Hetty Green

“Warren Buffett living modestly in Omaha while managing billions follows principles Hedy would have approved of. But where Buffett is celebrated as a sage, Hedy was often dismissed as eccentric.”

“When Huntington tried to block the sale, And then showed up threatening Ned personally, Hetty's response was characteristic. Up until now, Huntington, you have dealt with Hetty Green, the businesswoman. Now you are fighting Hetty Green, the mother. Herm one ha…”

“The ensuing court case became one of America's first trials to use statistical evidence.”

“Hetty's frugality, which was something that would be praised as prudent business sense in men, became the subject of vicious gossip because she was a woman.”

“Even when Hetty had a lot of leverage over other people, she never took advantage of them.”

“By age eight, she had opened her own savings account, depositing her weekly allowance, and watching compound interest work its magic.”

“Her wealth during this period was estimated between 40 and fifty million, making her the richest woman in America and possibly the richest woman in the world.”

“In December of 1890, when the town of Kohlauer defaulted and went up for auction, Hedy and Ned were there before dawn, walking the streets and inspecting every property. When bidding began at 10 o'clock, they had already arranged financing. Before other bidder…”

“But when the newly consolidated city needed funds, she had no problem loading them one million at two percent interest, which was well below the usual 3.5% rate.”

“Cammack had sold Louisville and Nashville stock short, betting it would fall on bad earnings. But Hedy was quietly cornering the market, buying every share she could find. As the stock rose, instead of falling, Cammack found himself trapped. He needed 40,000 s…”

“The woman who had spent her life fighting for every dollar died while arguing with her cook over the cost of milk.”

“The hundred million dollars she left behind has long since been dispersed, flowing into libraries and hospitals and universities and parks.”

“She contributed over six figures to the Fusion Party in Texas to defeat Williams Jennings Byron, who had made her a campaign target, railing against her wealth and demanding a federal income tax”

“They offered a 115 dollars per share for stock she'd bought for 70 dollars. She demanded one 25. When they returned with a complex deal, she raised her price to one 30. Through pure nerve, she eventually sold at one 27 50. Nearly doubling her money.”

“This obsession with information gave her an edge in an era before SEC regulations, standardized accounting, or financial transparency.”

“She bought bonds trading as low as 50 cents On the dollar from the US government. When they fell farther, she bought even more. When the government honored them in gold, she made a fortune.”

“Her son, Ned, revealed years later that during the 19 oh seven panic, Hetty had loaned over six million in Texas alone in addition to her New York loans. She single-handedly kept several banks from failing, prevented numerous businesses from going under, and h…”

“She offered them 1.8 million for five years, demanding the original steward building as security and taking her six percent interest in advance. At the time, it was the largest mortgage ever given on a single New York property.”

“Before making a deal, if anyone is fool enough to offer you the full amount, take it. If you're offered less, tell them and you'll give them an answer in the morning. Think the matter over carefully in the evening. If you decide that it will be to your advanta…”

“Instead of spending 1200 dollars on clothes like she was supposed to, she spent 200 dollars and invested the rest in bonds.”

“She was the only female robber baron effectively of the age, and she was resented for the plainlessness of her clothes and her diet and effectively for her austerity.”

“She basically took her inheritance after she got control of it in her late thirties, and she twenty-x'd it while all the chips in the world basically were stacked against her.”

“After your business is over, you may take him to dinner and theater, but wait until the transaction has been closed and the money paid.”