10 Women Who Are the Wealthiest People in Their States

Slideshow July 07, 2015 at 08:20 AM
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There's plenty of evidence that the wealth of women is growing. A Wells Fargo survey last year found that not only are women accruing more money, but they also enjoy investing their resources.

The rise in wealth among women got us wondering who are among the richest in the U.S.

We turned to Forbes, which listed the wealthiest person in each of the 50 states. It turns out that 20% of the states have a woman at the top of the list.

Despite the immense wealth of each, the woman at the top of our list is only the sixth richest person in the U.S. overall.

Check out our countdown of 10 Women Who Are the Wealthiest People in Their States:

Gore-Tex footwear (Photo: AP)

10. Elizabeth Snyder, $675 million

State: Delaware

World Rank: N/A

U.S. Rank: N/A

Source of Wealth: Snyder's brother, Bob Gore, invented Gore-Tex for the family business started by her parents, W.L. Gore & Co.  She is tied with her brother, Robert, for the state's richest person.

Andrea Reimann-Ciardelli

9. Andrea Reimann-Ciardelli, $1 billion

State: New Hampshire

World Rank: 1,741st

U.S. Rank: 513th

Source of Wealth: The descendant of 19th century chemist Ludwig Reimann, Reimann-Ciardelli is the beneficiary of the German chemical company started by him and Johann Adam Bensicker. In the 1950s, consumer products were added and today nine heirs share in JAB Enterprises.

Warren Buffett (Photo: AP)

8. Susan Alfond, $1.2 billion

State: Maine

World Rank: 85th

U.S. Rank: 34th

Source of Wealth: Alfond shares the fortune her father made with three of her siblings. Her father made a smart deal when he traded his Dexter Shoe company to Warren Buffett in 1993 for shares in Berkshire Hathaway.

Anita Zucker

7. Anita Zucker, $2.2 billion

State: South Carolina

World Rank: 847th

U.S. Rank: 297th

Source of Wealth: Zucker is the CEO of InterTech Group, which includes aerospace parts manufacturing, commercial real estate and chemical businesses as well an interest in a minor league hockey team, the South Carolina Stingrays. Since she took over the business after her husband died in 2008, the company, through a subsidiary, has become the owner of the largest solar power farm in South Carolina.

Campbell's Chicken Noodle Soup (Photo: AP)

6. Mary Alice Dorrance Malone, $3.2 Billion

State: Pennsylvania

World Rank: 557th

U.S. Rank: 190th

Source of Wealth: Malone is the granddaughter of the man who perfected the recipe that made Campbell's Soup mmm, mmm good. She is the company's largest shareholder. She and her brother both have seats on the company's board.

Abigail Johnson (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)

5. Abigail Johnson, $13.4 billion

State: Massachusetts

World Rank: 85th

U.S. Rank: 34th

Source of Wealth: Johnson became the third generation of her family to helm Fidelity when her father left the CEO's chair in 2014. Not a bad little family business.

Anne Cox Chambers (Photo: AP)

4. Anne Cox Chambers, $17 billion

State: Georgia

World Rank: 53rd

U.S. Rank: 28th

Source of Wealth: Chambers is majority owner of Cox Enterprises, a media company founded by her father. She was ambassador to Belgium under President Jimmy Carter.

M&M Candy

3. Jacqueline Mars, $26.8 billion

State: Virginia

World Rank: 22nd

U.S. Rank: 16th

Source of Wealth: The candy heiress lives the sweet life while sitting on the board of the company her grandfather founded. She and her brothers have little to do with the daily running of the firm that invented the nougat that fills Milky Way and Snickers bars, as well as M&Ms and other treats.

Alice Walton, daughter of Walmart founder Sam Walton. (Photo: AP)

2. Alice Walton, $36.4 billion

State: Texas

World Rank: 11th

U.S. Rank: 8th

Source of Wealth: If Walton's name seems familiar, it's because her father was Sam Walton, founder of Walmart. Notably, she bankrolled an art museum in her hometown of Bentonville, Arkansas.

Walmart Store (Photo: AP)

1. Christy Walton, $39.1 Billion

State: Wyoming

World Rank: 8th

U.S. Rank: 6th

Source of Wealth: Walton has topped the list of wealthiest women in the world for five of the last six years. She inherited her fortune when her husband, John, died in a plane crash in 2005. The son of the Walmart founder made his widow the wealthiest of the clan by investing in solar energy.

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