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In
1930 the Chase National Bank acquired the Equitable Trust Company,
whose major stockholder was John Davison Rockefeller jr. Winthrop
Williams Aldrich, Rockefeller's brother-in-law and the son of
'Senator' Nelson Wilmarth Aldrich, became president and later
succeeded Wiggin as chairman of the board. His nephew David
Rockefeller also joined the bank, became president in 1961 and is
remembered as one of America's most influential bankers in the
1970s. By that time, Chase had merged with the Bank of the Manhattan
(founded 1799) and become a major player in US foreign finance.
As
if moved by their own energy America's leading banks merged again
and again until they gathered under their umbrella, many if not most
of the prestigious institutions, which were once distinctive parts
of the nation's financial community. After absorbing Equitable Trust
in 1930 and merging with the Manhattan Bank in 1955, Chase again
acquired a major bank in 1996, when it merged with Chemical Bank.
Founded in 1823 as the Chemical Manufacturing Company, the renamed
Chemical Bank operated under a New York state charter until 1865 and
again, as Chemical Bank & Trust Company, after 1929. It was long
dominated by the Goelet and [ Cornelius van Schaack ] Roosevelt
families. In 1954 it acquired the Corn Exchange Bank and Trust
Company, in 1959 the Trust Company of New York and in 1991 it merged
with Manufacturers Hanover, itself the result of several earlier
mergers. The Hanover Bank of New York was once controlled by another
of New York's banking dynasties : the Woodwards. In the year 2000,
the combined Chase and Chemical group merged with J. P. Morgan to
form J P Morgan Chase.
As
the National Banking Act of 1863 forbid national banks from owning
subsidiaries, New York with its large population and dominating
influence on the US financial markets unavoidably also became the
host of the nation's largest banks. For sure banks were created all
over the United States (in 1900 there were some 13'000) and some
even grew to become large institutions. But none could compete in
power and influence with the large New York firms mentioned above.
Although some bankers who operated in other places than New York
City also became rich, few rose in wealth and power to comparable
prominence as John Pierpont Morgan, James Stillman or George Fisher
Baker. Among them, the Mellons of Pittsburgh deserve special
attention, as they not only controlled two large banks, but also
figured among the country's five richest families.
Judge
Thomas Mellon started banking in Pittsburgh before Civil War. His
five sons joined the business and two of them, Andrew William Mellon
and Richard Beatty Mellon, built it into a multi-billion dollar
financial empire. Unlike Morgan and other bankers, the Mellons took
substantial equity positions in the companies they financed. Thus,
they ended with controlling blocks in Aluminum Company of America
and Gulf Oil, as well as substantial minorities in many other
corporations. Their Mellon National Bank and Union Trust Company
were two of the three largest banks in Pittsburgh. Andrew William
Mellon served as Secretary of the Treasury under President Coolidge,
during the Roaring Twenties.
Amadeo
Peter Giannini also deserves special attention, as his Bank of
America through outstanding growth became the US largest in the
1960's, surpassing even the huge First National City Bank and the
Chase Manhattan. This was achieved thanks to its special structure,
which allowed branches and by addressing the needs of the small
businesses and ordinary people. Through his Transamerica Holding
Company, A.P. Giannini also acquired a large block of National City
stock in the 1930s and became a menace to the Wall Street powers.
Bankers of the Gilded Age
>
Introduction and Index
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