Jacob Tome

Jacob Tome (August 13, 1810 – March 16, 1898) was an American banker, philanthropist, and politician who died as one of the richest men in the United States.[1]

Jacob Tome

Tome was born in Hanover in southwestern York County, Pennsylvania. He arrived penniless in Port Deposit, Maryland. He invested in a lumber company and railroads, and founded at least four banks.[2]

He was Cecil County's first millionaire and its greatest philanthropist, who gave money to colleges, churches, and schools, including the Tome School.

He was a Republican and a supporter of Abraham Lincoln during the American Civil War. He was a member of Maryland state senate in 1864. In 1871, he ran unsuccessfully for Governor of Maryland.

He died of pneumonia in Port Deposit at the age of 87 and was buried there at Hopewell Cemetery. At his death, he owned about $89 million (about $2,735,148,000 today[3]).

His widow, Evalyn Nesbitt Tome, was the richest woman in the state of Maryland; she later married Joseph Irwin France (Senator and U.S. presidential candidate).

Maryland Route 276 in Cecil County was named the Jacob Tome Memorial Highway in his honor in 1961.[4]