Rudolph A. Peterson
Encyclopedia
Rudolph A. Peterson was the President and CEO of Bank of America
.
, Västra Götaland County
, Sweden
. He was adopted by his maternal uncle and aunt who emigrated in September 1905. At first they lived in Youngstown, Ohio
, United States
. In 1907 they joined a trainload of young Swedish families set out for California. They settled down in Los Angeles. In 1913 the family moved to Hilmar in Merced County, California
, a Swedish immigrant farming colony outside Turlock, California
. He graduated from the University of California at Berkeley, (B.S. 1925).
, the Transamerica Corporation
, and the Bank of Hawaii
. He joined Bank of America in 1936 and spent two decades in California before leaving for six years with the Bank of Honolulu
. He was president of the Bank of Honolulu when he returned to Bank of America in 1961 as vice chairman. Bank of America named him president and chief executive in 1963. He retired at the end of 1969. In 1972 Peterson became Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme
, managing that body's economic assistance activities throughout the world.
In 1965, Rudolph A. Peterson was selected by the two Swedish District lodges of the Vasa Order of America
to be Swedish-American of the Year.
Bank of America
Bank of America Corporation, an American multinational banking and financial services corporation, is the second largest bank holding company in the United States by assets, and the fourth largest bank in the U.S. by market capitalization. The bank is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina...
.
Background
Rudolph Arvid Peterson was born into a family of six children in SvenljungaSvenljunga
Svenljunga is a locality and the seat of Svenljunga Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden with 3,379 inhabitants in 2005.- References :...
, Västra Götaland County
Västra Götaland County
Västra Götaland County is a county or län on the western coast of Sweden.The county is the second largest of Sweden's counties and it is subdivided into 49 municipalities . Its population of 1,550,000 amounts to 17% of Sweden's population...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
. He was adopted by his maternal uncle and aunt who emigrated in September 1905. At first they lived in Youngstown, Ohio
Youngstown, Ohio
Youngstown is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Mahoning County; it also extends into Trumbull County. The municipality is situated on the Mahoning River, approximately southeast of Cleveland and northwest of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. In 1907 they joined a trainload of young Swedish families set out for California. They settled down in Los Angeles. In 1913 the family moved to Hilmar in Merced County, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, a Swedish immigrant farming colony outside Turlock, California
Turlock, California
Turlock is a city in Stanislaus County, California, United States, part of the Modesto Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2010 Census, Turlock had a population of 80,549, up from 55,810 at the 2000 census, making it the second-largest city in Stanislaus County.-Geography:Turlock lies in the...
. He graduated from the University of California at Berkeley, (B.S. 1925).
Career
During his career he worked at Commercial Credit CorporationControl Data Corporation
Control Data Corporation was a supercomputer firm. For most of the 1960s, it built the fastest computers in the world by far, only losing that crown in the 1970s after Seymour Cray left the company to found Cray Research, Inc....
, the Transamerica Corporation
Transamerica Corporation
Transamerica Corporation is a holding company for various life insurance companies and investment firms doing business primarily in the United States. It was acquired by the Dutch financial services conglomerate AEGON in 1999.-History:...
, and the Bank of Hawaii
Bank of Hawaii
The Bank of Hawaii Corporation is a regional commercial bank headquartered in Honolulu, Hawaii. It is Hawaii's second oldest bank and its largest locally owned bank in that majority of the voting stockholders reside within the state...
. He joined Bank of America in 1936 and spent two decades in California before leaving for six years with the Bank of Honolulu
First Hawaiian Bank
First Hawaiian Bank is a regional commercial bank headquartered in Honolulu, Hawaii at the First Hawaiian Center. It is a subsidiary of BancWest Corporation, which itself is a subsidiary of the French banking company, BNP Paribas...
. He was president of the Bank of Honolulu when he returned to Bank of America in 1961 as vice chairman. Bank of America named him president and chief executive in 1963. He retired at the end of 1969. In 1972 Peterson became Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme
United Nations Development Programme
The United Nations Development Programme is the United Nations' global development network. It advocates for change and connects countries to knowledge, experience and resources to help people build a better life. UNDP operates in 177 countries, working with nations on their own solutions to...
, managing that body's economic assistance activities throughout the world.
In 1965, Rudolph A. Peterson was selected by the two Swedish District lodges of the Vasa Order of America
Vasa Order of America
Vasa Order of America is a Swedish-American fraternal, cultural and educational organization.-History:Vasa Order of America was founded in 1896 in New Haven, Connecticut at the height of Swedish immigration to the United States as a Swedish-American fraternal order. Vasa Order of America emerged...
to be Swedish-American of the Year.