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How do you think Rockefeller’s accumulation of wealth was perceived by other Americans?

User Ben Myers
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Rockefeller’s total assets in 1937 equaled 1.5% of America’s total economic output for that same year, making him one of the wealthiest people in the world to this day (in comparison, Bill Gates’ wealth in 2018 would be 0.45% of 2018 GDP). He was often approached about donating his money to various causes. His publicist Ivy Lee, hired after the anti-trust case, “cultivated the notion of a benign old man giving away dimes and preoccupied with charity,” according to one biographer. Rockefeller and his family established the Rockefeller Foundation in 1913, which supported public health causes through a large endowment. He also used his money to establish the University of Chicago and the Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research. His goal as a young adult was to make $100,000 and live to be 100 years old. While he surpassed his financial goal, John D. Rockefeller died on May 23, 1937, at the age of 98.
User Setop
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