Charles Ranlett Flint
| Charles Ranlett Flint | |
|---|---|
Flint in 1907
|
|
| Born | January 24, 1850 Thomaston, Maine, U.S. |
| Died | Script error: The function "death_date_and_age" does not exist. Washington, D.C., U.S. |
| Occupation | Financial capitalist |
| Spouse(s) |
|
Charles Ranlett Flint (January 24, 1850 – February 26, 1934) was an American businessman, best known as the founder of the Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company which later became IBM. For his financial dealings he earned the moniker "Father of Trusts".[1][2]
Contents
Early life and family
Flint was born on January 24, 1850 in Thomaston, Maine.[3] His father, Benjamin Chapman, had changed the family name to Flint after being adopted by an uncle on his mother's side. The family moved from Maine to New York where his father ran the family's mercantile firm Chapman & Flint, which had been founded in 1837.[4]
Business career
In 1868, Charles Flint graduated from the Polytechnic Institute in Brooklyn, and in 1871 entered the shipping business as a partner in Gilchrest, Flint & Co., and later W.R. Grace & Co. after a merger.[4]
From 1876 to 1879, he served as the Chilean consul at New York City. He also served as consul general to the United States for Nicaragua and Costa Rica.
In 1892, he consolidated several companies to form U.S. Rubber.[5] In 1899 he repeated the same with Adams Chewing Gum, Chiclets, Dentyne, and Beemans to form American Chicle. He was also responsible for the formation of American Woolen in 1899.
In 1911 he consolidated four companies to form the Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company.[6][7] In 1924, the company was re-christened as International Business Machines. Flint served on the board of directors of IBM until 1930 when he retired.[2][8]
He negotiated the Wright Brothers' first sales of airplanes overseas.[9]
Legacy
Charles Flint was an avid sportsman and loved swimming, hunting, fishing, sailing, and aviation. He helped found the Automobile Club of America.
Bibliography
- Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
References
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Stinson, John: The Charles Ranlett Flint Papers, 1872–1930, New York Public Library, November 1991.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
External links
- Lua error in Module:Internet_Archive at line 573: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).
- Charles Ranlett Flint at the IBM Archives
- Articles with hCards
- Articles with Internet Archive links
- 1850 births
- 1934 deaths
- American business pioneers
- American manufacturing businesspeople
- American technology company founders
- American Woolen Company
- Businesspeople from Maine
- IBM people
- Polytechnic Institute of New York University alumni
- People from Thomaston, Maine
