Henry Morrison Flagler Biography

Henry Morrison Flagler

After modest success in the grain business, in 1865 he joined John D. Rockefeller in the oil business in a firm called Rockefeller, Andrews and Flagler (became Standard Oil in 1870). Leaving the day-to-day operations to Rockefeller, he focused his own efforts on Florida, building the Florida East Coast Railway from Daytona to Key West and erecting several hotels along the coast to attract tourists. He left Standard Oil in 1911, but is best known for his contributions to enriching the Florida economy through tourism and agriculture.