Thomas Mellon
Thomas Mellon | |
|---|---|
| Born | Error: Invalid birth date for calculating age Omagh, County Tyrone, Ireland |
| Died | February 3, 1908 (aged 95) |
| Occupation(s) | Entrepreneur, jurist, attorney |
| Known for | Founder of Mellon Bank, head of the Mellon family |
Thomas Mellon (born February 3, 1813 – died February 3, 1908) was a prominent entrepreneur, jurist, and attorney, widely recognized as the founder of Mellon Bank and the head of the influential Mellon family based in Pittsburgh.
Early life and education
Born in Omagh, County Tyrone, Ireland, to farmers Andrew Mellon and Rebecca Wauchob on February 3, 1813, Mellon’s family relocated to the United States in 1818, establishing themselves in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania. Influenced by the affluence he witnessed during his youth and inspired by The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin, Mellon chose to forgo farming. He enrolled at the University of Pittsburgh in 1834 and completed his studies in 1837.
Career
Following his graduation, Mellon gained experience working at a law office in Pittsburgh and served as clerk for the Allegheny County prothonotary. After his admission to the bar in 1838, he launched a legal practice specializing in civil litigation. In 1843, he married Sarah Jane Negley, thereby connecting with a notable Pittsburgh family. Mellon's legal career flourished, culminating in his election as assistant judge of the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas in 1859, a position he held for a decade.
Utilizing profits from his legal work, Mellon invested heavily in real estate within downtown Pittsburgh. He retired from judicial duties in 1870 to found T. Mellon & Sons' Bank alongside his sons Andrew W. and Richard B. Mellon. The bank’s initial headquarters was adorned with a statue of Benjamin Franklin above its entrance, reflecting Mellon's admiration for Franklin.
Although the Panic of 1873 nearly resulted in the loss of his estate, Mellon endured the financial crisis and leveraged the subsequent economic upswing by investing in property holdings, coal mining operations, and extending a critical $10,000 loan to industrialist Henry Clay Frick, which supported Andrew Carnegie's steel enterprise.
Between 1877 and 1878, Mellon financed the development of the Ligonier Valley Railroad and transformed adjacent land into what eventually became Idlewild park and later the prestigious Rolling Rock Club.
On January 5, 1882, Mellon stepped back from daily bank management responsibilities, delegating control to his son Andrew. Under Andrew and Richard's stewardship, Mellon Bank expanded to become the largest banking institution outside New York by the end of the nineteenth century. By 1890, Mellon had divested most of his remaining real estate assets.
He passed away on his ninety-fifth birthday in 1908 at his residence in East Liberty. Survived by his wife Sarah and their three children, both were laid to rest at Pittsburgh's Allegheny Cemetery.
Family and personal life
As a devout Presbyterian, Mellon was an active supporter of the East Liberty Presbyterian Church, situated on land initially donated by the Negley family.
He owned a country residence at 401 North Negley Avenue in East Liberty where he engaged in horticulture, cultivating fruit trees and various crops. Mellon also held an interest in Robert Burns’ poetry and Irish historical studies.
Thomas and Sarah Mellon had eight children, five of whom reached adulthood:
- Thomas Alexander Mellon (born 1844), married Mary C. Caldwell; father to Thomas Alexander Mellon III and architect Edward Purcell Mellon.
- James Ross Mellon (born 1846), married Rachel Hughey Larimer; father of William Larimer Mellon.
- Andrew William Mellon (1855–1937)
- Richard Beatty Mellon (1858–1933), married Jennie King.
- George Negley Mellon (1860–1887)
Mellon involved his sons early on in business endeavors. By age twenty-one, Thomas and James had accumulated approximately $100,000 through managing a nursery, lumber yard, and construction supply company; meanwhile, Andrew was overseeing theatre operations at seventeen. Equipped with entrepreneurial skills from a young age, the Mellons emerged as some of America’s wealthiest industrialists by the time Judge Mellon died in 1908.
Further reading
- James Ross Mellon: The Judge: A Life of Thomas Mellon, Founder of a Fortune (Yale University Press, 2011) 575 pages
External links
- Mellon Homestead, the birthplace of Thomas Mellon located at the Ulster American Folk Park in County Tyrone
- Scots-Irish Americans
- Thomas Mellon and William B. Negley Day Book held at the University of Pittsburgh Archives Service Center