When he died in 1877, Cornelius Vanderbilt was reported to have a wealth worth $100 million. He started his business empire in 1810 and successfully built the railroad construction industry. However, six generations later, the fortune was apparently eroded and nothing remained.

Huntington Hartford, who was the heir to the A&P food company, had to lose his inheritance due to his misguided lifestyle. Previously, he was able to earn an income of $1.5 million per year from his inheritance. In 1940, Hartfords even became one of the wealthiest families in America. However, unfortunately, it did not last forever, and in 2004 he had to move to the Bahamas with the remaining wealth he had.

After nine years of marriage, Patricia Kluge divorced her husband, John Kluge, a billionaire and media entrepreneur. She received an annual allowance of up to US$1 million as compensation. Approximately 20 years later, in 2011, she went bankrupt due to purchasing a vineyard near her house.

Bernhard Stroh came to the United States from Germany in 1850 with US$150 and a family recipe for making beer. His children later expanded his business empire. In the 1980s, the Stroh family successfully became one of the largest beer companies in the country. According to Forbes, their wealth reached US$700 million. However, now, after five generations, the company has been lost due to debt and losing in fierce competition in the business world.

The Pulitzer family briefly made it onto the list of the wealthiest families thanks to their media and printing business. However, this changed when the family was burdened with millions of dollars in debt. In 1982, the Pulitzer family had a net worth of US$25 million.