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Charles Bergstresser

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Charles Milford Bergstresser (June 25, 1858 – September 20, 1923) was an American journalist[1] and, with Charles Dow and Edward Jones, one of the founders of Dow Jones & Company at 15 Wall Street in 1882.

Early life

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A native of Berrysburg, Pennsylvania, Bergstresser was born on June 25, 1858.[2] Bergstresser graduated from Lafayette College, where he took a scientific course and Latin, in 1881.[2] After graduation, he took a job with the Kiernan News Agency, but he was not satisfied with his employment, particularly when the Agency refused to give equity interest in a stylus that he had invented which would allow information to be inscribed in 35 bulletins at once.[3] Dow and Jones were co-workers there, and Bergstresser convinced the pair to join him in departing from Kiernan to form their own company in November 1882.[3][4]

Dow Jones

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Although he was the chief financier of the fledgling company,[4] Bergstresser chose to be a silent partner of Dow and Jones, using money he had saved while in college to fund their company.[citation needed] He worked for the new company, which was located in the basement of 15 Wall Street, near the New York Stock Exchange,[5] as a reporter.[6] It was he who came up with the name The Wall Street Journal.[4]

Later life

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He retired as a journalist in 1903.[7] He died on Thursday, September 20, 1923,[8] survived by his daughter Mrs. Ethel B. Stewart McCoy.[9][10]

References

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  1. ^ Charles M. Berstresser (February 23, 1905). "Responsibility Rests with the City to Force the Use of a Loop". The New York Times.
  2. ^ a b Coffin, Selden Jennings; William Baxter Owen (1879). Record of the men of Lafayette: brief biographical sketches of the alumni of Lafayette College from its organization to the present time. Lafayette College. p. 290. Retrieved December 17, 2010.
  3. ^ a b Geisst, Charles R. (2006). Encyclopedia of American business history. Infobase Publishing. p. 305. ISBN 978-0-8160-4350-7.
  4. ^ a b c Carlson, Charles B. (December 14, 2004). Winning with the Dow's Losers: Beat the Market with Underdog Stocks. HarperCollins. pp. 26–. ISBN 978-0-06-057658-5.
  5. ^ "1882". History of Business Journalism. Archived from the original on October 23, 2023.
  6. ^ Lovell, Ronald P. (January 1, 1993). Reporting public affairs: problems & solutions. Waveland Press. p. 402. ISBN 978-0-88133-696-2.
  7. ^ John Franklincomp Stonecipher (2009) [1913]. Biographical Catalogue of Lafayette College 1832-1912. BiblioBazaar, LLC. pp. 271–. ISBN 978-1-116-07280-8. Retrieved December 17, 2010. This is a reproduction of an out of copyright work, originally published Easton, Pa., Chemical pub. co.
  8. ^ "C.M. Bergstresser Dies at Age of 65". The Wall Street Journal. September 22, 1923. Archived from the original on January 11, 2012. Retrieved December 17, 2010 – via ProQuest Archiver.
  9. ^ James Barron (May 23, 2016). "Inverted Jenny, Object of Intrigue in Stamp World, Re-emerges After 61 Years". The New York Times. Archived from the original on November 21, 2023.
  10. ^ Matthew Healey (September 14, 2014). "$100,000 Reward for Missing 'Jennies'". The New York Times. Archived from the original on November 21, 2023. Shortly after Ms. McCoy died in 1980 at the age of 87