Bath, Maine’s Charlie Morse:: Ice King and Wall Street Scoundrel

Product Description

Born in Bath, Maine, in 1857, Charles W. Morse grew up on the Kennebec River with his family’s tugboats, shipyards and trade in natural ice. After college he moved to New York City to handle the family’s business affairs there. It took twenty years, but he created companies to form a monopoly on the sale of natural ice in New York City, making him very, very rich. He turned to coastal steamboats, again forming many companies into one large one. Creating these businesses and investing in banks made him a Wall Street insider. Using money from the banks made him the worst kind of speculator; in the end he paid dearly for his actions. Discover the remarkable story of this Maine man who became an “ice king” and Wall Street scoundrel.

About the Author

Philip H. Morse is a graduate of Phillips Exeter Academy, Princeton University and has two master’s degrees from Stanford University. After retiring from AT&T and moving to Maine, he took up his wife’s stories about the most famous member of her family: Charlie Morse. It seems her great-grandmother, who was born and raised in Bath, Maine, was Charlie’s second cousin. Her father was involved with Charlie’s father by running a shipyard. Researching Charlie’s activities was made easier by an extensive collection of Morse material in the archives of the Maine Maritime Museum. From their willingness to share this material, this book was born.