Who was Joshua Norton?
If you are from San Francisco, California, you know the answer to this. He was the Emperor of the United States and Protector of Mexico, and the first citizen of the Golden Gate City from the 1860s to his death in 1880. No, I am not crazy when I call him Emperor. Joshua Norton was a wealthy merchant and trader in San Francisco, who made a fortune in the Gold Rush. But in 1855 he came a cropper. He had a scheme to corner the rice market (a big idea, given the size of San Francisco's Chinatown). He had some partners in this deal - something he had not tried before. It was a mistake - they double crossed him into thinking he had the market cornered, only to find that they had other supplies of rice coming in that they used to undercut his prices. Norton was ruined. He had a nervous breakdown as a result.
But he was of unique temperament. Beginning in 1860, Norton started putting announcements into newspapers that he had accepted the offer of the former U.S. Congress to take over the government of the U.S. and of Mexico as Emperor and Protector. It was obviously an extremely eccentric thing to claim, probably an act that would get Norton declared certifiable today. The thing with Norton was that behind every one of his eccentric comments, a shrewd and capable brain was operating.
For example: Yes, he willingly accepted the title of Emperor of the United States and Protector of Mexico from Congress in 1860. But he also announce that (as he was in the official Western U.S. capital of San Francisco) the nation should continue following the commands of his official surrogate in Washington, D.C., President Abraham Lincoln. Californians were amused, but most of them were also in agreement. There had been a heavy attempt by Senator William Gwin and others to lead California to secede from the Union, and support the Confderacy. Norton opposed this - and helped keep most of the state amused and loyal to Lincoln!
That was how it went. Norton would do some crazy thing in San Francisco, but when people stopped chuckling, they realized Joshua was right about fundamentals: support the Union, end slavery, improve city agencies and departments. He was normally on the right side of all the issues.
The city never stopped giving him their affection and loyalty. To the day he died he was always called "Your majesty" by the citizenry. His made-up financial notes were accepted like they were American currency. When he died in 1880 he was given the funeral of a city leader and statesman.
Sam Jaffe played Norton in this episode, visiting his Nevada subjects and his old friend Ben Cartwright. The episode dealt with two examples of his clear-headedness (hidden behind his eccentricity). He is involved in the aftermath of a mine explosion that has caused deaths and injuries. The mine owner (Parley Baer) dislikes this kook, who keeps demanding to know (after he and Ben look over the mine), "Where were the canaries?" Only at the conclusion does it turn out that in Latin American mines (as merchant prince Norton would have known), canaries in cages are used to tip off miners of escaping gases that will cause explosions. The other thing is the construction of a bridge that is needed over an impassable gorge, which Norton pushes to be a suspension bridge (something not too well known in 1869/70). The episode was a joy, in reminding us that eccentricity is not a block to intelligence, and for bringing back a colorful American figure to our attention.
If you are from San Francisco, California, you know the answer to this. He was the Emperor of the United States and Protector of Mexico, and the first citizen of the Golden Gate City from the 1860s to his death in 1880. No, I am not crazy when I call him Emperor. Joshua Norton was a wealthy merchant and trader in San Francisco, who made a fortune in the Gold Rush. But in 1855 he came a cropper. He had a scheme to corner the rice market (a big idea, given the size of San Francisco's Chinatown). He had some partners in this deal - something he had not tried before. It was a mistake - they double crossed him into thinking he had the market cornered, only to find that they had other supplies of rice coming in that they used to undercut his prices. Norton was ruined. He had a nervous breakdown as a result.
But he was of unique temperament. Beginning in 1860, Norton started putting announcements into newspapers that he had accepted the offer of the former U.S. Congress to take over the government of the U.S. and of Mexico as Emperor and Protector. It was obviously an extremely eccentric thing to claim, probably an act that would get Norton declared certifiable today. The thing with Norton was that behind every one of his eccentric comments, a shrewd and capable brain was operating.
For example: Yes, he willingly accepted the title of Emperor of the United States and Protector of Mexico from Congress in 1860. But he also announce that (as he was in the official Western U.S. capital of San Francisco) the nation should continue following the commands of his official surrogate in Washington, D.C., President Abraham Lincoln. Californians were amused, but most of them were also in agreement. There had been a heavy attempt by Senator William Gwin and others to lead California to secede from the Union, and support the Confderacy. Norton opposed this - and helped keep most of the state amused and loyal to Lincoln!
That was how it went. Norton would do some crazy thing in San Francisco, but when people stopped chuckling, they realized Joshua was right about fundamentals: support the Union, end slavery, improve city agencies and departments. He was normally on the right side of all the issues.
The city never stopped giving him their affection and loyalty. To the day he died he was always called "Your majesty" by the citizenry. His made-up financial notes were accepted like they were American currency. When he died in 1880 he was given the funeral of a city leader and statesman.
Sam Jaffe played Norton in this episode, visiting his Nevada subjects and his old friend Ben Cartwright. The episode dealt with two examples of his clear-headedness (hidden behind his eccentricity). He is involved in the aftermath of a mine explosion that has caused deaths and injuries. The mine owner (Parley Baer) dislikes this kook, who keeps demanding to know (after he and Ben look over the mine), "Where were the canaries?" Only at the conclusion does it turn out that in Latin American mines (as merchant prince Norton would have known), canaries in cages are used to tip off miners of escaping gases that will cause explosions. The other thing is the construction of a bridge that is needed over an impassable gorge, which Norton pushes to be a suspension bridge (something not too well known in 1869/70). The episode was a joy, in reminding us that eccentricity is not a block to intelligence, and for bringing back a colorful American figure to our attention.
