One of the first to recognize the industrial possibilities of oil, Rockefeller established the Standard Oil Company (1870) and by the end of the decade exercised a virtual monopoly over oil refining in the USA. Early in the 20th century he handed over his business interests to his son, John D(avison) Rockefeller Jr. (1874–1960), and devoted his private fortune to numerous philanthropic projects, such as the establishment of the Rockefeller Foundation (1913). His son’s many philanthropic institutions include the Rockefeller Center in New York (1939).