Harvey S. Firestone, Jr.

Harvey S. Firestone, Jr.
Born Harvey Samuel Firestone, Jr.
April 20, 1898
Chicago, Illinois, United States
Died June 1, 1973 (aged 75)
Akron, Ohio, United States
Occupation Vice President of Firestone Tires
Spouse(s) Elizabeth Parke Firestone
Parent(s) Harvey Firestone, Sr.
Idabelle Smith Firestone

Harvey Samuel Firestone, Jr. (April 20, 1898 – June 1, 1973) was an American businessman. He was chairman of the board of the Firestone Tire and Rubber Company.

Biography

He was born on April 20, 1898 to Harvey Firestone, Sr. and Idabelle Smith Firestone, he was educated at Asheville School in Asheville, North Carolina. He served as a naval aviator during World War I. Graduating from Princeton University in 1920, Harvey, Sr. placed Harvey, Jr. in charge of his company's steel products division;[1] Harvey, Jr. took over the leadership of the company in 1941.

Firestone helped establish the company's supply and service stores, and guided its operations during World War II.[2] He was also president of the Firestone Foundation.

Harvey, Jr. married Elizabeth Parke Firestone in 1921. Their children were: Elizabeth Firestone, Anne Firestone, Martha Firestone, who married William Clay Ford, Sr. and is, as of his death in 2014, the owner of the Detroit Lions; and Harvey Samuel Firestone III, who died in Havana.[3]

He died on June 1, 1973.

Liberia

During World War I, Britain and the Netherlands controlled 98% of the raw materials necessary for the production of rubber. In 1922, the Rubber Restriction Act was passed in Britain, and the costs that the Firestone Company paid for its supplies rose. Starting in 1924, Firestone, Jr., was assigned to travel worldwide in search of locations where the company could grow its own rubber. After visits to Asia and to Mexico, Firestone settled on the West African nation of Liberia as the base for Firestone Plantations Company. Harvey Jr. arranged for the lease of 1,500 square miles (3,900 km2) of Liberian territory, a little more than 3 percent of that nation's area. The 12,000 Liberian employees were paid low wages, because, as former employee Arthur Hayman described, the Liberian government felt that "men with money in their pockets would eventually have demanded the ballot".[4]

Legacy

He was inducted as a National Patron of Delta Omicron, an international professional music fraternity for his philanthropic efforts.[5]

His grandson William Clay Ford, Jr., is the current Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Ford Motor Company.[6]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Current Biography 1944, pp205-07
  2. ↑ "Worldwide News and comment: Harvey S Firestone". Autocar. 138 nbr 4020: pages 2–3. 14 June 1973.
  3. ↑ "Harvey Firestone 3d Dies in Havana Fall". New York Times. May 6, 1960. Havana, May 5, 1960, Harvey S. Firestone 3d plunged to his death from the twentieth floor of a Havana luxury hotel tonight, six hours after arriving here from Miami. The victim, who was 32 years old, was the son of Harvey S. Firestone, Jr., chairman of the board of the Firestone Tire and Rubber Company.
  4. ↑ Arthur Hayman, Lighting Up Liberia, quoted in Current Biography at p207
  5. ↑ Delta Omicron
  6. ↑ "Ford names new CEO". CNN. September 5, 2006.

Sources

External links