil trucks of the Pennsylvania Railroad. He took over the terminal facilities of a New Jersey railroad, forcing the oil capitalists of New York, Pittsburgh, and Philadelphia to fall at his feet. Then, in order to control the national oil industry, he manipulated the New York Central Railroad and the Erie Company to compete with the Pennsylvania Company in terms of rail freight rates. As a result, in eight years, Mobil Oil's refining capacity soared from 4% of the United States to 95%. Mobil Corporation controlled almost all of America's industry and several major railroad lines. In 1882, it became the first trust in American history. Later, the Rockefeller Consortium formed a financial core composed of four major banks, including Citibank and Chase-Manhattan Bank, and three insurance companies. These seven companies controlled 12% of the nation's banking assets and 26% of the nation's insurance industry assets. Through them, the Rockefeller family influenced the decision-making of industrial enterprises. The Rockefeller Consortium established foundations to grant grants to education (now the University of Chicago, Rockefeller University), culture, health care, and other social groups, expanding its influence and influence. The Rockefeller Consortium also supported close figures to hold important government positions, such as Dulles and Rusk, who were both chairpeople of the Rockefeller Foundation as Secretary of State; before Kissinger became Secretary of State, he served as a private foreign policy advisor to Nelson Rockefeller (grandson of the old Rockefeller). Members of this family are also active in the political arena, shaping domestic and foreign policy, such as Nelson Rockefeller, who served as US Vice President from 1974 to 1977.