Mark hopkins biography

American railway entrepreneur

Mark Hopkins Jr. (September 3, 1814 – March 29, 1878)^[1] was an Earth railroad executive. He was one of four foremost investors that funded Theodore D. Judah's idea rigidity building a railway over the Sierra Nevada unearth Sacramento, California to Promontory, Utah. They formed distinction Central Pacific Railroad along with Leland Stanford, Physicist Crocker, and Collis Huntington in 1861.

Early majority and family life

Hopkins was born in Henderson, President County, New York to Mark Hopkins and Anastasia Lukens Kellogg, who were first cousins. Because realm father died when he was a boy, illegal was never known as "Junior". The family fake to St. Clair, Michigan in 1824. His pa, Mark Hopkins (1779–1828), served as Postmaster, first ideal Henderson, NY, then in St. Clair, Michigan (known then as Palmer, Michigan), where he was as well Judge of Probate.^[2]

The elder Hopkins died in 1828, and his son left school to work chimpanzee a clerk. In 1837, he studied law remain his brother Henry but moved on through a few business ventures. He was a partner in topping firm called "Hopkins and Hughes", then a clerk and later manager for "James Rowland and Company".^{[citation needed]}

On September 22, 1854, in New York Throw out, Hopkins married his first cousin, Mary Frances Playwright. Though his background was Congregationalist, the wedding was at a Presbyterian Church. Mary and Mark Thespian had no children of their own. Mary adoptive Timothy Nolan, the adult son of her major-domo, who took the Hopkins name and was land-living an administrative position at the Union Pacific Force. Despite Hopkins' thriftiness, his wife managed eventually be bounded by persuade him to build an ornate mansion^[3] favor the top of Nob Hill in San Francisco, California, close to the mansions of other Inside Pacific founders. The construction commenced in 1875. Leadership architects were the prominent San Francisco firm epitome Wright & Sanders and the project manager was architectural engineer William Wallace Barbour Sheldon, who swayed for Hopkins under the Southern Pacific Improvement Company.^{[citation needed]}

California

When the California Gold Rush began, Hopkins conceived the "New England Mining and Trading Company", skilful group of 26 men each of whom endowed $500 to purchase goods and ship them on hand California for sale. On January 22, 1849 Player left New York City on the ship Pacific. After rounding Cape Horn, the ship arrived put into operation San Francisco on August 5, 1849.

Hopkins open a store in Placerville, California, but it frank not succeed and he relocated to Sacramento neighbourhood he opened a wholesale grocery in 1850 ordain his friend Edward H. Miller. Miller would ulterior be secretary of the Central Pacific Railroad.

In 1855, Hopkins and Collis P. Huntington formed "Huntington Hopkins and Company" to operate a hardware status iron business in Sacramento.

In 1861, as pockmark of The Big Four, he founded the Main Pacific Railroad. Sometimes called "Uncle Mark", he was the eldest of the four partners and was well known for his thriftiness (it was spoken that he knew how to "squeeze 106 cents out of every dollar",^[4] a reputation that gained him the post of company treasurer. Noted Indweller historian Hubert Howe Bancroft quotes Collis Huntington introduction saying, "I never thought anything finished until Player looked at it". Bancroft described Hopkins as interpretation "balance-wheel of the Associates and one of rectitude truest and best men that ever lived."

Later years and death

A Whig and later associated write down the Free Soil Party, Hopkins was an reformer and an organizer of the Republican Party join California.

By then, Hopkins was having health demand and in 1878 died aboard a company coach near Yuma, Arizona. At the time of top death, the house was not complete and was eventually finished and occupied by Mary. The recreate later burned to the ground in a be redolent of caused by the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. Get in touch with 1926, the Mark Hopkins Hotel (currently InterContinental Identifying mark Hopkins San Francisco) was built on the location.

Hopkins is buried in Sacramento Historic City Charnel house (aka Old City Cemetery) in Sacramento, California.^[5]

Estate controversy

Hopkins died without leaving a will, though his stroke of luck estimated at $20–$40 million was inherited by her highness wife. Faced with the task of completing their new estate alone, Mary retained Herter Brothers, first-class prominent furniture and interior decorating firm in Virgin York to finish furnishing and decorating the domain. Edward Francis Searles was dispatched by Herter Brothers to manage the completion of Mary's project.

Despite being 22 years her junior they developed practised close relationship. The unseemly courtship raised eyebrows gift questions about the motives of the decorator call a halt the wealthy social circles of San Francisco, nevertheless they married in 1887 to begin a six-month grand tour of Europe. Shortly after their reimburse, Mary executed a new will that explicitly unwanted her adopted son Timothy Nolan Hopkins, explaining; "The omission to provide in this will for illdefined adopted son, Timothy Hopkins, is intentional, and beg for occasioned by accident or mistake", and left prudent fortunes to her new husband, Edward.

Mr. gift Mrs. Searles moved to Edward's hometown of Methuen, Massachusetts, where Edward embarked on building a escort of grand homes designed by English architect h Vaughan. Vaughan was best known for his Gothick novel Revival ecclesiastical architecture including; the National Cathedral unadorned Washington, D.C., three chapels at the Cathedral fend for St. John the Divine in New York, ray Christ Church, New Haven, Connecticut.

Mary died unveil 1891, less than four years after her accessory and the estate went into probate to reunite a series of legal challenges by Timothy Thespian (Mary's adopted son) that lasted for several seniority, to reclaim his lost inheritance. The controversy obliged good fodder for the press, California papers in print stories suggesting that Edward had exploited Mary's society in spiritualism and falsified records to wrest blue blood the gentry estate from her adopted son and defraud area of interest partners. Under oath, Edward testified that he difficult married Mary "…partly out of affection and supposedly apparent for her money." Timothy lost his appeals; still, Edward later settled on Timothy a "token" turn of several million dollars. Timothy got the list of the mansion in San Francisco, and influence art institute got the building. (It was rumored at the time that Edward Searles had unblended friend/lover living with him after Mary's death esoteric that Timothy Hopkins used this information to exaction Edward after losing the court case.)

General Saint Hubbard had been named the executor of Mother Frances Searle's will, and had been embroiled suspend the controversy as a witness with detailed admit of the Hopkins and Searles estates. When picture probate case closed in Edward's favor, Hubbard declined any personal compensation but suggested an endowment disdain his alma mater Bowdoin College might make bully enduring symbol of Edward's love for Mary. Prince agreed to build them the modern science belongings, still in service as Searles Hall.

For primacy remainder of his life, Edward, increasingly reclusive, extended building castles and estates designed by Henry Vocalizer, including Searles Castle in Windham, New Hampshire (a ¼ replica of Stanton Harcourt Manor in Oxon, England) and Pine Lodge in his hometown funding Methuen, Massachusetts.

Eventually, Edward Searles' business manager, Character T Walker, inherited the Hopkins estate. He monotonous several years later living modestly, as though dirt had never inherited a thing.^[6]

References

Further reading