Norman B. Ream

Norman Bruce Ream (1844–1915) was an American businessman. A Civil War veteran, Ream became a millionaire by investing in steel, railroads, insurance, and banking. Early life Norman B. Ream was born on November 5, 1844, in Harnedsville, Somerset County, Pennsylvania. He was educated in public schools. During the American Civil War of 1861–1865, he served in the 85th Pennsylvania Infantry of the Union Army. He became the youngest man to be promoted from private to First-Lieutenant in the Union Army. However, he was "incapacitated" by war wounds. Career Shortly after the war, in 1866, Ream moved to Princeton, Illinois, where he opened a store. Later, Ream moved to Iowa, where he purchased cattle and grains on credit and sold them to farmers on credit. He ran up debt as a result of a crop failure, but managed to pay it off, and moved to Chicago in 1877. Shortly after, Ream joined the Chicago Board of Trade. Ream would rise early to talk to the people at the Union Stock Yards before the Board of Trade opened at 10AM. Over the year, Ream became an investment advisor to business magnates like J. P. Morgan, Marshall Field, George Pullman. Later, with Robert Todd Lincoln, Ream was the executor of Pullman's will.