Liedsdorff
Leidesdorff Street in San Francisco, California is named after a Black Man.
William Alexander Leidesdorff was born on October 23, 1810 in the Virgin Islands to a Danish Jewish sugar planter and Virgin Islands native Black woman, Anna Sparks. In 1839 at the age of 29 Leidesdorff moved to New Orleans, Louisiana. In 1841 he moved to Yerba Buena, California which is now San Francisco, California.
From 1841 to 1845 he sailed ships and traded goods between San Francisco and Hawaii. He operated the first steamer to pass through the Golden Gate, the Sitka. After sailing from New York to California around the southern tip of South America, he turned to Civic matters.
Leidesdorff was a business and education leader. He built San Francisco’s first hotel, The City Hotel, at the corner of Clay and Kearney Streets. He built his home at the corner of California and Montgomery Streets, (which today is called the Financial District). He served as the treasurer and established San Francisco’s first public school.
On May 18,1848 at the age of 37 Leidesdorff died of brain fever, also known as typhoid fever. When he died he was accorded the highest recognition of a beloved and honored person as flags hung at half mast, businesses closed on the funeral day, gunners fired in unison every minute and his body was laid to rest at Mission Dolores in San Francisco.
In his short life Leidesdorff had many accomplishments. Some of Leidesdorff’s accomplishments listed on the plaque are:
One of San Francisco’s most remarkable founding fathers.
Donated land to build California’s first public school.
Member of California’s first school board
Member of San Francisco’s first town council
Organized California’s first horse race
Financed the U.S. Military’s California campaign in the Mexican American War*
Widely considered to be the United State’s first African American Millionaire
Leidesdorff Street is between Pine and Commerce Streets and Montgomery and Samson Streets. There is a statue of Leidesdorff and plaque listing his accomplishments at the corner of Leidesdorff and Pine Streets. There is an iron fence around the statue and the plaque and to me if one didn’t know what to look for one would walk by the statue without noticing it and becoming aware of its significance.
*The war was won by the U.S. on February 2, 1948 just a few months before Leidesdorff died.
On a personal note: This was not presented in my history books and I attended California public schools that are less than 15 miles from San Francisco.
