Merchant Prince of Boston: Colonel T. H. Perkins, 1764-1854 (Harvard Studies in Business History, 26)

Thomas Handasyd Perkins was one of he most successful and eminent of the China Trade merchants. Wherever profit beckoned, Perkins and his brother followed -- to slaves and sugar, opium and fur, granite quarries and railroads, hotels and iron making. He was notable for his art collecting, his horticultural interests and the elegance of his homes. This engaging biography tells the story of Perkins' life as a leading citizen of Boston and as a merchant philanthropist who contributed to the growth of the city's cultural and civil institutions. The story of Colonel Perkins covers nearly 100 years of the city's history.