How Did Milton Hershey Become Successful

Milton Hershey didn’t exactly start out as a great success. There might have been something in Pennsylvania that gave him what was needed to make it big. He used his intelligence to become one of America’s wealthiest individuals, a successful entrepreneur and a generous philanthropist who touched many lives.
Milton Hershey was born on September 13, 1857. He had one sibling, a sister named Serena who died from Scarlet fever when Milton was only eleven years old. His mother, Fanny, was a devoted Mennonite. She taught Milton Mennonite beliefs. She taught him the Golden Rule and to work hard and be careful with money. His father, Henry, was a dreamer who was constantly starting new jobs and working on his next “get rich quick” scheme. (Burford
Derry Church was a small farming community in the central part of the state. Eastern Pennsylvania was a dangerous place in July of 1863. The Civil War had come as far as a little town called Gettysburg. Now there was a rumor that General Lee was going to march on Philadelphia. If this was true, the Confederate army of the South could troop right through the Hershey farm. Although they knew they couldn't stop the war from coming, many farmers in the area decided they could save their valuables by burying them. Milton wanted to save his valuables, too, so he scooted under his bed to get his precious matchbox full of pennies. Milton carefully saved each penny he earned from running errands. He planned to spend them at the candy store. Milton loved all kinds of candy. He was not going to risk losing his hard earned cash, so he found a small shovel and began to dig behind one of the bushes lining the path to the back door. He slipped the box into the hole and covered it up with
To get his mind off things Milton and his mother traveled to Cuba. He was interested in the sugar industry they had in Cuba. Milton decided to build a sugar mill there to guarantee plenty of sugar for the chocolate factory. He put the plan into action and soon the new mill was under construction. Milton built a whole town for the workers just like in Pennsylvania. He called it Central Hershey. Milton had homes as well as recreation for the people. He brought in doctors, dentists, and teachers. He also built a railroad line to carry sugarcane. One day there was a tragic accident on the railroad that killed many people and left many children orphans. Just like in Pennsylvania, Hershey built a school for the orphan children. (Burford 53)
Milton’s mother died at the age of eighty four in 1920. Milton was having money troubles. The Hershey Chocolate Company was using so much sugar the Cuban plant couldn’t keep up. He decided he would just buy sugar somewhere else for the future needs of the factory. He had to pay high prices for the sugar. When the sugar was finally delivered, Milton had to pay the high price. He lost more than $2,500,000. He needed to ask for a loan. He paid the money back as soon as possible. Milton and his employees made a huge effort to pay this off. The loan was paid off in 1922. (Burford