Tomás Terry
Encyclopedia
Tomás Terry y Adán was a Cuba
n business magnate
.
Of Venezuela
n origin, Terry initially became involved in the slave trade in Cuba, making his first $10,000 by buying sick slaves, nursing them back to health, and then reselling them healthy for a large profit. He bought the Caracas sugar mill for $23,000, and upgraded it to be the first in Cuba to use electricity
. He went on to make a fortune through involvement in all aspects of the economy, from the sugar trade and slave trade to banking and imports, becoming the dominant businessman in Cienfuegos
and earning the nickname the "Cuban Croesus
". His fortune grew to be among the largest in the world, with a net worth of about $725,000 in 1851, $3,090,00 in 1860, $7,890,000 in 1870, $13,760,000 in 1880, and over $25,000,000 at his death in 1886. He married a daughter of Andrés Dorticós, a prominent local merchant.
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
n business magnate
Business magnate
A business magnate, sometimes referred to as a capitalist, czar, mogul, tycoon, baron, oligarch, or industrialist, is an informal term used to refer to an entrepreneur who has reached prominence and derived a notable amount of wealth from a particular industry .-Etymology:The word magnate itself...
.
Of Venezuela
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
n origin, Terry initially became involved in the slave trade in Cuba, making his first $10,000 by buying sick slaves, nursing them back to health, and then reselling them healthy for a large profit. He bought the Caracas sugar mill for $23,000, and upgraded it to be the first in Cuba to use electricity
Electricity
Electricity is a general term encompassing a variety of phenomena resulting from the presence and flow of electric charge. These include many easily recognizable phenomena, such as lightning, static electricity, and the flow of electrical current in an electrical wire...
. He went on to make a fortune through involvement in all aspects of the economy, from the sugar trade and slave trade to banking and imports, becoming the dominant businessman in Cienfuegos
Cienfuegos
Cienfuegos is a city on the southern coast of Cuba, capital of Cienfuegos Province. It is located about from Havana, and has a population of 150,000. The city is dubbed La Perla del Sur...
and earning the nickname the "Cuban Croesus
Croesus
Croesus was the king of Lydia from 560 to 547 BC until his defeat by the Persians. The fall of Croesus made a profound impact on the Hellenes, providing a fixed point in their calendar. "By the fifth century at least," J.A.S...
". His fortune grew to be among the largest in the world, with a net worth of about $725,000 in 1851, $3,090,00 in 1860, $7,890,000 in 1870, $13,760,000 in 1880, and over $25,000,000 at his death in 1886. He married a daughter of Andrés Dorticós, a prominent local merchant.