John Knowles Fitch (February 15, 1880 – July 5, 1969) was the founder of the Fitch Publishing Company, and developed a

financial securities A security is a tradable financial asset. The term commonly refers to any form of financial instrument, but its legal definition varies by jurisdiction. In some countries and languages people commonly use the term "security" to refer to any for ...

rating system from AAA to D. Fitch ratings are used as a tool in the business of

credit rating A credit rating is an evaluation of the credit risk of a prospective debtor (an individual, a business, company or a government), predicting their ability to pay back the debt, and an implicit forecast of the likelihood of the debtor defaulting. ...

, usually behind

Moody's Moody's Investors Service, often referred to as Moody's, is the bond credit rating business of Moody's Corporation, representing the company's traditional line of business and its historical name. Moody's Investors Service provides international ...

ratings and

Standard & Poor's S&P Global Ratings (previously Standard & Poor's and informally known as S&P) is an American credit rating agency (CRA) and a division of S&P Global that publishes financial research and analysis on stocks, bonds, and commodities. S&P is con ...

ratings.

Biography

Fitch's father was Francis Emory Fitch (September 15, 1850 – 1910), his mother was Cornelia Knowles (graduated

Vassar College Vassar College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Poughkeepsie, New York, United States. Founded in 1861 by Matthew Vassar, it was the second degree-granting institution of higher education for women in the United States, closely follo ...

1873). He was born in

Bridgeport, Connecticut Bridgeport is the List of municipalities in Connecticut, most populous city and a major port in the U.S. state of Connecticut. With a population of 148,654 in 2020, it is also the List of cities by population in New England, fifth-most populous ...

and while he was still a child, his parents moved to

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

, where they remained until 1891. They moved at that time to

Passaic, New Jersey Passaic ( or ) is a city in Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the city had a total population of 70,537, ranking as the 16th largest municipality in New Jersey and an increase of 656 from the 69,78 ...

. He attended the Friends School in Brooklyn, and later the public school of

Passaic Passaic ( or ) is a city in Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the city had a total population of 70,537, ranking as the 16th largest municipality in New Jersey and an increase of 656 from the 69,7 ...

. Following his graduation from

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

, which he entered in June 1902, he married Lillian L. Whitehead on June 15, 1905. She was the daughter of Reverend M. J. H. Whitehead, pastor of the North Reformed Church of Passaic, New Jersey. They resided in Passaic for several years, and then took up residence in

Upper Montclair, New Jersey Upper Montclair is a census-designated place (CDP), unincorporated community and neighborhood within Montclair in Essex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the population for the CDP was 11,565.

. Shortly after his graduation from Columbia, Fitch bought a well-known florist shop located on

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

and 22nd Street in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. He took

correspondence courses Distance education, also known as distance learning, is the education of students who may not always be physically present at a school, or where the learner and the teacher are separated in both time and distance. Traditionally, this usually in ...

in a variety of subjects, including

advertising Advertising is the practice and techniques employed to bring attention to a product or service. Advertising aims to put a product or service in the spotlight in hopes of drawing it attention from consumers. It is typically used to promote a ...

. Following the death of Mallory Knowles Fitch, his elder brother, John Fitch sold his florist business and worked with his father in the printing business at 47 Broad Street, New York City. After the death of his father in 1910, the business was incorporated under the name of Francis Emory Smith Inc., and was located in the Fitch Building at 138 Pearl Street, near the corner of

Wall Street Wall Street is an eight-block-long street in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It runs between Broadway in the west to South Street and the East River in the east. The term "Wall Street" has become a metonym for t ...

in New York City. Upon the incorporation of this company, John Knowles Fitch became its president. On December 24, 1913, Fitch founded a new corporation named The Fitch Publishing Company, Inc. of which he was president. The main offices of this company were also located in the Fitch Building. Among the Fitch Publishing Company's publications were the ''Fitch Bond Book'', the ''Fitch Stock and Bond Manual'', and other services furnishing daily and weekly statistics on the

New York Stock Exchange The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE, nicknamed "The Big Board") is an American stock exchange in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It is by far the world's largest stock exchange by market capitalization of its listed c ...

and the American and Canadian corporate security field. Fitch was president of the Alumni Federation of Columbia University, and during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

aroused interest among his classmates to raise funds to purchase and equip an ambulance to be sent to France for the soldiers. His hobbies included

yacht A yacht is a sailing or power vessel used for pleasure, cruising, or racing. There is no standard definition, though the term generally applies to vessels with a cabin intended for overnight use. To be termed a , as opposed to a , such a pleasu ...

ing and

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping wi ...

ing. He sailed his yacht ''Bavois'' to the coast of

Labrador , nickname = "The Big Land" , etymology = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Canada , subdivision_type1 = Province , subdivision_name1 ...

to visit scenes made famous by Sir Wilfred Grenfell.

Personal life

John Knowles Fitch and his wife, Lillian Whitehead, had three children: John Knowles Jr. (born April 17, 1906, died January 21, 1998); and twins Marjorie and Muriel (born 1907). He died on June 5, 1969, in

Easton, Pennsylvania Easton is a city in, and the county seat of, Northampton County, Pennsylvania, United States. The city's population was 28,127 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Easton is located at the confluence of the Lehigh River, a river tha ...

References

Sources

* Fitch, Roscoe Conkling. History of the Fitch family A.D. 1400-1930: a record of the Fitches in England and America, including "pedigree of Fitch" certified by the College of Arms, London, England. Haverhill, Massachusetts: Record Pub. Co., 1930.
The History of Fitch Ratings
2006.

External links

*
Fitch Ratings
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fitch, John Knowles American chief executives of financial services companies Columbia College (New York) alumni 1880 births 1969 deaths People from Bridgeport, Connecticut Brooklyn Friends School alumni Passaic High School alumni