Spencer Trask | |
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| Born | September 18, 1844 |
| Died | December 31, 1909 (aged 65) |
| Occupation(s) | Financier, philanthropist |
| Spouse | Katrina Trask |
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Spencer Trask (September 18, 1844 – December 31, 1909) was an American financier, philanthropist, and venture capitalist. Beginning in the 1870s, Trask began investing and supporting entrepreneurs, including Thomas Edison's commercial production of the electric light bulb and his electricity network. In 1896 he reorganized The New York Times, becoming its majority shareholder and chairman.
Along with his financial acumen, Trask was a generous philanthropist, a leading patron of the arts, a strong supporter of education, and a champion of humanitarian causes. His gifts to his alma mater, Princeton University, set a lecture series in his name that still continues to this day. He was also an initial trustee of the Teachers' College (now Teachers College, Columbia University) and St. Stephen's College (now Bard College).[1]
- ^ The National Cyclopedia of American Biography, volume XI, p. 444, James T. White & Company, 1901.