Jacob F. Schoellkopf
| Jacob Friedrich Schoellkopf | |
|---|---|
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| Born |
Jakob Friedrich Schöllkopf November 15, 1819 Kirchheim unter Teck, Baden-Württemberg, Germany |
| Died | September 15, 1899 (aged 79) Buffalo, New York |
| Resting place | Forest Lawn Cemetery |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Business magnate |
| Spouse(s) | Christiana T. Duerr |
| Children | Henry, Louis, Arthur, Jacob, Alfred, C. P. Hugo and Helena |
| Parent(s) | Gottlieb Schoellkopf Christina Maier |
Jacob Friedrich Schoellkopf (November 15, 1819 – September 15, 1899) was a pioneer in harnessing the hydroelectric power of Niagara Falls.
Jacob F. Schoellkopf was born on November 15, 1819 in Kirchheim Unter Teck, a small town in the kingdom of Wurtemberg, Germany. He was the son of Gottlieb Schoellkopf and Christina Maier. He was educated in the town schools and at the age of 14 began learning about tanneries with his father, a large leather manufacturer, who had learned the trade from his father.
After completing five years of apprenticeship, he became clerk at a mercantile house in Strassberg where he worked for two years. In 1841, he decided to try leave Germany and try his fortune in the United States. He landed in New York City at 22 years old in December 1841, and was "totally unacquainted with the English language."
He started working in New York City and after two years, headed West to earn more. In 1844, with $800 (equivalent to $21,000 in 2016) of capital loaned to him by his father, he moved to Buffalo, New York to begin his own business in a small leather store which he established in Mohawk Street.
In 1844, he purchased a small tannery at Whites Corners (Hamburg), Erie County. In 1846, he started a sheep skin tannery in Buffalo. In 1848, he built a tannery in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in association with his cousin Frederick Vogel and the firm, "G. Pfister & Co."
In 1850, he became interested in the Chicago firm of "C. T. Gray & Company," operating a tannery there which continued until 1856. From 1853-54, he established tanneries at Fort Wayne, Indiana, and North Evans, New York, operating the latter for 20 years, and in 1857, he made his first large investment outside the tanning business, erecting the "North Buffalo Flouring Mills," which proved so profitable that he continued his investments with flour mills, ultimately becoming one of the largest operators of flouring mills in the Empire State.
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