330:(Alcoa) in 1907; he became president in 1910 and chairman of the board in 1928, in which capacity he served until 1958. Although by this time aluminum was more widely known, it was by no means a household word. Davis' major responsibility was to promote the manufacturing and selling of quality aluminum products: Alcoa's Wear-Ever line of cookware was sold by college students recruited each spring; Alcoa made aluminum wire as an electrical conductor when copper-wire producers refused to do so; and aluminum horseshoes, bicycles, covers for bottles, canteens, and ships, and the
349:, but the case was dismissed in 1930. In 1937 the Justice Department began an extensive antitrust case against Alcoa. This one was conspicuous for its duration and for Davis' extraordinary performance on the witness stand. Davis was the star witness, testifying for six weeks and contributing over 2,000 pages of testimony. In dismissing the petition of the Justice Department, the trial judge praised Davis, who also drew accolades from his Alcoa colleagues for having personally won the company's case.
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Davis bought 5,000 acres of land in
Eleuthera in 1939 and 30,000 more acres after the war. He investing in farming and a canning factory and introduced associated infrastructure. Davis sold most of his holdings to the government in 1950 for a resort venture; when the venture failed, Davis repurchased
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Because Davis cherished privacy, his personal success was not accompanied by much exposure to the media about his business or private life. He did not usually fare well in interviews. "I've had to work hard all my life," he asserted to a reporter. "I've had to work sixteen hours a day to make a good
356:, Davis built Alcoa into an industrial giant. He also amassed great wealth as the company's largest stockholder, thereby provoking continued personal confrontation with Washington. At the time of his retirement from Alcoa in 1957, he was listed as the third-richest individual in the world.
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and all of Bird, Otter and Coon Keys," all islands on the west coast of
Florida. The rapid acquisition and size of the investments resulted in considerable publicity and additional controversy with the government, this time with the
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Davis married
Florence Isabel Holmes, of Indiana, on October 23, 1894, in Allegheny Co, PA. She died on May 3, 1909, in Pittsburgh, PA. In March 1912, he married Elizabeth Hawkins Weiman, who died in 1933. He had no children.
302:, Davis obtained a job with that company. Although aluminum's favorable characteristics as an industrial metal had been known for several decades, it was expensive to manufacture; Hunt's company hoped to capitalize on
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model town he had founded in 1927 for working families. The Arthur Vining Davis
Foundations provide financial assistance to educational, religious, cultural, and scientific institutions, and are regular
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The work required a handyman's disposition—overalls and a twelve-hour day—as the manufacturing process was a continuous one. Davis and Hall became close associates during the experimental phase, and on
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charged Alcoa with three counts of violation of the antitrust laws; within a few weeks, the company signed a consent decree. In 1922, the company underwent investigation by the
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when it came to power), as well as ownership or control of some thirty
Florida enterprises ranging from dairy farms to resort hotels. In 1959, Davis purchased "half of
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magazine referred to Davis as a "terrible-tempered tycoon...ruling with desk-thumping autocracy," a view that was not atypical in the press at large.
246:(May 30, 1867 – November 17, 1962) was an American industrialist and philanthropist, for many years president, chairman and largest stockholder of the
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400-million estate. Only a small portion of his wealth went to individuals. The majority went to a trust he had established in 1952 and to
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Pittsburgh Reduction Company that made
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Davis soon became general manager of the firm and a director in 1892. He continued as general manager when the firm became the
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Awarded the
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Paschal, Guy (ed.) (1959, May 28) Letter from the editor. The Key Look-out. 4th year (1). pg. 7. Retrieved from
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Before retiring from Alcoa, Davis began a second career by investing primarily in the
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The investments included extensive real estate holdings in the
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Dictionary of
American Biography, Supplement 7: 1961–1965
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Southeast
Florida Pioneers: The Palm and Treasure Coasts
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minister, and Mary
Frances. After attending school in
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American industrialist and philanthropist (1867–1962)
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of 1888, they poured the first commercial aluminum.
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286:, graduating in 1888 three years after his friend
537:Race and Class in the Colonial Bahamas, 1880-1960
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557:. American Council of Learned Societies, 1981.
426:most of his former holdings for less money.
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360:living. Do you work sixteen hours a day?"
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120:Learn how and when to remove this message
520:https://ufdc.ufl.edu/UF00048570/00001/7x
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451:(from ARthur VIning DAvis), a northern
503:"Everybody's Pining for Isle of Pines"
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478:"Our History: A Legacy of Innovation"
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622:Burials at Locust Valley Cemetery
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389:area (estimated at one-eighth of
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587:1962 deaths
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339:antitrust
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