Hopkins, Mark

Hopkins, Mark

(1802–87) educator, theologian; born in Stockbridge, Mass. (brother of astronomer Albert Hopkins). At Williams College he was a revered teacher of moral philosophy (1830–87) and president (1836–72). A trained physician and ordained minister, Hopkins published numerous philosophical essays and sermons and was president of the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (1857–87).

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Hopkins, Mark

(1813–78) businessman, railroad developer; born in Henderson, N.Y. Son of a merchant, he read law but got involved in business. When he heard of the gold discovery in California in 1848, he moved there intending to run a mining company, but he soon discovered that money was more easily made by supplying the needs of the miners. He expanded his business operations and in 1854 joined with Collis P. Huntington to open an iron and hardware store in Sacramento. The two men participated in an informal group—including Leland Stanford and Charles Crocker—that discussed the political issues of the day, and when Theodore Judah appeared with his plan for a railroad linking the East and West, Hopkins and the other three formed the Central Pacific Railroad (1861). Hopkins served as the line's treasurer throughout the construction phase and until his death, and although not as well known or colorful as his three colleagues, he was highly regarded for providing the necessary legal and business acumen. He left a fortune of $20 million (and his name to a well-known hotel in San Francisco).

The Cambridge Dictionary of American Biography, by John S. Bowman. Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1995. Reproduced with permission.