Aaron Fleishhacker (February 4, 1820 – February 19, 1898) was a German-born American businessman who founded paper box manufacturer, A. Fleishhacker & Co. He had been active during the

Gold Rush A gold rush or gold fever is a discovery of gold—sometimes accompanied by other precious metals and rare-earth minerals—that brings an onrush of miners seeking their fortune. Major gold rushes took place in the 19th century in Australia, New ...

with the formation of Comstock silver mines.

Biography

Aaron Fleishhacker was born on February 4, 1820, to a

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

family in

Kingdom of Bavaria The Kingdom of Bavaria (german: Königreich Bayern; ; spelled ''Baiern'' until 1825) was a German state that succeeded the former Electorate of Bavaria in 1805 and continued to exist until 1918. With the unification of Germany into the German ...

. In 1845, he immigrated to the United States, first settling in

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

, where he opened a retail store and then briefly to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

before moving to

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

in 1853. He moved around the region selling his wares to miners traveling to

Sacramento ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento ...

, Grass Valley, Oregon,

Virginia City, Nevada Virginia City is a census-designated place (CDP) that is the county seat of Storey County, Nevada, and the largest community in the county. The city is a part of the Reno– Sparks Metropolitan Statistical Area. Virginia City developed as a boom ...

, and Carson City, Nevada. He then returned to San Francisco, where he started a paper wholesale business and then either founded or purchased the Golden Gate Paper Box Company which then was renamed A. Fleishhacker & Co. The company was nicknamed the "Paper Bag House" and the company became the largest box manufacturer in the West. His sons, Mortimer and Herbert, who had both started working in the business while teens, took over the company upon his death.

Death and legacy

He died on February 19, 1898, in San Francisco, California. The Fleishhacker Pool, the Fleishhacker Playfield, and the Mother’s Building (or Delia Fleishhacker Memorial Building) was a complex that included a large public saltwater swimming pool in San Francisco, as well as public wading pool for children, and a sports field; which was dedicated to the family. Fleishhacker was a founding member of Congregation Emanu-El in San Francisco.

Personal life

In 1857, he married Deliah Stern of

Albany, New York Albany ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of New York, also the seat and largest city of Albany County. Albany is on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River, and about north of New York C ...

; they had eight children, six of whom survived to adulthood: Carrie Fleishhacker Schwabacher (married to Ludwig Schwabacher), Emma Fleishhacker Rosenbaum (married to S. D. Rosenbaum), Mortimer Fleishhacker (1866–1953),

Herbert Fleishhacker Herbert Fleishhacker (November 2, 1872 – April 2, 1957), was an American businessman, civic leader and philanthropist. In 1924, he created and helped fund the Fleishhacker Pool in San Francisco, for many years the world's largest outdoor sal ...

(1872–1957), Belle Fleishhacker Scheeline (married to S. C. Scheeline), and Blanche Fleishhacker Wolf (married to Frank Wolf).

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Fleishhacker, Aaron American company founders Bavarian emigrants to the United States 1820 births 1898 deaths Businesspeople from Bavaria 19th-century German Jews Businesspeople from California People from the Kingdom of Bavaria 19th-century American businesspeople Burials at Home of Peace Cemetery (Colma, California)