ABSTRACT
In this and the next chapter a single presence gradually dominates the scene, for these chapters are the story of Sampson Lloyd II. By his marriages, one of which led to a considerable fortune, he made connections for the family in different parts of the country. Through his sons and daughters, and through their marriages, he headed an ever-branching pedigree. Through his business life, as a merchant, in iron on Midland rivers, in the founding of one of the earliest banks, he pointed paths for his descendants to follow. In his Quakerly way he learned to succeed in the conditions of his circle and of his day. But Sampson Lloyd did not have these things at first; he did not have even a wife. He had only his own qualities and his position in the ironmerchant’s business with his brother. The present chapter tells of these brothers and of their business and how they turned a corn mill to the purposes of iron.
