James “Buck” Buchanan Duke was born in 1856. Buck was an extremely successful businessman, as were his brother and father. Duke University, which began as Trinity University, was named after the Duke family as a result of their philanthropic contributions. Buck also established The Duke Endowment.
By the age of 28 he had begun to make his mark in the tobacco business by manufacturing cigarettes. Within five years of its establishment, his company was able to mass market and mass produce tobacco cigarettes and became the main supplier of half of the entire country’s cigarette market. He also became the president of the American Tobacco Company. In addition to tobacco, Mr. Buchanan ventured into the textile and hydroelectric water power businesses. He founded the South Western Power Company (Duke Energy) and eventually supplied electricity to over 300 cotton mills and other businesses. Mr. Buchanan died in 1925; however, his philanthropy continues as The Duke Endowment has given more than a billion dollars in funding to its recipients.
Contributed by CaJuan Simpson
Reference:
King, William, E. (1989, 1995). University Archives. James Buchanan Duke. Retrieved March 04, 2011, from http://library.duke.edu/uarchives/history/histnotes/james_b_duke.html
