Morgan's Father: Banker and Bookman

Head of a successful London-based merchant-banking firm, Junius Spencer Morgan (1813–1890) took a strong hand in directing his son Pierpont’s early career on Wall Street. Junius was also an avid collector of books and manuscripts. When Junius died of injuries sustained in a carriage accident in 1890, Pierpont inherited $15 million (equivalent to about $463 million today) and found himself well positioned to build his business, as well as to devote increasingly large sums to the acquisition of rare books and artworks.