Who was Cornelius Vanderbilt?

Publisher Edward J. Renehan Jr. wrote 2007's Commodore: The Life of Cornelius Vanderbilt while historian T.J. Stiles penned a Pulitzer Prize-winning book on the industrialist's life — The First Tycoon: The Epic Life of Cornelius Vanderbilt (2009). Best Known For: Cornelius Vanderbilt was a famous industrialist who worked in railroads and shipping.

How much money did Cornelius Vanderbilt make?

Cornelius Vanderbilt, American shipping and railroad magnate who acquired a personal fortune of more than $100 million. Vanderbilt began his transportation empire by operating a ferryboat between Staten Island and New York City. By the 1850s he had shifted his focus from steamships to railroads.

Who was Commodore Vanderbilt?

Wheaton J. Lane, Commodore Vanderbilt: An Epic of the Steam Age (New York: Knopf, 1942). Cornelius "Commodore" Vanderbilt (1794 – 1877) was a shrewd businessman in the transportation industry. He built his fortune through freight and passenger boating lines, and later expanded to railroads.