William B. Leeds
| William B. Leeds | |
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| Born | September 19, 1861 |
| Died | June 23, 1908 |
William Bateman Leeds (September 19, 1861 – June 23, 1908) was an American businessman. He dominated the tin plate industry, becoming known as the "Tin Plate King". His fortune was estimated to be $45 million at his death (as much as $6 billion adjusted for inflation). Together with William Henry Moore, Daniel G. Reid and James Hobart Moore, he became known as one of the 'big four' or 'tin plate crowd' in American industry.
Leeds was born in 1861, to parents Noah Smith Leeds and Hannah Star Leeds in Richmond, Indiana. After receiving an education at public schools, Leeds worked as a florist. In 1883, he married Jeannette Gaar, a relative of Harry Miller, general superintendent of the Pennsylvania Railroad. That same year, he joined an engineering corps. Three years later, Leeds was employed by the Cincinnati and Richmond Railroad, where he became division superintendent in 1890.
Leeds first went into the tin-plate industry with partners who invested invested about $250,000, and the company failed. Later, Leeds founded the American Tin Plate Co. in 1898, with his partners Daniel G. Reid, William H. Moore and James H. Moore. The company grew to consist of over 200 companies, and gained control of as much as 90% of the tinplate industry. The company expanded to comprise of over 28 mills in Elwood.William McKinley passed a tin tariff, in part to protect their business. They organized the National Steel Corporation in 1899 to provide steel to the tin company, with about $50 million in stock. The company sold for as much as $40 million to U.S. Steel.
Leeds was also involved in founding the National Steel Corporation, American Sheet Steel Company and the American Steel Hoop Company He became president of Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad in 1902. In 1904, he was ousted from the company after a disagreement with his partners. Leeds was heavily involved with National Biscuit Company, Diamond Match Company, Tobacco Products Corporation and American Can Company. Additionally, he was the director of the Audit Co. of New York, Elwood, St. Louis and San Francisco Railroad, Burlington, Cedar Rapids and Northern Railway, Chicago and Eastern Illinois Railroad, United States Mortgage and Trust Co., Anderson and Lapelle Railroad Company, Nassau Gas, Heat and Power Co., Nassau Light and Power Co., and the Windsor Trust Co.
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