Adolph Sutro (1830–1898), born in the German state of Prussia, was the second of 13 children. He received a good education, and by the time he reached the age of 16, he began working full-time in his father’s textile factory. In the coming two years, however, two events took place that would completely alter the family’s prospects.
First, in 1847, Sutro’s father died, leaving him (and a brother) in charge of the family’s business. Second, the Revolution of 1848 swept through Europe. These violent revolutions against the European monarchies all ultimately failed, leading one British historian to note that 1848 “was the turning point at which modern history failed to turn.”
What the revolutions succeeded at, however, was to initiate mass German immigration to America. The Sutros arrived in New York in 1850 and then settled in Baltimore. Certainly, having to move was not ideal, but for immigrants arriving in America and looking for opportunity, the timing was ideal. America was still experiencing the California Gold Rush, and Sutro quickly made his way to the other side of the continent.
A Brilliant Idea
It appears the young Prussian arrived in San Francisco in November 1851. Armed with excellent business acumen and a solid work ethic, Sutro got to work, but not in the gold mines. He and his cousin Bernhard Frankenheimer went into the clothing business in Stockton. Sutro remained with his cousin for a while before returning to San Francisco to open a goods store and a tobacco store.
He struggled financially, but that did not keep him from getting married a few years after arriving in San Francisco. Of his wife, Leah, he recalled how she consistently encouraged him in his efforts, stating that, “but for her, I should have lost heart altogether.”
In 1859, Sutro formulated a brilliant idea that made him one of the wealthiest people in California. In Virginia City, Nevada, under Mount Davidson, the Comstock Lode was discovered. Although initially thought to possess gold ore, the Comstock Lode was full of silver, and it was the major silver lode discovery in the United States.
The constructed mine shafts were dangerous for numerous reasons. Ventilation was poor, and shafts might suddenly flood with scalding hot water from a geothermal aquifer.
Sutro conceived the idea of building a massive tunnel into the mountain that would establish safer ventilation, remove the water, and create a track where miners could transport their silver to the smelters. He presented his idea to bankers and investors.
With the backing of a London bank and more than 20 mine companies, Sutro, along with several other individuals, founded Sutro Tunnel Company. According to the University of Nevada, Reno, on Feb. 4, 1865, the state legislature provided “the company an exclusive franchise to construct a drainage tunnel beginning in the foothills of the Carson River Valley in Lyon County and terminating in the Comstock Lode of Virginia City.
The Sutro Tunnel Company was also given a charter to sink mining shafts along the line as long as they did not infringe upon the rights of miners with previous claims.” The following year, on July 25, 1866, Congress granted the company an exclusive charter to purchase public land, which eventually amounted to 1,200 acres, and that “all persons, companies or corporations owning claims benefitted by the tunnel would be required to contribute to the costs of its operation.”
Completing the Tunnel
Sutro traveled to the East Coast and raised $3 million by selling stocks in the new company. Construction began in 1869, but the project cost more. Three years later, he obtained financing through the British banking business of McCalmont Brothers and Company. The 10-foot-by-12-foot tunnel (some sources suggest 17-by-20), which stretched nearly four miles, reached a depth of 2,000 feet and connected more than 20 mines. It was completed by 1878.
According to the National Trust for Historic Preservation, “More than 4 million gallons of water flowed daily through wooden flumes, and later metal pipes, while mules pulled carts along tracks, transporting silver ore out of the tunnel. Ventilation shafts spaced throughout provided access to fresh air. The Sutro Tunnel was such a wonder that former President Ulysses S. Grant took a joyride through it in 1879.”
The entrance to the Sutro Tunnel in the late 1880s. Public Domain
The tunnel was an unmitigated success, and Sutro became wealthy beyond his dreams and became even more so when he sold his shares in the company in 1880.
Back to the Golden Gate
He moved back to San Francisco, where he purchased 22 acres on the outskirts of the city along the Pacific Ocean called Lands End. He also purchased an additional 1,200 acres along the western edge of San Francisco in order to plant various species of trees and create a vast nursery. He soon garnered the moniker of the Father of Tree Planting in California.
The land of those 22 acres overlooked the Cliff House (a neo-classical style building) and Seal Rocks, providing a view of Golden Gate and Mount Tamalpais. Here he built his estate, which he called Sutro Heights. The estate was not solely built for himself and his family. A massive public garden was created in 1885, which, along with its breathtaking views, was dotted with beautiful classical Greek statues.
Shortly before Sutro Heights was completed, Sutro purchased the Cliff House in 1883, which had been originally built 20 years prior as a resort and restaurant for the wealthy. But over the years, it had become a shadow of its former self. Sutro restored the location, making it family friendly.
Because Lands End was difficult for most people to reach, especially the poor, he built the Sutro Railroad that terminated near Lands End, and which cost passengers the cheap fare of five cents.
Cliff House, Sutro Baths
An old image of the Sutro Baths from when they were still standing. Adolph Sutro and Ladies of National Medical Convention, June 8, 1894. Public Domain
On Christmas Day 1894, the Cliff House was destroyed by fire. He had it rebuilt, but as an amazing structure that resembled a castle. When construction was complete in 1896, it was often referred to as “the Gingerbread Palace.” The new Cliff House was open to everyone and had more than a restaurant; it housed an art gallery, a photo gallery, a gem exhibit, a reception room, an open-air veranda, as well as large windows, allowing visitors to take in the view of the Pacific Ocean.
Additionally, while constructing the new Cliff House, Sutro directed the construction of the Sutro Baths, which, upon completion, became the world’s largest bath house. According to Nerea Feliz Arrizabalaga, a professor of architecture, “the Sutro Baths were an early precursor of the contemporary water park: a strange amalgam of swimming pools, elevated promenades, club-rooms, an amphitheater, a winter garden, a taxidermy collection, and a wax museum, along with antiques and seashells.”
Sutro, who at one point owned a twelfth of the real estate in San Francisco, built these attractions for the people of the growing city. He believed that everyone, including the poor, perhaps especially the poor, should have access to the niceties of life. Championing the common man actually got him elected mayor of San Francisco from 1894 to 1896. He discovered, however, that he possessed little power as mayor. Due to this and his disdain for politics, he did not run again after his term ended.
A Final Gift
A depiction of Sutro in his library. Public Domain
Along with all of these construction projects that benefited the locals of every stripe, Sutro purchased countless books, archival collections, and antique maps. His goal was to establish a large public library, but he died in 1898 before he could construct one. Nonetheless, his children agreed to donate the collection to the California State Library as long as the collection never left the city of San Francisco. The collection is now part of J. Paul Leonard Library at San Francisco University.
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Dustin Bass
Author
Dustin Bass is the creator and host of the American Tales podcast, and co-founder of The Sons of History. He writes two weekly series for The Epoch Times: Profiles in History and This Week in History. He is also an author.
