Thomas Clark Durant
| Thomas Clark Durant, M.D. | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Born |
February 6, 1820 Lee, Massachusetts |
| Died | October 5, 1885 (aged 65) Warren County, New York |
| Resting place | Green-Wood Cemetery |
| Education | Albany Medical College (1840) |
| Occupation | Physician, financier, railroad promoter |
| Known for | Crédit Mobilier scandal and vice president of railroad |
| Spouse(s) | Hannah Heloise Trimble |
| Children |
William West Durant Héloïse Durant Rose (1854–1943) |
Thomas Clark Durant (February 6, 1820 – October 5, 1885) was an American financier and railroad promoter. He was vice-president of the Union Pacific Railroad (UP) in 1869 when it met with the Central Pacific railroad at Promontory Summit in Utah Territory. He created the financial structure which led to the Crédit Mobilier scandal.
He was successful in building railroads in the Midwest, and, after the UP was organized in 1862 by an act of Congress, John A. Dix was elected president and Durant vice president of the company. The burden of management and money raising was assumed by Durant, and, with much money at his disposal, he helped to secure in 1864 the passage of a bill that increased the land grants and privileges of the railroad. He organized and at first controlled the Crédit Mobilier of America, but in 1867 he lost control of the company to brothers Oliver and Oakes Ames. Durant, however, continued on the directorate of the Union Pacific and furiously pushed construction of the railroad until it met the Central Pacific RR on May 10, 1869. The Ames group then procured his discharge.
Durant was born February 6, 1820 in Lee, Massachusetts. He studied medicine at Albany Medical College where, in 1840, he graduated cum laude and briefly served as assistant professor of surgery. After he retired from this field, he became a director of his uncle’s grain exporting company: Durant, Lathrop and Company in New York City.
While working with the prairie wheat trade, Durant discovered the need for improved inland transportation, a discovery that led him to the railroad industry. Durant got his start in the railroad industry working as a broker for the Chicago and Rock Island Railroad. It was during this time that Durant became professionally acquainted with Henry Farnam.
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