JAY GOULD “the man of money”

Jay Gould Biography Jay Gould Jay Gould was born on May 27,1836 and died on December 2nd 1892.Jay Gould is best known as Americas top railroad developer and American financer. Born into poverty he was seeking for more than farming in life, therefore he became an investor in railroad and quickly became a master in financial dealings. He quickly learned the rule of Business, Gould is part of the small group of men that will change US History and take US to a level of greatness. He is also known as one of the kings of wall street.

How Did Jay Gould Acquire His Wealth & Treat His Workers? Jay Gould was known as a power on Wall Street because of his success in investing in railroad stocks. In 1867, he became director of the Erie Railroad. He bought large pieces of Union Pacific Railroad stock and made it his responsibility to control the railroad. He continued to purchase additional railroad lines for his own, making his railroad empire the largest in the United States by 1881; it covered 15% of the United State's railroad mileage. Jay Gould pushed his workers to excel at their job to be the best they can be in business world.

How Did Jay Gould Spend His Money? Jay Gould worked hard on managing companies and trying to integrate his railroad companies. In 1872, Jay Gould began buying large blocks of stock in Union Pacific Railroad Company. Gould conspired with others to control the gold market by buying all the gold available in New York City. However, he made a fortune off of his gold transactions. He became an investor on Wall Street and became masterful in financial dealings.

How he donated his money Jay Gould was clever enough to contribute his money to Opera house because the Other rising industrialists were already donating enough to Charity. So Gould tried out something new. On January 1869 Gould and Fisk brought the Pike ‘s theater and renamed it Grand opera house. The Grand Opera house became a place for amusement and the most valuable piece of theatrical property in the city for several years because there was no competitor on the west side

Why was he better than other “Robber Barron” Jay Gould is better than other Robber Barron because he succeeded in creating railroads and communication system that led to the expanding of the nation. Jay Gould was like a chess master who usually had hold his position well enough so that he is a move or two ahead of everyone. He knew that the nation had to be built and brought up to the top because after all the civil war brought a lot of Damages to the nations economy. In order to do this he treated his workers in such way that they would not grow lazy and their laziness would not prevent the nations economy from moving forward. For Gould the meaning of life can be expressed in simple formula wealth equals success.” “Purred like a cat and struck like a cobra” Which Made him one of the most successful industrialist of his era. Jay Gould

Conclusion-was he a Robber Barron or captain of Industry? Jay Gould was a captain of Industry even though history depicts him as a robber Barron. Gould did not have the best reputation,infact he at point was considered the most disliked person of his era, but during this time its not Honor that most men seek its money and profit that matters and Gould knew exactly how he can acquire wealth in a age of scandal and corruption. His harsh and Ruthless behavior prevented others from dominating him because if you are weak then someone will dominate you and take you over, Failure is not a option it’s a time where everything is about winning which led Gould into creating vast amount of wealth that benefited him and the country. When comparing Gould to other entrepreneurs of his era Gould may seem like the worst one of all. This is because he never received credit for his enormous contributions. Unlike other industrialist Gould was clever and skillful. he brought stocks that were low and made great fortune out of it. For example when he first bought the union Pacific railroad the stocks were quite low but he then added two main system and eventually the price of railroad went up.