Today, 1% of the U.S. population controls nearly 40% of its wealth. This level of inequality is not the first time wealth has been so unevenly distributed in the United States. During the gilded age, just one Rockefeller or one Vanderbilt controlled wealth equal to a large fraction of the nation’s total GDP.
John D. Rockefeller, the wealthiest man in American history, is estimated to have been worth over one-quarter of a trillion dollars, inflation-adjusted, when he died — which is in a different class than America’s wealthiest today. Jeff Bezos, Bill Gates, and Warren buffet are each worth less than half what Rockefeller was worth.
Rockefeller, who was born and raised in upstate New York, helped shape both the city and the broader state’s history — as did his family. Rockefeller Center is only one small example of the impact Rockefeller had on New York state — those two names are forever linked. This is but one of many examples of the nation’s extremely wealthy becoming a significant part of an area’s identity.
A more recent example is Warren Buffett, who was born and raised in Omaha, Nebraska. Buffett continues to live there in a modest home, and he is an active philanthropist in his state.
While not every state in the country served as the childhood home for one of the nation’s extremely wealthy, every state has borne at least one person or family worth hundreds of millions of dollars.
Not all of these richest people are still alive, and many moved out of state never to return. Still, these states can claim they contributed to the start of at least one of America’s financial elite. Reviewing estimates from a variety of sources and adjusting for inflation, 24/7 Wall St. identified the richest person of all time in every state.
Click here to see the richest person in every state.
Click here to see our detailed findings and methodology.
Source: Courtesy of Auburn University
1. Alabama
> Richest person of all time: Jimmy Rane (1946/1947-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $690 million
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Source: jlproperties.com
2. Alaska
> Richest person of all time: Leonard Hyde (1956/1957-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $340 million
Source: Courtesy of U-Haul Company
3. Arizona
> Richest person of all time: Mark Shoen (1950-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $3.14 billion
Source: Walmart / Wikimedia Commons
4. Arkansas
> Richest person of all time: Jim Walton (1948-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $47.92 billion
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Source: Courtesy of Irvine Company
5. California
> Richest person of all time: Donald Bren (1934-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $16.89 billion
Source: Courtesy of Leprino Foods
6. Colorado
> Richest person of all time: James Leprino (1937/1938-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $3 billion
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Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
7. Connecticut
> Richest person of all time: J. P. Morgan (1837-1913)
> 2018 estimate worth: $42.15 billion
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Source: Courtesy of Library of Congress
8. Delaware
> Richest person of all time: Henry Du Pont (1838-1926)
> 2018 estimate worth: $14.3 billion
Source: Kimberly White / Getty Images
9. Florida
> Richest person of all time: Dustin Moskovitz (1984-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $17.68 billion
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Source: Courtesy of Chick-fil-A
10. Georgia
> Richest person of all time: Bubba Cathy (1953-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $4.8 billion
Source: Courtesy of Cox Enterprises
11. Hawaii
> Richest person of all time: Jim Kennedy (1947/1948-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $12.86 billion
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Source: Jeremy112233 / Wikimedia Commons
12. Idaho
> Richest person of all time: Frank VanderSloot (1949-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $2.65 billion
Source: Ilan Costica / Wikimedia Commons
13. Illinois
> Richest person of all time: Larry Ellison (1944-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $56.76 billion
Source: Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology
14. Indiana
> Richest person of all time: Carl Cook (1962/1963-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $8.54 billion
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Source: stineseed.com
15. Iowa
> Richest person of all time: Harry Stine (1941/1942-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $4.03 billion
Source: Courtesy of Koch Industries
16. Kansas
> Richest person of all time: Charles Koch (1935-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $49.99 billion
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Source: rreihm / Wikimedia Commons
17. Kentucky
> Richest person of all time: Brad M. Kelley (1956/1957-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $2.2 billion
Source: Chris Graythen / Getty Images
18. Louisiana
> Richest person of all time: Tom Benson (1926/1927-2018)
> 2018 estimate worth: $2.75 billion
Source: colby.edu
19. Maine
> Richest person of all time: Susan Alfond (1945/1946-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $1.37 billion
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Source: Spencer Platt / Getty Images
20. Maryland
> Richest person of all time: Sergey Brin (1973-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $53.32 billion
Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
21. Massachusetts
> Richest person of all time: Marshall Field (1834-1906)
> 2018 estimate worth: $76.26 billion
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Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
22. Michigan
> Richest person of all time: Henry Ford (1863-1947)
> 2018 estimate worth: $68.33 billion
Source: Courtesy of Cargill
23. Minnesota
> Richest person of all time: Whitney MacMillan (1929/1930-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $6.28 billion
Source: thegivegroup.net
24. Mississippi
> Richest person of all time: Leslie Lampton (1925-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $1 billion
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Source: Dilip Vishwanat / Getty Images
25. Missouri
