Charles Crocker (1822-1888): One of the “Big Four” founders of the Central Pacific Railroad. His fortune at his death was estimated at $40 million. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Kobe's 'Mr. [13], In 1852, Crocker was married to Mary Ann Deming (1827–1889). In 1861 Crocker joined fellow merchants Collis P. Huntington, Leland Stanford, and Mark Hopkins (known collectively as the “Big Four”) in a new railway company, the Central Pacific, which was appointed to build the western portion of the first American transcontinental railroad. Official", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Charles_Crocker&oldid=1001986999, 19th-century American railroad executives, Burials at Mountain View Cemetery (Oakland, California), Pages containing links to subscription-only content, Infobox person using certain parameters when dead, Articles with unsourced statements from February 2007, Wikipedia articles with SNAC-ID identifiers, Wikipedia articles with SUDOC identifiers, Wikipedia articles with WORLDCATID identifiers, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Like the other Central Pacific Associates, he made his money as a merchant during the mining boom and was persuaded by Collis Huntington that the railroad would be the next big investment. Crocker soon became independent, working on several farms, a sawmill, and at an iron forge. Background Crocker, Charles was born in 1939. Robber Barons: Franklin B. Gowen - Railroad: Franklin Gowen (1836 - 1889) was the president of the Philadelphia & Reading Railroad and the Philadelphia and Reading Coal and Iron Company. Charles Crocker was born in 1822 in Troy, N.Y., quit school at the age of 12, then made his way to Indiana where he worked in a sawmill and later built a smelter business. Mary Ann Deming was born in 1827, the daughter of a saw-mill owner in Mishawaka, Marshall County, Indiana. Charles E. Crocker, 89, a longtime Jacksonville resident, died Sunday, Nov. 8, 2009, at St. Luke's Hospital in Chesterfield, Mo. Crocker also engaged in real estate, industrial properties, and banking (his Crocker First National Bank of San Francisco, chartered in 1870, was an ancestor of the modern Crocker National Bank, which merged with Wells Fargo & Company in 1986). Master of Business Administration, University California, Berkeley. After completing the Central Pacific from California to Utah in 1869, they started the Southern Pacific as a branch line into southern California. History. Eliza was born in 1798, in Cornwall, Litchfield, Connecticut, United States. Charles Crocker who was born on September 16 1822 in Troy, New York was a major contributor to the construction of the Transcontinental Railroad. Though the disaster rendered the infamous dispute and its resolution moot, Crocker's family donated the entire block of land to charity, in support of the Episcopal Diocese of California. Charles Crocker (1822–1885) came to California by wagon on the overland route. Corrections? This page was last edited on 22 January 2021, at 07:52. Charles Crocker was the first Central Pacific Associate to ride the completed transcontinental road, tracing his former wagon route back east. Pilot Man' is now blamed for his death. A silver spike was driven here in 1881 to commemorate the meeting of the Southern Pacific with the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe railroads, completing the construction of the second transcontinental railroad in the United States. The line that he started building on Feb. 22, 1863, met the Union Pacific line, running from the east, at Promontory Point, Utah, on May 10, 1869. When he was fourteen, his family moved West to Iowa, where young Crocker struck … In 1855 he was elected to the city council and, in 1860, to the state legislature, as a Republican. Crocker was briefly the controlling shareholder of Wells Fargo in 1869 and served as president. It built the westernmost portion of the second transcontinental railroad. Together, they had six children, four of whom survived to adulthood:[15]. [14] Mary was the daughter of John Jay Deming and Emily (née Reed) Deming. FIANCEE NOW IN EUROPE Mr. Whitehouse Is Chief of the New Eastern Division, Department of State", "Thrown from His Wagon. Deming, New Mexico, is named after his wife, Mary Ann Deming Crocker. Education Bachelor of Science, Stanford University. [29], Through his son William, he was the grandfather of Charles Crocker, William Willard Crocker, Helen Crocker (Russell) and Ethel Mary Crocker (de Limur). White as a 4-masted barkentine. [citation needed] The San Francisco-based bank no longer exists, as it was acquired by Wells Fargo in 1986. A successful Sacramento businessman, Crocker moved to California from his native Indiana in 1849. Legal challenges to the fence were unavailing. When he was fifteen his family moved to Indiana where they owned a farm. Charles Crocker (1822-1888), American railroad executive, founder of Central Pacific Railroad Frankie "Hollywood" Crocker (1937-2000), legendary New York radio DJ inducted into the New York State Broadcasters Association Hall of Fame in 2005 Crocker was forced to quit school at an early age to help support his family. In 1861, after hearing an intriguing presentation by Theodore Judah, he was one of the four principal investors, along with Mark Hopkins, Collis Huntington and Leland Stanford (also known as The Big Four), who formed the Central Pacific Railroad, which constructed the western portion of the First Transcontinental Railroad in North America. Crocker's name dots the Bay Area landscape less prominently than it did before Wells Fargo gobbled up his eponymous bank. Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. [25][26] Crocker's estate has been valued at between $300 million and $400 million at the time of his death in 1888. Soon after moving in, Hutchinson sold the house to Millionaire Charles B. Alexander, who bought it as a present for his wife Harriet Crocker. The field has been defined by the Engineers Council for Professional Development, in the United States, as the creative application of “scientific principles to design or develop…. [24][2] He was buried in a mausoleum located on "Millionaire's Row" at Mountain View Cemetery in Oakland, California. Robber Barons: Charles Crocker - Railroad: Charles Crocker (1822 – 1888) was a railroad industrialist who founded the Central Pacific Railroad and a one time president of Wells Fargo. Congressman Francis Burton Harrison; Charles Templeton Crocker (1884–1948); and Jennie Adeline Crocker (1887–1974). She measured 762 tons gross, 204 feet in length, and 40 feet in breadth. Charles and Mary Ann (Deming) Crocker are buried at a mausoleum at Millionaire's Row, Mountain View Cemetery, Oakland, Alameda County, California. It reached the Arizona border in 1877, and in 1883 it was joined to other railroads built… In 1871 he became president of the Southern Pacific Railroad of California and, in 1884, oversaw the new incorporation of Southern Pacific, which absorbed the Central Pacific. [22], Nob Hill and the 40 foot tall spite fence, Married to Clara Ellen Swinerton (1845–1910), At least one son, Charles Henry (1865–1935). Charles Crocker (September 16, 1822 – August 14, 1888) was an American railroad executive who was one of the founders of the Central Pacific Railroad, which constructed the westernmost portion of the first transcontinental railroad, and took control with partners of the Southern Pacific Railroad. Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. This project cost over $2 million. His position with the company was that of construction supervisor and president of Charles Crocker & Co., a Central Pacific subsidiary founded expressly for the purpose of building the railroad. ; Millionaire Crocker Seriously Hurt While Driving", "For May Day, Remembering Vincent St. John", "Crocker, Noted Scientist, Dies In Home At SF", "Mary Whitehouse, 90, Leader of Civic Groups", "Charles S. Whitehouse, 79, Diplomat and C.I.A. Alexander was a lawyer and director for numerous companies including The Equitable Life Insurance Company, Middletown & Unionville Railroad, The Hocking Valley Railroad and several banks. Nineteenth Century businessman and railroad baron. When Nicholas Yung wouldn't sell his land to railroad baron Charles Crocker, Crocker built a 40-foot fence around his house and blotted out the sun.