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"The Big Four" was the name popularly given to the famous and influential businessmen,
philanthropists Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private good, focusing on material ...
and railroad tycoons who funded the
Central Pacific Railroad The Central Pacific Railroad (CPRR) was a rail company chartered by U.S. Congress in 1862 to build a railroad eastwards from Sacramento, California, to complete the western part of the " First transcontinental railroad" in North America. Incor ...
, (C.P.R.R.), which formed the western portion through the
Sierra Nevada The Sierra Nevada () is a mountain range in the Western United States, between the Central Valley of California and the Great Basin. The vast majority of the range lies in the state of California, although the Carson Range spur lies primar ...
and the
Rocky Mountains The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in straight-line distance from the northernmost part of western Canada, to New Mexico ...
of the
First Transcontinental Railroad North America's first transcontinental railroad (known originally as the "Pacific Railroad" and later as the " Overland Route") was a continuous railroad line constructed between 1863 and 1869 that connected the existing eastern U.S. rail netwo ...
in the United States, built from the mid-continent at the Missouri River to the Pacific Ocean during the middle and late 1860s. Composed of
Leland Stanford Amasa Leland Stanford (March 9, 1824June 21, 1893) was an American industrialist and politician. A member of the Republican Party, he served as the 8th governor of California from 1862 to 1863 and represented California in the United States Sen ...
(1824–1893),
Collis Potter Huntington Collis Potter Huntington (October 22, 1821 – August 13, 1900) was an American industrialist and railway magnate. He was one of the Big Four of western railroading (along with Leland Stanford, Mark Hopkins, and Charles Crocker) who invested i ...
(1821–1900), Mark Hopkins Jr. (1813–1878), and
Charles Crocker Charles Crocker (September 16, 1822 – August 14, 1888) was an American railroad executive who was one of the founders of the Central Pacific Railroad, which constructed the westernmost portion of the first transcontinental railroad, and took ...
(1822–1888), the four themselves, however, personally preferred to be known as "The Associates." They enriched themselves utilizing tax money and
land grant A land grant is a gift of real estate—land or its use privileges—made by a government or other authority as an incentive, means of enabling works, or as a reward for services to an individual, especially in return for military service. Grants ...
s, while heavily influencing the State legislature from within the Republican party (Stanford was governor of California when the first of the Pacific Railroad Acts was passed), and through monopolizing tactics. Contemporary critics claimed they were the greatest swindlers in U.S. history.


Membership

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Leland Stanford Amasa Leland Stanford (March 9, 1824June 21, 1893) was an American industrialist and politician. A member of the Republican Party, he served as the 8th governor of California from 1862 to 1863 and represented California in the United States Sen ...
(1824–1893), – C.P.R.R. President,
Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is conside ...
founder. *
Collis Potter Huntington Collis Potter Huntington (October 22, 1821 – August 13, 1900) was an American industrialist and railway magnate. He was one of the Big Four of western railroading (along with Leland Stanford, Mark Hopkins, and Charles Crocker) who invested i ...
(1821–1900), – C.P.R.R. Vice President, for which the city of
Huntington, West Virginia Huntington is a city in Cabell and Wayne counties in the U.S. state of West Virginia. It is the county seat of Cabell County, and the largest city in the Huntington–Ashland metropolitan area, sometimes referred to as the Tri-State Area. A ...
was named. He is also the uncle of
Henry E. Huntington Henry Edwards Huntington (February 27, 1850 – May 23, 1927) was an American railroad magnate and collector of art and rare books. Huntington settled in Los Angeles, where he owned the Pacific Electric Railway as well as substantial real estate ...
, (1850–1927), founder of the famous Huntington Library with its art galleries and gardens in San Marino, California. * Mark Hopkins Jr. (1813–1878), – C.P.R.R. Treasurer *
Charles Crocker Charles Crocker (September 16, 1822 – August 14, 1888) was an American railroad executive who was one of the founders of the Central Pacific Railroad, which constructed the westernmost portion of the first transcontinental railroad, and took ...
(1822–1888), – Construction Supervisor, President of Charles Crocker & Co., a C.P.R.R. subsidiary, later founder of the larger, more extensive
Southern Pacific Railroad The Southern Pacific (or Espee from the railroad initials- SP) was an American Class I railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States. The system was operated by various companies under the ...
, another transcontinental link to the east, built later in 1883. Collectively, the four established the Sacramento Library Association for the state capital in
Sacramento, California ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento C ...
in 1857, which later established the present
Sacramento Public Library Sacramento Public Library is a public library system in Sacramento, California. With nearly 2 million items, it is the fourth largest library system in California. History Founding The Sacramento Library Association was established in October 1 ...
.
David Hewes David Hewes (May 16, 1822 in Lynnfield, Massachusetts – July 23, 1915 in Orange, California), was an American born into one of the "old families" of Massachusetts that could be traced back seven generations to the patriot Joshua Hewes. Hew ...
, an enterprising businessman, was called the "maker of San Francisco" for his work in clearing land for development. He was invited to be a part of the "Big Four" but declined due to the financial risks. Over his lifetime he gained and lost several fortunes. In their time, the four men were sometimes referred to as nabobs or "nobs," a reference to their wealth and influence. When the four built mansions in the same neighborhood of San Francisco, the area quickly became known as
Nob Hill Nob Hill is a neighborhood of San Francisco, California, United States that is known for its numerous luxury hotels and historic mansions. Nob Hill has historically served as a center of San Francisco's upper class. Nob Hill is among the hig ...
, a name it carries today.


In popular culture

In Henry T. Williams' ''The Pacific tourist – Williams' illustrated trans-continental guide of travel, from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean'' published in 1878, the Big Four was replaced by the Five Associates or Representative Men of the Central Pacific Railroad, with Charles Crocker's older brother Judge Edwin B. Crocker (1818–1875), who served as the CPRR attorney from 1865 to 1869, added.
Ambrose Bierce Ambrose Gwinnett Bierce (June 24, 1842 – ) was an American short story writer, journalist, poet, and American Civil War veteran. His book ''The Devil's Dictionary'' was named as one of "The 100 Greatest Masterpieces of American Literature" by t ...
lampooned the "Big Four" in his work ''"Black Beetles in Amber"'', a collection of satirical verses attacking various prominent Californians. In "The Birth of the Rail", "road agents" (bandits) Happy Hunty (Huntington), Cowboy Charley (Crocker), and Leland The Kid (Stanford), joined by minor devil Sootymug (Hopkins), give up robbing stage coaches for the much greater loot of railroad operation.


References

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External links


"The Story of the Central Pacific. The Rise of the Big Four: Huntington, Stanford, Crocker, and Hopkins"
By W.F. Bailey in ''
The Pacific Monthly ''The Pacific Monthly'' was a magazine of politics, culture, literature, and opinion, published in Portland, Oregon, United States from 1898 to 1911, when it was purchased by Southern Pacific Railroad and merged with its magazine, ''Sunset''. ...
'', January 1908. {{The Big Four American railway entrepreneurs *Big Four Businesspeople from the San Francisco Bay Area First transcontinental railroad People from Sacramento County, California Rail transportation in California History of California History of rail transportation in the United States History of the American West * Quartets