John Jacob Astor born
Johann Jakob Astor, was a German-American
businessA business is an organization engaged in the trade of goods, services, or both to consumers. Businesses are predominant in capitalist economies, where most of them are privately owned and administered to earn profit to increase the wealth of their owners. Businesses may also be not-for-profit...
magnateMagnate, from the Late Latin magnas, a great man, itself from Latin magnus 'great', designates a noble or other man in a high social position, by birth, wealth or other qualities...
and
investorAn investor is a party that makes an investment into one or more categories of assets --- equity, debt securities, real estate, currency, commodity, derivatives such as put and call options, etc...
who was the first prominent member of the
Astor familyThe Astor family is a Anglo-American business family of German descent notable for their prominence in business, society, and politics.-Founding family members:...
and the first multi-
millionaireA millionaire is an individual whose net worth or wealth is equal to or exceeds one million units of currency. It can also be a person who owns one million units of currency in a bank account or savings account...
in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. He was the creator of the first
trustA special trust or business trust is a business entity formed with intent to monopolize business, to restrain trade, or to fix prices. Trusts gained economic power in the U.S. in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Some, but not all, were organized as trusts in the legal sense...
in America.
He went to the United States following the
American Revolutionary WarThe American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
and built a
fur-tradingThe fur trade is a worldwide industry dealing in the acquisition and sale of animal fur. Since the establishment of world market for in the early modern period furs of boreal, polar and cold temperate mammalian animals have been the most valued...
empire that extended to the
Great LakesThe Great Lakes are a collection of freshwater lakes located in northeastern North America, on the Canada – United States border. Consisting of Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, they form the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth by total surface, coming in second by volume...
region and
CanadaCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, and later expanded into the American West and Pacific coast. He also got involved in smuggling
opiumOpium is the dried latex obtained from the opium poppy . Opium contains up to 12% morphine, an alkaloid, which is frequently processed chemically to produce heroin for the illegal drug trade. The latex also includes codeine and non-narcotic alkaloids such as papaverine, thebaine and noscapine...
. In the early 19th century he diversified into
New York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
real estateIn general use, esp. North American, 'real estate' is taken to mean "Property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals, or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this; an item of real property; buildings or...
and later became a famed patron of the arts.
Early life
John Jacob Astor's ancestors were Waldensian refugees from
SavoySavoy is a region of France. It comprises roughly the territory of the Western Alps situated between Lake Geneva in the north and Monaco and the Mediterranean coast in the south....
, and Astor remained a member of the Reformed church throughout his life. He was born in
WalldorfWalldorf is a town in the Rhein-Neckar-Kreis of Baden-Württemberg in Germany.Walldorf is currently probably best known as the city that headquarters the world's third largest software company SAP, but it is also the birthplace of the millionaire John Jacob Astor, at the time of his death the...
, near
Heidelberg-Early history:Between 600,000 and 200,000 years ago, "Heidelberg Man" died at nearby Mauer. His jaw bone was discovered in 1907; with scientific dating, his remains were determined to be the earliest evidence of human life in Europe. In the 5th century BC, a Celtic fortress of refuge and place of...
in the old Palatinate which became part of the Duchy of Baden in 1803, Germany (now in
Rhein-Neckar-KreisRhein-Neckar-Kreis is a district in the northwest of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Neighboring districts are Bergstraße, Odenwaldkreis, Neckar-Odenwald, Heilbronn, Karlsruhe, district-free Speyer, the Rhein-Pfalz-Kreis, and district-free Mannheim and Heidelberg.-History:The district was created in...
in the state of
Baden-WürttembergBaden-Württemberg is one of the 16 states of Germany. Baden-Württemberg is in the southwestern part of the country to the east of the Upper Rhine, and is the third largest in both area and population of Germany's sixteen states, with an area of and 10.7 million inhabitants...
). His father, Johann Jacob Astor (July 7, 1724-April 18, 1816), was a butcher. The son's career began with working in
GermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
as assistant in his father's business as a dairy salesman. In 1779 at age 16 he emigrated to
LondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, where he learned English while working for his brother, George Astor,
manufacturingManufacturing is the use of machines, tools and labor to produce goods for use or sale. The term may refer to a range of human activity, from handicraft to high tech, but is most commonly applied to industrial production, in which raw materials are transformed into finished goods on a large scale...
musical instruments.
Astor arrived in the United States in March 1784, just after the end of the
Revolutionary WarThe American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
. He traded furs with Indians and in the late 1780s started a fur goods shop in
New York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. He also became the New York agent of his brother's musical instrument business.
Astor married Sarah Todd on September 19, 1785. Although she brought him a
dowryA dowry is the money, goods, or estate that a woman brings forth to the marriage. It contrasts with bride price, which is paid to the bride's parents, and dower, which is property settled on the bride herself by the groom at the time of marriage. The same culture may simultaneously practice both...
of only $300, she possessed a frugal mind and a business judgment that he declared better than that of most merchants, and she assisted him in the practical details of his business.
Fortune from fur trade
Astor took advantage of the
Jay TreatyJay's Treaty, , also known as Jay's Treaty, The British Treaty, and the Treaty of London of 1794, was a treaty between the United States and Great Britain that is credited with averting war,, resolving issues remaining since the Treaty of Paris of 1783, which ended the American Revolution,, and...
between
Great BritainThe former Kingdom of Great Britain, sometimes described as the 'United Kingdom of Great Britain', That the Two Kingdoms of Scotland and England, shall upon the 1st May next ensuing the date hereof, and forever after, be United into One Kingdom by the Name of GREAT BRITAIN. was a sovereign...
and the United States in 1794, which opened new markets in Canada and the Great Lakes region. Then in London, Astor at once made a contract with the Northwest Company of Montreal and Quebec (then the magnate of the Canadian Northwest fur trade). He imported furs from Montreal to New York, and shipped them to all parts of Europe. By 1800 he had amassed almost a quarter of a million dollars, and had become one of the leading figures in the
fur tradeThe fur trade is a worldwide industry dealing in the acquisition and sale of animal fur. Since the establishment of world market for in the early modern period furs of boreal, polar and cold temperate mammalian animals have been the most valued...
. In 1800, following the example of the
Empress of ChinaThe Empress of China was a three-masted, square-rigged sailing ship, initially built in 1783 for service as a privateer. After the Treaty of Paris brought a formal end to the American Revolutionary War, the vessel was refitted for commercial purposes...
, the first American trading vessel to
ChinaChinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, Astor traded furs, teas and
sandalwoodSandalwood is the name of a class of fragrant woods from trees in the genus Santalum. The woods are heavy, yellow, and fine-grained, and unlike many other aromatic woods they retain their fragrance for decades. As well as using the harvested and cut wood in-situ, essential oils are also extracted...
with
CantonGuangzhou , known historically as Canton or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of the Guangdong province in the People's Republic of China. Located in southern China on the Pearl River, about north-northwest of Hong Kong, Guangzhou is a key national transportation hub and trading port...
in China, and greatly benefited from it.
The U.S.
Embargo ActThe Embargo Act of 1807 and the subsequent Nonintercourse Acts were American laws restricting American ships from engaging in foreign trade between the years of 1807 and 1812. The Acts were diplomatic responses by presidents Thomas Jefferson and James Madison designed to protect American interests...
in 1807, however, disrupted his import/export business. With the permission of President
Thomas JeffersonThomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia...
