William Leidesdorff Plaque - San Francisco, CA
Posted by: 
saopaulo1
N 37° 47.628 W 122° 24.126
10S E 552640 N 4183105
A bronze plaque on the side of a building on Leidesdorff Street.
Waymark Code: WM80Z0
Location: California, United States
Date Posted: 01/06/2010
Views: 6
From Wikipedia: "William Alexander Leidesdorff, Jr. (born October 23, 1810 - died May 18, 1848) was one of the earliest Black settlers in California and a highly successful, enterprising businessman. A West Indian immigrant of mixed race: African, Danish Jewish, Spanish and Virgin Islands Creole, William Alexander Leidesdorff, Jr. became a United States citizen in New Orleans in 1834. He migrated to California in 1841, settling in Yerba Buena (San Francisco), then a village of about 30 families. He became a Mexican citizen in 1844 and received a land grant from the government for 35,000 acres on 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. After the United States took over California in 1848, Leidesdorff was on the school board and also served as City Treasurer. Shortly before Leidesdorff's death, gold was discovered near his land, vastly increasing its value. By the time his estate was auctioned off in 1856, it was worth more than $1,445,000." (
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The plaque is next to the doorway of a small cafe in the Leidesdorff Street. The plaque reads: "William Alexander Leidesdorff (1810-1848. Builder. Entrepreneur. Visionary. Pioneer. San Franciscan. African American."