The wealthiest land owner in New York: John Jacob Aston
John Jacob Astor is America’s first millionaire. He was a German immigrant who arrived at Manhattan with just five English pounds with himself, at the age of sixteen. But, that did not deter him from evolving himself as the most reputed and well-known millionaire in the American society. He inculcated his business strategies so as to successfully amass the vast swaths of Manhattan and eventually, his dream of becoming a successful millionaire was fulfilled. He became the largest and the wealthiest landowner in New York. Astor was born in Baden, Germany in 1763 and apart from being a millionaire businessman; he was a real estate builder, inventor and writer as well. His father was a butcher by profession and he was the third son.
He started off with a fur trading firm and focused on building his network across the whole of America. In 1811, he laid the foundation of Astoria, which happens to be the first American settlement in the West Coast. He crossed the Pacific and traded with China, his products included opium and then he gradually switched over to a more lucrative option – liquor. He exchanged liquor for fur with the Indians. He even made a $10million donation for covering the expenses of the World War I, although he was completely against the war. His fortune multiplied when he was presented a bundle from the war bonds.
Written by srini on September 8th, 2009 with
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