, Astor established the
American Fur CompanyThe American Fur Company was founded by John Jacob Astor in 1808. The company grew to monopolize the fur trade in the United States by 1830, and became one of the largest businesses in the country. The company was one the first great trusts in American business...
on April 6, 1808. He later formed subsidiaries: the
Pacific Fur CompanyThe Pacific Fur Company was founded June 23, 1810, in New York City. Half of the stock of the company was held by the American Fur Company, owned exclusively by John Jacob Astor, and Astor provided all of the capital for the enterprise. The other half of the stock was ascribed to working partners...
, and the Southwest Fur Company (in which Canadians had a part), in order to control fur trading in the
Columbia RiverThe Columbia River is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river rises in the Rocky Mountains of British Columbia, Canada, flows northwest and then south into the U.S. state of Washington, then turns west to form most of the border between Washington and the state...
and Great Lakes areas.
His Columbia River trading post at
Fort AstoriaFort Astoria was the Pacific Fur Company's primary fur trading post in the Northwest, and was the first American-owned settlement on the Pacific coast. After a short two-year term of US ownership, the British owned and operated it for 33 years. It was the first British port on the Pacific coast...
(established in April 1811) was the first United States community on the Pacific coast. He financed the overland
Astor ExpeditionThe Astor Expedition of 1810-1812 was the next overland expedition from St. Louis, Missouri to the mouth of the Columbia River after the Corps of Discovery, led by Lewis and Clark.-History:...
in 1810–12 to reach the outpost. Members of the expedition were to discover
South PassSouth Pass is two mountain passes on the Continental Divide in the Rocky Mountains in southwestern Wyoming. The passes are located in a broad low region, 35 miles broad, between the Wind River Range to the north and the Oregon Buttes and Great Divide Basin to the south, in southwestern Fremont...
, through which hundreds of thousands settlers on the
OregonThe Oregon Trail is a historic east-west wagon route that connected the Missouri River to valleys in Oregon and locations in between.After 1840 steam-powered riverboats and steamboats traversing up and down the Ohio, Mississippi and Missouri rivers sped settlement and development in the flat...
,
CaliforniaThe California Trail was an emigrant trail of about across the western half of the North American continent from Missouri River towns to what is now the state of California...
and
MormonThe Mormon Trail or Mormon Pioneer Trail is the 1,300 mile route that members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints traveled from 1846 to 1868...
trails passed through the
Rocky MountainsThe Rocky Mountains are a major mountain range in western North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch more than from the northernmost part of British Columbia, in western Canada, to New Mexico, in the southwestern United States...
.
Astor's fur trading ventures were again disrupted when the British captured his trading posts during the
War of 1812The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
. In 1816, he joined the opium smuggling trade. His American Fur Company purchased ten tons of Turkish opium, then shipped the contraband item to
CantonGuangzhou , known historically as Canton or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of the Guangdong province in the People's Republic of China. Located in southern China on the Pearl River, about north-northwest of Hong Kong, Guangzhou is a key national transportation hub and trading port...
on the packet ship
Macedonian. Astor later left the China opium trade and sold solely to England.
Astor's business rebounded in 1817 after the U.S. Congress passed a
protectionistProtectionism is the economic policy of restraining trade between states through methods such as tariffs on imported goods, restrictive quotas, and a variety of other government regulations designed to allow "fair competition" between imports and goods and services produced domestically.This...
law that barred foreign traders from U.S. territories. The American Fur Company came to dominate trading in the area around the Great Lakes. In 1822, Astor established the
Astor HouseThe Astor House was a fine hotel in New York City, that opened in 1836 and soon became the most famous hotel in America.-History:The Astor House was originally built by John Jacob Astor, who assembled the building lots around his former house until he had purchased the full block in the heart of...
on
Mackinac IslandMackinac Island is an island and resort area covering in land area, part of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is located in Lake Huron, at the eastern end of the Straits of Mackinac, between the state's Upper and Lower Peninsulas. The island was home to a Native American settlement before European...
as headquarters for the reorganized American Fur Company, making the island a metropolis of the fur trade. A lengthy description based on documents, diaries etc. was given by
Washington IrvingWashington Irving was an American author, essayist, biographer and historian of the early 19th century. He was best known for his short stories "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" and "Rip Van Winkle", both of which appear in his book The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. His historical works...
in his travelogue
AstoriaAstoria is a novel published in 1836 by Washington Irving, at the behest of John Jacob Astor, about the American West....
. Astor's commercial connections extended over the entire globe, and his ships were found in every sea.
In 1804, Astor purchased from
Aaron BurrAaron Burr, Jr. was an important political figure in the early history of the United States of America. After serving as a Continental Army officer in the Revolutionary War, Burr became a successful lawyer and politician...
what remained of a 99-year lease on property in Manhattan. At the time, Burr was serving as vice president under
Thomas JeffersonThomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia...
and desperately needed the purchase price of $62,500. The lease was to run until 1866. Astor began subdividing the land into nearly 250 lots and subleased them. His conditions were that the tenant could do whatever they wish with the lots for twenty-one years, after which they must renew the lease or Astor would take back the lot.
Real estate and retirement
In the 1830s, John Jacob Astor foresaw that the next big boom would be the build-up of New York, which would soon emerge as one of the world’s greatest cities. Astor withdrew from the American Fur Company, as well as all his other ventures, and used the money to buy and develop large tracts of Manhattan
real estateIn general use, esp. North American, 'real estate' is taken to mean "Property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals, or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this; an item of real property; buildings or...
. Predicting the rapid growth northward on Manhattan Island, Astor purchased more and more land beyond the current
city limitsThe terms city limits and city boundary refer to the defined boundary or border of a city. The area within the city limits is sometimes called the city proper. The terms town limits/boundary and village limits/boundary mean the same as city limits/boundary, but apply to towns and villages...
. Astor rarely built on his land, and instead let others pay rent to use it.
After retiring from his business, Astor spent the rest of his life as a patron of culture. He supported the ornithologist
John James AudubonJohn James Audubon was a French-American ornithologist, naturalist, and painter. He was notable for his expansive studies to document all types of American birds and for his detailed illustrations that depicted the birds in their natural habitats...
, the poet/writer
Edgar Allan PoeEdgar Allan Poe was an American author, poet, editor and literary critic, considered part of the American Romantic Movement. Best known for his tales of mystery and the macabre, Poe was one of the earliest American practitioners of the short story and is considered the inventor of the detective...
, and the presidential campaign of
Henry ClayHenry Clay, Sr. , was a lawyer, politician and skilled orator who represented Kentucky separately in both the Senate and in the House of Representatives...
.
Last will
At the time of his death in 1848, Astor was the wealthiest person in the United States, leaving an estate estimated to be worth at least $20 million. His estimated net worth, if calculated as a fraction of the U.S.
gross domestic productGross domestic product refers to the market value of all final goods and services produced within a country in a given period. GDP per capita is often considered an indicator of a country's standard of living....
at the time, would have been equivalent to $110.1 billion in 2006
U.S. dollarThe United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
s, making him the fourth richest person in American history. An estimate based on inflation from the legally set American gold standard rate of $21 per ounce in the 1850s would result in a much more conservative net worth of $1.272 billion in 2011 dollars.
In his will, he left $400,000 to build the
Astor LibraryThe Astor Library was a free public library developed primarily through the collaboration of New York merchant John Jacob Astor and New England educator and bibliographer Joseph Cogswell. It was primarily meant as a research library, and its books did not circulate...
for the New York public (later consolidated with other libraries to form
New York Public LibraryThe New York Public Library is the largest public library in North America and is one of the United States' most significant research libraries...
