Charles Ranlett Flint (January 24, 1850 – February 26, 1934) was the founder of the Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company which later became IBM. For his financial dealings, he earned the moniker "Father of Trusts". He was an avid sportsman and member of the syndicate that built the yacht ''Vigilant'', that was the U.S. defender of the eighth

America's Cup The America's Cup, informally known as the Auld Mug, is a trophy awarded in the sport of sailing. It is the oldest international competition still operating in any sport. America's Cup match races are held between two sailing yachts: one ...

and was the owner of the yacht ''Gracie''.

Early life and family

Flint was born on January 24, 1850 in Thomaston,

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and nor ...

. His father, Benjamin Chapman, had changed the family name to Flint after being adopted by an uncle on his mother's side. The family moved from Maine to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

where his father ran the family's mercantile firm Chapman & Flint, which had been founded in 1837.Stinson, John
The Charles Ranlett Flint Papers, 1872–1930
,

New York Public Library The New York Public Library (NYPL) is a public library system in New York City. With nearly 53 million items and 92 locations, the New York Public Library is the second largest public library in the United States (behind the Library of Congress) ...

, November 1991. Flint married the composer Kate Simmons in 1883.

Business career

In 1868, Charles Flint graduated from Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute (now New York University - Tandon School of Engineering) in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

, and in 1871 entered the shipping business as a partner in Gilchrest, Flint & Co., and later W.R. Grace & Co. after a

merger Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) are business transactions in which the ownership of companies, other business organizations, or their operating units are transferred to or consolidated with another company or business organization. As an aspec ...

. From 1876 to 1879, he served as the Chilean consul at New York City. He also served as consul general to the United States for Nicaragua and Costa Rica. In 1892, he consolidated several companies to form

U.S. Rubber The company formerly known as the United States Rubber Company, now Uniroyal, is an American manufacturer of tires and other synthetic rubber-related products, as well as variety of items for military use, such as ammunition, explosives, chemical ...

. In 1893, he fitted out a fleet of naval ships for Brazilian Republic. He purchased the from the Chilean Navy and delivered it via

Ecuador Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ' ...

to Japan during the

First Sino-Japanese War The First Sino-Japanese War (25 July 1894 – 17 April 1895) was a conflict between China and Japan primarily over influence in Korea. After more than six months of unbroken successes by Japanese land and naval forces and the loss of the p ...

. In 1899, he repeated the success he had in forming U.S. Rubber by consolidating

Adams Chewing Gum The American Chicle Company was a chewing gum trust founded by Thomas Adams, Jr., with Edward E. Beeman and Jonathan Primle. Thomas Adams Thomas Adams (May 4, 1818 – February 7, 1905) was a 19th-century American scientist and inventor who i ...

Chiclets Chiclets is an American brand of candy-coated chewing gum manufactured by Mondelez International. The brand was introduced in 1900 by the American Chicle Company, a company founded by Thomas Adams. History The Chiclets name is derived from t ...

Dentyne Dentyne () is a brand of chewing gum available in several countries globally. It is owned by Mondelēz International. In 1899, a New York City druggist Franklin V. Canning formulated a chewing gum which he promoted as an aid to oral hygiene. "To ...

, and

Beemans Beemans gum (originally Beeman's Gum, see image at right) is a chewing gum formulated by Ohio physician Edward E. Beeman in the late 19th century. It originally contained pepsin, but no longer does. History Beeman originally claimed the gum co ...

to form

American Chicle The American Chicle Company was a chewing gum trust founded by Thomas Adams, Jr., with Edward E. Beeman and Jonathan Primle. Thomas Adams Thomas Adams (May 4, 1818 – February 7, 1905) was a 19th-century American scientist and inventor who i ...

. He was also responsible for the formation of The American Woolen Company that year. Some newspapers began to refer to him as "the Rubber King". In 1911, he formed the Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company through the amalgamation (via stock acquisition) of four companies: The Tabulating Machine Company, International Time Recording Company, Computing Scale Company of America, and the Bundy Manufacturing Company."Tabulating Concerns Unite: Flint & Co. Bring Four Together with $19,000,000 capital"
''The New York Times''. June 10, 1911. ''Amalgamation'' was unusual at the time - Flint described it as an ''"allied" consolidation''. In 1924, CTR was re-christened as International Business Machines. Flint served on the board of directors of IBM until he retired in 1930. He died on February 26, 1934, in Washington, D.C.

Legacy

Charles Flint was an avid sportsman and loved swimming, hunting, fishing, sailing, and aviation. He was one of seven founders of the Automobile Club of America. He held the world water speed record. His ''Time'' magazine obituary stated he negotiated the Wright brothers' first sales of airplanes overseas. But it was the Wrights themselves, in sometimes contentious negotiations with Charles R. Flint & Co., who determined contract terms.

Bibliography

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References

External links

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Charles Ranlett Flint
at the IBM Archives {{DEFAULTSORT:Flint, Charles Ranlett 1850 births 1934 deaths American manufacturing businesspeople American technology company founders American Woolen Company Businesspeople from Maine IBM people Polytechnic Institute of New York University alumni People from Thomaston, Maine