Benjamin Brewster

Benjamin Brewster (June 30, 1828 – August 23, 1897) was an American industrialist, financier, and one of the original trustees of Standard Oil.

Early life

Brewster was born in 1828 in Norwich, Connecticut, to Patrick Brewster (fourth great-grandson of Mayflower Pilgrim William Brewster) and Catharine Fanny Roath. He attended public schools in Norwich and went to work as a clerk in New York City.

Business career

In 1849 he headed West to join the California Gold Rush, establishing a general mercantile store in San Francisco soon after his arrival. His partner in this enterprise was Oliver Burr Jennings, and together they amassed a considerable fortune.

Benjamin Brewster died at his home in Cazenovia in 1897 at the age of 69. The pallbearers were John D. Rockefeller, Ransom Reed Cable, Charles S. Fairchild, Roswell P. Flower, Clement Griscom, Walter Jennings, Charles A. Peabody, Henry H. Rogers, Henry W. Curtis, William M. Burr, and Henry H. Porter.