John Insley Blair

John Insley Blair (August 22, 1802 – December 2, 1899) Blair bought out his cousin's share of their store and expanded operations. As president of 16 railroad companies, he amassed a fortune estimated at $70 million. In 1873, he was also an investor in the Green Bay and Minnesota Railroad, and namesake Blair, Wisconsin.

Personal life On September 20, 1826, Blair married Nancy Ann Locke;

Emma Elizabeth Blair (1827–1869), who married prominent publisher Charles Scribner I (1821–1871). who continued businesses and expanded his father's philanthropy and had as his son, C. Ledyard Blair.

Philanthropy, honors and legacy His great-grandson, Episcopal bishop John Insley Blair Larned, was named after him.

He founded Blair Academy in 1848, and helped to found Lafayette College (in Easton, Pennsylvania) and Grinnell College (in Grinnell, Iowa).

At Princeton University, in Princeton, New Jersey, he endowed a geology professorship, first held by Arnold Henry Guyot. He also served as trustee from 1866 until his death. In remarks at his installation as trustee, Blair noted that he had received little formal education and had spent most of his life as a businessman learning addition but that now "I have come to Princeton to learn subtraction." Blair provided funds to build Blair Hall, which was constructed in 1897 by Cope & Stewardson.