The First Tycoon: The Epic Life of Cornelius Vanderbilt
by STILES, T. J
- Used
- Condition
- See description
- Seller
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Bryn Mawr,, Pennsylvania, United States
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About This Item
2009. (VANDERBILT, CORNELIUS). STILES, T. J. The First Tycoon: The Epic Life of Cornelius Vanderbilt. New York: Knopf, 2009. xii, 719 pp. Maps, illus. Original cloth, non-priceclipped d/j, inscribed by author. Former owner's inscription on front free endpaper.
Synopsis
A gripping, groundbreaking biography of the combative man whose genius and force of will created modern capitalism.Founder of a dynasty, builder of the original Grand Central, creator of an impossibly vast fortune, Cornelius "Commodore" Vanderbilt is an American icon. Humbly born on Staten Island during George Washington's presidency, he rose from boatman to builder of the nation's largest fleet of steamships to lord of a railroad empire. Lincoln consulted him on steamship strategy during the Civil War; Jay Gould was first his uneasy ally and then sworn enemy; and Victoria Woodhull, the first woman to run for president of the United States, was his spiritual counselor. We see Vanderbilt help to launch the transportation revolution, propel the Gold Rush, reshape Manhattan, and invent the modern corporation--in fact, as T. J. Stiles elegantly argues, Vanderbilt did more than perhaps any other individual to create the economic world we live in today.In The First Tycoon, Stiles offers the first complete, authoritative biography of this titan, and the first comprehensive account of the Commodore's personal life. It is a sweeping, fast-moving epic, and a complex portrait of the great man. Vanderbilt, Stiles shows, embraced the philosophy of the Jacksonian Democrats and withstood attacks by his conservative enemies for being too competitive. He was a visionary who pioneered business models. He was an unschooled fistfighter who came to command the respect of New York's social elite. And he was a father who struggled with a gambling-addicted son, a husband who was loving yet abusive, and, finally, an old man who was obsessed with contacting the dead.The First Tycoon is the exhilarating story of a man and a nation maturing together: the powerful account of a man whose life was as epic and complex as American history itself.From the Hardcover edition.
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Details
- Bookseller
- George S. MacManus Company
(US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- 82274
- Title
- The First Tycoon: The Epic Life of Cornelius Vanderbilt
- Author
- STILES, T. J
- Book Condition
- Used
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Date Published
- 2009
- Keywords
- INDUSTRY, INSCRIBED, BIOG
Terms of Sale
George S. MacManus Company
We accept VS or MC or we will hold for a check. Books may be returned with the original packing slip within 7 days. Domestic Shipping via UPS is $5.00 for 1st volume, $2.50 for each additional volume. International rates given upon request.
About the Seller
George S. MacManus Company
Biblio member since 2005
Bryn Mawr,, Pennsylvania
About George S. MacManus Company
Our inventory of over 45,000 catalogued titles focuses primarily on 18th and 19th century Americana with specialities such as Voyages and Travels, Local Histories, Indians and the West and the Civil War. Also included in our collection are English and American literary first editions, Limited Edition Club selections and Books about Books.
Glossary
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- New
- A new book is a book previously not circulated to a buyer. Although a new book is typically free of any faults or defects, "new"...
- Cloth
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- Inscribed
- When a book is described as being inscribed, it indicates that a short note written by the author or a previous owner has been...
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