W. H. FERGUSON: EARLY NEBRASKA ENTREPRENEUR

The main purpose of this study is to explain how and why William Henry Ferguson (1856-1937) became one of Nebraska\u27s most successful entrepreneurs. This task has required a careful examination of the business methods of Ferguson. These methods included a commitment to investing and the development of management strategies which allowed him to direct successfully his broadening interests. Because of constraints of time and space, this study is limited to the years, 1890 through 1903, the era critical for establishing the foundations of Ferguson\u27s business empire. During this time, Ferguson\u27s major investment was in grain elevators and he eventually owned approximately ninety elevators. With the profits from his elevators he gradually began to diversify so that he came to own a large amount of farmland, a dairy, a brick plant, and Capitol Beach Amusement Park, as well as an interest in many other companies including over one million dollars of the stock of what became Beatrice Foods. The focus of this study is largely on how Ferguson operated his grain elevators. The organization is basically topical rather than chronological. Each of the chapters (except Chapter One) treats a particular business trait of Ferguson. Chapter Two deals with his patterns of investing. Chapter Three details his approach to keeping business records. Chapter Four portrays his management of personnel. Chapter Five sets forth his relationship with his customers. Chapter Six analyzes the firmness and dispatch with which he acted. Chapter Seven sums up his compulsion to keeping costs low. Chapter Eight relates his efforts at reducing the rigors of competition. Each chapter attempts to indicate how a particular trait of Ferguson unfolded over the period of time when Ferguson established the basis of his financial success