Mortimer Wagar
| Mortimer H. Wagar | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1857 Ohio, United States |
| Died | December 23, 1926 (aged 68–69) 430 West 119th Street, Manhattan, New York City |
| Cause of death | Heart disease |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Banker, businessman |
| Years active | 1875-1926 |
| Home town | Toledo, Ohio |
Mortimer Hartwell Wagar (1857 – December 23, 1926) was an American banker and businessperson. Wager was a member of the Consolidated Exchange for 33 years. He was president from 1900 until 1903. He retired from the exchange in June 1923, at which point he was vice president. He also helped organize the Clearing House of the Consolidated Exchange, where he was president.
Mortimer Hartwell Wagar was born in 1857 in Toledo, Ohio. At age fourteen he started his first job as an office boy, and gradually he worked through positions at a grain and transportation business. At age 18, he was admitted to partnership by his employer, and Wagar joined the Toledo Board of Trade. He left Toledo in 1878 to vacation in Europe, and upon returning to New York, he joined the Produce Exchange. He resigned in 1885 to "engage in business on his own account," and he founded the grain brokerage firm Wagar, Martin & Co. The firm joined the Consolidated Exchange in 1890. In January 1897, he dissolved the grain broker firm Wagar and Moore, with Wagar taking the side of the business focused on the . By early June 1900, Wagar was a member of the Consolidated Stock Exchange, the Chicago Board of Trade, and the New York Produce Exchange, where he maintained an affiliation until his death.
At the annual election for the presidency of the Consolidated Stock and Petroleum Exchange on June 11, 1900, Wagar defeated Charles G. Wilson, who had held the role for fifteen years. According to The New York Times, "the contest was the most closely fought in the history of the Exchange, the total number of votes cast being 793. The largest vote ever polled in a previous election was 628." Wagar polled 504 votes to 287, winning the election with "a large majority of the members" supporting him. One of his first orders of business was working towards the extermination of bucket shops. Wagar was reelected the president of Consolidated in 1901 as the nominee on both the regular and independent tickets. He was elected again the following year to succeed himself. Samuel Armstrong Nelson wrote in 1909 that Wagar's "three years of work as head of the institution were marked by great activity and progressive results of a character that advanced the Exchange's interest in almost every department." He was president of the Consolidated Exchange from 1900 until 1903. He also helped organize the Clearing House of the Consolidated Exchange, where he was president.
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