Charles F. Noyes*

Charles Noyes was born in Norwich, Connecticut, in 1878. His father was the co-publisher of the nation's sixth oldest newspaper, the Norwich Daily Bulletin. Noyes started his career at age 10 as a newspaper delivery boy for his father's paper. By the time he was 12, he had acquired newsstand concessions on steamers running between Block Island, Rhode Island, and New London, Connecticut.

At the age of 20, Noyes became a junior partner in a small New York real estate firm. When the firm was dissolved a few years later, he went into business for himself. Through hard work and determination, he built the Charles F. Noyes Company into one of the leading real estate brokerage firms in the United States.

In 1948, Noyes received the top award from the Real Estate Board of New York for the "most ingenious real estate transaction of the year." In 1951, he and his company associates were the brokers in the sale of New York's iconic 102-story Empire State Building. Well into his 80s, Noyes worked a 12-hour day, a lifelong habit that the "Dean of Real Estate Brokers" considered an indispensable part of his formula for success.