About
I am an independent investor and stock market commentator specializing in growth stocks. I also frequently guest host a radio talk show about investing. I have more than 300 publications including editorials, stock market newsletters, and history articles. My history book, "Steel's, A Forgotten Stock Market Scandal From The 1920's," was published by Syracuse University Press in 2013. I have an M.A. in Philosophy from The University of Michigan. My interest in history is based on trying to understand why my ancestors behaved so badly. Two of them were hanged in public and another killed himself by drinking a bottle of acid. Several others vanished leaving behind wives and children, or just children. There is lots of good material here. I am currently researching my great great grandfather, Eseck H. Dyer, who left his wife and four kids on the farm to join the Union Army during the Civil War at the ripe old age of 46. And it did not work out well for him.
Featured Work
Steel's, A Forgotten Stock Market Scandal From The 1920's
While researching an ancestor who vanished in 1923, the author found a large collection of documents and photos that revealed the inside details of a forgotten stock market scandal. The scandal involved Leonard Rambler Steel, a visionary entrepreneur who created a national chain of retail stores based in Buffalo. Using a silent film as a marketing device (perhaps the first infomercial), Steel actually made most of his money selling stock in his enterprise. Although 60,000 people bought the stock before it became worthless (three times more than in Ponzi’s contemporaneous scheme), there is no other written account of this scandal.
Other Works
Awards and Recognition
- My article investigating an 1871 murder in a small Canadian town won the first place award for excellence in writing from the International Society of Family History Writers in 2003.
