John Jacob Astor | |
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 Portrait byJohn Wesley Jarvis,c. 1825 | |
| Born | Johann Jakob Astor[a] (1763-07-17)July 17, 1763 |
| Died | March 29, 1848(1848-03-29) (aged 84) New York City, U.S. |
| Burial place | Trinity Church Cemetery |
| Occupations |
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| Known for | First multi-millionaire businessman in the United States |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 8, includingWilliam |
| Relatives | SeeAstor family |
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John Jacob Astor (bornJohann Jakob Astor; July 17, 1763 – March 29, 1848) was a German-born American businessman, merchant, real estate mogul, and investor. Astor made his fortune mainly in afur trademonopoly, by exportingopium into theChinese Empire, and by investing in real estate in or around New York Cityduring the late 18th and early 19th centuries. He was the first prominent member of theAstor family and the first multi-millionaire in the United States.[1][2]
Born inGermany, Astor immigrated to England as a teenager and worked as a musical instrument manufacturer. He moved to the United States after theAmerican Revolutionary War (1775–1783). Seeing the expansion of population to the west, Astor entered the fur trade and built a monopoly, managing a business empire that extended to theGreat Lakes region and north intoBritish North America (futureDominion of Canada), and later expanded into theWestern United States and theAmerican frontier West and extended to the farWest Coast andPacific Ocean. Following a decline in demand due to changingEuropean styles and tastes inbeaver fur mens' hats and clothing tastes, he got out of the fur trade in 1830, diversifying by investing in New York City real estate. Astor became one of the wealthiest men in the United States and became a prominent patron of the arts.[3]
At the time of his death, Astor's estate was estimated to be $20 to $30 million,[3]: 268 roughly equivalent to $727 million to $1.09 billion in 2024.[4] In proportion to the GDP, he was one of the richest people in modern history, with 0.9% to 1.35% of the US GDP at his time of death.[citation needed] This was previously popularised byNathaniel P. Tallmadge remarking "one in every 100 dollars in this country ends up in J Astor's hands" during Tallmadge's1839-1840 campaign for the U.S. Senate.[1][5]
Johann Jakob Astor was born in 1763 inWalldorf, a town nearHeidelberg in theElectoral Palatinate, which is in the present-day German state ofBaden-Württemberg.[6][7] He was the youngest son of Johann Jacob Astor and Maria Magdalena vom Berg. His three older brothers were George, Henry, and Melchior. In his childhood, Johann worked in his father's butcher shop[8] and as a dairy salesman.[9] The Astor family ancestors wereWaldensians who had presumably fled France due to religious persecution.[3] In 1779, at the age of 16, he moved toLondon to join his brother George in working for an uncle'spiano andflute manufacturer, Astor & Broadwood.[8] While there, he learned English andanglicized his name to John Jacob Astor.[10]
In November 1783,[8] just after the end of theAmerican Revolutionary War, Astor boarded a ship for the United States, arriving inBaltimore around March of the following year.[11] There, he rented a room from Sarah Cox Todd, a widow, and began a flirtation with his landlady's daughter, also named Sarah Cox Todd. The young couple married in 1785. His intent had been to join his brother Henry, who had established a butcher shop in New York City.[9][12][13] A chance meeting with a fur trader on his voyage had inspired him to join theNorth American fur trade as well.[6][12] After working at his brother's shop for a time, Astor began to purchase raw hides fromNative Americans, prepare them himself, and resell them in London and elsewhere at great profit.[8] He opened his own fur goods shop in New York in the late 1780s and also served as the New York agent of his uncle's musical instrument business.In 1789, along with Dubois & Stodart[who?], he co-founded theFrancis Bacon Piano Company.[citation needed]
Astor took advantage of the 1794Jay Treaty between Great Britain and the United States, which opened new markets in Canada and theGreat Lakes region. In London, Astor at once made a contract with theNorth West Company, which fromMontreal rivaled the trade interests of theHudson's Bay Company, then based in London.[14]
Astor imported furs from Montreal to New York and shipped them to Europe.[15] By 1800, he had amassed over a quarter of a million dollars[16] (equivalent to about $460 million in 2024)[4] and had become one of the leading figures in the fur trade. His agents worked throughout the western areas and were ruthless in competition. In 1800, following the example of theEmpress of China, the first American trading vessel to China, Astor traded mostly opium, but also, furs, teas, andsandalwood at the port ofCanton in China, and greatly benefited from it.[17]
The U.S.Embargo Act of 1807 disrupted Astor's import/export business because it closed off trade with Canada. With the permission of PresidentThomas Jefferson, Astor established theAmerican Fur Company on April 6, 1808.[18] He later formed subsidiaries: thePacific Fur Company, and the Southwest Fur Company (in which Canadians had a part), in order to control fur trading in the Great Lakes areas andColumbia River region. His Columbia River trading post atFort Astoria (established in April 1811) was the first United States community on the Pacific coast. He financed the overland Astor Expedition in 1810–1812 to reach the outpost. Members of the expedition were to discoverSouth Pass, through which hundreds of thousands of settlers on theOregon,Mormon, andCalifornia Trails used to later pass through theRocky Mountains.[17][19]
Astor's fur trading ventures were disrupted during theWar of 1812, when the British captured his trading posts. In 1816, he joined theopium smuggling trade. His American Fur Company purchased ten tons ofOttoman-produced opium, and shipped the contraband toCanton onboard the packet shipMacedonian. Astor later left the Chinese opium trade and sold opium solely in Britain.[20]
