Henry Varnum Poor (December 8, 1812 - January 4, 1905) was an American financial analyst who founded H. V. and H. W. Poor Co., a company that eventually evolved into Standard and Poor's, a bellwether of the financial research and analysis industry. Poor was born in Andover, Maine, and was the first in his family to graduate from college, receiving a degree from Bowdoin in 1835. After graduation he joined his uncle's law firm and based the bar in 1838. Henry and his brother John Poor established a law practice a few years later in Bangor, Maine. The Poor brothers made a fortune investing in Maine's timber industry, and John became a minor railway magnate. He was also heavily involved in building the Maine railroad network. John purchased the American Railroad Journal in 1849 and Henry became the editor and manager. To compile comprehensive information about the operational and financial state of railroad companies around the United States, Henry Poor published History of Railroads and Canals in the United States in 1860. After he started the H. V. and H. W. Poor Company with his son Henry William, Poor published annual editions of his book. Poor was appointed a government commissioner to the Union Pacific Railroad in 1862, which caused him to leave his position as editor of the American Railway Journal. He was elected the Union Pacific's first Secretary later in 1862 but left the railroad not long afterward. Henry Poor was also a co-founder of the American Geographical Society.