Anne Scheiber

$5,000 to $22 Million. 1893 to 1995.

Who she was

Anne Scheiber was an IRS auditor who retired in 1944 with about $5,000. She never earned more than a modest salary.

When she died in 1995 at 101 her portfolio was worth around $22 million. She left it to Yeshiva University.

Her return works out to roughly 18% a year for 50 years. The real secret was the 50 years.

She bought shares in companies whose products she understood, held them through every crash, and reinvested the dividends.

She attended shareholder meetings and read annual reports. She avoided brokers after being burned by one early on.

She lived frugally to the point of eccentricity. Nearly every dollar stayed invested.

Hold through the downturns. Reinvest the income.

And give compounding more years than you think you need.