Lockwood-mathews Mansion Museum Set To Open New Exhibit On Nineteenth-century Wall Street Finance, Featuring Pioneers Like Legrand Lockwood, Hetty Green And Jeremiah Hamilton: Here’s More You Need To Know

Published on August 24, 2025

The Lockwood-Mathews Mansion Museum successful Norwalk, Connecticut is group to motorboat its latest exhibition, Bulls of Wall Street: High Finance, Power, and Social Change successful Victorian America. The grounds will beryllium opened connected September 4, 2025, from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m., and intends to immerse visitors into 19th-century finance, detailing nan lives of pivotal Americans.

A Journey Into 19th-Century Financial Powerhouses

At nan bosom of this accumulation is an exploration of nan financial world of LeGrand Lockwood, a cardinal fig successful 19th-century American finance, who was known for his important power successful nan railroad manufacture and his important wealth. Lockwood’s legacy, however, is intertwined pinch nan emergence of different salient figures specified arsenic Cornelius Vanderbilt and Jay Gould, 2 titans of nan financial world who helped style Wall Street arsenic we cognize it today.

The accumulation will research really these financial moguls utilized their powerfulness and power to revolutionize nan American economy. With nan thief of uncommon artifacts, photos, and documents from nationalist and backstage collections, including materials from nan New York Stock Exchange, nan grounds will connection a uncommon glimpse into nan world of precocious finance during nan Gilded Age. Visitors will study astir nan devices and methods these figures utilized to accumulate wealthiness and power, including nan banal market’s early financial instruments and strategies.

The Role of Women and Minorities successful 19th-Century Finance

While nan grounds will showcase nan stories of men for illustration Lockwood, Vanderbilt, and Gould, it will besides item nan lesser-known yet arsenic important contributions of women and minorities successful nan financial world. The accumulation will research nan achievements of trailblazing women specified arsenic Victoria Woodhull and Hetty Green, who defied societal norms and entered nan male-dominated world of finance. Woodhull, successful particular, is recognized arsenic nan first female to tally for U.S. president, and her activity successful financial markets was groundbreaking for its time.

Another important fig featured successful nan accumulation is Jeremiah Hamilton, nan first African American millionaire successful nan United States. Hamilton’s emergence to prominence successful nan financial world challenged nan group barriers of his clip and provides a powerful communicative of resilience and determination. The grounds will show his communicative and analyse really he navigated nan challenges of breaking done Wall Street’s “glass ceiling” during a play erstwhile African Americans had fewer opportunities successful finance.

Wall Street’s Transformation and Financial Innovations

The Bulls of Wall Street accumulation will besides delve into nan technological and technological breakthroughs that transformed nan financial world. In particular, visitors will study astir nan creation and improvement of financial instruments that accelerated nan velocity of accusation exchange, starring to nan maturation of Wall Street arsenic nan caller economical motor of nan country. The 19th period saw nan emergence of banal exchanges, nan improvement of railroads, and nan opening of world trade, each of which fueled nan American system and helped specify nan modern financial system.

These innovations allowed “self-made men,” specified arsenic those featured successful nan exhibit, to emergence to caller levels of prosperity. The accumulation will research nan thought of nan “American Dream” during nan Victorian era, showing really these financial pioneers achieved bonzer occurrence by capitalizing connected caller opportunities successful nan increasing economy.

Expert Advisors and Curators Behind nan Exhibit

The grounds was curated by Stacey Danielson, an independent depository master pinch a inheritance successful business management and historical interiors. Danielson’s expertise successful depository curation has brought a wealthiness of knowledge to this exhibition, allowing visitors to acquisition 19th-century finance done a modern lens.

Additionally, nan accumulation benefited from nan expertise of respective historians and advisors, including Sheri Caplan, an independent historiographer specializing successful nan history of women successful finance. Caplan will supply valuable penetration into nan often-overlooked contributions of women during nan period, adding extent to nan exhibition’s narrative. Other master advisors see Shane White, writer of Prince of Darkness: The Untold Story of Jeremiah G. Hamilton, and John E. Herzog, laminitis of nan Museum of American Finance successful New York City. Herzog, a starring fig successful nan American financial sector, has contributed his extended knowledge to nan improvement of nan exhibit.

Museum’s Commitment to Bringing History to Life

Douglas Hempstead, Chairman of nan Museum’s Board, and Executive Director Susan Gilgore shared their excitement astir nan exhibition’s opening. “This grounds has been years successful nan making, and we are thrilled to stock it pinch our visitors,” said Hempstead. “The history of Wall Street and its pioneers is an basal portion of America’s economical development, and we are grateful to CT Humanities and our supporters for making this accumulation possible. We dream that visitors will summation a deeper knowing of really financial powerfulness shaped our federation during nan Gilded Age.”

The Bulls of Wall Street accumulation is generously supported by CT Humanities, Tim and Sheila Pettee, and Kathy Olsen, CPA. Their contributions person played a captious domiciled successful nan investigation and implementation of nan project, ensuring that these uncommon artifacts and stories are brought to life for nan public.

Visiting nan Exhibit

The exhibition, Bulls of Wall Street, shall beryllium held astatine nan Lockwood-Mathews Mansion Museum starting connected September 4, 2025, and will beryllium accessible to nan nationalist for a constricted duration. The museum’s and nan American history and architecture will supply visitors a glimpse into nan leaders of financial innovations and nan improvement of Wall Street.

Photo: Lockwood-Mathews Mansion Museum