F. T. F. Lovejoy
Encyclopedia
Francis Thomas Fletcher Lovejoy (1854–1932) was an American industrialist and an associate of Andrew Carnegie
, Henry Clay Frick
, Henry Phipps
and Charles M. Schwab
in the creation of the United States Steel Corporation
.
.
and went to Washington, Pennsylvania
, where he obtained employment as a telegrapher. Shortly after that he went to Titusville, Pennsylvania
, then the center of the new oil industry, and engaged in many different employments in that area, including the oil, telegraph and newspaper businesses.
where he joined Carnegie Brothers Company in June, 1881. His rise there was rapid and by 1889, at the age of 35, was an equity owner in the business. Two years later he was a member of the board of directors, sitting with such prominent titans of industry as Carnegie, Frick, Schwab and Phipps.
FTF later invested his substantial assets into gold mining
interests in Idaho
.
FTF died on December 5, 1932 and is buried in Pittsburgh's Allegheny Cemetery
along with Jane and their three children.
and carried out a genealogical correspondence with Clarence Lovejoy (author of Lovejoy's College Guide), tracing the family back to England.
Andrew Carnegie
Andrew Carnegie was a Scottish-American industrialist, businessman, and entrepreneur who led the enormous expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century...
, Henry Clay Frick
Henry Clay Frick
Henry Clay Frick was an American industrialist, financier, and art patron. He founded the H. C. Frick & Company coke manufacturing company, was chairman of the Carnegie Steel Company, and played a major role in the formation of the giant U.S. Steel steel manufacturing concern...
, Henry Phipps
Henry Phipps
Henry Phipps, Jr. was an American entrepreneur and major philanthropist.-Biography:He was the son of an English shoemaker who emigrated in the early part of the 19th century to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania before settling in Pittsburgh. When a child, he was a friend and neighbor to Andrew Carnegie...
and Charles M. Schwab
Charles M. Schwab
Charles Michael Schwab was an American steel magnate. Under his leadership, Bethlehem Steel became the second largest steel maker in the United States, and one of the most important heavy manufacturers in the world....
in the creation of the United States Steel Corporation
U.S. Steel
The United States Steel Corporation , more commonly known as U.S. Steel, is an integrated steel producer with major production operations in the United States, Canada, and Central Europe. The company is the world's tenth largest steel producer ranked by sales...
.
Early life
F.T.F., as he was known, was born on July 21, 1854 in Baltimore, Maryland, the son of William A. Lovejoy and his wife Mary Jane Robinson. In the late 1850s, William and his brothers Perry, George, Samuel and sister Jane, and their families, left Maryland and moved to southeastern OhioOhio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
.
First Jobs
Around 1870, at the age of 16, FTF left home in Guernsey County, OhioGuernsey County, Ohio
Guernsey County is a county located in the state of Ohio. As of 2010, the population was 40,087. Its county seat is Cambridge and is named for the Isle of Guernsey in the English Channel, from which many of the county's early settlers came....
and went to Washington, Pennsylvania
Washington, Pennsylvania
Washington is a city in and the county seat of Washington County, Pennsylvania, United States, within the Pittsburgh Metro Area in the southwestern part of the state...
, where he obtained employment as a telegrapher. Shortly after that he went to Titusville, Pennsylvania
Titusville, Pennsylvania
Titusville is a city in Crawford County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 6,146 at the 2000 census. In 1859, oil was successfully drilled in Titusville, resulting in the birth of the modern oil industry.-History:...
, then the center of the new oil industry, and engaged in many different employments in that area, including the oil, telegraph and newspaper businesses.
Joins Carnegie Company
After ten years in Titusville, FTF went to PittsburghPittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
where he joined Carnegie Brothers Company in June, 1881. His rise there was rapid and by 1889, at the age of 35, was an equity owner in the business. Two years later he was a member of the board of directors, sitting with such prominent titans of industry as Carnegie, Frick, Schwab and Phipps.
Prominent Businessman
All through the 1890s, FTF continued his rise in the Carnegie companies, with the full trust and confidence of everyone in the inner circle. However, Carnegie and Frick had a falling out over the management and direction of the companies, resulting in a lawsuit by Frick against Carnegie. FTF, in order to resolve this matter, took the radical step of resigning all of his positions, thereby becoming a neutral party, trusted by all sides, and worked out the "new agreement," as it was known, under which the United State Steel Company was to be formed.FTF later invested his substantial assets into gold mining
Gold mining
Gold mining is the removal of gold from the ground. There are several techniques and processes by which gold may be extracted from the earth.-History:...
interests in Idaho
Idaho
Idaho is a state in the Rocky Mountain area of the United States. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans". Idaho was admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890, as the 43rd state....
.
Family life
In 1892, FTF married Jane Clyde Fleming (1869–1941). Their children were Francis Fleming Lovejoy (1894–1916); Kenneth Frick Lovejoy (1896–1947); and Marjory (1899–1980). Kenneth (known as Curley) was one of the first air mail pilots, flying out of Bettis Field near Pittsburgh. FTF himself is reputed to be the first American ever to ride a bicycle.FTF died on December 5, 1932 and is buried in Pittsburgh's Allegheny Cemetery
Allegheny Cemetery
Allegheny Cemetery is one of the largest and oldest burial grounds in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.It is a nonsectarian, wooded hillside park located at 4734 Butler Street in the Lawrenceville neighborhood and bounded by Bloomfield, Garfield, and Stanton Heights...
along with Jane and their three children.
Retirement
FTF was interested in genealogyGenealogy
Genealogy is the study of families and the tracing of their lineages and history. Genealogists use oral traditions, historical records, genetic analysis, and other records to obtain information about a family and to demonstrate kinship and pedigrees of its members...
and carried out a genealogical correspondence with Clarence Lovejoy (author of Lovejoy's College Guide), tracing the family back to England.