), and $50,000 for a poorhouse and orphanage in his German hometown,
WalldorfWalldorf is a town in the Rhein-Neckar-Kreis of Baden-Württemberg in Germany.Walldorf is currently probably best known as the city that headquarters the world's third largest software company SAP, but it is also the birthplace of the millionaire John Jacob Astor, at the time of his death the...
. The
Astorhaus is now a museum honoring the city's ancestor Johann Jakob Astor and a renowned festhall for marriages. Further Astor donated $25,000 to the German Society of the City of New York, whose chairman he was from 1837 until 1841. Also $30,000 were to be used for a professor's chair in
German literatureGerman literature comprises those literary texts written in the German language. This includes literature written in Germany, Austria, the German part of Switzerland, and to a lesser extent works of the German diaspora. German literature of the modern period is mostly in Standard German, but there...
at
Columbia UniversityColumbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
, but due to differences with the deanship this donation was erased from the testament.
Astor left the bulk of his fortune to his second son,
William Backhouse Astor, Sr.William Backhouse Astor, Sr. was an American businessman and member of the Astor family.-Origins and schooling:...
His eldest son, John Jacob II, had a mental disability and Astor left enough money to care for him for the rest of his life.
John Jacob Astor is buried in the Trinity Churchyard Cemetery in the
New York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
boroughNew York City, one of the largest cities in the world, is composed of five boroughs. Each borough now has the same boundaries as the county it is in. County governments were dissolved when the city consolidated in 1898, along with all city, town, and village governments within each county...
of
ManhattanManhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
because many members of his family were members of that church despite Astor remaining a member of the local
Reformed congregationThe Reformed Church in America is a mainline Reformed Protestant denomination in Canada and the United States. It has about 170,000 members, with the total declining in recent decades. From its beginning in 1628 until 1819, it was the North American branch of the Dutch Reformed Church. In 1819, it...
to his death.
Herman MelvilleHerman Melville was an American novelist, short story writer, essayist, and poet. He is best known for his novel Moby-Dick and the posthumous novella Billy Budd....
used Astor as a symbol of the earliest fortunes in New York in his novella
Bartleby, the Scrivener.
The pair of marble lions that sit by the entrance of the
New York Public LibraryThe New York Public Library is the largest public library in North America and is one of the United States' most significant research libraries...
at Fifth Avenue and 42nd Street were originally named Leo Astor and Leo Lenox, after Astor and
James LenoxJames Lenox was an American bibliophile and philanthropist. His collection of paintings and books eventually became known as the Lenox Library and later became part of the New York Public Library in 1895.-Biography:...
, who founded the library. Then they were called Lord Astor and Lady Lenox (both lions are males). Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia renamed them "Patience" and "Fortitude" during the
Great DepressionThe Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
.
Descendants
John Jacob Astor (July 17, 1763 – March 29, 1848), born
Johann Jakob Astor, was a German-American
businessA business is an organization engaged in the trade of goods, services, or both to consumers. Businesses are predominant in capitalist economies, where most of them are privately owned and administered to earn profit to increase the wealth of their owners. Businesses may also be not-for-profit...
magnateMagnate, from the Late Latin magnas, a great man, itself from Latin magnus 'great', designates a noble or other man in a high social position, by birth, wealth or other qualities...
and
investorAn investor is a party that makes an investment into one or more categories of assets --- equity, debt securities, real estate, currency, commodity, derivatives such as put and call options, etc...
who was the first prominent member of the
Astor familyThe Astor family is a Anglo-American business family of German descent notable for their prominence in business, society, and politics.-Founding family members:...
and the first multi-
millionaireA millionaire is an individual whose net worth or wealth is equal to or exceeds one million units of currency. It can also be a person who owns one million units of currency in a bank account or savings account...
in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. He was the creator of the first
trustA special trust or business trust is a business entity formed with intent to monopolize business, to restrain trade, or to fix prices. Trusts gained economic power in the U.S. in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Some, but not all, were organized as trusts in the legal sense...
in America.
He went to the United States following the
American Revolutionary WarThe American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
and built a
fur-tradingThe fur trade is a worldwide industry dealing in the acquisition and sale of animal fur. Since the establishment of world market for in the early modern period furs of boreal, polar and cold temperate mammalian animals have been the most valued...
empire that extended to the
Great LakesThe Great Lakes are a collection of freshwater lakes located in northeastern North America, on the Canada – United States border. Consisting of Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, they form the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth by total surface, coming in second by volume...
region and
CanadaCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, and later expanded into the American West and Pacific coast. He also got involved in smuggling
opiumOpium is the dried latex obtained from the opium poppy . Opium contains up to 12% morphine, an alkaloid, which is frequently processed chemically to produce heroin for the illegal drug trade. The latex also includes codeine and non-narcotic alkaloids such as papaverine, thebaine and noscapine...
. In the early 19th century he diversified into
New York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
real estateIn general use, esp. North American, 'real estate' is taken to mean "Property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals, or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this; an item of real property; buildings or...
and later became a famed patron of the arts.
Early life
John Jacob Astor's ancestors were Waldensian refugees from
SavoySavoy is a region of France. It comprises roughly the territory of the Western Alps situated between Lake Geneva in the north and Monaco and the Mediterranean coast in the south....
, and Astor remained a member of the Reformed church throughout his life. He was born in
WalldorfWalldorf is a town in the Rhein-Neckar-Kreis of Baden-Württemberg in Germany.Walldorf is currently probably best known as the city that headquarters the world's third largest software company SAP, but it is also the birthplace of the millionaire John Jacob Astor, at the time of his death the...
, near
Heidelberg-Early history:Between 600,000 and 200,000 years ago, "Heidelberg Man" died at nearby Mauer. His jaw bone was discovered in 1907; with scientific dating, his remains were determined to be the earliest evidence of human life in Europe. In the 5th century BC, a Celtic fortress of refuge and place of...
in the old Palatinate which became part of the Duchy of Baden in 1803, Germany (now in
Rhein-Neckar-KreisRhein-Neckar-Kreis is a district in the northwest of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Neighboring districts are Bergstraße, Odenwaldkreis, Neckar-Odenwald, Heilbronn, Karlsruhe, district-free Speyer, the Rhein-Pfalz-Kreis, and district-free Mannheim and Heidelberg.-History:The district was created in...
in the state of
Baden-WürttembergBaden-Württemberg is one of the 16 states of Germany. Baden-Württemberg is in the southwestern part of the country to the east of the Upper Rhine, and is the third largest in both area and population of Germany's sixteen states, with an area of and 10.7 million inhabitants...
). His father, Johann Jacob Astor (July 7, 1724-April 18, 1816), was a butcher. The son's career began with working in
GermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
as assistant in his father's business as a dairy salesman. In 1779 at age 16 he emigrated to
LondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, where he learned English while working for his brother, George Astor,
manufacturingManufacturing is the use of machines, tools and labor to produce goods for use or sale. The term may refer to a range of human activity, from handicraft to high tech, but is most commonly applied to industrial production, in which raw materials are transformed into finished goods on a large scale...
musical instruments.
Astor arrived in the United States in March 1784, just after the end of the
Revolutionary WarThe American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
. He traded furs with Indians and in the late 1780s started a fur goods shop in
New York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. He also became the New York agent of his brother's musical instrument business.
Astor married Sarah Todd on September 19, 1785. Although she brought him a
dowryA dowry is the money, goods, or estate that a woman brings forth to the marriage. It contrasts with bride price, which is paid to the bride's parents, and dower, which is property settled on the bride herself by the groom at the time of marriage. The same culture may simultaneously practice both...
of only $300, she possessed a frugal mind and a business judgment that he declared better than that of most merchants, and she assisted him in the practical details of his business.
