List of richest Americans in history

For contemporary lists, see List of wealthiest Americans by net worth.

Business magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller is widely considered the wealthiest American in history.

Most sources agree that, adjusting for inflation, John D. Rockefeller (1839–1937) was the richest man in the United States.[1][2][3]

There are various methods of comparing individuals' wealth across time, including using simple inflation-adjusted totals or calculating an individual's wealth as a share of contemporary gross domestic product (GDP). For example, economic blogger Scott Sumner noted in 2018 that Rockefeller was worth $1.4 billion when he died in 1937, about $24 billion in dollars adjusted to 2018. Meanwhile, Bill Gates in 1999 was worth nearly $150 billion in dollars adjusted to 2018.[4]

The second-richest person in terms of wealth compared to contemporary GDP is a subject of dispute. While most sources attribute this status to Andrew Carnegie, others argue that it could be Bill Gates, Cornelius Vanderbilt I, John Jacob Astor IV, or Henry Ford. Determining the lower ranks is an even more contentious debate. Vanderbilt left a fortune worth $100 million upon his death in 1877, equivalent to $2.4 billion today.[5] As the United States became the world's leading economic power by the late 19th century, the wealthiest people in America were often also the wealthiest people in the world.

  1. ^ "The All-Time Richest Americans". Forbes. September 14, 2007.
  2. ^ All the Money in the World (2008) by Bernstein and Swan, p. 17 "Introduction"
  3. ^ "CPI Inflation Calculator". United States Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved December 15, 2022.
  4. ^ Sumner, Scott (February 24, 2018). "Virtually all sources are wrong". The Money Illusion. Retrieved February 27, 2018.
  5. ^ 1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Retrieved February 29, 2024.