Rocky's Wealth

The exact wealth of Nelson Rockefeller has been a guarded family secret. Now, however, the extent of his assets will be disclosed to the Senate Rules Committee and the House Judiciary Committee as part of his confirmation as Vice President. In the meantime, the best estimates of Rockefeller's holdings confirm his status as the Croesus of American public officials.

With his wife Happy and their children who are minors, Rockefeller is in control of properties, art, trusts, securities and foundation endowments worth about $250 million, a figure that probably reflects the stock market's recent decline. It is not clear whether or not this figure includes Nelson's participation in general family trusts; if it does not, his assets could be greater. The family wealth constitutes one of the most powerful financial forces in the world.

Oil was the original source of the family's wealth and is still an important business interest, although substantially less than before. Nelson's grandfather John D. Rockefeller created the Standard Oil Trust, becoming a billionaire in the process. Nelson and his siblings shared the inheritance of his legendary grandfather. Today the Vice President-designate's assets are widely scattered in various foundations, family trusts and securities. Aside from holdings in the Exxon Corporation, Nelson is said to own stock in the Chase Manhattan Bank, whose chairman is Brother David, although the bank's officials refuse to confirm this. Rockefeller's aides will not disclose his other holdings, but he reportedly has substantial investments in Rockefeller Center in midtown Manhattan and the International Basic Economy Corporation, which invests in developing countries.

Personally, Nelson owns one of the most valuable private art collections in the world, consisting of some 1,500 pieces. The Rockefeller clan's 3,000-acre estate in Pocantico Hills, north of New York City, houses much of the collection--and includes as well several swimming pools, a huge "playhouse," tennis courts, a golf course and lovely reaches of woodland. During the summer, Nelson and his wife spend time at their home hi Seal Harbor on the coast of Maine. They own a 25-room Fifth Avenue apartment in New York City, an estate on Foxhall Road hi Washington. D.C., and an 18,000-acre ranch in Venezuela. There are no firm figures on Rockefeller's cash income. But one estimate, made in 1959 when he became Governor of New York, put his dividend income at $80,000--each week. In 1964 his various investments were believed to return some $5 million a year.

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