The Fuller Syndicate was a group of America

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

n financier

Financier

Financier is a term for a person who handles typically large sums of money, usually involving money lending, financing projects, large-scale investing, or large-scale money management. The term is French, and derives from finance or payment...

s that invested in railroads in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

The group was organized by investor Edward Laton Fuller, President of the International Salt Company, and led by George Jay Gould I

George Jay Gould I

George Jay Gould I was a financier and the son of Jay Gould. He was himself a railroad executive, leading both the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad and the Western Pacific Railroad ....

. Gould, the President of the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad

Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad

The Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad , often shortened to Rio Grande or D&RGW, formerly the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad, is a defunct U.S. railroad company. The railroad started as a narrow gauge line running south from Denver, Colorado in 1870; however, served mainly as a transcontinental...

 and the Missouri Pacific Railroad

Missouri Pacific Railroad

The Missouri Pacific Railroad , also known as the MoPac, was one of the first railroads in the United States west of the Mississippi River. MoPac was a Class I railroad growing from dozens of predecessors and mergers, including the St. Louis, Iron Mountain and Southern Railway , Texas and Pacific...

, had acquired control of several railroad companies in an attempt to build a transcontinental rail network c. 1900. (See Gould transcontinental system

Gould transcontinental system

The Gould transcontinental system was a system of railroads assembled by George Jay Gould I in the early 1900s. This was Gould's attempt to fulfill a goal of his late father, financier Jay Gould...

.) Other members of the syndicate included Myron T. Herrick

Myron T. Herrick

Myron Timothy Herrick was a Republican politician from Ohio. He served as the 42nd Governor of Ohio.-Biography:...

, former Governor

Governor (United States)

In the United States, the title governor refers to the chief executive of each state or insular territory, not directly subordinate to the federal authorities, but the political and ceremonial head of the state.-Role and powers:...

 of 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...

 and U.S. Ambassador

Ambassador

An ambassador is the highest ranking diplomat who represents a nation and is usually accredited to a foreign sovereign or government, or to an international organization....

 to France

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

; Winslow S. Pierce, General Counsel

General Counsel

A general counsel is the chief lawyer of a legal department, usually in a corporation or government department. The term is most used in the United States...

 of the Gould organization; Joseph Ramsey, Jr., president of the Wabash Railroad

Wabash Railroad

The Wabash Railroad was a Class I railroad that operated in the mid-central United States. It served a large area, including trackage in the states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Missouri and Ontario. Its primary connections included Chicago, Illinois, Kansas City, Missouri, Detroit,...

; and Alvin W. Krech, vice president of the Wheeling and Lake Erie Railroad.

The syndicate acquired control of the Western Maryland Railway

Western Maryland Railway

The Western Maryland Railway was an American Class I railroad which operated in Maryland, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania. It was primarily a coal hauling and freight railroad, with a small passenger train operation. The WM became part of the Chessie System in 1973 and ceased operating its lines...

 and the West Virginia Central and Pittsburg Railway

West Virginia Central and Pittsburg Railway

The West Virginia Central and Pittsburg Railway was a railroad in West Virginia and Maryland operating in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It had main lines radiating from Elkins, West Virginia in four principal directions: north to Cumberland, Maryland; west to Belington, WV; south to...

 in 1902, and Ramsey became president of these companies in 1903. They acquired the George's Creek and Cumberland Railroad in 1907. Following the Panic of 1907

Panic of 1907

The Panic of 1907, also known as the 1907 Bankers' Panic, was a financial crisis that occurred in the United States when the New York Stock Exchange fell almost 50% from its peak the previous year. Panic occurred, as this was during a time of economic recession, and there were numerous runs on...

, Gould and the syndicate became financially overextended in 1908 and the railroads entered receivership

Receivership

In law, receivership is the situation in which an institution or enterprise is being held by a receiver, a person "placed in the custodial responsibility for the property of others, including tangible and intangible assets and rights." The receivership remedy is an equitable remedy that emerged in...

.