John Jacob Astor
1763 – 1848 American fur trader, merchant, real estate magnate
German immigrant who became the first great American business magnate.
- Religion
- Protestant (originally Lutheran).
- Affiliations
- Founded the American Fur Company; built a Manhattan real estate fortune; founded the Astor Library.
Born Johann Jakob Astor in Walldorf, Germany, he built the American Fur Company into a near-monopoly and then poured the profits into Manhattan real estate. He died the richest man in the United States and endowed the library that became part of the New York Public Library.
Connections
- family of William Waldorf Astor, 1st Viscount Astor — His great-grandfather, founder of the fortune.
- family of William Waldorf Astor, 1st Viscount Astor — His great-grandson, who moved the family to Britain.