John B. Yale

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Telegraph Co. had office on the left, next to the Western Union Telegraph Building

John Brooks Yale (1845 – 1904) was an American

Yale Lock Company. He was an early founder and secretary-treasurer of the Bankers and Merchants Telegraph Company, competing against financier Jay Gould, the robber baron of the Western Union. They operated over 400 offices, and controlled about 100,000 miles of wiring across the country, including lines of the Chicago Board of Trade and the New York Stock Exchange
.

Yale's company would be bankrupted by

Yale lock inventor Linus Yale Jr., and the son-in-law of millionaire Hugh McCulloch, the last U.S. Treasury Secretary of Abraham Lincoln
.

Early life

The Empire Building, New York seat of the Illinois Steel Company, where Yale was their New York representative

John Brooks Yale was born on October 26, 1845, in

abolitionist teacher, cousin of Bishop Phillips Brooks.[4][5][6]

Yale was educated at

US Steel.[2][7][1]

He was also assistant sales agent to his brother,

Yale Lock Company from 1867 to 1873, founded by his grandfather Linus Yale Sr., and father Linus Yale Jr..[9][10][11] Under the presidency of Henry R. Towne, Yale and Towne would build and scale the company into a global conglomerate, with thousands of employees.[12]

In 1871, Yale is named of the trustees of the

telegraph industry, mainly through the Bankers and Merchants Telegraph Company, by founding number of branches, and becoming board director, secretary, treasurer and shareholder.[16]

Bankers and Merchants Telegraph Co.

Broad Street, Manhattan, where the Bankers and Merchants Co. had their first office, including one inside the New York Stock Exchange
American Bank Note Co.
Broadway
, connecting the buildings, 1890
American Rapid Telegraph Co. building at 41-43 Wall Street, previous U.S. National Bank, between the two tall buildings toward the right

The Bankers and Merchants

Telegraph Co. was incorporated in April 1881, with a capital stock of $1,000,000, and started operating 12 wires from Boston to Washington, D.C. through New York City, Philadelphia and Baltimore, with additional charters for New Jersey and Pennsylvania.[17][18] Their line between New York and Washington would make them very successful for a time, and have them acquire and control the American Rapid Telegraph Company, who had lines between New York and Boston, Hartford, New Haven, Providence, Buffalo, as well as in the oil region in Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh, New Castle and Cleveland.[18]

They kept both companies as separated entities, but under the same president and general manager, with Yale being the companies's treasurer and board director.

businessmen to communicate between major cities, with most shareholders coming from New York and Philadelphia.[19] While the business was mostly owned and operated by bankers and merchants, it could also be used by the public.[19]

They initially had their office at 26

railroads.[19] In 1882, they received the exclusive rights to build, maintain, repair and operate wire lines for the south of Chicago, using the underground conduits of the Chicago Sectional Electric Underground Co. of president Elisha Gray.[20][16] The company used wires from the Kerite Company in their iron pipes.[16] They later sold their rights to the Postal Telegraph Company.[16] They then acquired the Southern Telegraph Co., adding lines between Washington, New Orleans and Atlanta.[21][16]

In 1883, Yale founded with his brother,

telegraph lines from Cleveland to Cincinnati, Toledo and others places in Ohio.[23] In the same year, Yale founded with four others the Bankers and Merchants Telegraph Co. of Detroit, building lines through Michigan, Columbus, Indianapolis, Chicago, Detroit, and other places.[22] He then cofounded the Bankers and Merchants Telegraph Co. of Chicago, operating telegraph and telephone lines in Illinois and other places.[24]

Stamp of the American Rapid Telegraph Co., used for the payment on delivery

In 1884, Yale joined the retail business Nave & McCord Mercantile Company of millionaire Nave McCord.[25][26] He then became board director, secretary and treasurer of the Bankers and Merchants Telegraph Company, along with vice president John Rogers Hegeman, who was also president of MetLife Co., seated at the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company Tower in Manhattan.[27][28][29][30][31] They added various lines connecting to Detroit, Indianapolis, Cincinnati and St. Louis, and in 1884, they acquired and took control of the telegraph lines of the Chicago Board of Trade, operating in the landmarked Chicago Board of Trade Building.[16]

Commercial Telegram Co.

stock quotations

In February 1884, they acquired the Lehigh Telegraph line, adding 300 miles and 90 new offices in

