Who was J. P. Morgan Jr.? Everything You Need to Know

Quick Facts

Also Known As: John Pierpont Morgan Jr.

Died At Age: 75

Family:

Spouse/Ex-: Jane Norton Grew (m. 1890–1925)

mother: Frances Tracy Morgan

children: Alice Morgan, Frances Tracy Pennoyer, Henry Sturgis Morgan, Jane Norton Morgan Nichols, Junius Spencer Morgan III

Born Country: United States

Bankers Philanthropists

Died on: March 13, 1943

place of death: Boca Grande, Florida, United States

Cause of Death: Stroke

U.S. State: New Yorkers

More Facts

education: Harvard College

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Childhood & Early Life

J. P. Morgan, Jr. was born in Irvington, New York on September 7, 1867 to J. P. Morgan and Frances Louisa Tracy. His full name was John Pierpont Morgan Jr.

He graduated from the St. Paul’s School and Harvard in 1889 and joined his father’s firm J.P. Morgan & Company, in 1892.

After working in his father’s firm for some time, he moved to London and joined his grandfather's company, J.S. Morgan & Company.

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Career

In 1913, his father died and J. P. Morgan, Jr. inherited around $50 million and finally became the head of J. P. Morgan & Co.

During World War I, the company became the sole munitions purchaser for the French and British governments. This was one of the biggest turning points for the company.

Morgan’s company started getting orders and they totalled more than $3 billion. With every sale of the materials, the company earned a commission of 1 percent.

He organised around 2000 banks for underwriting a total of $1,500,000,000 in Allied Bonds for financing the Franco-British requisitions for the credits in United States.

Once the war ended, the company provided loans in excess of $10,000,000,000 for the European reconstruction work.

In 1929, the stock market crashed and Morgan, Jr., and some other major bankers tried hard to stem the decline in the stock prices by pooling their funds, but it was of no help.

In 1933, the Banking Act of that year same year forced his company to separate its investment banking activities from its commercial banking activities. In accordance with the Act Morgan, Stanley and Company became a new investment banking firm. After the separation, Morgan remained the head of J.P. Morgan and Company, which became strictly a commercial banking firm.

Major Works

After the World War I, his trust Morgan Guaranty managed Germany's reparation payments. By 1920s, Morgan Guaranty was a leading lender to Germany and Europe and as a result it became one of the world's most important banking institutions of the time.

Philanthropic Works

Morgan Jr. was much like his father. He hated publicity and continued firmly with his philanthropic deeds.

In 1920, Morgan donated his London home, 14 Princess Gate, to the government of the United States for using it as an embassy. Young John F. Kennedy, the son of Joseph P. Kennedy, the U.S. ambassador, also lived in Morgan’s residence for some time.

In 1924, Morgan also formed the Pierpont Morgan Library as a memorial to his dead father. He opened it as a public institution and later on, his personal librarian Belle da Costa Greene became its director.

The library has now become a museum and a scholarly research centre with several illuminated manuscripts, prints, incunabula, drawings, early printed Bibles, etc.

Personal Life & Legacy

In 1890, J. P. Morgan, Jr. got married to Jane Norton Grew and they had four children together, two daughters and two sons, namely Jane, Junius, Henry and Frances.

Henry Morgan, his son, along with Harold Stanley, co-founded the Morgan Stanley financial corporation.

Morgan Jr. died of stroke on March 13, 1943, at the age of 75, in Boca Grande, Florida, U.S.

Trivia

In 1915, he was shot twice by an invader called Frank Holt who tried to assassinate Morgan in his Long Island mansion. Holt shot Morgan in protest against his export of weapons to Britain and France during World War I. Morgan was fortunate to survive the assassination attempt and recovered from his injuries.

In 1922, Morgan Jr. served on a committee about the German reparations in Paris and was also a delegate for the United States to a reparations conference in 1929.

J. P. Morgan Jr. Biography