13. William Henry Vanderbilt managed to both double the family fortune and yet give away millions to charitable foundations in less than a decade
As the eldest son of Cornelius Vanderbilt, William Henry Vanderbilt inherited around $100 million when the business tycoon died in 1877. When he himself died just nine years later, the size of this legacy had almost doubled. But William was not just an astute businessman and savvy investor. He was also an enthusiastic philanthropist too, following his father’s example and giving extensively to a number of causes.
William was born in New Hampshire in 1821. From an early age, his domineering father oversaw his schooling and business education. Despite the family wealth, he started out as a clerk in a New York banking house, though by the 1860s, he was President of the New York Central and Hudson River Railroad. A few years later, he took over from his father as head of several other, hugely-profitable railroads and shipping lines. When the old man died, he expanded this area of the family business. He was wildly successful, so much so that he became known as America’s railroad king.
Thanks largely to his creation of the New York Central System and his expansion west, William Henry doubled the family fortune in just a few years. But he also gave away large sums, too. As well as supporting his father’s initiatives, most notably Vanderbilt University, he also supported a number of Christian projects. For instance, he was a major funder of the YMCA and helped finance bible study departments across America. At the same time, as a keen fan of the arts, William Henry used his personal fortune to establish the Metropolitan Opera in New York City, still regarded as one of the world’s finest.