Edward Crosby Johnson II (January 19, 1898 – April 2, 1984) was an American businessman and lawyer who founded Fidelity Investments.
Edward C. Johnson II | |
|---|---|
| Born | Edward Crosby Johnson II January 19, 1898 Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Died | April 2, 1984 (aged 86) Cataumet, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Alma mater | Harvard University |
| Occupation | Businessman |
| Spouse | Elsie Livingston (m. 1924) |
| Children | 2; including Edward III |
| Relatives | Abigail Johnson (granddaughter) |
Early life and education
“A Boston Brahmin, Mr. Johnson was born Edward Crosby Johnson 2d in a townhouse on Beacon street, Back Bay, on Jan. 19, 1898, the son of Samuel Johnson, a partner in a leading dry-goods firm C.F. Hovey and Co. and Josephine (Forbush) Johnson.”[1]Johnson came from a family of New England Puritan ancestry.[2]
He graduated from Milton Academy in 1916, Harvard College in 1920, and Harvard Law School in 1924.[3][4][5] From August 1917 to July 1918, Johnson was enlisted in the United States Naval Reserve as a second class radioman during World War I; there are conflicting accounts about his military service.[5]
Career
After graduating from Harvard Law, Johnson became an associate at Boston law firm Ropes, Gray, Boyden & Perkins.[6] Also in 1924, he became involved in stock market research.[7] Diana B. Henriques wrote in 1995: "...those who knew Ed Johnson sensed...an openness to the new and the exotic. Most of all, there was a very un-Bostonian passion for the quick, rude, sharp-witted world of Wall Street."[6]
After nearly 15 years as a trust lawyer at Ropes Gray, Johnson became vice president and treasurer of the Incorporated Investors trust that was co-founded by Edward G. Leffler and George Putnam in 1939; Johnson had previously been Incorporated Investors' general counsel.[8][9]
In May 1930 he was granted permission to start “The Fidelity Fund”by John C. Hull, serving as the President, Vice President and Treasurer. [10] [11]
In 1946, he founded Fidelity Management and Research, and he served as its chairman.[7] By 1958, Johnson managed over $400 million combined with $357 million in the Fidelity Fund and $59 million in his new Puritan Fund.[12] Beginning in 1969, Johnson chaired the board of Fidelity Management and Research.[13]
Death
He died in Cataumet, Massachusetts of Alzheimer's disease in 1984, and his funeral was held at Milton's Universalist First Parish Church.[7]
References
- Works cited
- Henriques, Diana B. (1995). Fidelity's World: The Secret Life and Public Power of the Mutual Fund Giant. New York: Scribner. ISBN 0-684-81299-1.