In general if a family starts out rich then generations down the road they'l

Question:I know live with two big family trees (forests is more like it) and both sides have contributed to current generations being a mixture of almost-destitude poor, poor, working class, middle class, or even upper middle class. I've been told that on both sides (half of my ancestors came from Great Britain and Ireland) that my ancestors were wealthy (even nobles) until they came to the states and seems like with the mix of other races and the moving to America they became poor and middle class.

An example of a wealth family that may have started out poor, are the Kennedys and the Hiltons. The Kennedys started with an Irish Catholic, Joe Kennedy in the last 1800s/early 1900s but someone had to give birth to the child who was eventually the Kennedy that started the big legacy, I'm assuming they started out poor in Ireland. The Hiltons had ancestors who owned a farm in Germany and the Great Grandfather in the early 1900s was the one that started the Hilton chain of hotels.

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: I know live with two big family trees (forests is more like it) and both sides have contributed to current generations being a mixture of almost-destitude poor, poor, working class, middle class, or even upper middle class. I've been told that on both sides (half of my ancestors came from Great Britain and Ireland) that my ancestors were wealthy (even nobles) until they came to the states and seems like with the mix of other races and the moving to America they became poor and middle class.

An example of a wealth family that may have started out poor, are the Kennedys and the Hiltons. The Kennedys started with an Irish Catholic, Joe Kennedy in the last 1800s/early 1900s but someone had to give birth to the child who was eventually the Kennedy that started the big legacy, I'm assuming they started out poor in Ireland. The Hiltons had ancestors who owned a farm in Germany and the Great Grandfather in the early 1900s was the one that started the Hilton chain of hotels.

When families with huge fortunes lose them (Vanderbilts, Astors, etc.) it's usually due to a combination of:

1- it's continually being split between many heirs
2- heirs eventually being so idle they let managers take care of their money
3- taxes (inheritance and income)
4- whatever made the fortune is no longer there (for example, the Vanderbilts made their fortune in railroads, which by the mid 20th century were way past their "sell by" date and none of the things the money was invested in were as lucrative)

Then of course there was the Depression, which made many huge fortunes into "not so huge anymore" fortunes, then taxes and being split by multiple heirs took the rest.

Only about 10% of any society can be called rich and only about 1% would qualify as VERY rich in any civilization. Obviously it helps a lot if you inherit money, but there are plenty of people who've inherited tons and wound up broke (Barbara Hutton comes to mind, or Reginald Vanderbilt [Anderson Cooper's grandfather] or various royals who were deposed) while many who made fortunes started poor.

Conrad Hilton was most definitely not rich. Joe Kennedy actually inherited a good bit of money from his mother. Bill Gates was from an upper middle class family, Donald Trump was the son of a megamillionaire developer, and Oprah grew up in a two room shack in Mississippi after leaving her mother's slum in Milwaukee. Great wealth is possible from any background and it's assured from none. Intelligence, work ethic, ambition, and are bases of making a fortune if you don't have one and of keeping it if you inherit one. (I seriously doubt Paris Hilton will die super-rich, and another 50 years of Kennedys having large families will severely reduce their fortunes [serves them right- most of them are obnoxious]).

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