Eastern Pennsylvania. They acquired control of the Commercial Telegram Company, and established branches for the stock quotations of the Boston Stock Exchange and Philadelphia Stock Exchange.[32][19][33][16] Yale had been elected a board director of the Commercial Telegraph Co. in January, along with the president of Bankers and Merchants Co., A. W. Dimock, and the president of the Chicago Board of Trade Telegraph Co., Charles W. Brega.[34] Another board director with Yale was inventor Stephen D. Field, nephew of pioneer Cyrus W. Field, and founder of the first electric railroad operated as a business.[34][35][36] Field also challenged Thomas Edison's monopoly on stock exchange quotations.[33]

In April 1884, Yale was elected Secretary of the Bankers and Merchants Telegraph Co., and the company had now 6,697 miles of poles, and 46,347 miles of wire, connecting New York all the way to the

Gold and Stock Telegraph Co. of inventor Edward A. Calahan, on the New York Stock Exchange.[41][36]

The stock ticker was a

light bulb.[42][19][41] In 1890, the Commercial Co. was acquired by the New York Stock Exchange, which they renamed the New York Quotation Company, and used it to supply exclusive ticker tape services to its official members.[43] The Bankers and Merchants Co. became quoted on the New York Stock Exchange, and in June 1884, the Panic of 1884 on Wall Street caused their stock price to fall from 119 to 45, bringing financial difficulties.[44][45][19][16]

The company then issued, with the

Western Union Telegraph Company.[16][18][46] The case would involve Attorney General of Illinois, Col. Robert G. Ingersoll, and the company would be reorganized.[18] The reorganization caught the attention of the Western Union Telegraph Co. of robber baron Jay Gould, who would see the Bankers and Merchants Trust as potential rivals, scheming for the company's downfall, which was also part of the lawsuit with Col. Ingersoll and Senator Roscoe Conkling.[47][18][16]

Yale's company was defended by lawyer

Broadway, Manhattan, at the past headquarters of the Postal Telegraph Company next to the Western Union Telegraph Building, while the company they acquired, the American Rapid Telegraph Co., was seated at the United States Bank Building, at 41-43 Wall Street, next to the Bank of Manhattan Trust Building.[48][49][18][16]

Bankers and Merchants vs Western Union

Broadway, Manhattan, Bankers and Merchants Co. was on the left, white stone building with 189 sign, before the Western Union Telegraph Building

During the night of the 10th of July, 1885, General Eckert of the

telegraph operators out of employment, having lost many of their customers.[16][18] The Western Union was also cutting the company's lines in various parts of the country at the same time.[16]

This unlawful act broke the communication lines of their everyday customers between

railroads, which allowed them to reach all the minor cities.[18]

The Bankers and Merchants Co. had 2 million dollars invested in the American Rapid Company, and the company's

telegraph business.[16]

The

bondholder of the American Rapid Co., the Bankers and Merchants Co. then had to restore the lines to the latter's company, and were effectually cut off from any line connection west of Cleveland, and from most of the oil cities.[16]

The

GDP.[55][18] In 1885, the bankrupt Bankers and Merchants Telegraph Company would be acquired by one of the four Bonanza Kings, being the industrialist John William Mackay, and be combined with the Postal Telegraph Company to form the United Lines of Telegraph.[56][57][16] By combining the Baltimore and Ohio Telegraph Company, Bankers and Merchants Co. and the Postal Telegraph and Cable companies, Mackay now controlled over 16,000 miles of pole lines, and 120,000 miles of wire lines.[58] Mackay would die in 1902 with a fortune of about 50 to 100 million dollars, and his son would build the Harbor Hill estate on Long Island.[59]

Later career

Capt. Edmund Zalinski's dynamite gun, used and sold by Yale's company, the Pneumatic Dynamite Gun Co.

The company owed Yale about $300,000 in 1885 as one of its trustees and shareholders, or about 650 million dollars in 2024 money in relation to GDP.[55][16] The amount owed would raise to over $600,000 in 1900.[60] The Bankers and Merchant's initial capital stock in 1881 was at 3 million, the American Rapid at 4, and the Postal Telegraph Co. at 21.[57] Yale's company had initially 4,000 miles of lines and 23,200 miles of wires, with debt of about 7,5 million.[57] By 1884, they had 5,000 miles of poles, 64,000 miles of wires, 400 offices, an interest in a stock exchange, the control of a telephone company, and had plans for ocean cable lines.[16] The company eventually controlled about 10,000 miles of poles, and 100,000 miles of wire.[16] The chairman of the company was Congressman Dwight Townsend, while Western Union's president was Norvin Green, serving under controlling shareholder Jay Gould, the robber baron of Lyndhurst Castle.[18][16]

In 1890, Yale became a board director and trustee of the Pneumatic Dynamite Gun Company under president Spencer D.

