Astor, John Jacob —1763-1848 John Jacob Astor was born in Waldorf, Germany in 1763 and emigrated to the New World at the close of the Revolutionary War, when he was 21. He arrived in Baltimore, penniless, but was shrewd and ambitious. He opened a small fur shop in 1786 in New York City and soon became a leader of the China trade.

"The man who makes it the habit of his life to go to bed at nine o'clock, usually gets rich and is always reliable. Of course, going to bed does not make him rich— I merely mean that such a man will in all probability be up early in the morning and do a big day's work, so his weary bones put him to bed early. Rogues do their work at night. Honest men work by day. It's all a matter of habit, and good habits in America make any man rich. Wealth is a result of habit."
— JOHN JACOB ASTOR

In 1790, John Jacob Astor married Sarah Todd, whose mother was a Brevoort. Sarah Todd met Astor when she came to buy furs to make herself a coat. Her ability to judge furs and make them up won the heart of the dealer. The marriage brought young Astor into "the best Dutch New York society." This marriage was a business partnership as well as marital and proved a success in every way.

His AMERICAN FUR COMPANY (1808) created the first American monopoly on the fur trade in U.S. territories. The Lewis and Clark Expeditions had opened his eyes to new opportunities in the Northwest Territories. He sent out two expeditions of his own to establish a fur trading post at Fort Astor, which eventually became the city of Astoria, Oregon.

" You should buy Manhatten, they aren't making anymore of it."
— JOHN JACOB ASTOR

By 1810, John Jacob Astor was worth two million dollars. He began to invest all his surplus money in New York real estate, buying up lots in the desolate northern part of Manhattan, gambling that the growing city would catch up. When the government asked its wealthiest citizens to help fund the War of 1812, he did his part - clearly to his advantage, paying only eighty-eight cents on the dollar for two million dollars' worth of government bonds.

At his death in 1848, Astor was the wealthiest person in the country, worth $20 million. According to The American Heritage 40, by today's standards, it is estimated his net worth would be approximately $78 Billion! As late as 1999, he was listed as the fourth-wealthiest American ever (Microsoft's Bill Gates is fifth). He is preceeded only by John D. Rockefeller, Andrew Carnegie and Cornelius Vanderbilt.

In his will, Astor bequeathed $400,000 for the establishment of a reference library in New York City. The Astor Library opened its doors in 1849, in the building which is now the home of The New York Shakespeare Festival's Joseph Papp Public Theater.

"If you want something done, hire someone - if you want something done right, do it yourself."
— JOHN JACOB ASTOR