Fortune from fur trade
Astor took advantage of the
Jay TreatyJay's Treaty, , also known as Jay's Treaty, The British Treaty, and the Treaty of London of 1794, was a treaty between the United States and Great Britain that is credited with averting war,, resolving issues remaining since the Treaty of Paris of 1783, which ended the American Revolution,, and...
between
Great BritainThe former Kingdom of Great Britain, sometimes described as the 'United Kingdom of Great Britain', That the Two Kingdoms of Scotland and England, shall upon the 1st May next ensuing the date hereof, and forever after, be United into One Kingdom by the Name of GREAT BRITAIN. was a sovereign...
and the United States in 1794, which opened new markets in Canada and the Great Lakes region. Then in London, Astor at once made a contract with the Northwest Company of Montreal and Quebec (then the magnate of the Canadian Northwest fur trade). He imported furs from Montreal to New York, and shipped them to all parts of Europe. By 1800 he had amassed almost a quarter of a million dollars, and had become one of the leading figures in the
fur tradeThe fur trade is a worldwide industry dealing in the acquisition and sale of animal fur. Since the establishment of world market for in the early modern period furs of boreal, polar and cold temperate mammalian animals have been the most valued...
. In 1800, following the example of the
Empress of ChinaThe Empress of China was a three-masted, square-rigged sailing ship, initially built in 1783 for service as a privateer. After the Treaty of Paris brought a formal end to the American Revolutionary War, the vessel was refitted for commercial purposes...
, the first American trading vessel to
ChinaChinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, Astor traded furs, teas and
sandalwoodSandalwood is the name of a class of fragrant woods from trees in the genus Santalum. The woods are heavy, yellow, and fine-grained, and unlike many other aromatic woods they retain their fragrance for decades. As well as using the harvested and cut wood in-situ, essential oils are also extracted...
with
CantonGuangzhou , known historically as Canton or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of the Guangdong province in the People's Republic of China. Located in southern China on the Pearl River, about north-northwest of Hong Kong, Guangzhou is a key national transportation hub and trading port...
in China, and greatly benefited from it.
The U.S.
Embargo ActThe Embargo Act of 1807 and the subsequent Nonintercourse Acts were American laws restricting American ships from engaging in foreign trade between the years of 1807 and 1812. The Acts were diplomatic responses by presidents Thomas Jefferson and James Madison designed to protect American interests...
in 1807, however, disrupted his import/export business. With the permission of President
Thomas JeffersonThomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia...
, Astor established the
American Fur CompanyThe American Fur Company was founded by John Jacob Astor in 1808. The company grew to monopolize the fur trade in the United States by 1830, and became one of the largest businesses in the country. The company was one the first great trusts in American business...
on April 6, 1808. He later formed subsidiaries: the
Pacific Fur CompanyThe Pacific Fur Company was founded June 23, 1810, in New York City. Half of the stock of the company was held by the American Fur Company, owned exclusively by John Jacob Astor, and Astor provided all of the capital for the enterprise. The other half of the stock was ascribed to working partners...
, and the Southwest Fur Company (in which Canadians had a part), in order to control fur trading in the
Columbia RiverThe Columbia River is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river rises in the Rocky Mountains of British Columbia, Canada, flows northwest and then south into the U.S. state of Washington, then turns west to form most of the border between Washington and the state...
and Great Lakes areas.
His Columbia River trading post at
Fort AstoriaFort Astoria was the Pacific Fur Company's primary fur trading post in the Northwest, and was the first American-owned settlement on the Pacific coast. After a short two-year term of US ownership, the British owned and operated it for 33 years. It was the first British port on the Pacific coast...
(established in April 1811) was the first United States community on the Pacific coast. He financed the overland
Astor ExpeditionThe Astor Expedition of 1810-1812 was the next overland expedition from St. Louis, Missouri to the mouth of the Columbia River after the Corps of Discovery, led by Lewis and Clark.-History:...
in 1810–12 to reach the outpost. Members of the expedition were to discover
South PassSouth Pass is two mountain passes on the Continental Divide in the Rocky Mountains in southwestern Wyoming. The passes are located in a broad low region, 35 miles broad, between the Wind River Range to the north and the Oregon Buttes and Great Divide Basin to the south, in southwestern Fremont...
, through which hundreds of thousands settlers on the
OregonThe Oregon Trail is a historic east-west wagon route that connected the Missouri River to valleys in Oregon and locations in between.After 1840 steam-powered riverboats and steamboats traversing up and down the Ohio, Mississippi and Missouri rivers sped settlement and development in the flat...
,
CaliforniaThe California Trail was an emigrant trail of about across the western half of the North American continent from Missouri River towns to what is now the state of California...
and
MormonThe Mormon Trail or Mormon Pioneer Trail is the 1,300 mile route that members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints traveled from 1846 to 1868...
trails passed through the
Rocky MountainsThe Rocky Mountains are a major mountain range in western North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch more than from the northernmost part of British Columbia, in western Canada, to New Mexico, in the southwestern United States...
.
Astor's fur trading ventures were again disrupted when the British captured his trading posts during the
War of 1812The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
. In 1816, he joined the opium smuggling trade. His American Fur Company purchased ten tons of Turkish opium, then shipped the contraband item to
CantonGuangzhou , known historically as Canton or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of the Guangdong province in the People's Republic of China. Located in southern China on the Pearl River, about north-northwest of Hong Kong, Guangzhou is a key national transportation hub and trading port...
on the packet ship
Macedonian. Astor later left the China opium trade and sold solely to England.
Astor's business rebounded in 1817 after the U.S. Congress passed a
protectionistProtectionism is the economic policy of restraining trade between states through methods such as tariffs on imported goods, restrictive quotas, and a variety of other government regulations designed to allow "fair competition" between imports and goods and services produced domestically.This...
law that barred foreign traders from U.S. territories. The American Fur Company came to dominate trading in the area around the Great Lakes. In 1822, Astor established the
Astor HouseThe Astor House was a fine hotel in New York City, that opened in 1836 and soon became the most famous hotel in America.-History:The Astor House was originally built by John Jacob Astor, who assembled the building lots around his former house until he had purchased the full block in the heart of...
on
Mackinac IslandMackinac Island is an island and resort area covering in land area, part of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is located in Lake Huron, at the eastern end of the Straits of Mackinac, between the state's Upper and Lower Peninsulas. The island was home to a Native American settlement before European...
as headquarters for the reorganized American Fur Company, making the island a metropolis of the fur trade. A lengthy description based on documents, diaries etc. was given by
Washington IrvingWashington Irving was an American author, essayist, biographer and historian of the early 19th century. He was best known for his short stories "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" and "Rip Van Winkle", both of which appear in his book The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. His historical works...
in his travelogue
AstoriaAstoria is a novel published in 1836 by Washington Irving, at the behest of John Jacob Astor, about the American West....
. Astor's commercial connections extended over the entire globe, and his ships were found in every sea.
In 1804, Astor purchased from
Aaron BurrAaron Burr, Jr. was an important political figure in the early history of the United States of America. After serving as a Continental Army officer in the Revolutionary War, Burr became a successful lawyer and politician...
what remained of a 99-year lease on property in Manhattan. At the time, Burr was serving as vice president under
Thomas JeffersonThomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia...
and desperately needed the purchase price of $62,500. The lease was to run until 1866. Astor began subdividing the land into nearly 250 lots and subleased them. His conditions were that the tenant could do whatever they wish with the lots for twenty-one years, after which they must renew the lease or Astor would take back the lot.
