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Does the US have a lot of old money? I would tend to think not. As lot of people who have money earned it themselves in the US. In the US, people who come from money tend to marry people who don't. Another reason is my mom's great uncle became a millionaire in the 60s. In the 70s, his son tried to marry some girl he was dating. Supposedly, she said no because her parents didn't want her marrying new money garbage. I can't imagine such a situation playing out now a days in America. Maybe in Europe. Then, when I got to thinking of the few people I know who are rich, usually associations of people I know, none of them came from a rich family. Does America have a lot of "old money"?
Does the US have a lot of old money? I would tend to think not. As lot of people who have money earned it themselves in the US. In the US, people who come from money tend to marry people who don't. Another reason is my mom's great uncle became a millionaire in the 60s. In the 70s, his son tried to marry some girl he was dating. Supposedly, she said no because her parents didn't want her marrying new money garbage. I can't imagine such a situation playing out now a days in America. Maybe in Europe. Then, when I got to thinking of the few people I know who are rich, usually associations of people I know, none of them came from a rich family. Does America have a lot of "old money"?
I can't speak in comparison to other countries, but yes, the US does have people who would be considered "old money." The percentage of old vs new money will probably increase in the future as well, as social mobility in America has stagnated. America's economic mobility myth - Dec. 9, 2013
There is plenty of "old money" still around. It's just that you usually don't hear about these folks because by definition they've inherited their money and haven't earned it from the places in the news that people usually think of when they think of making gobs of money, like Wall Street, Hollywood, or Silicon Valley.
Old money has trusts and private bankers and "family offices" to manage it all. They live discreetly in co-ops on Fifth Avenue or townhouses on Beacon Hill or horse farms in Virginia. They hang out in private clubs you've never heard of and still have debutante balls for the kids. They only make the general news when there is a huge row about breaking up the family fortune, or one of their kids gets busted for dope, drunk driving, or some greater indiscretion. And even then it may not be common knowledge that Mumsy and Daddy are in the Social Register.
But often their forunes are eclipsed by newer money now, especailly sine the original fortunes may have to be divided by numerous descendants and each one, while still wealthy by most people's standards, aren't in the same class as today's richest hedge fund managers o technology magnates.
I know of the Rockefellers, Vanderbilts, Duponts, Fords, Astors, and a few other families. Some wealthy families are even older. Most of the famous ones, however, tend to be from the Gilded Age industrialists (even though these were considered "new money" in their time).
No place has a lot of old money. The United States probably has more old money than any other country, except perhaps countries that still have a nobility.
Old money people are discrete. They don't flash their money around like rock stars or football players do.
They are not sitting around doing nothing. Their fortunes are tended to and expanded, and their children are trained in how to behave, how to maintain the money, and how to perform public service.
The people I know with old money, have all married people with old money. People with money don't live in the ghetto, so if their son marries his childhood sweetheart, she isn't the daughter of a drug dealer. She is a girl who also went to a top school.
Does the US have a lot of old money? I would tend to think not. As lot of people who have money earned it themselves in the US. In the US, people who come from money tend to marry people who don't. Another reason is my mom's great uncle became a millionaire in the 60s. In the 70s, his son tried to marry some girl he was dating. Supposedly, she said no because her parents didn't want her marrying new money garbage. I can't imagine such a situation playing out now a days in America. Maybe in Europe. Then, when I got to thinking of the few people I know who are rich, usually associations of people I know, none of them came from a rich family. Does America have a lot of "old money"?
This little discussion I started last year on the NYC forum may be of interest to you:
There are more than I would've thought. In the American South, there are still many families with money from oil, landownership, etc. Being from SoCal, I had never come across folks with old money - that is, until I met them. Ones I know have trusts and never have to work a day in their lives, though they busy themselves with charities, travel, etc. I was pretty surprised to find that debutante balls still exist!
Only the Rothschilds have old money. All money today descends from their bank account.
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I can't imagine such a situation playing out now a days in America. Maybe in Europe. Then, when I got to thinking of the few people I know who are rich, usually associations of people I know, none of them came from a rich family. Does America have a lot of "old money"?
