Charles E. Merrill
| Charles E. Merrill | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Born |
Charles Edward Merrill October 19, 1885 Green Cove Springs, Florida, U.S. |
| Died | October 6, 1956 (aged 70) Southampton, New York, U.S. |
| Alma mater |
Amherst College University of Michigan Law School |
| Occupation | Banker |
| Known for | Founder of Merrill Lynch |
| Children |
Charles E. Merrill Jr. Doris Merrill Magowan James Merrill |
| Relatives | Peter A. Magowan (grandson) |
Charles Edward Merrill (October 19, 1885 – October 6, 1956) was an American philanthropist, and co-founder, with Edmund C. Lynch of Merrill Lynch & Company (previously called Charles E. Merrill & Co.).
Charles E. Merrill, the son of physician Dr. Charles Merrill and Octavia (Wilson) Merrill, was born in Green Cove Springs, Florida, where he spent his early childhood. In 1898 the family briefly moved to Knoxville, Tennessee but within the year returned to Florida to settle in Jacksonville. After the school Merrill had been attending was damaged in the Great Fire of 1901, his parents decided to send him to the college preparatory academy operated by John B. Stetson University (now known as Stetson University). Merrill studied there from 1901 till 1903 and then in 1903 for the final year of high school was transferred to Worcester Academy. After two years at Amherst College, Merrill spent time at the University of Michigan Law School from 1906 to 1907; worked at Patchogue-Plymouth Mills from 1907–09; at George H. Burr & Co., New York City, from 1909–13; then established Charles E. Merrill & Co.
Merrill and his friend, Edmund C. Lynch, created Merrill Lynch in 1915. Merrill made his money by investing. He orchestrated the 1926 merger which created the Safeway food chain, and Merrill Lynch provided investment banking services to Safeway to finance the acquisition of other chains, growing Safeway to more than 3,500 stores across the United States by 1931.
Merrill anticipated the Stock market crash of 1929, and divested many of his holdings before the Great Depression. Merrill merged his retail brokerage and wire operations with E.A. Pierce and Co., thereby restructuring Merrill Lynch and Co. to focus upon investment banking. Additionally, Merrill was known to have pleaded with President Calvin Coolidge (like Merrill, an Amherst alumnus) to speak out against speculation, but Coolidge did not listen to him.
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