Oliver Payne

Oliver Hazard Payne
Born	July 21, 1839
Died	June 27, 1917
Resting place	Lake View Cemetery, Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.
Residence	Col. Oliver Hazard Payne Estate
Education	Phillips Academy
Alma mater	Yale University
Occupation	Businessman
Parent(s)	Henry B. Payne Mary Perry
Relatives	William Payne Whitney (nephew) Harry Payne Whitney (nephew) Frances Payne Bolton (niece)

Oliver Hazard Payne (July 21, 1839 – June 27, 1917) was an American businessman, organizer of the American Tobacco trust, and assisted with the formation of U.S. Steel, and was affiliated with Standard Oil. He is considered one of the 100 wealthiest Americans, having left an enormous fortune.

Oliver Hazard Payne was born on July 21, 1839. His father, Henry B. Payne, was a businessman and politician. His mother was Mary Perry. He was named for Oliver Hazard Perry, a relative of his mother. He was the uncle of (William) Payne Whitney and Harry Payne Whitney. He was also the uncle of Congresswoman Frances Payne Bolton (1885–1977).

Payne was educated at the Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts, where he graduated in 1859. He attended Yale University, where he was a member of Delta Kappa Epsilon.

In 1861, at the outbreak of the American Civil War of 1861-1865, Payne enlisted in the Union Army. By 1863, he was colonel of the 124th Ohio Infantry. He was Brevetted Brigadier General March 13, 1865.

Payne began his career shortly after the war, investing in iron and then oil refining. His oil interests were the first acquired by Standard Oil, and he became a trustee of that firm. He was charged with bribing members of the Ohio Legislature to attain a Senate seat for his father (before the U.S. Senate was directly elected), and with bribing the Democratic Party to name his brother-in-law United States Secretary of the Navy, though the charges were dropped.

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