Elbert Henry Gary (October 8, 1846 – August 15, 1927) was an American lawyer, county judge and business executive. He was a founder of U.S. Steel in 1901, bringing together partners J. P. Morgan, Andrew Carnegie, and Charles M. Schwab. The city of Gary, Indiana, a steel town, was named for him when it was founded in 1906. Gary, West Virginia was also named after him. When trust busting President Theodore Roosevelt said that Gary was head of the steel trust, Gary considered it a compliment. The two men communicated in a nonconfrontational way, unlike Roosevelt's communications with leaders of other trusts.
Elbert Gary was born near Wheaton, Illinois, on October 8, 1846, to Erastus and Susan Abiah (Vallette) Gary. He attended Wheaton College and graduated first in his class from Union College of Law in 1868. The school later became the Northwestern University School of Law. Gary started to practice law in Chicago in 1871 and also maintained an office in Wheaton.[1] He was a co-founder (with his uncle, Jesse Wheaton) of the Gary-Wheaton Bank.
While he was working as a young corporate attorney for railroads and other clients in the years after the Great Chicago Fire, Gary was elected president of Wheaton three times, and when it became a city in 1892 he served as its first mayor for two terms.
Emma T. Townsend (1916)
He served two terms as a DuPage County judge from 1882 to 1890. For the rest of his life he was known as "Judge Gary". It was a common custom in the nineteenth century for men to be addressed by military, political, or academic titles after those titles were no longer current.
U.S. Steel
Gary practiced law in Chicago for about twenty-five years. He was president of the Chicago Bar Association from 1893 to 1894. It was while he was hearing a case as a judge that he first became interested in the process of making steel and the economics of that business. In 1898 he became president of Federal Steel Corporation in Chicago, which included a barbed wire business, and retired from his law practice. Federal and other companies merged in 1901 to become U.S. Steel, and Gary was elected chairman of the board of directors and the finance committee.
In 1900 at the age of 54, Gary moved from Wheaton to New York City, where he established the headquarters of U.S. Steel. Gary served as chairman of the board of America's first billion-dollar corporation, from the company's founding in 1901 until his death in August 1927. In November 1904, with a government suit looming, Gary approached President Roosevelt with a deal: cooperation in exchange for preferential treatment. U.S. Steel would open its books to the Bureau of Corporations; if the Bureau found evidence of wrongdoing, the company would be warned privately and given a chance to set matters right. Roosevelt accepted this "gentlemen's agreement" because it met his interest in accommodating the modern industrial order while maintaining his public image as slayer of the trusts.[2]
Gary was one of the dozen best known businessman in the nation, and thus he serves as a striking example of a number of general trends. His career represents an early instance of the rise of the corporation lawyer to the top ranks of business – a pattern that was to be more and more encouraged by corporate complexity and government regulation....In the confusing world of the new corporation – of trusts, holding companies, leases, liens, and mergers – lawyers were necessary additions to boards of directors for only they could guide the bankers and industrialists through the dark areas of corporate finance....While Gary was unquestionably overly serious, pompous, and restricted in imagination, he tried to be a progressive business leader: giving the stockholders an unusual amount of information in annual reports; assuming responsibility for price leadership and orderly practices of competition; and sponsoring conservative technological progress.[3]
According to historian Stephen H. Cutcliffe:
Gary faced several problems in organizing and running U.S. Steel. The huge enterprise remained a holding company with local management responsible for running individual plants. This arrangement led to tensions between the Gary-led board, which consisted primarily of bankers and lawyers, and the more traditional "competitive" steelmakers dominated by Carnegie’s men and Schwab in particular. Supported by Morgan, Gary consolidated his control of U.S. Steel during the next two years, becoming chair of the newly created board of directors in 1903....Gary also sought to close inefficient plants and, starting in 1906, to construct the world’s largest, fully-integrated steel plant on the shore of Lake Michigan in an area duly named Gary, Indiana. By 1911, the company had expended $78 million on the plant itself and the accompanying town. The steel industry traditionally had been characterized by destabilizing competition in the form of extensive price cutting. Gary sought to bring long-term economic stability to U.S. Steel and to the industry as a whole by institutionalizing publicly announced fixed prices. At the same time he sought to maintain wage stability.[4]
Honors and memory
The town of Gary, Indiana, laid out in 1906 as a model home for steel workmen, was named in his honor. Despite this, Gary had no lasting personal connection with his namesake, which by the time of his death was approaching a population of 100,000.