Real estate and retirement
In the 1830s, John Jacob Astor foresaw that the next big boom would be the build-up of New York, which would soon emerge as one of the world’s greatest cities. Astor withdrew from the American Fur Company, as well as all his other ventures, and used the money to buy and develop large tracts of Manhattan
real estateIn general use, esp. North American, 'real estate' is taken to mean "Property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals, or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this; an item of real property; buildings or...
. Predicting the rapid growth northward on Manhattan Island, Astor purchased more and more land beyond the current
city limitsThe terms city limits and city boundary refer to the defined boundary or border of a city. The area within the city limits is sometimes called the city proper. The terms town limits/boundary and village limits/boundary mean the same as city limits/boundary, but apply to towns and villages...
. Astor rarely built on his land, and instead let others pay rent to use it.
After retiring from his business, Astor spent the rest of his life as a patron of culture. He supported the ornithologist
John James AudubonJohn James Audubon was a French-American ornithologist, naturalist, and painter. He was notable for his expansive studies to document all types of American birds and for his detailed illustrations that depicted the birds in their natural habitats...
, the poet/writer
Edgar Allan PoeEdgar Allan Poe was an American author, poet, editor and literary critic, considered part of the American Romantic Movement. Best known for his tales of mystery and the macabre, Poe was one of the earliest American practitioners of the short story and is considered the inventor of the detective...
, and the presidential campaign of
Henry ClayHenry Clay, Sr. , was a lawyer, politician and skilled orator who represented Kentucky separately in both the Senate and in the House of Representatives...
.
Last will
At the time of his death in 1848, Astor was the wealthiest person in the United States, leaving an estate estimated to be worth at least $20 million. His estimated net worth, if calculated as a fraction of the U.S.
gross domestic productGross domestic product refers to the market value of all final goods and services produced within a country in a given period. GDP per capita is often considered an indicator of a country's standard of living....
at the time, would have been equivalent to $110.1 billion in 2006
U.S. dollarThe United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
s, making him the fourth richest person in American history. An estimate based on inflation from the legally set American gold standard rate of $21 per ounce in the 1850s would result in a much more conservative net worth of $1.272 billion in 2011 dollars.
In his will, he left $400,000 to build the
Astor LibraryThe Astor Library was a free public library developed primarily through the collaboration of New York merchant John Jacob Astor and New England educator and bibliographer Joseph Cogswell. It was primarily meant as a research library, and its books did not circulate...
for the New York public (later consolidated with other libraries to form
New York Public LibraryThe New York Public Library is the largest public library in North America and is one of the United States' most significant research libraries...
), and $50,000 for a poorhouse and orphanage in his German hometown,
WalldorfWalldorf is a town in the Rhein-Neckar-Kreis of Baden-Württemberg in Germany.Walldorf is currently probably best known as the city that headquarters the world's third largest software company SAP, but it is also the birthplace of the millionaire John Jacob Astor, at the time of his death the...
. The
Astorhaus is now a museum honoring the city's ancestor Johann Jakob Astor and a renowned festhall for marriages. Further Astor donated $25,000 to the German Society of the City of New York, whose chairman he was from 1837 until 1841. Also $30,000 were to be used for a professor's chair in
German literatureGerman literature comprises those literary texts written in the German language. This includes literature written in Germany, Austria, the German part of Switzerland, and to a lesser extent works of the German diaspora. German literature of the modern period is mostly in Standard German, but there...
at
Columbia UniversityColumbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
, but due to differences with the deanship this donation was erased from the testament.
Astor left the bulk of his fortune to his second son,
William Backhouse Astor, Sr.William Backhouse Astor, Sr. was an American businessman and member of the Astor family.-Origins and schooling:...
His eldest son, John Jacob II, had a mental disability and Astor left enough money to care for him for the rest of his life.
John Jacob Astor is buried in the Trinity Churchyard Cemetery in the
New York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
boroughNew York City, one of the largest cities in the world, is composed of five boroughs. Each borough now has the same boundaries as the county it is in. County governments were dissolved when the city consolidated in 1898, along with all city, town, and village governments within each county...
of
ManhattanManhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
because many members of his family were members of that church despite Astor remaining a member of the local
Reformed congregationThe Reformed Church in America is a mainline Reformed Protestant denomination in Canada and the United States. It has about 170,000 members, with the total declining in recent decades. From its beginning in 1628 until 1819, it was the North American branch of the Dutch Reformed Church. In 1819, it...
to his death.
Herman MelvilleHerman Melville was an American novelist, short story writer, essayist, and poet. He is best known for his novel Moby-Dick and the posthumous novella Billy Budd....
used Astor as a symbol of the earliest fortunes in New York in his novella
Bartleby, the Scrivener.
The pair of marble lions that sit by the entrance of the
New York Public LibraryThe New York Public Library is the largest public library in North America and is one of the United States' most significant research libraries...
at Fifth Avenue and 42nd Street were originally named Leo Astor and Leo Lenox, after Astor and
James LenoxJames Lenox was an American bibliophile and philanthropist. His collection of paintings and books eventually became known as the Lenox Library and later became part of the New York Public Library in 1895.-Biography:...
, who founded the library. Then they were called Lord Astor and Lady Lenox (both lions are males). Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia renamed them "Patience" and "Fortitude" during the
Great DepressionThe Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
.
Descendants
John Jacob Astor (July 17, 1763 – March 29, 1848), born
Johann Jakob Astor, was a German-American
businessA business is an organization engaged in the trade of goods, services, or both to consumers. Businesses are predominant in capitalist economies, where most of them are privately owned and administered to earn profit to increase the wealth of their owners. Businesses may also be not-for-profit...
magnateMagnate, from the Late Latin magnas, a great man, itself from Latin magnus 'great', designates a noble or other man in a high social position, by birth, wealth or other qualities...
and
investorAn investor is a party that makes an investment into one or more categories of assets --- equity, debt securities, real estate, currency, commodity, derivatives such as put and call options, etc...
who was the first prominent member of the
Astor familyThe Astor family is a Anglo-American business family of German descent notable for their prominence in business, society, and politics.-Founding family members:...
and the first multi-
millionaireA millionaire is an individual whose net worth or wealth is equal to or exceeds one million units of currency. It can also be a person who owns one million units of currency in a bank account or savings account...
in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. He was the creator of the first
trustA special trust or business trust is a business entity formed with intent to monopolize business, to restrain trade, or to fix prices. Trusts gained economic power in the U.S. in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Some, but not all, were organized as trusts in the legal sense...
in America.
He went to the United States following the
American Revolutionary WarThe American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
and built a
fur-tradingThe fur trade is a worldwide industry dealing in the acquisition and sale of animal fur. Since the establishment of world market for in the early modern period furs of boreal, polar and cold temperate mammalian animals have been the most valued...
empire that extended to the
Great LakesThe Great Lakes are a collection of freshwater lakes located in northeastern North America, on the Canada – United States border. Consisting of Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, they form the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth by total surface, coming in second by volume...
region and
CanadaCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, and later expanded into the American West and Pacific coast. He also got involved in smuggling
opiumOpium is the dried latex obtained from the opium poppy . Opium contains up to 12% morphine, an alkaloid, which is frequently processed chemically to produce heroin for the illegal drug trade. The latex also includes codeine and non-narcotic alkaloids such as papaverine, thebaine and noscapine...
