In 1888 Cornelius Vanderbilt bought a block of land in mid-town
Manhattan for $63. Vanderbilt, considered by many to be a
shrewd investor was widely criticized in the financial press for this
purchase. The land today is valued at approximately $980 million.
If Vanderbilt had instead left the money in the stock market and
had earned, on average, 10%, would his descendants have been
better off?