Bill Graham

popular name: Cornelius Vanderbilt

date_of_death: January 4, 1877

age: 82

cause_of_death: Exhaustion and chronic health issues

claim_to_fame: Business and Finance

best_know_for: The Vanderbilt name is synonymous with America’s Gilded Age. Upon their deaths, “Commodore” Cornelius Vanderbilt, who established the family’s fortune, and his son William H., who doubled it in just a few years, were the wealthiest men in the United States, if not the world. The steamboat and railroad companies they founded and led played a major role in the development of New York City and State. When he died in 1877 in his mansion at 10 Washington Place, Vanderbilt left a fortune of $105 million. He willed the bulk of it—$95 million, more than was possessed by the United States Treasury—to his oldest son, William Henry Vanderbilt.

popular name: Gilbert F. Heublein

date_of_death: March 21, 1937

age: 87

cause_of_death: Arteriosclerosis

claim_to_fame: Business and Finance

best_know_for: German-born Gilbert F. Heublein was a prominent hotelier, restaurateur, food and liquor distributor in Hartford, Connecticut. While most people remember Gilbert for securing the license and distribution rights of A-1 Steak Sauce to the United States, his real claim to fame should be his discovery and marketing of pre-made cocktails. As the legend goes, Gilbert and his brother Louis had prepared a quantity of premixed cocktails for a large annual picnic. It rained and the event was canceled. A few days later a employee of the Heubleins was told to dispose of the unused beverages. Deciding to taste them first, he found that the drinks had suffered no deterioration and announced the discovery to his bosses. The Heubleins took note and began selling the premixed libations in their saloon and restaurant. The cocktails proved very popular with customers and increasingly became the focus of the family’s attention. With Gilbert now running the business, the new firm concentrated on the premixed cocktails such as Martinis and Manhattans, advertising them widely as Club Cocktails. Upon the enactment of Prohibition in 1920, Heublein's "secondary sideline" of A.1. Sauce served as a fortunate savior, when the production, transportation and sale of all other Heublein products became illegal in the US for the next thirteen years. Upon Gilbert’s death, the company was taken over by John G. Martin, the son of Alice Heublein and Percy Martin, Gilbert Heublein’s grandson. Through Martin’s business savvy, G.F. Heublein & Bro. acquired the rights to sell Smirnoff vodka, Don Q rum, and Jose Cuervo tequila. In 1969, Heublein, Inc. began to package pre-mixed cocktails in 8-ounce cans, such as the ‘Brass Monkey’. The company also made acquisitions outside the liquor industry with the purchase of Grey Poupon mustard in 1936 and Kentucky Fried Chicken in 1971. In 1982, Heublein, Inc was sold to R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company for 1.4 billion dollars.

popular name: Oliver Winchester

date_of_death: December 10, 1880

age: 70

cause_of_death: Long term illness

claim_to_fame: Business and Finance

best_know_for: Oliver Fisher Winchester was an American businessman and politician, best known as the founder of the Winchester Repeating Arms Company in New Haven, Connecticut. Interesting to note that repeating rifles were used to some extent in the American Civil War. However, the United States Army at that time did not use many repeating rifles as they were expensive and too advanced for the outdated tactics used in the war. Repeating rifles were not widely used until after the war when they became increasingly popular with civilians. Military authorities concentrated primarily on perfecting breech-loading single shot rifles for many more years. With thousands of rifles in the hands of the average pioneer, the Winchester repeating rifles gained a reputation as "The Gun that Won the West". Oliver Winchester was also active in politics, serving as a New Haven City Commissioner, Republican Presidential elector in 1864, and as Lieutenant Governor of Connecticut from 1866 to 1867.