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January 15-16, 2013 - New York, NY<br />
John D. Rockefeller Signs Standard Oil Trust<br />
374 Standard Oil (OH) 1___. SPECIMEN. Shares.<br />
Green. Capitol Building, similar to the vignette on the<br />
Standard Oil Trust, but a later version. ABN. VF+.<br />
Est. 100-200<br />
373<br />
373 Standard Oil Trust 1887. 56 Shares. Green. Capitol<br />
Building. No.3316. Signed as President by John D.<br />
Rockefeller. Signed as Secretary by Henry M. Flagler.<br />
Crisp signatures, light roller cancellations instead<br />
of the more obtrusive pen cancellations often encountered.<br />
VF+.<br />
In an effort to bypass certain governmental pressures<br />
concerning the alleged monopolistic powers of Standard<br />
Oil Company, the Standard Oil Trust was conceived<br />
and controlled by nine trustees. As general<br />
statutes at the time limited corporate ownership of out<br />
-of-state firms, Rockefeller and Flagler devised a plan<br />
to surmount these legal obstacles. Acquisitions and<br />
ventures were channeled through trustees whose affiliation<br />
and loyalty to Rockefeller and Standard Oil<br />
were not readily obvious.<br />
This new arrangement enabled Rockefeller to form alliances<br />
and set up new concerns in other states while<br />
retaining complete control of all the various interests.<br />
It brought new meaning to the word “Trust”, and<br />
made Rockefeller and Flagler the most powerful individuals<br />
in the industry and the richest men in the<br />
world.<br />
John D. Rockefeller (1839-1937) was the dominant<br />
figure in the oil industry until his retirement in 1911.<br />
He started his business career as a bookkeeper, and by<br />
age 19 was a partner in a produce business. He began<br />
operating a small refinery with his partners, and<br />
quickly realized the growing investment possibilities in<br />
what was then a fairly new industry. In 1870, he organized<br />
the Standard Oil Company of Ohio and proceeded<br />
to achieve control over 90% of the oil refineries<br />
in the country.<br />
Rockefeller had little interest in discovering oil; he left<br />
that to wildcatters and other speculators. He concentrated<br />
on the transportation, distribution and sale of<br />
petroleum products, building a fortune estimated at<br />
over a billion dollars. (photo) Est. 1,000-1,500<br />
375<br />
375 Zollarsville Petroleum Company (PA), 1864. One<br />
share. Unusual large format. Ceres, oil tower, left. The<br />
entire working capital was $7,250. IU. Stains in the<br />
margins and on back, otherwise VF. First this cataloger<br />
has seen. (photo) Est. 150-250<br />
376 Wonderful Oil Share Collection.<br />
Uncle Sam Oil(3 types); War Baby Oil & Refinery;<br />
Wyoming Chief Oil & Refining; Old Dominion<br />
Oil(2); Sequoyah Oil & Refining; Security Oil(3)(2<br />
types); Salt Creek Petroleum; Richfield Union Petroleum;<br />
Pyramid Oil & Refining Syndicate; Pacific-Union Oil;<br />
Old Gibraltar oil; South Alabama Oil & Gas; Smackover<br />
Five Gusher Pool; Telfair Oil(2) Two-Ten Oil,<br />
and many more, all different. The consignor had an<br />
obvious passion for attractive and unusual oil shares.<br />
Mostly IC. Average VF+. Should be seen. [56]<br />
Est. 150-250<br />
377 Group of Oil Certificates, features: American Industrial<br />
Oil (AZ) 1917; Anticline Oil (ID) 1918; Appalachian<br />
Oil (DE) 1918; Black Panther Oil &<br />
Refining (DE) 1921; Black Golconda Syndicate (TX)<br />
1919; Buffalo Oil & Gas (OK) 1918; Butler Oil &<br />
Refining (CO) 1937; California Diamond Oil (CA)<br />
190_; California Rock-Oil (CA) 1900; Eureka Oil &<br />
Refining (DE) 1919; Ohio & California Refining Oil<br />
(WV) 1902; and 43 others. Most with nice oil vignettes,<br />
average Fine-VF. [53] Est. 120-180<br />
Page 43
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