J.P. Morgan, with the company seated at the Empire Building, and manufacturing war weapons for the British.[61][62][63] The 50 feet Dynamite gun was built at the West Point Foundry in Cold Spring, and was used as an artillery weapon using air to propel projectiles made of dynamite.[63] The dynamite explosive charge was at 500 pounds with a maximum range of 5,500 feet.[63] Yale organized a private demonstration of the war weapon, where the dynamite flew 2 miles, with about 100 attendees, including Col. Rupert Ryan of the Royal Artillery, representing the English War Office, Maj. Gen. Wallace F. Randolph, Chief of Artillery, Commander Seaton Schroeder, family member of Benjamin Franklin, Maj. Gen. Daniel Butterfield, and others.[64][65][63]

They had 1.1 million dollars in capital stock and obtained contracts from the US government to equip the

Poughkeepsie, Aneram, Hartford, Boston, Springfield, Maine, and other places.[67] He would also become its vice president and one its board directors, and the firm would be seated at 40 Wall Street, with about 175 miles in total length.[68][69]

Personal life

Last moments of Abraham Lincoln, April 15, 1865, John B. Yale's father-in-law, Hugh McCulloch, is at the bed's end on the left, with Mary T. Lincoln, Capt. Robert T. Lincoln, Salmon P. Chase and surgeon Charles Leale

Yale married to Marie Louise McCulloch, daughter of millionaire banker

Tecumseh Sherman, Secretary of State Frederick T. Frelinghuysen, Navy Secretary William E. Chandler, Attorney General Robert G. Ingersoll, Gen. Philip Sheridan, Russian Minister Karl von Struve, and other senators, generals and ministers.[70]

Austrian-Hungarian legation.[76]

Yale's brother-in-law, banker Charles McCulloch, became president of the Hamilton National bank, and lived at the McColloch mansion in Fort Wayne.[77][78] Yale's mother-in-law died at his home in Sparkill, New York, and he himself died at the same place on August 28, 1904, at 58 years old.[1][7][2][79][80] Mrs. McCulloch was a grandniece of Naphtali Daggett, President of Yale College, and a family member of Gen. Moores, Gen. Melanchton Woolsey, Congressman Jonas Platt, and Alida Livingston, of the Schuyler and Livingston families.[81][82]

