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Cornelius was born May 27th 1794 on Staten Island to his parents Phebe Hand and Cornelius Van Derbilt. -
In 1810 Cornelius borrowed $100 from his mother and purchased his first boat which he used to ferry people. -
During the war of 1812 Vanderbilt organized small fleets of boats with which he would supply government outposts around the city. -
In 1813 Cornelius married Sophia Johnson, whom was his cousin, they eventually had 13 children. -
In about 1818 Cornelius sold all his boats and went to work as a captain for Thomas Gibbons. -
Using the experience gained from working as a captain in 1829 he would again start up his own steamboat business. -
By 1846 his steamboat company was a success, he was a millionaire. -
With the gold rush of 1849 Vanderbilt’s steamboats were a success. He only later quit the route when his rivals, whom he almost ruined, agreed to pay him $40,000. As much as it may seem he was about the money Vanderbilt once said, “I don't care half so much about making money as I do about making my point, and coming out ahead.” -
In 1853 some of Cornelius’s rivals attempted to undermine his business, this is where his famous quote, “You have undertaken to cheat me. I won't sue you, for the law is too slow. I'll ruin you,” comes in. Sure enough approximately a year later he had put his rivals out of business. -
In the mid 1850’s Vanderbilt turned his attention to railroads and trains he bought majority of the stock. -
Him buying so much stock everntually led to him owning the line in 1863. -
Cornelius battled Wall Street Traders for financial control over the Erie Railroad. -
In 1873 Vanderbilt successfully was able to offer the first rail service from New York to Chicago. -
During the panic of 1873 Cornelius ordered the construction of the Grand Central Depot, offering jobs to thousands who had become unemployed due to the panic. -
In 1877, at the age of 82, Vanderbilt passed away. Over the years of his life he had amassed a wealth of approximately $100 million, more than what was in the U.S. treasury at the time. -
Rogers, Kara. “Cornelius Vanderbilt.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., https://www.britannica.com/biography/Cornelius-Vanderbilt-1794-1877. “Cornelius Vanderbilt.” YouTube, 27 Jan. 2016, https://youtu.be/FwH0ekDc01A. Accessed 16 Jan. 2023.