Anton Klaus (December 30, 1829 – July 22, 1897) was a

German American German Americans (german: Deutschamerikaner, ) are Americans who have full or partial German ancestry. With an estimated size of approximately 43 million in 2019, German Americans are the largest of the self-reported ancestry groups by the Unite ...

immigrant Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, and ...

, businessman, and politician. He served as the 12th mayor of

Green Bay, Wisconsin Green Bay is a city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The county seat of Brown County, it is at the head of Green Bay (known locally as "the bay of Green Bay"), a sub-basin of Lake Michigan, at the mouth of the Fox River. It is above sea lev ...

Early life

Klaus was born in the town of Bruttig, in the

Rhine Province The Rhine Province (german: Rheinprovinz), also known as Rhenish Prussia () or synonymous with the Rhineland (), was the westernmost province of the Kingdom of Prussia and the Free State of Prussia, within the German Reich, from 1822 to 1946. It ...

in western

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an em ...

(now western

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

). He was the fourth of five children. He first came to Green Bay in 1849. By 1853, he was successfully managing a small hotel called the Green Bay House. In 1854, Green Bay was incorporated as a city, and in the spring of 1855, Klaus was elected the first city treasurer. He served one year as treasurer and then returned to his hotel business. After the

Panic of 1857 The Panic of 1857 was a financial panic in the United States caused by the declining international economy and over-expansion of the domestic economy. Because of the invention of the telegraph by Samuel F. Morse in 1844, the Panic of 1857 was ...

, Klaus entered the lumber industry, first building a sawmill, then acquiring others. With these resources he entered the shingle trade. Over the next decade, Green Bay grew to become the primary shingle market in the world, and Klaus became the largest buyer, manufacturer, and trader of the material in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. Klaus became a major investor in Green Bay, buying and building all around the city. On the 1870 census, Klaus listed his real-estate value as $120,000 ($ in dollars).

Political career

After his term as city treasurer, Klaus later served as Brown County treasurer. He served on the City Council for three terms before being elected mayor of Green Bay in the spring of 1868. He was re-elected twice in 1869 and 1870.

Move West

The

Panic of 1873 The Panic of 1873 was a financial crisis that triggered an economic depression in Europe and North America that lasted from 1873 to 1877 or 1879 in France and in Britain. In Britain, the Panic started two decades of stagnation known as the "Lon ...

virtually bankrupted Klaus, and in 1874 he moved west to settle in

Jamestown, North Dakota Jamestown is a city in Stutsman County, North Dakota, United States. It is the county seat of Stutsman County. The population was 15,849 at the 2020 census, making it the ninth largest city in North Dakota. Jamestown was founded in 1883 and i ...

. He rose again in business, buying and selling buildings, land, and houses, and is considered one of the city's founders. Klaus donated land for a municipal park in Jamestown, North Dakota, which was named ''Anton Klaus Park'' for him.

Family and personal life

Klaus married Appolonia Whiteson on November 8, 1853. They had four children. Klaus died on July 22, 1899, in

, and was returned to Green Bay. His wife preceded him in death; they are buried together at the Allouez Catholic Cemetery in Green Bay.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Klaus, Anton People from the Kingdom of Prussia Mayors of Green Bay, Wisconsin Wisconsin city council members 1829 births 1899 deaths People from Jamestown, North Dakota Prussian emigrants to the United States 19th-century American politicians