backers of Cyrus West Field's bedeviled transatlantic cable project throughout. Morgan personally lobbied Washington on Field's behalf in 1856 and Peabody & Co. subscribed to £10,000 of Field's original capital stock of £350,000 and later advanced Field funds to complete the project when he struggled to find American investors. In October 1858, Field's cable broke, delaying the project's completion another eight years until 1866. Throughout, Morgan and Peabody maintained their confidence in Field's project. The firm turned an eventual profit on the venture, but its major purpose was to establish Morgan as a primary backer in the growing communications industry. American Civil War Morgan became the active head of the firm in February 1859, with Peabody remaining the nominal senior partner. He took on a prominent role in London society, hosting many social gatherings at his homes on Hyde Park and at Roehampton. Though Peabody & Co. made a significant investment in the Transatlantic cotton trade, its principal business was still with correspondent banks in the Eastern United States and with railroad companies. It was therefore not as directly reliant on American slavery as its peer banks in London, and took advantage during the American Civil War by aligning with the Union. After the Civil War broke out, Morgan traded Union war bonds at a tremendous profit. Working with his son John Pierpont in New York, Morgan was able to receive news of the fall of Vicksburg via telegraph before it became general knowledge in London, buying up Union bonds before their prices rose. Even so, the bank's position in London may have prevented further profits; buying Union war bonds risked alienating the English textile industry, which was closely aligned with Confederate cotton plantations. While Philadelphia banker Jay Cooke and those Wall Street banks with German ties made a bonanza during the war, Peabody & Co. had modest profits by comparison. J. S. Morgan & Co. In 1864, Morgan's ten-year agreement with Peabody expired. Though Peabody retired as promised, he denied Morgan the use of his name and capital. Morgan's grandson later recalled this as "at that time, the bitterest disappointment of his life". Peabody also forced unfavorable terms on Morgan's lease of the bank's 22 Old Broad Street offices. Morgan succeeded Peabody as head of the firm and reluctantly changed its name to J. S. Morgan & Co. Despite his disappointment, J. S. Morgan was the largest American bank