Chapter 2 Who was William Delbert Gann?
If you are a trader who practices technical analysis, you must have heard the name of W.D. Gann and his trading theory. William Delbert Gann was born in 1878 in Texas, the first of 11 children in a poor cotton-farming family. He neither graduated from grammar school nor attended high school because his parents expected him to work on the farm.
Gann believed the Bible was the greatest book and got most of his education from it. His writing style is saturated with mystery, esoteric, and indirect style that many find difficult to follow.
However, Gann created powerful technical analysis tools, including Gann Angles, Hexagon, Circle of 360, Square of 9, and many more. Most of them are based on ancient mathematics, geometry, astronomy, and astrology and are widely used by traders nowadays.
Critics claim that there is no actual proof that Gann did not profit from investments in the market but earned money by selling books and investment courses. It is unclear how wealthy W.D. Gann came from his trading analysis, but when he died in the 1950s, his estate was valued at slightly over $100 000.
But what is amazing is that Gann created trading rules ranging from basic money management principles to mental games one hundred years ago, which are still applicable.
