John J. Valentine

John J. Valentine (November 12, 1840 - December 1901) was an American expressman. He was president of Wells Fargo & Company from 1892 until his death.

He was born in 1840 at Bowling Green, Kentucky, the son of William Crenshaw Valentine and Eliza (Cunningham) Valentine. His Valentine ancestors from Eccles, Lancaster, England, had settled in Virginia in the 17th century. After attending the common schools, Valentine began his business career in 1854 working for Younglove Brothers, druggists and agents for Carter, Thomas & Company's express line in Bowling Green. Later he worked for O'Bannon, Kean & Company and then for the Adams Express Company. ["National Cyclopaedia of American Biography", Vol. III, p. 113. New York: James T. White & Company, 1891.]

In the spring of 1861 Valentine went to California, where he was joint agent for Wells Fargo & Company, the Pioneer Stage Line and the California State Telegraph Company at Strawberry Valley. Soon after, he was transferred to Virginia City, Nevada, as agent for Wells Fargo, the Pioneer Stage Line and John Butterfield's Overland Mail Company. [Ibid.] Valentine was named superintendent of express for Wells Fargo's Pacific Division in November 1866. [Noel M. Loomis, "Wells Fargo", p. 188. New York: Clarkson N. Potter, Inc., 1968.]

Valentine was appointed general superintendent at Wells Fargo's corporate headquarters in New York City in 1869. The headquarters was moved to San Francisco in 1870, whereupon he maintained his residence in Oakland until his death. He was a member of Advent Episcopal Church and vice president of the Young Men's Christian Association of Oakland. ["National Cyclopaedia of American Biography", Vol. III, p. 113.] He was appoint general superintendent of Wells Fargo's express department on February 8, 1872. [Loomis, p. 219.]

Upon the resignation of Charles F. Crocker in August 1882, Valentine was elected vice president and a director of Wells Fargo. [Loomis, p. 250.] He was also general manager of the company from the beginning of 1884. [Loomis, p. 255.]

His annually published summary of the American production of gold and silver was comprehensive in its research and recognized as authoritative on the subject. Opposed to the free coinage of silver as likely to cause a glut in the domestic market and depreciate its value, in 1891 Valentine's contributions to the press on the subject were notable for close reasoning, careful research, and a formidable array of statistics in support of his conclusions. ["National Cyclopaedia of American Biography", Vol. III, p. 113.]

Valentine was critical of the relaxed banking practices uncovered during audits of Wells Fargo's branches in 1891. When Lloyd Tevis was ousted as president of Wells Fargo on August 11, 1892, Valentine was elected his successor. [Loomis, p. 268.] Although Valentine was a prime expressman, in the opinion of a later Wells Fargo Bank president, Frederick L. Lipman, he was the company's first president who was not a banker. [Loomis, p. 339 note 5.]

John J. Valentine died in late December of 1901. Col. Dudley Evans was elected to succeed him as president of Wells Fargo on January 2, 1902. [Loomis, pp. 280, 284.]

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