From 1906 to 1908, he served as president of the Illinois State Society of New York, a group of Illinois expatriates living in New York who got together for social reasons a few times each year. They held an annual Lincoln Day Dinner in February at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel and a Chicago Fire Remembrance Day each October at Delmonico's Restaurant in Manhattan.
In 1914 he was made chairman of the committee appointed by the Mayor of New York, John purroy Mitchel, to study the question of unemployment and its relief.
His second wife was a member of the New York State Commission for the Panama–Pacific International Exposition in 1915; and acted as one of the official hostesses at the New York Pavilion during the exposition.[5]
When America entered World War I in 1917, he was appointed chairman of the committee on steel of the Council of National Defense. Through his connection with a business essential to producing munitions of war, he exerted great influence in bringing about cooperation between the government and industry. He was interested in strengthening the friendship between America and Japan. In 1919, he was invited by President Woodrow Wilson to attend the Industrial Conference in Washington, and took a prominent part in it as a firm upholder of the "open shop", of which he was always a strong advocate.
Elbert Gary died on August 15, 1927, in Manhattan.
Family
His first wife, Julia Emily Graves, whom he married on June 25, 1869, died in 1902; they had two daughters, Gertrude and Bertha, who survived him. Gary was also survived by his second wife, Emma T. Townsend, whom he had married on December 5, 1905.[1]
In 2011 Gary was inducted into the inaugural class of the American Metal Market Steel Hall of Fame (http://www.amm.com/HOF-Profile/ElbertGary.html) for his work in the steel industry and as the longest-serving CEO of U.S. Steel.
^ ab"Gary Born on Farm. In Politics Early, Was First Mayor of Wheaton, Ill. Became a Judge, Acquiring Title He Bore Through Life. Scion of Puritan Stock. Practiced Law for 25 Years in Chicago Before He Met Morgan, Which Started Career in Steel". The New York Times. August 16, 1927. Retrieved November 5, 2011. Elbert Henry Gary was born on Oct. 8, 1846, on the farm of his father, near Wheaton. Ill. He was the son of Erastus and Susan A. (Vallette) Gary, and came of old New England stock. His father was descended from the Massachusetts Puritans and his mother was a descendant of an officer of Lafayette's army.
^Abrams, Richard M. "Cooking up the square deal: Theodore Roosevelt". Profiles of the U.S. Presidents. Advameg.
^John A. Garraty, ed., Encyclopedia of American Biography (1974) pp 410–411.
^Stephen H. Cutcliffe, "Gary, Elbert Henry" American National Biography (1999)
^State of New York at the Panama–Pacific International Exposition, San Francisco, California, 1915 (Albany, 1916; pg. 28)
Further reading
Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1922). "Gary, Elbert Henry" . Encyclopædia Britannica (12th ed.). London & New York: The Encyclopædia Britannica Company.
Brawley, Mark R. "And we would have the field": US Steel and American trade policy, 1908-1912". Business and Politics 19.3 (2017): 424+.
Carduff, Kevin C., and Timothy J. Fogarty. "Men of steel: Voluntary accounting information disclosure in the first third of the twentieth century at US Steel Corporation". Research in Accounting Regulation 26.2 (2014): 196–203.
Cutcliffe, Stephen H. "Gary, Elbert Henry" American National Biography (1999) doi:10.1093/anb/9780198606697.article.1000617
Meyers, Cynthia B. "Advertising, the red scare, and the blacklist: BBDO, US Steel, and Theatre Guild on the Air, 1945–1952". Cinema Journal 55.4 (2016): 55–83.
