The evolution of Standard Oil
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The Evolution of Standard Oil:
ROCKEFELLER’S JUGGERNAUT WAS SPLIT INTO 34 COMPANIES
The Chart of the Week is a weekly Visual Capitalist feature on Fridays.
A couple of weeks ago, we published an infographic showing how the list of the most
valuable companies in the U.S.
has changed drastically over the last 100 years.
Near the top of that list in 1917 is The Standard Oil Company of New Jersey, which is just
one of the 34 forced spin-offs from the original Standard Oil juggernaut that was split up in
1911.
In today’s chart, we look at the “fragments” of Standard Oil, and who owns these assets
today.
MONOPOLY DECISION
At the turn of the 20th century, John D.
Rockefeller’s Standard Oil was a force to be
reckoned with.
In the year 1904, it controlled 91% of oil production and 85% of final sales
in the United States.
As a result, an antitrust case was filed against the company in 1906 under the Sherman
Antitrust Act, arguing that the company used tactics such as raising prices in areas where it
had a monopoly, while price gouging in areas where it still faced competition.
By the time the Standard Oil was broken up in 1911, its market share had eroded to 64%,
and there were at least 147 refining companies competing with it in the United States.
Meanwhile, John D.
Rockefeller had left the company, yet the value of his stock doubled as
a result of the split.
This made him the world’s richest person at the time.
IMG
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