Joshua Abraham Norton (February 4, 1818 - January 8, 1880) declared himself "Norton I, Emperor of the United States" in 1859. He later added the title "Protector of Mexico." Instead of being persecuted for his audacious claims, he was celebrated by the citizens of his home city of San Francisco, California, and memorialized in the literature of prominent authors.
Early Life
Joshua Norton's parents were English Jews who first left England to move to South Africa in 1820 as part of a government colonization scheme. They were part of a group that came to be known as the "1820 Settlers." Norton's birthdate is in some dispute, but February 4, 1818, is the best determination based on ship records and the celebration of his birthday in San Francisco.
Norton emigrated to the United States somewhere around the 1849 Gold Rush in California. He entered the real estate market in San Francisco, and by 1852 he was counted as one of the wealthy, respected citizens of the city.
