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Johns Hopkins
Johns Hopkins (May 19, 1795 – December 24, 1873) was an American merchant, investor, and philanthropist best known for funding the establishment of Johns Hopkins University and Johns Hopkins Hospital, which have since become leading institutions for scientific research and medical advancements. At the time of his death, his donation was the largest philanthropic bequest ever made to an American educational institution.
Born on a plantation in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, Hopkins left his home to start a career at the age of seventeen, and settled in Baltimore, Maryland, where he remained for most of his life. He accumulated his fortune primarily through investing in the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O), for which he later served as finance director. He was also president of Baltimore-based Merchants' National Bank.
A Quaker, Hopkins strongly backed Abraham Lincoln and the Union during the American Civil War and was described as holding "antislavery political views." In 2020, new archival research prompted renewed scholarly debate over Hopkins’s relationship to slavery and his long-standing reputation as a staunch abolitionist. Researchers affiliated with Johns Hopkins University reported evidence suggesting that he may have owned or employed enslaved people earlier in his life, while other scholars have disputed these findings and emphasized his documented opposition to slavery and philanthropic support for Black education and social welfare.
Johns Hopkins was born on May 19, 1795, at his family's home of White's Hall, a 500-acre (200 ha) tobacco plantation in Anne Arundel County, Maryland. His first name was inherited from his grandfather Johns Hopkins, who received his first name from his mother Margaret Johns. He was one of eleven children born to Samuel Hopkins of Crofton, Maryland, and Hannah Janney, of Loudoun County, Virginia.
The Hopkins family were of English and Welsh descent and Quakers. Hopkins' sister, Sarah Hopkins Janney became a prominent member, and eventually an elder, at Baltimore Quaker Meeting. They emancipated their slaves in 1778 in accordance with their Quaker meeting's decree, which called for freeing the able-bodied and caring for the others, who would remain at the plantation and provide labor as they could. The second eldest of eleven children, Hopkins was required to work on the farm alongside his siblings and indentured and free Black laborers. From 1806 to 1809, he likely attended The Free School of Anne Arundel County, which was located in modern-day Davidsonville, Maryland.
In 1812, at the age of 17, Hopkins left the plantation to work in his uncle Gerard T. Hopkins's Baltimore wholesale grocery business. Gerard T. Hopkins was an established merchant and clerk of the Baltimore Yearly Meeting of Friends. While living with his uncle's family, Johns and his cousin, Elizabeth, fell in love; however, the Quaker taboo against the marriage of first cousins was strong, and neither Johns nor Elizabeth ever married.
Hopkins's early experiences and successes in business came when he was put in charge of the store while his uncle was away during the War of 1812. After seven years with his uncle, Hopkins went into business together with Benjamin Moore, a fellow Quaker. The business partnership was later dissolved with Moore alleging Hopkins's penchant for capital accumulation as the cause for the divide.
After Moore's withdrawal, Hopkins partnered with three of his brothers and established Hopkins & Brothers Wholesalers in 1819. The company prospered by selling various wares in the Shenandoah Valley from Conestoga wagons, sometimes in exchange for corn whiskey, which was then sold in Baltimore as "Hopkins' Best". The bulk of Hopkins's fortune, however, was made by his judicious investments in myriad ventures, most notably the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O), of which he became a director in 1847 and chairman of the Finance Committee in 1855. He was also President of Merchants' Bank as well as director of a number of other organizations. After a successful career, Hopkins was able to retire at the age of 52 in 1847.
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Johns Hopkins
Johns Hopkins (May 19, 1795 – December 24, 1873) was an American merchant, investor, and philanthropist best known for funding the establishment of Johns Hopkins University and Johns Hopkins Hospital, which have since become leading institutions for scientific research and medical advancements. At the time of his death, his donation was the largest philanthropic bequest ever made to an American educational institution.
Born on a plantation in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, Hopkins left his home to start a career at the age of seventeen, and settled in Baltimore, Maryland, where he remained for most of his life. He accumulated his fortune primarily through investing in the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O), for which he later served as finance director. He was also president of Baltimore-based Merchants' National Bank.
A Quaker, Hopkins strongly backed Abraham Lincoln and the Union during the American Civil War and was described as holding "antislavery political views." In 2020, new archival research prompted renewed scholarly debate over Hopkins’s relationship to slavery and his long-standing reputation as a staunch abolitionist. Researchers affiliated with Johns Hopkins University reported evidence suggesting that he may have owned or employed enslaved people earlier in his life, while other scholars have disputed these findings and emphasized his documented opposition to slavery and philanthropic support for Black education and social welfare.
Johns Hopkins was born on May 19, 1795, at his family's home of White's Hall, a 500-acre (200 ha) tobacco plantation in Anne Arundel County, Maryland. His first name was inherited from his grandfather Johns Hopkins, who received his first name from his mother Margaret Johns. He was one of eleven children born to Samuel Hopkins of Crofton, Maryland, and Hannah Janney, of Loudoun County, Virginia.
The Hopkins family were of English and Welsh descent and Quakers. Hopkins' sister, Sarah Hopkins Janney became a prominent member, and eventually an elder, at Baltimore Quaker Meeting. They emancipated their slaves in 1778 in accordance with their Quaker meeting's decree, which called for freeing the able-bodied and caring for the others, who would remain at the plantation and provide labor as they could. The second eldest of eleven children, Hopkins was required to work on the farm alongside his siblings and indentured and free Black laborers. From 1806 to 1809, he likely attended The Free School of Anne Arundel County, which was located in modern-day Davidsonville, Maryland.
In 1812, at the age of 17, Hopkins left the plantation to work in his uncle Gerard T. Hopkins's Baltimore wholesale grocery business. Gerard T. Hopkins was an established merchant and clerk of the Baltimore Yearly Meeting of Friends. While living with his uncle's family, Johns and his cousin, Elizabeth, fell in love; however, the Quaker taboo against the marriage of first cousins was strong, and neither Johns nor Elizabeth ever married.
Hopkins's early experiences and successes in business came when he was put in charge of the store while his uncle was away during the War of 1812. After seven years with his uncle, Hopkins went into business together with Benjamin Moore, a fellow Quaker. The business partnership was later dissolved with Moore alleging Hopkins's penchant for capital accumulation as the cause for the divide.
After Moore's withdrawal, Hopkins partnered with three of his brothers and established Hopkins & Brothers Wholesalers in 1819. The company prospered by selling various wares in the Shenandoah Valley from Conestoga wagons, sometimes in exchange for corn whiskey, which was then sold in Baltimore as "Hopkins' Best". The bulk of Hopkins's fortune, however, was made by his judicious investments in myriad ventures, most notably the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O), of which he became a director in 1847 and chairman of the Finance Committee in 1855. He was also President of Merchants' Bank as well as director of a number of other organizations. After a successful career, Hopkins was able to retire at the age of 52 in 1847.