Jesse Knight
| Jesse Knight | |
|---|---|
Jesse Knight ca. 1913
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| Personal details | |
| Born |
Jesse Knight September 6, 1845 Nauvoo, Illinois, United States |
| Died | March 14, 1921 (aged 75) Provo, Utah, United States |
| Resting place | Provo City Cemetery 40°13′23″N 111°38′38″W / 40.223°N 111.644°W |
| Known For | Founding of Raymond, Alberta, Canada |
| Residence | Jesse Knight House |
| Spouse(s) | Amanda Knight |
| Children | including: Raymond Knight Inez Knight Allen |
| Parents |
Newel Knight Lydia Knight |
Jesse Knight (6 September 1845 — 14 March 1921) was one of relatively few Latter-day Saint mining magnates in nineteenth century Western America. Raised by the widow of Newel Knight, Jesse's family was poor throughout his youth. As a young man, he worked as a prospector and discovered the Humbug Mine in the Tintic Mining District near Eureka, Utah in 1896. As the Humbug proved profitable, he acquired other mines in the vicinity, including the Uncle Sam, Beck Tunnel, Iron Blossom, and Colorado mines. After making his fortune, Knight went on to found the Latter Day Saint settlement of Raymond, Alberta, Canada.
Knight was born in Nauvoo, Illinois to prominent Mormons Newel and Lydia Knight. When Jesse was a one-year-old, his family was forced to flee Nauvoo as Mormon pioneers under the leadership of Brigham Young. Jesse's father died in Nebraska on the Mormon Trail in January 1847; his mother and eight siblings continued on but were not able to reach their Salt Lake Valley destination until early 1850.
Knight is significant in Western American mining and entrepreneurial history because in several important ways he differed from the typical "robber baron" capitalists of the late-nineteenth century Gilded Age. His success, like theirs, depended upon the skillful acquisition and management of such business variables as claims, labor, capital, technology, and government services, and also upon the development of cost-efficient integrated enterprises, such as the Knight Investment Company. However, he also owned more patented mining claims in the Intermountain West than did his counterparts, and he was not inclined to engage in stock manipulation like many other mining entrepreneurs and railroad barons. Moreover, his business methods, especially when dealing with his working men, were far more paternalistic and benevolent than those of the typical big businessmen of the era. While other company town and mine owners often exploited their workers, Knight treated his workers very fairly in his company town of Knightsville, Utah, which he equipped with a meetinghouse, amusement hall, and school instead of the usual hedonistic establishments of mining camp life.
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