1. Commonly known as Emperor Norton, he took the secondary title "Protector of Mexico" in 1866.
36 Facts About Emperor Norton
1. 2.
Emperor Norton had no formal political power but was treated deferentially in San Francisco and elsewhere in California, and currency issued in his name was honored in some of the establishments he frequented.
3.
Some considered Emperor Norton to be insane or eccentric, but residents of San Francisco and the city's larger Northern California orbit enjoyed his imperial presence and took note of his frequent newspaper proclamations.
4.
Emperor Norton received free ferry and train passage and a variety of favors, such as help with rent and free meals, from well-placed friends and sympathizers.
5.
Emperor Norton's parents were John Emperor Norton and Sarah Norden, who were English Jews.
6.
Obituaries published in 1880, following Emperor Norton's death, offered conflicting information about his date of birth.
7.
The business failed after 18 months, and Emperor Norton was employed as an auctioneer in Port Elizabeth as late as 1843.
8.
Sometime in 1843 or 1844, Emperor Norton moved to Cape Town, where he joined his father's business.
9.
Joshua Emperor Norton left Cape Town in late 1845 and arrived in Boston via the ship Sunbeam from Liverpool on March 12,1846.
10.
At various times, Emperor Norton claimed to have arrived in San Francisco aboard a ship from Rio de Janeiro in November 1849.
11.
Emperor Norton had success in commodities markets and in real estate speculation, and by late 1852, he was one of the more prosperous, respected citizens of the city.
12.
Two months later, on September 17,1859, Norton hand-delivered the following letter declaring himself "Emperor of these United States" to the offices of the Bulletin:.
13.
Emperor Norton issued numerous decrees on matters of state, including a decree on October 12,1859, to formally abolish the United States Congress.
14.
Emperor Norton then turned his attention to other matters, both political and social.
15.
The failure to treat Emperor Norton's adopted home city with appropriate respect was the subject of a particularly stern edict that often is cited as having been written by Emperor Norton in 1872, although evidence is elusive for the authorship, date, or source of this decree:.
16.
Emperor Norton explicitly forbade any form of conflict between religions or their sects, and he issued several decrees calling for the construction of a suspension bridge or tunnel connecting Oakland and San Francisco.
17.
When he wasn't reading newspapers and writing proclamations, Norton spent most of his days as Emperor walking the streets, spending time in parks and libraries, and paying visits to newspaper offices and old friends in San Francisco, Oakland and Berkeley.
18.
Emperor Norton wore an elaborate blue uniform with gold-plated epaulettes, at some time given to him secondhand by officers of the United States Army post at the Presidio of San Francisco.
19.
Emperor Norton embellished that with a variety of accoutrements, including a beaver hat decorated with a peacock or ostrich feathers and a rosette, a walking stick, and an umbrella.
20.
Emperor Norton often had conversations on the issues of the day with those he encountered.
21.
Emperor Norton arrested Norton in 1867 to commit him to involuntary treatment for a mental disorder.
22.
Emperor Norton did receive some tokens of recognition for his position.
23.
At a sandlot rally held on April 28,1878, Emperor Norton appeared just before the start of proceedings, stood on a small box and challenged Kearney directly, telling him and the assembled crowd to disperse and go home.
24.
Emperor Norton was unsuccessful, but the incident was widely reported in local papers over the next couple of days.
25.
Emperor Norton issued his own money in the form of scrip, or promissory notes, which were accepted from him by some restaurants in San Francisco.
26.
Contrary to the oft-repeated claim that he dropped the title shortly thereafter, Emperor Norton continued to identify and sign himself "Protector of Mexico" for the rest of his life.
27.
Emperor Norton wrote many letters to Queen Victoria, including a suggestion that they marry to strengthen ties between their nations.
28.
Emperor Norton sent at least one letter to Kamehameha V, the King of Hawaii at the time, regarding an estate in the Kingdom of Hawaii.
29.
One popular story suggested that he was the son of Emperor Norton Napoleon III and that his claim of coming from South Africa was a ruse to prevent persecution.
30.
Rumors circulated that Emperor Norton was supremely wealthy and was feigning poverty because he was miserly.
31.
Emperor Norton's collapse was immediately noticed, and "the police officer on the beat hastened for a carriage to convey him to the City Receiving Hospital," according to the next day's obituary in the San Francisco Morning Call.
32.
Emperor Norton's possessions included his collection of walking sticks, his rather battered sabre, a variety of headgear, including a stovepipe, a derby, a red-laced Army cap, and another cap suited to a martial band-master.
33.
In 1934, Emperor Norton's remains were transferred to a grave site at Woodlawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Colma, California.
34.
The Emperor Norton Trust, founded and based in San Francisco from 2013 to 2019, and originally known as The Emperor's Bridge Campaign, is a nonprofit, now based in Boston and San Francisco, that engages in research, education, and advocacy to advance the legacy of Emperor Norton.
35.
In October 2022, The Emperor Norton Trust announced a new effort to have the San Francisco Ferry Building clock tower named "The Emperor Norton Tower" in 2023, the 125th anniversary of the opening of the building in 1898.
36.
In 1939, the group E Clampus Vitus commissioned and dedicated a plaque commemorating Emperor Norton's call for the construction of a suspension bridge between San Francisco and Oakland.