The First Tycoon: The Epic Life of Cornelius Vanderbilt (Hardcov... Cover Art

The First Tycoon: The Epic Life of Cornelius Vanderbilt (Hardcover)

By: T. J. Stiles (Author)


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Review

"[A] perceptive and fluently written biography....Stiles...writes with both the panache of a fine journalist and the analytical care of a seasoned scholar."

"[E]legance of style and fair-minded intent illuminate Stiles's latest, expectedly profound exploration of American culture in the raw."

"Vanderbilt was indeed THE FIRST TYCOON, as T.J. Stiles calls him in the title of his very long, very detailed and very absorbing biography. It is in fact much more than a biography. The book is filled with important, exhaustively researched and indeed fascinating details that would profit every student of American business and social history to read."

Publisher's note

From the award-winning author of "Jesse James: Last Rebel of the Civil War"--the first full, authoritative life of the complex and combative man whose genius and force of will gave birth to modern capitalism.
Born to humble circumstances on Staten Island in 1794, Cornelius Vanderbilt--the Commodore--amassed one of the greatest fortunes ever. "The First Tycoon "gives us a sweeping account of his rise from boatman to steamboat entrepreneur, from builder of the nation's largest fleet of steamships to lord of a railroad empire. We see him help ignite the Gold Rush; reshape Manhattan (he built the original Grand Central railroad station); lead the hunt for Confederate warships during the Civil War; rescue Wall Street from panics with his personal fortune--and pioneer the giant corporation as we know it today.
T. J. Stiles brings to life the unschooled fistfighter who came to command the respect of New York's social elite; the husband by turns abusive and loving; the father who struggled with contradictory feelings for a gambling-addicted son; the old man who constructed a dynasty that reigned over the new American aristocracy for decades to come. And we see clearly the first corporate tycoon who not only launched the Gilded Age but also created the financial mind-set that still defines our society and helped to move America into an age of modernity.
Meticulously researched, written with stunning insight and narrative richness, "The First Tycoon "is a monumental work of biography.

Annotation

In THE FIRST TYCOON, T. J. Stiles provides a comprehensive, well-researched account of the life of the "robber baron" who played a key role in shaping American capitalism. Stiles tells of Cornelius Vanderbilt's modest origins and how he rose to wealth, first by turning a single boat into a steamship empire, and later by founding the New York Central railroad and buying Western Union. He refutes erroneous stories and examines Vanderbilt's important political role as a Jacksonian Democrat. Stiles has based his research on contemporary sources, and he includes copious illustrations, maps, and endnotes.



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