History

Established in 1984, Mercer University’s Eugene W. Stetson School of Business is named for a member of the 1901 graduating class.  Eugene W. Stetson is a corporate pioneer, with three major business accomplishments: leveraging the first major buyout in corporate history; restoring Illinois Central Railroad to a dividend paying railroad during the Great Depression; and arranging the merger of Guaranty Trust Company of New York with J.P. Morgan & Company, resulting in the formation of The Morgan Guaranty Trust Company.  Each of these accomplishments took place before their time, showing Stetson’s great foresight and keen business sense. 

Stetson’s business legacy is detailed in the book, Relationship Banker, written by James L. Hunt, Professor of Law at Mercer University’s Eugene. W. Stetson School of Business and Walter F. George School of Law.  Relationship Banker was published in 2009 by Mercer University Press.  Get the book details.

Eugene W. Stetson: Corporate Pioneer

Three Major Business Accomplishments

The Coca-Cola Company

Leveraging the first buyout in the United States during the 20th century, Stetson was a key member of the group formed by Ernest Woodruff in 1919 that purchased Coca-Cola from the Asa Candler family.  This buyout preceded the establishment of the leveraged buyout business in the United States by approximately 55 years.  Following Stetson’s negotiated purchase of Coca-Cola on behalf of the Woodruff group, he became one of three trustees of a trust that retained voting control of the company. Stetson was instrumental in keeping the New York banks with loans to the company calm during several difficult years after the purchase.

Illinois Central Railroad

Experiencing severe financial difficulty during the Great Depression, the Illinois Central Railroad ceased offering its investors dividends for a period of 19 years.  Stetson, initially on the Board of Directors (appointed in 1932 by W. Averell Harriman) and later as Chairmen on the Executive Committee, helped the Illinois Central Railroad restore its traditional role as a dividend paying railroad.  This feat was achieved in 1948 as a result of Stetson’s financial acuity in helping restructure the railroad’s balance sheet.

J.P. Morgan

Moving from Macon to New York, Stetson joined Guaranty Trust Company as the bank’s Vice President in 1916.  Stetson advanced to the Board of Directors in 1928, then President in 1941, and Chairman in 1944.

In the library of his New York apartment during the spring of 1958, Stetson arranged with Henry Clay Alexander of J.P. Morgan the merger of the Guaranty Trust Company of New York with J.P. Morgan & Company, resulting in the formation of The Morgan Guaranty Trust Company.  Merging these two major banks, Stetson was paid an investment banking fee by the Guaranty Trust Company as its financial advisor, preceding the establishment of the merger and acquisition business on Wall Street by 15 years.