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Henry B. Babson (December 1, 1875 – October, 1970) was an entrepreneur, investor in phonograph technology, and notable breeder of Arabian horses. He first moved to Chicago at the age of 17 at the urging of inventor Leon F. Douglass.〔Gracyk, Tim. "Leon F. Douglass: Inventor and Victor's First Vice-President" web site accessed July 6, 2007 at http://www.gracyk.com/leon.shtml〕 While working at the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition, better known as the Chicago World Fair, Babson first encountered purebred Arabian horses brought from the Middle East for exhibition, and decided that some day he would own such horses for himself.〔Schofler, Patti. "Babson Arabians." ''Modern Arabian Horse,'' June/July 2007, pp. 83–86.〕 Though Babson himself was not an inventor, he became wealthy by selling innovative products, particularly the Victor Phonograph, and was acquainted with inventors like Leon Douglass and Thomas Edison. He made many successful business decisions based on new designs or technologies, choosing, for example, to sell a new design of milking machine, or investing in new phonograph companies.〔"The Victor Talking Machine Company" ''The David Sarnoff Library'' Web site accessed July 6, 2007 at http://www.davidsarnoff.org/vtm-chapter1.html〕 However, his interest in the new, innovative, and beautiful was particularly reflected in his personal life. He hired the famous architect, Louis Sullivan to design his country estate, enjoyed racing custom sailboats, and, in the 1930s, began to import Arabian horses to the United States.〔 ==Early life and professional career== Babson was the son of Augustus "Gus" Babson and Laura Margaret (Davis). He was born in Massachusetts in 1875 and grew up in Seward County, Nebraska.〔Mayfield, M. Kent. "Henry B. Babson – A Tribute." ''Arabian Horse World,'' July, 2007, pp. AK 3–4, 26〕 He made the acquaintance of fellow Nebraskan, Leon Douglass, who at the time worked for the Nebraska Phonograph Company. Douglass was an inventor and patented a number of improvements to the phonograph and was a pioneer in the development of color technology for film. After moving to Chicago, Babson first worked at the World's Fair for $1 a day,〔 possibly in Douglass' slot phonograph concession (Douglass had invented a coin-slot attachment for the phonograph, creating the immediate predecessor to the jukebox). He then obtained work from Douglass, who by then had become a manager of the Chicago Central Phonograph Company, which was part of the Thomas Edison-affiliated North American Phonograph Company, distributor for the Edison Phonograph. Babson's starting salary was $15 a week and he was a cashier.〔 For a brief time, at Douglass' direction, he also worked in San Francisco, running a slot phonograph concession and a parlor, which he then sold in 1895, at Douglass' direction, to Peter Bacigalupi, a pioneer of early music recordings, and the business became known as "Edison's Kinetoscope, Phonograph and Graphophone Arcade."〔 Babson returned to Chicago and continued to rise in the sound recording sales industry. Beginning in 1903, he traveled worldwide, including China, Russia, the Far East and Europe as a representative for the Victor Talking Machine Company, selling over $100,000 worth of phonographs.〔 Later, with his brothers, Fred and Gus, he started the Babson Brothers Company in Chicago, a mercantile and catalog mail order company similar to Sears, Roebuck and Company, which was a major seller of the Edison Phonograph, as well as Babson Records, Burlington watches, clothing, shoes, and farm supplies.〔"History of the Surge Bucket Milker 1922–1999." Web site accessed July 6, 2007 at http://surgemilker.com/〕 He also became a director of the Talking Machine Company of Chicago and then a major stockholder in the Victor Talking Machine Company, of which his mentor Leon Douglass was the first Vice-President. Victor was the manufacturer of the highly successful Victrola phonograph player.〔 The company was eventually acquired by RCA. Due to his success in business and investments, Babson was able to travel internationally and ultimately fulfilled his dream of owning purebred Arabian horses. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Henry Babson」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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