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Edward J. Berwind
Edward J. Berwind

Edward Julius Berwind (1848-1936) was the founder of the Berwind-White Coal Mining Company. He was head of the company from 1886 until 1930.

Berwind was the son of German immigrants, and he was born in Philadelphia in 1848. Berwind received his education from the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland and served in the Navy from 1865 to 1875. Upon leaving the Navy, Berwind went into business with his one of his brothers, Charles, and Judge Allison White co-founding Berwind, White & Company, which was incorporated as Berwind-White in 1886. Berwind worked closely with J.P. Morgan in the consolidation, reorganization, integration, and expansion of his coal mining operations. In his day he was also considered to be the world's largest individual owner of coal mining properties. Berwind also refused to bargain with his employees, making his mines among the last open shops in the coal fields. He was owner of The Elms in Newport, Rhode Island. He died on August 18, 1936 and was buried in West Laurel Hill Cemetery in Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania.