Fifty Years in Wall Street provides a fascinating look at the financial markets during a period of rapid economic expansion. Henry Clews was a giant figure in finance at that time, and his firsthand account brings this colorful era to life like never before. He reveals shocking stories of political and economic manipulation and how he helped bring down the mighty Boss Tweed. He writes eloquently about the madness of the markets and how the era’s greatest speculators amassed their fortunes. This book provides an expansive view of Wall Street in an era of little regulation, rampant political corruption, and rapid financial change.
Introduction:
Fifty Years on Wall Street by Henry Clews received extraordinary reviews upon its publication in 1908. Stretching out to more than 1000 pages, the work was lauded for its unique perspective on the historical, political and financial events of the last half of the nineteenth century. As we read the book today, it serves to remind us of the vital role Wall Street played in United States history. This was the Gilded Age—a period of economic, territorial, and population expansion; a period when tremendous individual fortunes were made and labor unions were borne; and a period when Wall Street and Washington D.C. worked hand-in-hand. Written with the authority of an active participant and in a literate and erudite style befitting the times, Fifty Years on Wall Street preserves both the historic record and the individualistic spirit of this amazing period of American history.
We discovered Fifty Years on Wall Street through Victor Niederhoffer, who recommended that we reissue the book as part of our Investments Classics line. Author of the acclaimed Education of a Speculator and a collector of investment books, Mr. Niederhoffer owned one of the few remaining copies of Fifty Years on Wall Street. Mr. Niederhoffer allowed us to borrow his copy to evaluate. We happily accepted his kind offer because, at the time, the book was selling for $3500 on the Internet.
As we began reading, Fifty Years on Wall Street, we quickly realized that the book would make an excellent addition to our line of investment classics. We think this book will stand the test of time, in the same manner as other Wiley Investment Classics, such as Reminiscences of a Stock Operator and Where Are the Customers Yachts. However, as enthusiastic as we were, the book presented a problem: it was simply too long. While some contemporary readers undoubtedly would embrace a 1000 page book on Wall Street history, we felt many more would be put off by the length. We decided to edit the book down to a more manageable size.
To reflect the breadth of the book, we felt we needed to include sections which cumulatively touched on all of the following themes:
- The characteristics of winning and losing speculators
- Wall Street during periods of war
- How operators attempted to “corner” the markets for individual stocks
- The causes and consequences of Wall Street panics
- The influence of Wall Street on national politics
- How individuals like Jay Gould, Daniel Drew, and Commodore Vanderbilt made their fortunes.
Contents:
Siena Duran (verified owner) –
This book provides some interesting anecdotes about the various players in the 1857 – 1907 period. These include Jay Gould, Cornelius Van Der Bilt, Dan’l Drew, Jim Fisk, Henry Villard, James R. Keene, Ferdinand Ward, etc. On the positive side, it is written by an individual who was part of the action at the time, which gives it some color. It also describes the financial mechanisms of the time — forinstance, how “corners” were done, and how politicians were manipulated. However, the stories are disconnected and poorly organized. To put together the full story of any one character, you need to hop from chapter to chapter. Part of this may be because this version of the book consists of excepts from the 1000 page origonal. Overall, a lively, anecdotal addition to the financial history of this period
Kamden Peterson (verified owner) –
I enjoyed this recollection by Henry Clews, of his 50 years in Wall Street from 1856-1906. It is a personal recounting of the things he saw and his views on success and failure in markets. Clews was the Bob Rubin of his time and was known as the “sage of Wall Street”. He details the operations of heavyweights like Jay Gould, WH Vanderbilt, John Rockefeller, Daniel Drew and others. He goes into some detail on the causes of booms and panics of 1817, 1837, 1857, 1873, 1884, 1893, 1905 and 1907. He discusses corners in the market by renowned operators and talks about his role in the Civil War.
Some of the gems throughout this book more than make up for the shortfalls (these being the writing style & the lack of coherency between chapters). The stories illustrate that human nature does not change. Some personal highlights:
“While it is often easy to make money, it is still easier to lose it. Therefore, boldness should always be tempered with caution in the pursuit of the almighty dollar in Wall Street” – Clews
From the Jay Gould chapter:
Gould: “All my life I have been dealing in railroads.. And I have always considered their future and not their past. That is the way I have made my money.. The very first railroad I ever bought had a deplorable past, but it’s future was fair. I paid 10c on the dollar for its bonds and finally sold the stock at par $1.25. It was the future of the Union Pacific that drew me into it. I went into it to make money.”… “you pay more for rubies than for diamonds and more for diamonds than for glass”.
On Henry Smith (a stock market operator, & a bull turned bear):
“It is almost impossible for a man who has had no experience in Wall Street matters to estimate the extremes of fanaticism in speculation to which a man is prepared to go when he is seized with a monomania either on the bull or the bear side – but especially the latter. This inveterate combination of egotism and fanaticism has ruined many hundreds to my knowledge” – Henry Clews
Overall, an excellent historical perspective on Wall Street in that period 1856 – 1906.
Jericho Wilkinson (verified owner) –
Maybe someone who is a hard-core investor would like it but it is opaque and simply boring. A great historical document but nothing more.
Ismael Woodward (verified owner) –
This version of the book is good if you just want the gist of it, but is garbage if you want all the fine details. I give it 4-stars because I believe this is an important book for anyone seeking a better understanding of the inner workings of Wall Street, or for anyone interested in the history in general.
The main problem with this version is that the original was 1062 pages and Wiley butchered it down to 358. A lot is missing, and this version often feels fragmented with no coherent consistency. The original version sells for $400 to $2,500, but there is a 2-volume version of the original from Kessinger Publishing that can be had for $90 or less, though the print quality is not the best; at least it has the content.
When it was first released, the book was hailed for its insight on the history, politics, and financial events that unfolded in the last half of the 19th century. The book is loaded with tales of the former Masters of the Universe, their money-making schemes, and methods of forecasting markets.
Clews was born the son of a potter in 1836 and married a descendant of President Madison. He came from Europe to America in 1853 and broke into Wall Street’s inner circle in 1857. He made a fortune selling War Bonds during the Civil War and earned a spot in high NY society. He was a campaign adviser to General Grant, and declined the position of Secretary of the Treasury when it was offered.
In 1873 the Credit Mobilier bankrupted him and most of his clients including The City of San Diego. He rebuilt his business in 1877 and was eventually regarded as “The Sage of Wall Street”. He died in 1923 at the age of 87. Too bad he missed the Crash of ’29.
Some of his Sagely advice:
“I conclude, then, that for a man to be a thoroughly equipped speculator, it is necessary that he be possessed of extraordinary parts and attainments. He must be an unceasing and intelligent observer of events at large, and a sagacious interpreter of symptoms on the exchange; his judgment must be sound, not only as to existing conditions, but as to coming tendencies, and he must possess the calmness and nerve to face unflinchingly whatever emergencies may arise. Whoever enjoys these qualities in the highest degree must be the King of Speculators. As to others, their rank must correspond to the degree of their conformity to this ideal standard.”
Sound advice. Very interesting stuff.
Drew Miranda (verified owner) –
I had read several reviews of this book on more than one occasion and started not to buy it. I am glad I did. The material in this book I find very relevant to today’s market. One of the comparisons I made was between today’s political environment and the one faced by President Lincoln.
The author also reviewed the market operators of the time which sheds light on the reason for the markets and how they developed. You are given a view of how these early operators manipulated the markets. As a comparison, their methods are similar to the methods used by the Federal Reserve Banks to manipulate their respective currencies and financial markets.
A very insightful look into financial and political history.