Sunday, January 22, 2006

Henry E. Huntington

From: KyleKWyatt@gmail.com

In 1900 when Southern Pacific President Collis P Huntington died, his nephew, heir and Southern Pacific Vice President Henry E. Huntington, expected to become SP President. The financiers (read bond holders, I believe) behind the railroad passed over Henry and brought in an outsider as SP President. The ticked off Henry then sold the Huntington interestes in SP to H. E. Harriman, and helped facilitate the sales of Stanford and Crocker interestes to Harriman as well. With majority stock control of SP (and with his power on Wall Street), Harriman took over control from the fianciers' choice in 1901 and sent him packing.

Meanwhile, Henry Huntington took his profits and turned his dabbling in Southern California electric railroading into a major investment – called Pacific Electric.

In such ways is history made.

—Kyle Wyatt

[from the R&LHS Newsgroup.]