Page, William H. "The Gary Dinners and the Meaning of Concerted Action", University of Florida Levin College of Law, January 4, 2009
Tarbell, Ida M. The Life of Elbert H. Gary: The Story of Steel (1925) the major biography. online reviewonline
External links
Media related to Elbert Henry Gary at Wikimedia Commons
elbert, henry, gary, lake, freighter, elbert, gary, 1905, ship, october, 1846, august, 1927, american, lawyer, county, judge, business, executive, founder, steel, 1901, bringing, together, partners, morgan, andrew, carnegie, charles, schwab, city, gary, indian. For the lake freighter see Elbert H Gary 1905 ship Elbert Henry Gary October 8 1846 August 15 1927 was an American lawyer county judge and business executive He was a founder of U S Steel in 1901 bringing together partners J P Morgan Andrew Carnegie and Charles M Schwab The city of Gary Indiana a steel town was named for him when it was founded in 1906 Gary West Virginia was also named after him When trust busting President Theodore Roosevelt said that Gary was head of the steel trust Gary considered it a compliment The two men communicated in a nonconfrontational way unlike Roosevelt s communications with leaders of other trusts Elbert Henry GaryGary c 19152nd President of U S SteelIn office 1903 1911Preceded byCharles M SchwabSucceeded byJames Augustine Farrell Sr Personal detailsBorn 1846 10 08 October 8 1846Wheaton Illinois USDiedAugust 15 1927 1927 08 15 aged 80 New York City USSpouse s Julia Emily Graves m 1869 died 1902 wbr Emma T Townsend m 1905 wbr Signature Contents 1 Biography 2 U S Steel 3 Honors and memory 4 Family 5 See also 6 References 7 Further reading 8 External linksBiography EditElbert Gary was born near Wheaton Illinois on October 8 1846 to Erastus and Susan Abiah Vallette Gary He attended Wheaton College and graduated first in his class from Union College of Law in 1868 The school later became the Northwestern University School of Law Gary started to practice law in Chicago in 1871 and also maintained an office in Wheaton 1 He was a co founder with his uncle Jesse Wheaton of the Gary Wheaton Bank While he was working as a young corporate attorney for railroads and other clients in the years after the Great Chicago Fire Gary was elected president of Wheaton three times and when it became a city in 1892 he served as its first mayor for two terms Emma T Townsend 1916 He served two terms as a DuPage County judge from 1882 to 1890 For the rest of his life he was known as Judge Gary It was a common custom in the nineteenth century for men to be addressed by military political or academic titles after those titles were no longer current U S Steel EditGary practiced law in Chicago for about twenty five years He was president of the Chicago Bar Association from 1893 to 1894 It was while he was hearing a case as a judge that he first became interested in the process of making steel and the economics of that business In 1898 he became president of Federal Steel Corporation in Chicago which included a barbed wire business and retired from his law practice Federal and other companies merged in 1901 to become U S Steel and Gary was elected chairman of the board of directors and the finance committee In 1900 at the age of 54 Gary moved from Wheaton to New York City where he established the headquarters of U S Steel Gary served as chairman of the board of America s first billion dollar corporation from the company s founding in 1901 until his death in August 1927 In November 1904 with a government suit looming Gary approached President Roosevelt with a deal cooperation in exchange for preferential treatment U S Steel would open its books to the Bureau of Corporations if the Bureau found evidence of wrongdoing the company would be warned privately and given a chance to set matters right Roosevelt accepted this gentlemen s agreement because it met his interest in accommodating the modern industrial order while maintaining his public image as slayer of the trusts 2 According to historian Thomas C Cochran Gary was one of the dozen best known businessman in the nation and thus he serves as a striking example of a number of general trends His career represents an early instance of the rise of the corporation lawyer to the top ranks of business a pattern that was to be more and more encouraged by corporate complexity and government regulation In the confusing world of the new corporation of trusts holding companies leases liens and mergers lawyers were necessary additions to boards of directors for only they could guide the bankers and industrialists through the dark areas of corporate finance While Gary was unquestionably overly serious pompous and restricted in imagination he tried to be a progressive business leader giving the stockholders an unusual amount of information in annual reports assuming responsibility for price leadership and orderly practices of competition and sponsoring conservative technological progress 3 According to historian Stephen H Cutcliffe Gary faced several problems in organizing and running U S Steel The huge enterprise remained a holding company with local management responsible for running individual plants This arrangement led to tensions between the Gary led board which consisted primarily of bankers and lawyers and the more traditional competitive steelmakers