The first tycoon : the epic life of Cornelius Vanderbilt
(Book)

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Published
New York : Vintage Books, [2010].
Edition
1st Vintage Books ed.
Physical Desc
xii, 719 pages, [36] pages of plates : illustrations, maps ; 24 cm.
Status
South Valleys Library - Adult Nonfiction - Biography Shelf
BIO VANDERBILT 2010
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More Details

Published
New York : Vintage Books, [2010].
Format
Book
Edition
1st Vintage Books ed.
Language
English

Notes

Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references (pages [691]-702) and index.
Description
A biography of business tycoon Cornelius Vanderbilt, covering his personal life, development of a large fleet of steamships and a railroad empire, invention of the modern corporation, and other undertakings that shaped the economic world of the U.S. long after his time.
Description
A gripping, groundbreaking biography of the combative man whose genius and force of will created modern capitalism. Founder of a dynasty, builder of the original Grand Central, creator of an impossibly vast fortune, Cornelius "Commodore" Vanderbilt is an American icon. Humbly born on Staten Island during George Washington's presidency, he rose from boatman to builder of the nation's largest fleet of steamships to lord of a railroad empire. Lincoln consulted him on steamship strategy during the Civil War; Jay Gould was first his uneasy ally and then sworn enemy; and Victoria Woodhull, the first woman to run for president of the United States, was his spiritual counselor. We see Vanderbilt help to launch the transportation revolution, propel the Gold Rush, reshape Manhattan, and invent the modern corporation--in fact, as T. J. Stiles elegantly argues, Vanderbilt did more than perhaps any other individual to create the economic world we live in today. In The First Tycoon , Stiles offers the first complete, authoritative biography of this titan, and the first comprehensive account of the Commodore's personal life. It is a sweeping, fast-moving epic, and a complex portrait of the great man. Vanderbilt, Stiles shows, embraced the philosophy of the Jacksonian Democrats and withstood attacks by his conservative enemies for being too competitive. He was a visionary who pioneered business models. He was an unschooled fistfighter who came to command the respect of New York's social elite. And he was a father who struggled with a gambling-addicted son, a husband who was loving yet abusive, and, finally, an old man who was obsessed with contacting the dead. The First Tycoon is the exhilarating story of a man and a nation maturing together: the powerful account of a man whose life was as epic and complex as American history itself.
Awards
Pulitzer Prize for biography, 2010; National Book Award for nonfiction, 2009.

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Citations

APA Citation, 7th Edition (style guide)

Stiles, T. J. (2010). The first tycoon: the epic life of Cornelius Vanderbilt (1st Vintage Books ed.). Vintage Books.

Chicago / Turabian - Author Date Citation, 17th Edition (style guide)

Stiles, T. J. 2010. The First Tycoon: The Epic Life of Cornelius Vanderbilt. Vintage Books.

Chicago / Turabian - Humanities (Notes and Bibliography) Citation, 17th Edition (style guide)

Stiles, T. J. The First Tycoon: The Epic Life of Cornelius Vanderbilt Vintage Books, 2010.

MLA Citation, 9th Edition (style guide)

Stiles, T. J. The First Tycoon: The Epic Life of Cornelius Vanderbilt 1st Vintage Books ed., Vintage Books, 2010.

Note! Citations contain only title, author, edition, publisher, and year published. Citations should be used as a guideline and should be double checked for accuracy. Citation formats are based on standards as of August 2021.

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