. In the early 19th century he diversified into
New York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
real estateIn general use, esp. North American, 'real estate' is taken to mean "Property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals, or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this; an item of real property; buildings or...
and later became a famed patron of the arts.
Early life
John Jacob Astor's ancestors were Waldensian refugees from
SavoySavoy is a region of France. It comprises roughly the territory of the Western Alps situated between Lake Geneva in the north and Monaco and the Mediterranean coast in the south....
, and Astor remained a member of the Reformed church throughout his life. He was born in
WalldorfWalldorf is a town in the Rhein-Neckar-Kreis of Baden-Württemberg in Germany.Walldorf is currently probably best known as the city that headquarters the world's third largest software company SAP, but it is also the birthplace of the millionaire John Jacob Astor, at the time of his death the...
, near
Heidelberg-Early history:Between 600,000 and 200,000 years ago, "Heidelberg Man" died at nearby Mauer. His jaw bone was discovered in 1907; with scientific dating, his remains were determined to be the earliest evidence of human life in Europe. In the 5th century BC, a Celtic fortress of refuge and place of...
in the old Palatinate which became part of the Duchy of Baden in 1803, Germany (now in
Rhein-Neckar-KreisRhein-Neckar-Kreis is a district in the northwest of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Neighboring districts are Bergstraße, Odenwaldkreis, Neckar-Odenwald, Heilbronn, Karlsruhe, district-free Speyer, the Rhein-Pfalz-Kreis, and district-free Mannheim and Heidelberg.-History:The district was created in...
in the state of
Baden-WürttembergBaden-Württemberg is one of the 16 states of Germany. Baden-Württemberg is in the southwestern part of the country to the east of the Upper Rhine, and is the third largest in both area and population of Germany's sixteen states, with an area of and 10.7 million inhabitants...
). His father, Johann Jacob Astor (July 7, 1724-April 18, 1816), was a butcher. The son's career began with working in
GermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
as assistant in his father's business as a dairy salesman. In 1779 at age 16 he emigrated to
LondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, where he learned English while working for his brother, George Astor,
manufacturingManufacturing is the use of machines, tools and labor to produce goods for use or sale. The term may refer to a range of human activity, from handicraft to high tech, but is most commonly applied to industrial production, in which raw materials are transformed into finished goods on a large scale...
musical instruments.
Astor arrived in the United States in March 1784, just after the end of the
Revolutionary WarThe American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
. He traded furs with Indians and in the late 1780s started a fur goods shop in
New York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. He also became the New York agent of his brother's musical instrument business.
Astor married Sarah Todd on September 19, 1785. Although she brought him a
dowryA dowry is the money, goods, or estate that a woman brings forth to the marriage. It contrasts with bride price, which is paid to the bride's parents, and dower, which is property settled on the bride herself by the groom at the time of marriage. The same culture may simultaneously practice both...
of only $300, she possessed a frugal mind and a business judgment that he declared better than that of most merchants, and she assisted him in the practical details of his business.
Fortune from fur trade
Astor took advantage of the
Jay TreatyJay's Treaty, , also known as Jay's Treaty, The British Treaty, and the Treaty of London of 1794, was a treaty between the United States and Great Britain that is credited with averting war,, resolving issues remaining since the Treaty of Paris of 1783, which ended the American Revolution,, and...
between
Great BritainThe former Kingdom of Great Britain, sometimes described as the 'United Kingdom of Great Britain', That the Two Kingdoms of Scotland and England, shall upon the 1st May next ensuing the date hereof, and forever after, be United into One Kingdom by the Name of GREAT BRITAIN. was a sovereign...
and the United States in 1794, which opened new markets in Canada and the Great Lakes region. Then in London, Astor at once made a contract with the Northwest Company of Montreal and Quebec (then the magnate of the Canadian Northwest fur trade). He imported furs from Montreal to New York, and shipped them to all parts of Europe. By 1800 he had amassed almost a quarter of a million dollars, and had become one of the leading figures in the
fur tradeThe fur trade is a worldwide industry dealing in the acquisition and sale of animal fur. Since the establishment of world market for in the early modern period furs of boreal, polar and cold temperate mammalian animals have been the most valued...
. In 1800, following the example of the
Empress of ChinaThe Empress of China was a three-masted, square-rigged sailing ship, initially built in 1783 for service as a privateer. After the Treaty of Paris brought a formal end to the American Revolutionary War, the vessel was refitted for commercial purposes...
, the first American trading vessel to
ChinaChinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, Astor traded furs, teas and
sandalwoodSandalwood is the name of a class of fragrant woods from trees in the genus Santalum. The woods are heavy, yellow, and fine-grained, and unlike many other aromatic woods they retain their fragrance for decades. As well as using the harvested and cut wood in-situ, essential oils are also extracted...
with
CantonGuangzhou , known historically as Canton or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of the Guangdong province in the People's Republic of China. Located in southern China on the Pearl River, about north-northwest of Hong Kong, Guangzhou is a key national transportation hub and trading port...
in China, and greatly benefited from it.
The U.S.
Embargo ActThe Embargo Act of 1807 and the subsequent Nonintercourse Acts were American laws restricting American ships from engaging in foreign trade between the years of 1807 and 1812. The Acts were diplomatic responses by presidents Thomas Jefferson and James Madison designed to protect American interests...
in 1807, however, disrupted his import/export business. With the permission of President
Thomas JeffersonThomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia...
, Astor established the
American Fur CompanyThe American Fur Company was founded by John Jacob Astor in 1808. The company grew to monopolize the fur trade in the United States by 1830, and became one of the largest businesses in the country. The company was one the first great trusts in American business...
on April 6, 1808. He later formed subsidiaries: the
Pacific Fur CompanyThe Pacific Fur Company was founded June 23, 1810, in New York City. Half of the stock of the company was held by the American Fur Company, owned exclusively by John Jacob Astor, and Astor provided all of the capital for the enterprise. The other half of the stock was ascribed to working partners...
, and the Southwest Fur Company (in which Canadians had a part), in order to control fur trading in the
Columbia RiverThe Columbia River is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river rises in the Rocky Mountains of British Columbia, Canada, flows northwest and then south into the U.S. state of Washington, then turns west to form most of the border between Washington and the state...
and Great Lakes areas.
His Columbia River trading post at
Fort AstoriaFort Astoria was the Pacific Fur Company's primary fur trading post in the Northwest, and was the first American-owned settlement on the Pacific coast. After a short two-year term of US ownership, the British owned and operated it for 33 years. It was the first British port on the Pacific coast...
(established in April 1811) was the first United States community on the Pacific coast. He financed the overland
Astor ExpeditionThe Astor Expedition of 1810-1812 was the next overland expedition from St. Louis, Missouri to the mouth of the Columbia River after the Corps of Discovery, led by Lewis and Clark.-History:...
in 1810–12 to reach the outpost. Members of the expedition were to discover
South PassSouth Pass is two mountain passes on the Continental Divide in the Rocky Mountains in southwestern Wyoming. The passes are located in a broad low region, 35 miles broad, between the Wind River Range to the north and the Oregon Buttes and Great Divide Basin to the south, in southwestern Fremont...
, through which hundreds of thousands settlers on the
OregonThe Oregon Trail is a historic east-west wagon route that connected the Missouri River to valleys in Oregon and locations in between.After 1840 steam-powered riverboats and steamboats traversing up and down the Ohio, Mississippi and Missouri rivers sped settlement and development in the flat...
