Frank Rockefeller - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Franklin "Frank" Rockefeller (8 August 1845, Moravia, New York

Moravia (village), New York

Moravia is a village in Cayuga County, New York, United States. The population was 1,363 at the 2000 census.The Village of Moravia is in the south part of the Town of Moravia and is south of Auburn, New York....

- 15 April 1917, Cleveland, Ohio

Cleveland, Ohio

Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...

) was the youngest surviving son of William Avery Rockefeller

William Avery Rockefeller

William Avery Rockefeller, Sr. was the father of American oil tycoon and billionaire, John Davison Rockefeller and William Rockefeller , who both founded the Standard Oil company....

. His two older brothers were John Davison and William Rockefeller

William Rockefeller

William Avery Rockefeller, Jr. , American financier, was a co-founder with his older brother John D. Rockefeller of the prominent United States Rockefeller family. He was the son of William Avery Rockefeller, Sr. and Eliza Rockefeller.-Youth, education:Rockefeller was born in Richford, New York,...

of Standard Oil

Standard Oil

Standard Oil was a predominant American integrated oil producing, transporting, refining, and marketing company. Established in 1870 as a corporation in Ohio, it was the largest oil refiner in the world and operated as a major company trust and was one of the world's first and largest multinational...

fame.

Rockefeller's early years were spent in Richford, New York

Richford, New York

Richford is a town in Tioga County, New York, United States. The population was 1,170 at the 2000 census. The town is named after Ezekial Rich, an early settler and benefactor of the town....

. With his father, he removed to Cleveland, Ohio

Cleveland, Ohio

, which would be the home base of his business endeavors. Underage, he joined the 7th Ohio Volunteer Infantry in September of 1861 and participated as an infantryman in the battles of Winchester, Port Republic, Cedar Mountain, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, Lookout Mountain, and other battles including Sherman's march to Atlanta. He was wounded in the head by grape shot at Chancellorsville.(1) He held various jobs in Cleveland, eventually becoming involved in his brothers' Standard Oil Co. Frank became one of the principal promoters of the company, and later served as its Vice President. However Rockefeller fell out with his brothers, and left Standard Oil in 1898. The rift was caused by John D. not taking consideration of Frank's other interests in the Pioneer Oil Company, and quarrels with Frank's partner, James Corrigan, with whom he owned the Franklin Mine near Lake Superior. He moved with his family to a large ranch in Kansas

Kansas

Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...

, but he later returned to Ohio

Ohio

Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...

. The 8,000-acre ranch stood on a large tract of cheap land in Belvidere, Kansas

Belvidere, Kansas

Belvidere is an unincorporated community located along the Medicine Lodge River in Kiowa County, Kansas, United States.-History:The post office was established April 26, 1890, and discontinued November 23, 1996....

, west of Wichita

Wichita, Kansas

Wichita is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas.As of the 2010 census, the city population was 382,368. Located in south-central Kansas on the Arkansas River, Wichita is the county seat of Sedgwick County and the principal city of the Wichita metropolitan area...

(originally spotted by his father on his travels). The property was remote from railroads, and his cattle could graze on vast, unfenced plains. Eventually the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad brought in fresh settlers shrinking the free range for cattlemen. This ruined the ranch for breeding beef, and Frank tried futilely to sell the depreciated property.

Frank was not as suited to business as were his brothers, John and William. He invested around $500,000 in mining ventures, which proved unsound, and also invested $250,000 in unfruitful commercial paper. Frank found stability when he invested in the Buckeye Steel Castings Company of Columbus

Buckeye Steel Castings

Buckeye Steel Castings was a Columbus, Ohio steelmaker best known today for its longtime president, Samuel P. Bush, who was the grandfather of President George H.W. Bush and great-grandfather of President George W. Bush....

in 1892. He became President of the company in 1905, and served in that capacity until 1908, when the Presidency was assumed by Samuel Prescott Bush. Frank Rockefeller continued as Vice President of the company.

Frank Rockefeller refused to speak to his brothers, John and William until his death, despite William attempting reconciliation in the summer of 1916. Frank said later that year "There's not the slightest possibility of a reconciliation." Frank died the following year. His funeral was held on the 17th of April at the home of Mrs. Walter S. Bowler. The funeral was attended by his brothers, John and William, the former being described in the press as "looking tired and careworn."

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