Photo: Lex.mercurio, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons¹³

Minor Cooper Keith

American businessman (1848–1929)

Minor Cooper Keith (19 January 1848 – 14 June 1929) was an American businessman whose railroad, commercial agriculture, and cargo liner enterprises had a major impact on the national economies of the Central American countries, as well as on the Caribbean region of Colombia. Keith's work on the Costa Rican railroad to the Caribbean, a project begun by his uncle Henry Meiggs, led him to become involved in the large-scale export of bananas to the United States.²

From Wikipedia’s article on Minor Cooper Keith (this version), CC BY-SA 4.0.

Born Jan 19, 1848, died Jun 14, 1929.¹

About

In 1899, Keith's banana-trading concerns were absorbed into the powerful United Fruit Company, of which he became vice-president. Keith was also involved in a number of other business ventures, including gold mining in Costa Rica and real estate development in the US.

From Wikipedia’s article on Minor Cooper Keith, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.²

Companies

International Railways of Central AmericaFounder¹¹
United Fruit CompanyFounder¹²

Early life and education

Keith was born on January 19, 1848, in Brooklyn, New York, at the time its own city. His parents were a lumber merchant Minor Hubbell Keith and his wife Emily, sister of railroad entrepreneur Henry Meiggs. After private schooling, the sixteen-year-old Keith was employed as a store clerk on Broadway. Some months later, he quit clerking and became a lumber surveyor. Having saved $3,000 in a year, Keith bought a cattle ranch located on a river island near the mouth of the Rio Grande, in southern Texas, which he administered until 1871. He then accepted his uncle's invitation to help manage the construction of a railroad in Costa Rica, in Central America.

From Wikipedia’s article on Minor Cooper Keith (this version), CC BY-SA 4.0.

Career

Occupation: entrepreneur.⁶

1916 to 1929Board member, Museum of the American Indian, Heye Foundation⁵
Date not recordedFounded International Railways of Central America³
Date not recordedFounded United Fruit Company⁴

Personal life

BornJan 19, 1848, Brooklyn⁷
DiedJun 14, 1929, West Islip⁸
CitizenshipUnited States⁹
SpouseCristina Castro¹⁰

Sources

The numbers on this page point here. Each one links to the record it came from.

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WikidataMinor Cooper Keith on Wikidata
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WikipediaMinor Cooper Keith on Wikipedia
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WikidataMinor Cooper Keith: Founded International Railways of Central America, on Wikidata
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WikidataMinor Cooper Keith: Founded United Fruit Company, on Wikidata
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WikidataMinor Cooper Keith: Board member, Museum of the American Indian, Heye Foundation, on Wikidata
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WikidataMinor Cooper Keith: occupation, on Wikidata
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WikidataMinor Cooper Keith: place of birth, on Wikidata
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WikidataMinor Cooper Keith: place of death, on Wikidata
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WikidataMinor Cooper Keith: citizenship, on Wikidata
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WikidataMinor Cooper Keith: spouse, on Wikidata
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WikidataInternational Railways of Central America, Founder
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WikidataUnited Fruit Company, Founder
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Wikimedia CommonsMinor Cooper Keith photo by Lex.mercurio, CC BY-SA 4.0