Charlie Merrill and Eddie Lynch met each other at the Twenty-third Street YMCA in New York City and within a couple of years they both became millionaires.

My father, Winthrop (“Win”) Smith, joined Merrill Lynch right out of college in 1916 and went to work for fellow Amherst man Charlie Merrill as his office boy.

During the Great Depression, Charlie Merrill was focused on creating a chain of Safeway stores, revolutionizing the grocery industry. He later applied the chain-store technique to the securities business.

Charlie Merrill and Win Smith finalizing the deal that brought Wall Street to Main Street. Together they forged one of the greatest partnerships in American business history.

Win Smith and Bob Magowan in 1955 at the Merrill Lynch “How to Invest Show” in Manhattan. Considered the most ambitious attempt ever made to explain Wall Street, the show included mechanized dioramas, lighted tableaux, and a movie.

In 1958, the partners at Merrill Lynch voted to replace “Beane” with “Smith” in the firm’s name. My father was surprised and touched. Company signage throughout the USA made the switch.

By 1980, an average of four thousand people entered the Merrill Lynch information booth at Grand Central Station every day. The booth was the inspiration of Lou Engel who also wrote the classic book How to Buy Stocks.

Many believe that Dan Tully’s greatest achievement as CEO of Merrill Lynch was to capsulize the core values into five elements known as “The Principles.” These words were etched outside company headquarters and displayed in offices worldwide in their local languages.

The only portraits that hung in the boardroom at Merrill Lynch were those of Charlie Merrill and Win Smith. After a meeting there one day, this photo was taken of me beside my dad. After Bank of America purchased Merrill Lynch, the retired chairmen’s portraits were deemed to be of “no value” and were returned to their families.

John Thain invited me to the podium at the final Merrill Lynch shareholders meeting on December 5, 2008. Little did I know that day the impact my speech would have on so many people throughout the world. (Christopher Elston Photography)