Yale had one daughter named Mattiray Yale, and the family lived on

Roosevelts, who were officers of the club, namely Theodore Roosevelt as a vice-president, and his uncle James A. Roosevelt as board director.[84][85]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e The Sun, 30 Aug 1904, Tue ·Page 3
  2. ^ a b c Boston Evening Transcript, 30 Aug 1904, Tue ·Page 5
  3. ^ a b c Rodney Horace Yale (1908). "Yale genealogy and history of Wales. The British kings and princes. Life of Owen Glyndwr. Biographies of Governor Elihu Yale". Archive.org. Milburn and Scott company. pp. 442–554.
  4. ^ Transcript-Telegram, 26 Mar 1900, Mon ·Page 2
  5. ISBN 978-0-387-89668-7
    . Retrieved November 30, 2022.
  6. ^ I Have Pretty Work : Madeline Yale Wynne and the American Craft Revival, Early American Culture, University of Delaware, Jessica H. Beels, 1995, p.13
  7. ^ a b c "American Machinist". September 8, 1904. Retrieved March 3, 2024.
  8. ^ Directory to the Iron and Steel Works of the United States, American Iron and Steel Association, University of Michigan, 1892, p. 172
  9. ^ Linus Yale Papers (MS 872). Manuscripts and Archives, Yale University Library, Accessed March 03, 2024, See more section.
  10. ^ The Yale Lock Picked, October 16, 1869, Vol. 9, No. 225, p. 484
  11. ^ Hartford Courant, 11 Dec 1869, Sat ·Page 4
  12. ISBN 9780816045594
    .
  13. ^ White & Kembles Atlas and Digest of Railroad Mortgages, Railsandtrails.com, p. 3, Accessed March 2, 2024
  14. ^ Railroad Age Gazette, Volume 6, August, 1874, p. 296
  15. ^ Railroad Age Gazette, Volume 6, August 1, 1874, p. 297
  16. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa The Electrician and Electrical Engineer, Volumes 3 to 4, August, 1885, p. 38-68-108-113-119-135-149-227-228-281-314-315-316-317-330-375-376
  17. ^ Detroit Free Press, 17 Apr 1881, Sun ·Page 2
  18. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p John G. Farnsworth, Receiver of the Bankers' and Merchants' Telegraph Co., Robert Green Ingersoll, Opening Speech to the Jury, New York, May 21, 1886, p. 1-40
  19. ^ a b c d e f g The Operator Book, Supplement to the Operator and Electrical World, Vol. 13, W. J. Johnston, New York, January 13, 1883, p. 50-59-227-369-689
  20. ^ History of Chicago; From the fire of 1871 until 1885, Alfred Theodore Andreas, Volume III, A. T. Andrewas Co., Chicago, 1886, p. 594
  21. ^ Andrews, J. Cutler. “The Southern Telegraph Company, 1861-1865: A Chapter in the History of Wartime Communication.” The Journal of Southern History, vol. 30, no. 3, 1964, pp. 319–44. JSTOR, Accessed 2 Mar. 2024.
  22. ^ a b Detroit Free Press, 23 Oct 1883, Tue ·Page 1
  23. ^ a b Detroit Free Press, 17 Nov 1883, Sat ·Page 2
  24. ^ St. Louis Globe-Democrat, 12 Oct 1883, Fri ·Page 1
  25. ^ The Beatrice Daily Express, 24 Jun 1898, Fri ·Page 3
  26. ^ St. Joseph Gazette, 01 Jan 1884, Tue ·Page 4
  27. ^ The New York Supplement, Vol. 39, West Publishing Co., New York, June 4-July 23, 1896, p. 503
  28. ^ New York Court of Appeals. Records and Briefs, New York (State). Court of Appeals, 1884, p. 1266
  29. ^ Reports of Cases, Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York, Marcus T. Hun, Volume IV, Banks & Brothers, Albany, New York, 1896, p. 305-306-307-623
  30. ^ New York Supreme Court, First Judicial Department, Francis E. Parker, Burgoyne's Quick Printing House, New York, 1886, p. 22-55
  31. ^ a b Chicago Tribune, 12 Feb 1884, Tue ·Page 8
  32. ^ The Boston Globe, 15 Jan 1886, Fri ·Page 2
  33. ^ a b Boston Evening Transcript, 29 Feb 1884, Fri ·Page 8
  34. ^ a b New-York Tribune, 17 Jan 1884, Thu ·Page 2
  35. ^ The Independent-Record, 28 May 1891, Thu ·Page 4
  36. ^ a b Boston Evening Transcript, 29 Feb 1884, Fri ·Page 8
  37. ^ The Boston Globe, 05 Apr 1884, Sat ·Page 5
  38. ^ Evening Gazette, 05 Apr 1884, Sat ·Page 1
  39. ^ St. Louis Globe-Democrat, 13 Feb 1884, Wed ·Page 12
  40. ^ Chicago Tribune, 23 Sep 1884, Tue ·Page 5
  41. ^ a b c Wall Street, 1889: The Telegraph Ramps Up Trading Speed, The Wall Street Journal, July 7, 2014