> Richest person of all time: Stanley Kroenke (1947-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $7.95 billion
Source: FelixRo / Wikimedia Commons
26. Montana
> Richest person of all time: Dennis Washington (1934-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $5.99 billion
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Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
27. Nebraska
> Richest person of all time: Warren Buffett (1930-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $90.44 billion
Source: Jason Merritt / Getty Images
28. Nevada
> Richest person of all time: Frank & Lorenzo Fertitta (1962, 1969-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $2.2 billion
Source: Peter Kramer / Getty Images
29. New Hampshire
> Richest person of all time: Brooke Astor (1902-2007)
> 2018 estimate worth: $150 million
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Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
30. New Jersey
> Richest person of all time: John Insley Blair (1802-1899)
> 2018 estimate worth: $47.73 billion
Source: David Ryder / Getty Images
31. New Mexico
> Richest person of all time: Jeff Bezos (1964-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $116.57 billion
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Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
32. New York
> Richest person of all time: John D. Rockefeller (1839-1937)
> 2018 estimate worth: $257.25 billion
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Source: Joe Corrigan / Getty Images the Ronald O. Perelman Heart Institute
33. North Carolina
> Richest person of all time: Ron Perelman (1943-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $18.07 billion
Source: umary.edu
34. North Dakota
> Richest person of all time: Gary Tharaldson (1945-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $880 million
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Source: Astrid Stawiarz / Getty Images for Fragrance Foundation
35. Ohio
> Richest person of all time: Les Wexner (1937-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $5.99 billion
Source: walmart.com
36. Oklahoma
> Richest person of all time: Sam Walton (1918-1992)
> 2018 estimate worth: $171.55 billion
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Source: Alberto E. Rodriguez / Getty Images
37. Oregon
> Richest person of all time: Phil Knight (1938-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $29.56 billion
Source: Piotrus / Wikimedia Commons
38. Pennsylvania
> Richest person of all time: Richard Mellon Scaife (1932-2014)
> 2018 estimate worth: $104.73 billion
Source: Courtesy of Providence Equity
39. Rhode Island
> Richest person of all time: Jonathan Nelson (1957-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $1.96 billion
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Source: Courtesy of University of Florida
40. South Carolina
> Richest person of all time: Anita Zucker (1952-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $3.83 billion
Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
41. South Dakota
> Richest person of all time: Lee Raymond (1938-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $400 million
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Source: dish.com
42. Tennessee
> Richest person of all time: Charles Ergen (1952/1953-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $14.24 billion
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Source: mikeandryan / Wikimedia Commons
43. Texas
> Richest person of all time: Michael Dell (1965-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $21.41 billion
Source: Science History Institute / Wikimedia Commons
44. Utah
> Richest person of all time: Robert Gore (1937-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $710 million
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Source: Wikimedia Commons
45. Vermont
> Richest person of all time: Henry Wells (1805-1878)
> 2018 estimate worth: $570 million
Source: John Stillwell - WPA Pool / Getty Images
46. Virginia
> Richest person of all time: John Mars (1935-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $27.69 billion
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Source: Kjetil Ree / Wikimedia Commons
47. Washington
> Richest person of all time: Bill Gates (1955-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $90.54 billion
Source: Hunter Martin / Getty Images
48. West Virginia
> Richest person of all time: Jim Justice II (1951-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $1.57 billion
Source: Tom Pennington / Getty Images
49. Wisconsin
> Richest person of all time: John Menard Jr (1940-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $13.65 billion
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Source: Joshua Lott / Getty Images
50. Wyoming
> Richest person of all time: Lukas Walton (1986-)
> 2018 estimate worth: $15.32 billion
Detailed Findings & Methodology
To identify the richest person of all time from every state, 24/7 Wall St. consulted lists of the wealthiest Americans, both living and historical figures. These include Forbes, American Heritage, and books including “The Wealthy 100: From Benjamin Franklin to Bill Gates-A Ranking of the Richest Americans, Past and Present.” Those on this list who are still alive were ranked on their current net worth while the deceased were ranked on their net worth at the height of their wealth, adjusted for inflation. Net worth figures on Forbes and Bloomberg are updated regularly. The figures we used from these two sources are as of Friday, March 14. When estimates for net worth were not adjusted for inflation, we used the Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Price Index inflation adjustment calculator. For those on this list who are no longer living, we used net worth estimates at the end of their lives. For those who are alive, net worth figures are meant to reflect current net worth. In several cases, due to an absence of a clear record, we used business size, personal incomes, and property to determine an estimate. We considered the state where the individuals spent a large amount of their childhood to be be their state of origin. When information about where an individual spent their childhood was not available, birthplaces were used. Birth years were obtained from various internet sources and biographies. When only current age was available, both possible birth years were listed.
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