Harry Ford Sinclair
Harry Ford Sinclair | |
|---|---|
| Born | Template:Birth date Benwood, West Virginia, U.S. |
| Died | November 10, 1956 (aged 80) Pasadena, California, U.S. |
| Occupation(s) | Entrepreneur, oil industrialist, sports patron |
| Known for | Founder of Sinclair Oil; involvement in Teapot Dome scandal; patron of baseball's Federal League; thoroughbred horse racing owner |
Harry Ford Sinclair (July 6, 1876 – November 10, 1956) was a prominent American entrepreneur and the founder of Sinclair Oil. He became embroiled in the Teapot Dome scandal during the 1920s and served a six-month sentence for contempt of Congress. Despite this legal challenge, Sinclair returned to his business pursuits and sustained his wealth until his passing.
In addition to his industrial ventures, Sinclair was a significant patron of sports, supporting baseball’s Federal League and owning elite thoroughbred horses that secured victories in the Kentucky Derby and three Belmont Stakes.
Early life
Sinclair was born in Benwood, West Virginia but was raised in Independence, Kansas. The son of a pharmacist, he pursued pharmacy studies at the University of Kansas. After his pharmacy enterprise failed in 1901, he transitioned to selling lumber used for oil derricks and began investing in oil leases. He worked as a lease broker and gained ownership in White Oil Company. By the age of thirty, Sinclair had amassed considerable wealth. In 1904, he married Elizabeth Farrell from Independence.
Oil business
In 1910, Sinclair joined three associates to acquire the defunct Farmers National Bank in Tulsa, Oklahoma, establishing Exchange National Bank with Sinclair as its president. This bank later became the National Bank of Tulsa, which eventually evolved into today’s Bank of Oklahoma.
On May 1, 1916, Sinclair merged eleven small petroleum firms to create Sinclair Oil. That same year, he purchased Chicago’s Cudahy Refining Company, which included pipelines and refining facilities. By the late 1920s, Sinclair Oil operated refineries with a daily capacity of 80,000 barrels and managed nearly of pipelines. The company also expanded into coal mining with a substantial property holding and ranked as the seventh-largest oil firm in the United States and the largest in the Midwest. Furthermore, Sinclair played a key role in founding the State Bank of Commerce in Independence and served on the board of the First National Bank of Independence.
His brother, Earle W. Sinclair, held the position of president at Sinclair Refining Company until his death in 1944.
Organized sports
Sinclair was a major financial backer of baseball’s Federal League, owning its Indianapolis team which he relocated to Newark, New Jersey, renaming it the Newark Peppers after the 1914 season. After the league disbanded in 1915, Sinclair reportedly profited $2 million from his investment. In 1916, he made an unsuccessful bid of $200,000 to purchase the St. Louis Cardinals.
His investments extended significantly into thoroughbred horse racing through acquisition of the renowned Rancocas Stable located in Jobstown, New Jersey, purchased from Pierre Lorillard IV’s estate. The extensive 2,000-acre facility featured state-of-the-art training amenities and became a dominant force during the 1920s under trainer Sam Hildreth. Sinclair’s racing stable secured wins at the Kentucky Derby and three Belmont Stakes, boasting celebrated horses such as Grey Lag and Zev, both inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame. The stable’s stature was further acknowledged by the Pennsylvania Railroad naming a baggage car after it.
Scandal
Sinclair’s standing took a major hit in 1922 when The Wall Street Journal exposed that Interior Secretary Albert B. Fall had awarded Sinclair Oil a lease on Wyoming government land designated for the Navy without holding a competitive bidding process. This incident, later termed the Teapot Dome scandal, led to a Senate inquiry that revealed widespread fraud and corruption. Ultimately, the Supreme Court annulled the lease in 1927.
During Sinclair’s trial in 1927, a mistrial was declared after it was discovered he had employed private detectives to monitor jurors. In 1929, the Supreme Court found him guilty of contempt of court; he was fined and sentenced to six and a half months in jail, which he served at the District of Columbia facility.
While imprisoned, Sinclair took on roles as a pharmacist and physician's assistant, enjoying privileges that drew public scrutiny amid allegations of special treatment. Despite restrictions imposed by welfare authorities, suspicions of preferential treatment continued to circulate.
In October 1929, Secretary Fall was found guilty of bribery connected to the scandal, receiving a $100,000 fine and a one-year prison sentence—marking the first time a Cabinet official was incarcerated for misconduct in office.
Later life
Following his short incarceration, Sinclair returned to his business ventures. He owned an opulent French Renaissance-style mansion located at Fifth Avenue and 79th Street in New York City, which he sold in 1930 after his reputation suffered. This residence was subsequently purchased by the Ukrainian Institute of America and is currently accessible to visitors.
Sinclair stepped down as president of Sinclair Oil and Gas Company in January 1949. He passed away in 1956 at age 80 in Pasadena, California and was buried at the Roman Catholic Calvary Cemetery, East Los Angeles.