 |
an extraordinary journey ExxonMobil commemorates 125 years of company history
John D. Rockefeller Sr., principal founder of the Standard Oil Trust, in the 1930s
This article originally appeared in the Lamp, 2007 — Number 3
One hundred twenty-five years ago this year, John D. Rockefeller Sr. and his colleagues established the Standard Oil Trust. Prior to the trust’s creation, Rockefeller and his partners had acquired a majority interest in the New York-based Vacuum Oil Company, which had been founded in 1866. When created in 1882, the trust also established the Standard Oil Company of New York (Socony). At the breakup of the Standard Oil organization in 1911, the bulk of its assets went to the Standard Oil Company (New Jersey), which evolved into Exxon. Socony and Vacuum became independent companies and operated separately until they merged in 1931 as Socony-Vacuum Corporation, later to become Mobil Corporation. In 1999 Exxon and Mobil were reunited to become the world’s largest publicly held petroleum company.
