John Jacob Astor, German-American businessman and philanthropist (died 1848)

John Jacob Astor

German-born American businessman (1763–1848)

John Jacob Astor was a German-born American businessman, merchant, real estate mogul, and investor. Astor made his fortune mainly in a fur trade monopoly, by exporting opium into the Chinese Empire, and by investing in real estate in or around New York City during the late 18th…