Edward A. Pierce

Edward Allen Pierce
Born	August 31, 1874 Orrington, Maine
Died	December 16, 1974
Alma mater	Bowdoin College
Occupation	Brokerage
Employer	E.A. Pierce & Co., predecessor of Merrill Lynch, E.A. Pierce & Cassatt
Spouse(s)	Luella Van Hoosear (married 1909–1974)

Edward Allen Pierce (August 31, 1874 – December 16, 1974 was an American businessman and stock broker. Pierce was most notable for leading the firm of A.A. Housman & Company through the 1920s and 1930s and turning the firm into the largest brokerage in the U.S.. The firm, which was renamed E.A. Pierce & Co. in recognition of Pierce, was one of the predecessors of Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith.

Biography[]

Pierce was born in 1874 in Orrington, Maine, and attended Bowdoin College before dropping out. The college conferred an honorary Doctor of Laws degree on Pierce in 1956. In 1960, a second honorary Doctor of Laws was conferred on him by Brown University, where he was a trustee.^[1]

Pierce, who had worked as the manager of a lumber business in his twenties, gave up a comfortable $100 a week salary to become a clerk at A.A. Housman & Company in 1901. In 1921, he became the sole managing partner of the firm and led it through a major transformation becoming one of the leading Wall Street brokerage firms. In 1927, the firm was renamed E.A. Pierce & Co. in honor of his role in leading the firm. He died in December 1974 at the age of 100.

References[]

• Robert Cole, "Edward A. Pierce" in Charles D. Ellis, James R. Vertin (eds) Wall Street people: True stories of the great barons of finance, vol 2, p. 14. John Wiley and Sons, 2003
• "No. 1 Wire House". Time, February 4, 1935 (subscription required)
• "Bigger Biggest". Time, November 10, 1930 (subscription required)

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