,
CaliforniaThe California Trail was an emigrant trail of about across the western half of the North American continent from Missouri River towns to what is now the state of California...
and
MormonThe Mormon Trail or Mormon Pioneer Trail is the 1,300 mile route that members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints traveled from 1846 to 1868...
trails passed through the
Rocky MountainsThe Rocky Mountains are a major mountain range in western North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch more than from the northernmost part of British Columbia, in western Canada, to New Mexico, in the southwestern United States...
.
Astor's fur trading ventures were again disrupted when the British captured his trading posts during the
War of 1812The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
. In 1816, he joined the opium smuggling trade. His American Fur Company purchased ten tons of Turkish opium, then shipped the contraband item to
CantonGuangzhou , known historically as Canton or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of the Guangdong province in the People's Republic of China. Located in southern China on the Pearl River, about north-northwest of Hong Kong, Guangzhou is a key national transportation hub and trading port...
on the packet ship
Macedonian. Astor later left the China opium trade and sold solely to England.
Astor's business rebounded in 1817 after the U.S. Congress passed a
protectionistProtectionism is the economic policy of restraining trade between states through methods such as tariffs on imported goods, restrictive quotas, and a variety of other government regulations designed to allow "fair competition" between imports and goods and services produced domestically.This...
law that barred foreign traders from U.S. territories. The American Fur Company came to dominate trading in the area around the Great Lakes. In 1822, Astor established the
Astor HouseThe Astor House was a fine hotel in New York City, that opened in 1836 and soon became the most famous hotel in America.-History:The Astor House was originally built by John Jacob Astor, who assembled the building lots around his former house until he had purchased the full block in the heart of...
on
Mackinac IslandMackinac Island is an island and resort area covering in land area, part of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is located in Lake Huron, at the eastern end of the Straits of Mackinac, between the state's Upper and Lower Peninsulas. The island was home to a Native American settlement before European...
as headquarters for the reorganized American Fur Company, making the island a metropolis of the fur trade. A lengthy description based on documents, diaries etc. was given by
Washington IrvingWashington Irving was an American author, essayist, biographer and historian of the early 19th century. He was best known for his short stories "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" and "Rip Van Winkle", both of which appear in his book The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. His historical works...
in his travelogue
AstoriaAstoria is a novel published in 1836 by Washington Irving, at the behest of John Jacob Astor, about the American West....
. Astor's commercial connections extended over the entire globe, and his ships were found in every sea.
In 1804, Astor purchased from
Aaron BurrAaron Burr, Jr. was an important political figure in the early history of the United States of America. After serving as a Continental Army officer in the Revolutionary War, Burr became a successful lawyer and politician...
what remained of a 99-year lease on property in Manhattan. At the time, Burr was serving as vice president under
Thomas JeffersonThomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia...
and desperately needed the purchase price of $62,500. The lease was to run until 1866. Astor began subdividing the land into nearly 250 lots and subleased them. His conditions were that the tenant could do whatever they wish with the lots for twenty-one years, after which they must renew the lease or Astor would take back the lot.
Real estate and retirement
In the 1830s, John Jacob Astor foresaw that the next big boom would be the build-up of New York, which would soon emerge as one of the world’s greatest cities. Astor withdrew from the American Fur Company, as well as all his other ventures, and used the money to buy and develop large tracts of Manhattan
real estateIn general use, esp. North American, 'real estate' is taken to mean "Property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals, or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this; an item of real property; buildings or...
. Predicting the rapid growth northward on Manhattan Island, Astor purchased more and more land beyond the current
city limitsThe terms city limits and city boundary refer to the defined boundary or border of a city. The area within the city limits is sometimes called the city proper. The terms town limits/boundary and village limits/boundary mean the same as city limits/boundary, but apply to towns and villages...
. Astor rarely built on his land, and instead let others pay rent to use it.
After retiring from his business, Astor spent the rest of his life as a patron of culture. He supported the ornithologist
John James AudubonJohn James Audubon was a French-American ornithologist, naturalist, and painter. He was notable for his expansive studies to document all types of American birds and for his detailed illustrations that depicted the birds in their natural habitats...
, the poet/writer
Edgar Allan PoeEdgar Allan Poe was an American author, poet, editor and literary critic, considered part of the American Romantic Movement. Best known for his tales of mystery and the macabre, Poe was one of the earliest American practitioners of the short story and is considered the inventor of the detective...
, and the presidential campaign of
Henry ClayHenry Clay, Sr. , was a lawyer, politician and skilled orator who represented Kentucky separately in both the Senate and in the House of Representatives...
.
Last will
At the time of his death in 1848, Astor was the wealthiest person in the United States, leaving an estate estimated to be worth at least $20 million. His estimated net worth, if calculated as a fraction of the U.S.
gross domestic productGross domestic product refers to the market value of all final goods and services produced within a country in a given period. GDP per capita is often considered an indicator of a country's standard of living....
at the time, would have been equivalent to $110.1 billion in 2006
U.S. dollarThe United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
s, making him the fourth richest person in American history. An estimate based on inflation from the legally set American gold standard rate of $21 per ounce in the 1850s would result in a much more conservative net worth of $1.272 billion in 2011 dollars.
In his will, he left $400,000 to build the
Astor LibraryThe Astor Library was a free public library developed primarily through the collaboration of New York merchant John Jacob Astor and New England educator and bibliographer Joseph Cogswell. It was primarily meant as a research library, and its books did not circulate...
for the New York public (later consolidated with other libraries to form
New York Public LibraryThe New York Public Library is the largest public library in North America and is one of the United States' most significant research libraries...
), and $50,000 for a poorhouse and orphanage in his German hometown,
WalldorfWalldorf is a town in the Rhein-Neckar-Kreis of Baden-Württemberg in Germany.Walldorf is currently probably best known as the city that headquarters the world's third largest software company SAP, but it is also the birthplace of the millionaire John Jacob Astor, at the time of his death the...
. The
Astorhaus is now a museum honoring the city's ancestor Johann Jakob Astor and a renowned festhall for marriages. Further Astor donated $25,000 to the German Society of the City of New York, whose chairman he was from 1837 until 1841. Also $30,000 were to be used for a professor's chair in
German literatureGerman literature comprises those literary texts written in the German language. This includes literature written in Germany, Austria, the German part of Switzerland, and to a lesser extent works of the German diaspora. German literature of the modern period is mostly in Standard German, but there...
at
Columbia UniversityColumbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
, but due to differences with the deanship this donation was erased from the testament.
Astor left the bulk of his fortune to his second son,
William Backhouse Astor, Sr.William Backhouse Astor, Sr. was an American businessman and member of the Astor family.-Origins and schooling:...
His eldest son, John Jacob II, had a mental disability and Astor left enough money to care for him for the rest of his life.
John Jacob Astor is buried in the Trinity Churchyard Cemetery in the
New York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
boroughNew York City, one of the largest cities in the world, is composed of five boroughs. Each borough now has the same boundaries as the county it is in. County governments were dissolved when the city consolidated in 1898, along with all city, town, and village governments within each county...
of
ManhattanManhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
because many members of his family were members of that church despite Astor remaining a member of the local
Reformed congregationThe Reformed Church in America is a mainline Reformed Protestant denomination in Canada and the United States. It has about 170,000 members, with the total declining in recent decades. From its beginning in 1628 until 1819, it was the North American branch of the Dutch Reformed Church. In 1819, it...
to his death.
Herman MelvilleHerman Melville was an American novelist, short story writer, essayist, and poet. He is best known for his novel Moby-Dick and the posthumous novella Billy Budd....
used Astor as a symbol of the earliest fortunes in New York in his novella
Bartleby, the Scrivener.