Astor's business rebounded in 1817 after the U.S. Congress passed aprotectionist law that barred foreign fur traders from U.S. territories. The American Fur Company came to dominate trading in the area around the Great Lakes, absorbing competitors in a monopoly. Astor had a townhouse at 233 Broadway in New York[21] and a country estate, Hellgate, in the northern part of the city.[21]
In 1822, Astor established theRobert Stuart House onMackinac Island in Michigan as headquarters for the reorganized American Fur Company, making the island a metropolis of the fur trade.Washington Irving described this at length, based on contemporary documents, diaries, etc., in his travelogueAstoria. Astor's commercial connections extended over the entire globe, and his ships were found in every sea. He and Sarah moved to a townhouse on Prince Street in New York.[22]
Astor began buying land in New York City in 1799 and acquired sizable holdings along the waterfront. After the start of the 19th century, flush withChina trade profits, he became more systematic, ambitious, and calculating by investing in New York real estate. In 1803, he bought a 70-acre farm on which he built the Astor Mansion at Hellgate. The property ran west ofBroadway to the Hudson River between42nd and 46th streets. That same year, and the following year, he bought considerable holdings from the disgracedAaron Burr.[23]
In the 1830s, 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 sold his interests in the American Fur Company, as well as all his other ventures, and used the money to buy and develop large tracts ofManhattan Island real estate. Astor correctly predicted the city's rapid growth northward on the island, and he purchased more and more land beyond the then-existing city limits. Astor rarely built on his land, but leased it to others for rent and their use. After retiring from his business, Astor spent the rest of his life as a patron of culture. He supported theornithologistJohn James Audubon in his studies, artwork, and travels, and the presidential campaign ofHenry Clay.[17]
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On September 19, 1785, Astor married Sarah Cox Todd (April 9, 1762 – August 3, 1842). Her parents were Scottish immigrants Adam Todd and Sarah Cox.[24] Although she brought him adowry of only $300, she possessed a frugal mind and a business judgment that he declared better than that of most merchants. She assisted him in the practical details of his business,[25] and managed Astor's affairs when he was away from New York.[26]
They had eight children:
Astor belonged to theFreemasons, a fraternal order, and served as Master of Holland Lodge #8, New York City in 1788. Later he served as Grand Treasurer for theGrand Lodge of New York.[29] He was president of theGerman Society of the City of New York from 1837 to 1841.[30]
At the time of his death in 1848, Astor was the wealthiest person in the United States, leaving an estate estimated to be worth between $20 and $30 million,[3]: 268 (equivalent to about $598 billion to $897 billion in 2020) or 0.9% to 1.35% of estimated US GDP at the time. By comparison, the fortune ofJeff Bezos was worth approximately $200 billion in 2020,[31] similar to Astor at approximately 0.9% of US GDP.[32]
In his will, Astor bequeathed $400,000 to build theAstor Library for the New York public,[6] which was later consolidated with other libraries to form theNew York Public Library. He also left $50,000 for apoorhouse and orphanage in his German hometown ofWalldorf.[6] TheAstorhaus is now operated as a museum honoring Astor. It is a renowned and popular fest hall for marriages. Astor donated gifts totaling $20,000 to the German Society of the City of New York, during his term as president, from 1837 until 1841.[33]
Astor left the bulk of his fortune to his second son William, because his eldest son, John Jr., was sickly and mentally unstable. Astor left enough money to care for John Jr. for the rest of his life. William continued building the family fortune, and was an ancestor ofJohn Jacob Astor III,John Jacob Astor IV, andJohn Jacob Astor VI.
Astor is buried inTrinity Church Cemetery in Manhattan. Many members of his family had joined its congregation, but Astor remained a member of the local GermanReformed congregation to his death.[34] In the short storyBartleby, the Scrivener,Herman Melville used Astor as a symbol of men who made the earliest fortunes in New York.[35]
The pair of marble lions that sit by the entrance of theNew York Public Library Main Branch at Fifth Avenue and 42nd Street were originally named Leo Astor and Leo Lenox, after Astor andJames Lenox, who founded the library from his own collection. Next, they were called Lord Astor and Lady Lenox (both lions are males). MayorFiorello La Guardia renamed them "Patience" and "Fortitude" during theGreat Depression.[36]
The neighborhood ofAstoria inQueens, New York City, is named after Astor.
Astor Place in Manhattan, New York City, was named after Astor, soon after his death.[37]
The coastal town ofAstoria, Oregon, is named after Astor, as well as an elementary school named in his honor. The background to the founding of this town is described in Washington Irving'sAstoria, a book whose writing was financed by Astor.
The historic neighborhood of Astor Park inGreen Bay, Wisconsin, is named after Astor. In 1835, John Jacob Astor founded the Town of Astor in Wisconsin. After the Town of Astor was united with the Town of Navarino to form the Borough of Green Bay, one neighborhood was named after him.[38]
A popular intersection in the inner city ofBudapest is named after him, as well as the corresponding metro station, indirectly, through the Grand Budapest Astoria Hotel, which is located there.[39]
In 1908, when theassociation football clubFC Astoria Walldorf was formed in Astor's birthplace in Germany, the group added "Astoria" to its name in his, and the family's, honor.[40]
Johnson, Rossiter, ed. (1906). "Astor, John Jacob (merchant)".The Biographical Dictionary of America. Vol. 1. Boston: American Biographical Society. p. 156.
Texts on Wikisource:| Unknown | Richest man in the United States ?–1848 | Succeeded by |