dominated by Carnegie s men and Schwab in particular Supported by Morgan Gary consolidated his control of U S Steel during the next two years becoming chair of the newly created board of directors in 1903 Gary also sought to close inefficient plants and starting in 1906 to construct the world s largest fully integrated steel plant on the shore of Lake Michigan in an area duly named Gary Indiana By 1911 the company had expended 78 million on the plant itself and the accompanying town The steel industry traditionally had been characterized by destabilizing competition in the form of extensive price cutting Gary sought to bring long term economic stability to U S Steel and to the industry as a whole by institutionalizing publicly announced fixed prices At the same time he sought to maintain wage stability 4 Honors and memory EditThe town of Gary Indiana laid out in 1906 as a model home for steel workmen was named in his honor Despite this Gary had no lasting personal connection with his namesake which by the time of his death was approaching a population of 100 000 From 1906 to 1908 he served as president of the Illinois State Society of New York a group of Illinois expatriates living in New York who got together for social reasons a few times each year They held an annual Lincoln Day Dinner in February at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel and a Chicago Fire Remembrance Day each October at Delmonico s Restaurant in Manhattan In 1914 he was made chairman of the committee appointed by the Mayor of New York John purroy Mitchel to study the question of unemployment and its relief His second wife was a member of the New York State Commission for the Panama Pacific International Exposition in 1915 and acted as one of the official hostesses at the New York Pavilion during the exposition 5 When America entered World War I in 1917 he was appointed chairman of the committee on steel of the Council of National Defense Through his connection with a business essential to producing munitions of war he exerted great influence in bringing about cooperation between the government and industry He was interested in strengthening the friendship between America and Japan In 1919 he was invited by President Woodrow Wilson to attend the Industrial Conference in Washington and took a prominent part in it as a firm upholder of the open shop of which he was always a strong advocate Elbert Gary died on August 15 1927 in Manhattan Family EditHis first wife Julia Emily Graves whom he married on June 25 1869 died in 1902 they had two daughters Gertrude and Bertha who survived him Gary was also survived by his second wife Emma T Townsend whom he had married on December 5 1905 1 In 2011 Gary was inducted into the inaugural class of the American Metal Market Steel Hall of Fame http www amm com HOF Profile ElbertGary html for his work in the steel industry and as the longest serving CEO of U S Steel See also EditList of people on the cover of Time magazine 1920s July 5 1926 References Edit a b Gary Born on Farm In Politics Early Was First Mayor of Wheaton Ill Became a Judge Acquiring Title He Bore Through Life Scion of Puritan Stock Practiced Law for 25 Years in Chicago Before He Met Morgan Which Started Career in Steel The New York Times August 16 1927 Retrieved November 5 2011 Elbert Henry Gary was born on Oct 8 1846 on the farm of his father near Wheaton Ill He was the son of Erastus and Susan A Vallette Gary and came of old New England stock His father was descended from the Massachusetts Puritans and his mother was a descendant of an officer of Lafayette s army Abrams Richard M Cooking up the square deal Theodore Roosevelt Profiles of the U S Presidents Advameg John A Garraty ed Encyclopedia of American Biography 1974 pp 410 411 Stephen H Cutcliffe Gary Elbert Henry American National Biography 1999 State of New York at the Panama Pacific International Exposition San Francisco California 1915 Albany 1916 pg 28 Further reading EditChisholm Hugh ed 1922 Gary Elbert Henry Encyclopaedia Britannica 12th ed London amp New York The Encyclopaedia Britannica Company Brawley Mark R And we would have the field US Steel and American trade policy 1908 1912 Business and Politics 19 3 2017 424 Carduff Kevin C and Timothy J Fogarty Men of steel Voluntary accounting information disclosure in the first third of the twentieth century at US Steel Corporation Research in Accounting Regulation 26 2 2014 196 203 Cutcliffe Stephen H Gary Elbert Henry American National Biography 1999 doi 10 1093 anb 9780198606697 article 1000617 Meyers Cynthia B Advertising the red scare and the blacklist BBDO US Steel and Theatre Guild on the Air 1945 1952 Cinema Journal 55 4 2016 55 83 Page William H The Gary Dinners and the Meaning of Concerted Action University of Florida Levin College of Law January 4 2009 Tarbell Ida M The Life of Elbert H Gary The Story of Steel 1925 the major biography online reviewonlineExternal links Edit Media related to Elbert Henry Gary at Wikimedia CommonsBusiness positionsPreceded bynone Chairman of U S SteelMarch 2 1901 August 15 1927 Succeeded byJ P Morgan Jr Preceded byCharles M Schwab President of U S Steel1903 1911 Succeeded byJames A Farrell Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Elbert Henry Gary amp oldid 1151499449, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
