Vil·lard  (vĭ-lär', -lärd')  German-born American journalist and railroad magnate. He was president of the Northern Pacific Railroad (1881-1884) and formed (1890) the company that later became General Electric. His son Oswald Garrison Villard (1872-1949), a journalist and editor, was president of the New York Evening Post (1900-1918) and owner of The Nation (1918-1935). |