James Fisk | |
---|---|
![]() Fisk in January 1872 | |
Born | Pownal, Vermont, US | April 1, 1835
Died | January 7, 1872 New York City, US | (aged 36)
Cause of death | Gunshot |
Occupation(s) | Stockbroker, corporate executive, militia colonel |
Years active | 1850–1872 |
Spouse | Lucy Moore |
Partner | Josie Mansfield |
James Fisk Jr. (April 1, 1835 – January 7, 1872), known variously as "Big Jim", "Diamond Jim", and "Jubilee Jim" – was an American stockbroker and corporate executive who has been referred to as one of the "robber barons" of the Gilded Age. Though Fisk was admired by the working class of New York and the Erie Railroad, he achieved much ill-fame for his role in Black Friday in 1869, where he and his partner Jay Gould befriended the unsuspecting President Ulysses S. Grant in an attempt to use the President's good name in a scheme to corner the gold market in New York City. On January 7, 1872, Fisk was assassinated in New York City, in relation to his business dealings.