Lilly, Eli

Lilly, Eli

(1838–98) manufacturer, philanthropist; born in Baltimore, Md. He opened his first drug store in 1860 and then served in the Civil War. His pharmaceuticals manufacturing company in Indianapolis (established in 1876) became one of the largest in the U.S.A. He demonstrated his public spiritedness through forming the Consumers' Gas Trust Company (1888) and through his presidency of the Commercial Club of Indianapolis (1890–95). His "Indianapolis plan of relief" (1894) became a model for helping the unemployed.

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