The pair of marble lions that sit by the entrance of the
New York Public LibraryThe New York Public Library is the largest public library in North America and is one of the United States' most significant research libraries...
at Fifth Avenue and 42nd Street were originally named Leo Astor and Leo Lenox, after Astor and
James LenoxJames Lenox was an American bibliophile and philanthropist. His collection of paintings and books eventually became known as the Lenox Library and later became part of the New York Public Library in 1895.-Biography:...
, who founded the library. Then they were called Lord Astor and Lady Lenox (both lions are males). Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia renamed them "Patience" and "Fortitude" during the
Great DepressionThe Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
.
Descendants
John Jacob Astor descendants
- Magdalen Astor (1788–1832), married 1st 1807 Adrian Bentzon, married 2nd 1820 John Bristed (1778–1855), 3 children:
- John Jacob Astor Bentzon (1818–?)
- Sarah Bentzon
- Charles Astor Bristed
Charles Astor Bristed was an American scholar and author, sometimes writing under the nom de plume Carl Benson. He was the first American to write a full-length defense of Americanisms.-Biography:...
(1820–1874) (1 son from the 1st, 1 son from the 2nd marriage), married 1st 1847 Laura Brevoort (d. 1861), married 2nd 1867 Grace Ashburner Sedgwick (1833–1897)
- Sarah Astor (1790–1790) (died in infancy)
- John Jacob Astor II (1791–1869) (no issue)
- William Backhouse Astor, Sr.
William Backhouse Astor, Sr. was an American businessman and member of the Astor family.-Origins and schooling:...
(1792–1875) president American Fur CompanyThe American Fur Company was founded by John Jacob Astor in 1808. The company grew to monopolize the fur trade in the United States by 1830, and became one of the largest businesses in the country. The company was one the first great trusts in American business...
, married 1818 Margaret Rebecca Armstrong (1800–1872), 7 children:
- Emily Astor (1819–1841), married 1838 Samuel Ward, Jr. (1814–1884) (2 daughters)
- John Jacob Astor III
John Jacob Astor III was the elder son of William Backhouse Astor, Sr. and the wealthiest member of the Astor family in his generation...
(1823–1890), married 1846 Charlotte Augusta Gibbs (died 1887)
- William Waldorf Astor, 1st Viscount Astor
William Waldorf Astor, 1st Viscount Astor was a very wealthy American who became a British nobleman. He was a member of the prominent Astor family.-Life in United States:...
- John Jacob Astor, 1st Baron Astor of Hever
Lieutenant-Colonel John Jacob Astor, 1st Baron Astor of Hever DL was a British military officer, statesman, a newspaper proprietor, and a member of the prominent Astor family...
- Laura Eugenia Astor (1824–1902), married 1844 Franklin Hughes Delano (1813–1893) (no issue)
- Mary Alida Astor (1826–1881), married 1850 John Carey (1821–1881) (3 children)
- William Backhouse Astor, Jr.
William Backhouse Astor, Jr. was a businessman and a member of the prominent Astor family.He was the ancestor of the U.S. branch of the Astor family, which came to an end in the male line at the end of the 20th century....
(1830–1892), married 1853 Caroline Webster Schermerhorn (1830–1908) (5 children)
- Henry Astor
Four members of the Astor family were named Henry:1. Henry Astor was the brother of furrier and 18th century New York City real estate mogul John Jacob Astor....
(1830–1918), married Malvina Dinehart (no issue)
- Sarah Astor (1832–1832) (no issue)
- Dorothea Astor (1795–1874), married 1812 Walter Langdon (1788–1847), 9 children:
- Sarah Astor Langdon (1813–1895), married 1834 Jonkheer François Robert Boreel (1806–1869) (6 children)
- Sarah Sherburne Langdon (no issue)
- John Langdon (1816–1837) (no issue)
- Eliza Astor Langdon (1818–1896), married 1842 Matthew Wilks (1816–1899) (6 children)
- Louisa Dorothea Langdon (1820–1894), married 1841 (Oliver) DeLancey Kane (1816–1874) (8 children)
- Walter Langdon (1822–1894), married Catherine Livingston (1847–?) (no issue)
- Woodbury Langdon (1824–1867), married Helen Colford Jones (1824–1895) (1 son)
- Cecilia Langdon (1827–1906), married 1840 Johann von Nottbeck, Consul General of Russia (4 children)
- Eugene Langdon (1831–1866), married 1859 Harriet Lowndes (2 daughters)
- Henry Astor (1797–1799) (died in infancy)
- Eliza Astor (1801–1838), married 1825 Vincenz Graf von Rumpff (1789–1867) (no issue)
- (son) Astor (1802–1802) (died in infancy)
See also
- Astor family
The Astor family is a Anglo-American business family of German descent notable for their prominence in business, society, and politics.-Founding family members:...
- John Jacob Astor IV
John Jacob Astor IV was an American businessman, real estate builder, investor, inventor, writer, lieutenant colonel in the Spanish-American War and a member of the prominent Astor family...
- John Jacob Astor VI
John Jacob Astor VI , known familiarly as "Jakey", was a member of the Astor family. He was born four months after his father, John Jacob Astor IV, died in the sinking of RMS Titanic.-Early life:...
- John Jacob Astor, 1st Baron Astor of Hever
Lieutenant-Colonel John Jacob Astor, 1st Baron Astor of Hever DL was a British military officer, statesman, a newspaper proprietor, and a member of the prominent Astor family...
- Henry Astor
Four members of the Astor family were named Henry:1. Henry Astor was the brother of furrier and 18th century New York City real estate mogul John Jacob Astor....
- William Waldorf Astor
- Astoria, Oregon
Astoria is the county seat of Clatsop County, Oregon, United States. Situated near the mouth of the Columbia River, the city was named after the American investor John Jacob Astor. His American Fur Company founded Fort Astoria at the site in 1811...
- Astoria, Queens
Astoria is a neighborhood in the northwestern corner of the borough of Queens in New York City. Located in Community Board 1, Astoria is bounded by the East River and is adjacent to three other Queens neighborhoods: Long Island City, Sunnyside , and Woodside...
- Astor Place (Manhattan)
__notoc__Astor Place is a short two-block street in lower Manhattan, New York City, which runs from Broadway just below East 8th Street, through Lafayette Street, past Cooper Square and Fourth Avenue, and ends at Third Avenue and St. Marks Place. The name is also used for the neighborhood around...
- Astor Row
Astor Row is the name given to 130th Street between Fifth Avenue and Lenox Avenue in Harlem, in the New York City borough of Manhattan. More specifically, it refers to the semi-attached row houses on the south side of the street. These were among the first speculative townhouses built in Harlem,...
- List of most wealthy historical figures
- Waldorf-Astoria Hotel
The Waldorf-Astoria is a luxury hotel in New York. It has been housed in two historic landmark buildings in New York City. The first, designed by architect Henry J. Hardenbergh, was on the Fifth Avenue site of the Empire State Building. The present building at 301 Park Avenue in Manhattan is a...
Further reading
- Ebeling, Herbert C. (1998). Johann Jakob Astor zum 150. Todestag. Walldorf: Astor-Stiftung.
- Ebeling, Herbert C. (1998). Johann Jakob Astor - Ein Lebensbild. Walldorf: Astor-Stiftung ISBN 3-00-003749-7.
- Ebeling, Herbert C. (2004). W. O. Horn: Johann Jacob Astor - Ein Lebensbild aus dem Volke, für das Volk und seine Jugend. Walldorf: Astor-Stiftung ISBN 3-00-014021-2.
External links
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