Murray Roberts Ballou (July 21, 1840 – April 28, 1914) was an American financier who led the

Boston Stock Exchange The Boston Stock Exchange (now NASDAQ BX, formerly ''BSE'') was a regional stock exchange formerly located in Boston, Massachusetts. It was founded in 1834, making it the third-oldest stock exchange in the United States. On October 2, 2007, NASDAQ ...

from 1870 to 1900.

Early life

Ballou was born on July 21, 1840, in

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

. He was the son of publisher

Maturin Murray Ballou Maturin Murray Ballou (April 14, 1820March 27, 1895) was a writer and publisher in 19th-century Boston, Massachusetts. He co-founded ''Ballou's Pictorial Drawing-Room Companion, Gleason's Pictorial'', was the first editor of the ''Boston Daily Glo ...

and grandson of clergyman

Hosea Ballou Hosea Ballou D.D. (April 30, 1771 – June 7, 1852) was an American Universalist clergyman and theological writer. Originally a Baptist, he converted to Universalism in 1789. He preached in a number of towns in Vermont, New Hampshire, an ...

. Ballou attended the school of Epes Sargent Dixwell from the ages of 12 to 14 then was tutored by Luther Farnham and

Sidney Willard Sidney Willard (September 19, 1780 – December 6, 1856) was an American academic and politician who served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives, on the Massachusetts Governor's Council and as the second Mayor of Cambridge, Massachuset ...

successively. Ballou graduated from

Harvard College Harvard College is the undergraduate education, undergraduate college of Harvard University, a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Part of the Harvard Faculty of Arts and Scienc ...

in 1862. On December 1, 1863, he married Lucretia B. Howland of

New Bedford, Massachusetts New Bedford is a city in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States. It is located on the Acushnet River in what is known as the South Coast region. At the 2020 census, New Bedford had a population of 101,079, making it the state's ninth-l ...

. They had four children (Maturin Howland Ballou, Elise Murray Ballou, Franklin Burgess Ballou, and Mabel Ballou). Their eldest son, Maturin Howland Ballou, died on May 15, 1898. Lucretia Ballou died on July 27, 1899.

Career

In 1865, Ballou founded a stock brokerage with classmate Benjamin Crowninshield Mifflin. Ballou was elected vice president of the Boston Stock Exchange in 1869 and became its president the following year. The exchange underwent a number of changes under Ballou's leadership. In 1879 the membership cap was expanded to 150. In 1885 it adopted a continuous session. The BSE also began using a

stock ticker Ticker tape was the earliest electrical dedicated financial communications medium, transmitting stock price information over telegraph lines, in use from around 1870 to 1970. It consisted of a paper strip that ran through a machine called a sto ...

during Ballou's tenure as president. In 1888 the office of president was made an honorary position and Ballou was elected to the newly created position of chairman. He continued to preside over the exchange until his retirement in 1900.

Death

Ballou died on April 28, 1914, at his home in Boston. He was survived by three of his children. He was buried in

Mount Auburn Cemetery Mount Auburn Cemetery, located in Cambridge and Watertown, Massachusetts, is the first rural or garden cemetery in the United States. It is the burial site of many prominent Boston Brahmins, and is a National Historic Landmark. Dedicated in ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ballou, Murray R. 1840 births 1914 deaths American financiers Burials at Mount Auburn Cemetery Businesspeople from Boston Harvard College alumni Presidents of the Boston Stock Exchange