Robert Winthrop (April 18, 1833 – November 18, 1892) was a wealthy banker and capitalist in New York City. Family Winthrop was born on April 18, 1833. He was the son of Thomas Charles Winthrop (1797–1873) and Georgianna (Kane) Winthrop. He was also the brother of Civil War General Frederic Winthrop. He was a direct descendant of colonial governors John Winthrop, John Winthrop, Jr., and Fitz-John Winthrop. Career Robert Winthrop commenced his business career in the cotton and sugar business with J.&A. Dennistoun Wood. In 1859, he turned to banking with the firm of Read, & Drexel. He was admitted to the New York Stock Exchange in 1862. In 1863, he became a one-third owner in the firm of Drexel, Winthrop & Company. Drexel, Winthrop was a very successful firm during the 1860s. most of this time, this New York branch, combined with the Drexel’s Philadelphia branch, was profiting between $300,000 and $350,000 per year. The Drexel brothers had a desire to do more European investing, as Winthrop did not agree, Drexel, Winthrop was dissolved in 1871 and Robert Winthrop & Company was established. Over the next twenty years, this company would grow into an important family banking enterprise; Robert Winthrop multiplied his family’s fortune many times over. The Company would remain in the Winthrop family’s hands for over one hundred years. In 1977, Wood, Struthers, & Winthrop, the successor firm of Robert Winthrop & Company, was sold to Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette for one-million shares of DLJ stock. DLJ went on to become part of Credit Suisse. Robert Winthrop was considered a close associate of his father-in-law, Moses Taylor. By the late 1860s, Mr. and Mrs. Robert Winthrop were large holders of the Manhattan Gas Light Company with 240 shares. In 1873, they held 1,320 shares of the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad. In 1870, Winthrop was a director of The Manhattan Coal Company. The extent of the Robert Winthrop family wealth would be further revealed during the Pujo Committee investigations. In 1913, a report issued by the Taft Administration showed that Mrs. Robert Winthrop was the third largest shareholder of National City Bank of New York, while Robert Winthrop & Company was the sixth largest shareholder in the National Bank of Commerce of New York. These were the nation’s two largest banks at the time. His son, Beekman Winthrop, headed Robert Winthrop and Company from 1913 until 1939