William Alexander Leidesdorff, Jr. (October 23, 1810 – May 18, 1848) was one of the earliest mixed-race U.S. citizens in California and a highly successful, enterprising businessman. He was a West Indian immigrant of African Cuban, possibly Carib, Danish and Jewish ancestry. William Alexander Leidesdorff, Jr. became a United States citizen in New Orleans in 1834. He migrated to California in 1841, then under Mexican rule, settling in Yerba Buena (now San Francisco), a village of about 30 European-Mexican families. He became a Mexican citizen in 1844 and received a land grant from the Mexican government, 8 Spanish leagues, or 35,500 acres (144 km2) south of the American River, known as Rancho Rio de los Americanos. He served as US Vice Consul to Mexico at the Port of San Francisco beginning in 1845. Leidesdorff was President of the San Francisco school board and also elected as City Treasurer. Shortly before Leidesdorffs death, vast amounts of gold were officially reported on his Rancho Rio De los Americanos. By the time his estate was auctioned off in 1856, it was worth more than $1,445,000, not including vast quantities of gold mined upon his land. International Leidesdorff Bicentennial Celebrations featured the Golden Legacy of William Alexander Leidesdorff, Jr. On October 22, 2011 on his native isle of Saint Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands, a special event will highlight the season of celebrations.The California pioneer died intestate, with no living relatives in California or the United States. In 1848 his estate was assumed devalued and in debt. The public discovery of gold in the American River valley and upon his extensive land holdings increased the actual value of his estate dramatically. His waterfront property in todays financial district of San Francisco would be valuable today. A complete inventory of his estate has yet to be quantified.[5] The court appointed temporary administrators of his estate because there were no probate laws in California at that time. By 1854, when the California State Legislature considered escheat to take control of the property, Leidesdorffs estate was worth well over one million dollars and multiple of millions of dollars in gold was mined off his land. When the Leidesdorff-Folsom partitioned estate was auctioned off in 1856, the property brought more than $1,445,000.[3] Settlement of the estate was complicated by the actions of Folsom. As Customs Collector and Harbor Master for San Francisco in 1848, he had become familiar with Leidesdorffs business dealings with the U.S. Army. In 1849, Folsom took leave from the U.S. Army and located Leidesdorffs mother and some of his siblings in the West Indies. Folsom signed a note to purchase from Anna Spark title to her sons estate for $75,000, title which included all of Leidesdorffs real estate holdings in San Francisco as well as the 35,000-acre (140 km2) Rancho Rio de los Americanos near Sacramento. He paid her a deposit, with the promise of two more installment payments.[10][11] By the time Folsom returned to San Francisco, land prices were rising. The government challenged his purchase of Leidesdorffs title, as Anna Spark legally had no claim to it. A California State government claim was brought because under old Mexican law that foreigners could not inherit property. The dispute was brought to the courts, where legal entanglements over the conflicts of Mexican, American and Danish laws kept it for over ten years.[10] The uncertainty of new probate laws, combined with the fact that William Leidesdorff, though he had held federal offices, held dual Mexican and U.S. citizenship, further complicated the property issues. Leidesdorffs St. Croix relatives, mother and siblings, challenged title through Danish officials because of Folsoms false evaluation of the estate. Both the US and Mexican national governments had interest in the large estate. The high value and reach of the Leidesdorff estate made Folsoms purchase extremely controversial. In 1854, Governor Bigler, recommended the escheat of the estate, then worth a million and a half, to the state legislature, and suggested that proceedings be commenced for its recovery from Folsom.[12] The courts refused to admit the title of the West Indian mixed-race relatives because there may have been other heirs, who had never conveyed away their rights in the estate, from Europe.[13] These other heirs from Leidesdorffs fathers family lived in Europe at Altona and Copenhagen, and in the Caribbean Islands. Ultimately the following happened: (1) The claims of Leidesdorffs West Indian relatives were thrown out of court; their evidence of relationship was rejected. As they were not American citizens, they were not considered to have standing. (2) No recognized Danish family or individual of the name of Leidesdorff appeared to claim the estate of William Leidesdorff of San Francisco. Other Danish members of the family lived on St. Croix for some time after the Americans death. (3) The statute of limitations covered and protected every title obtained from Joseph L. Folsom and others who later acquired possession.[7]
Posted on: Tue, 11 Feb 2014 04:48:33 +0000
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