  42. ^ of Thomas Alva Edison, Inventing Entertainment: The Early Motion Pictures and Sound Recordings of the Edison Companies, Library of Congress, Accessed March 2, 2024
  43. ^ Handel, John. "The Material Politics of Finance: The Ticker Tape and the London Stock Exchange, 1860s–1890s." Enterprise & Society, vol. 23 no. 3, 2022, p. 857-887. Project MUSE
  44. ^ The New York Stock Exchange : its History, its Contribution to National Prosperity, Stock Exchange Historical Company, Boston College, New York, 1905, p. 318
  45. ^ History of Crises Under the National Banking System, Sprague, O. M. W, Government Printing Office, Washington, 1910, p. 112
  46. ^ Gen. John G. Farnsworth, Landmarks of Albany County, New York, edited by Amasa J. Parker of Albany, N. Y., Syracuse, N. Y.; D. Mason & Co. Publishers, 1897.
  47. ^ Portage Daily Democrat, 22 May 1886, Sat ·Page 1
  48. ^ Telegraph And Telephone Age: Telegraphy-Telephony-Radio, University of Illinois, Americana, New York, 1917, p. 3
  49. ^ The American Rapid Telegraph Company, Western Union Telegraph Company, Princeton University, Major & Knapp Engraving Co., New York, 1879, p. 4
  50. ^ The Saint Paul Globe, 28 Apr 1884, Mon ·Page 8
  51. ^ The Boston Globe, 20 Jan 1885, Tue ·Page 1
  52. ISBN 978-0-19-974120-5
    .
  53. ^ Guide to the Western Union Telegraph Company Records, Robert Harding, Smithsonian, National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center, Washington, D.C., 1986, p. 5
  54. ^ Mr. Vanderbilt Resigns; No Longer Interested in Telegraph Stocks, The New York Times, March 27, 1881
  55. ^ a b "Seven Ways to Compute the Relative Value of a U.S. Dollar Amount - 1790 to Present". MeasuringWorth.com.
  56. ^ The Bankrupt Telegraph Company, The New York Times, October 8, 1884
  57. ^ a b c An American Almanac and Treasury of Facts, Ainsworth Rand Spofford, Volume 11, American News Co., 1888, p. 41
  58. ^ The Journal Times, 18 Jul 1884, Fri ·Page 1
  59. ^ The Mining Millionaire Americans Couldn’t Help But Love, Smithsonian Magazine, Gregory Crouch, June 6, 2018
  60. ^ Chicago Tribune, 11 Feb 1900, Sun ·Page 5
  61. ^ Schuyler Genealogy: The Schuyler families in America Prior to 1900, Florence A. Christoph, Friends of Schuyler Mansion, 1987, p. 283
  62. ^ a b The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, 05 Jul 1891, Sun ·Page 3
  63. ^ a b c d Poughkeepsie Eagle-News, 09 Jul 1890, Wed ·Page 6
  64. ^ The Denver Press, Volume XIX, Number 16, July 11, 1890, p. 2
  65. ^ The Day, 09 Jul 1890, Wed ·Page 1
  66. ^ New-York Tribune, 26 Jan 1897, Tue ·Page 3
  67. ^ a b The Wall Street Journal, 09 Jun 1897, Wed ·Page 2
  68. ^ Railway Age and Northwestern Railroad, Volume 23, January, 1897, p. 57-110
  69. ^ The Berkshire County Eagle, 08 Dec 1897, Wed ·Page 7
  70. ^ a b c MRS. M'CULLOCH'S RECEPTION, The New York Times, January 4, 1885
  71. ^ McCulloch, Hugh (1889). Men and measures of half a century; sketches and commments, New York, C. Scribner's son, Americana, p. 222
  72. ^ The Fort Wayne Sentinel, 27 Nov 1905, Mon ·Page 5
  73. ^ Letter of 19 December 1900 in McCulloch manuscript collection, Lilly Library, Indiana University, Bloomington.
  74. ^ St. Louis Globe-Democrat, 02 Jan 1885, Fri ·Page 4
  75. ^ The Herald Statesman, 23 Sep 1903, Wed ·Page 4
  76. ^ Evening star, 10 Nov 1900, Sat ·Page 5
  77. ^ The Fort Wayne Sentinel, 29 Aug 1904, Mon ·Page 1
  78. ^ The Fort Wayne Sentinel, Fort Wayne, Indiana, Tue, Dec 20, 1904, Page 9
  79. ^ The Fort Wayne Sentinel, 29 Aug 1904, Mon ·Page 1
  80. ^ The Times, 28 Jul 1898, Thu ·Page 3
  81. ^ The Times, 27 Jul 1898, Wed ·Page 5
  82. ^ Memories-Recollections of Susan Man McCulloch 1818-1898, McCulloch, Susan Maria (Man), 1818-1898, Recollections, Allen County-Fort Wayne Historical Society, 1898
  83. ^ Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 03 May 1914, Sun ·Page 26
  84. ^ The Union League Club of New York, Annual Reports, Club House, New York, January, 1878, p. 3-4-59
  85. ^ The Union League Club of New York, The Club-house, University of Michigan, 1905, page 80-121.
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