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The First Tycoon; The Epic Life of Cornelius Vanderbilt
by Stiles, T. J
- Used
- Fine
- Hardcover
- first
- Condition
- Fine/fine
- ISBN 10
- 0375415424
- ISBN 13
- 9780375415425
- Seller
-
Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2009. 1st. Hardcover. Fine/fine. Bound in publisher's original brown quarter brown cloth with blue paper on boards. Spine stamped in gilt. Includes photos, illustrations, and maps. 6 3/8 x 9 1/8 inches. 719 pages.
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
- James & Mary Laurie Booksellers (A.B.A.A.)
(US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- 9030320
- Title
- The First Tycoon; The Epic Life of Cornelius Vanderbilt
- Author
- Stiles, T. J
- Format/Binding
- Hardcover
- Book Condition
- Used - Fine
- Jacket Condition
- fine
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Edition
- 1st
- ISBN 10
- 0375415424
- ISBN 13
- 9780375415425
- Publisher
- Alfred A. Knopf
- Place of Publication
- New York
- Date Published
- 2009
- Keywords
- railroads, New York Central, commerce
Terms of Sale
James & Mary Laurie Booksellers (A.B.A.A.)
We describe our items carefully and conservatively. Anything may be returned for any reason for a full refund provided that the return is intiated within 5 days of receipt.
About the Seller
James & Mary Laurie Booksellers (A.B.A.A.)
Biblio member since 2006
Minneapolis, Minnesota
About James & Mary Laurie Booksellers (A.B.A.A.)
Please visit our open shop in the heart of downtown Minneapolis to browse more than 120,000 volumes of quality books in all fields. We also have an extensive inventory of antiquarian prints and maps and more than 30,000 classical and jazz vinyl records.
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Spine
- The outer portion of a book which covers the actual binding. The spine usually faces outward when a book is placed on a shelf....
- Cloth
- "Cloth-bound" generally refers to a hardcover book with cloth covering the outside of the book covers. The cloth is stretched...
- Gilt
- The decorative application of gold or gold coloring to a portion of a book on the spine, edges of the text block, or an inlay in...
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