Existing comment:
Jay Gould, 1836-1892:
Often depicted as the stereotypical "robber baron" of the Gilded Age, Jay Gould had a reputation for deceptive trading practices and aggressive business dealings. From his attempt to corner the gold market, leading to the 1869 financial panic known as Black Friday; to his hostile takeover of Western Union, giving him a monopoly of the nation's telegraph system; to his fierce machinations with various railroad lines, Gould earned many enemies. With his daring tactics, the self-made Gould helped revolutionize the nation's transportation and communications infrastructure by pushing tirelessly for its expansion. Unlike other industrialists, who used their fortunes to endow institutions that would outlive them, Gould left his estate entirely to his family. Commissioned to paint Gould's portrait four years after his death, the American artist Eastman Johnson, known for his genre scenes, based his likeness of photographs.
Eastman Johnson, 1896
Lent by the Grey Art Gallery |