Jay Cooke

Cooke, Jay (1821–1905), U.S. financier who helped the federal government finance the Civil War. He formed the banking firm Jay Cooke & Co. in 1861, and sold over $1 billion in war bonds. His firm later underwrote the construction of the Northern Pacific Railway but failed in the financial crisis in 1873. Cooke made a second fortune in silver mining (1878–79).

See also: Civil War, U.S.