1. Valentin Oswald Ottendorfer was an American journalist associated with the development of the German-language New Yorker Staats-Zeitung into a major newspaper.
16 Facts About Oswald Ottendorfer
1. 2.
Oswald Ottendorfer served a term as a member of the New York City Board of Aldermen and as a member of the Board of Regents of the University of the State of New York.
3.
Oswald Ottendorfer served three times as an elector of the United States Electoral College.
4.
Oswald Ottendorfer was the son of a manufacturer, the youngest of six children.
5.
Oswald Ottendorfer was sent to live with a married sister in Brunn.
6.
Oswald Ottendorfer joined the Von der Tann volunteer corps, and briefly served in the first Schleswig-Holstein War.
7.
Oswald Ottendorfer was concealed by a friendly porter in a bookstore until the excitement subsided, and then fled to the Bohemian frontier, and from there to Saxony.
8.
Oswald Ottendorfer subsequently became involved in the 1849 uprisings in Saxony and Baden, after the failure of which, he fled to Switzerland.
9.
Oswald Ottendorfer briefly considered giving himself up to the government in Vienna, but was informed that would cost him his life, and so went to the United States.
10.
Oswald Ottendorfer became editor in 1858 and wed Jacob Uhl's widow, Anna Uhl, in 1859.
11.
Oswald Ottendorfer was editor and publisher of the Staats-Zeitung from 1859 to 1900; his wife was business manager until her death in 1884.
12.
Oswald Ottendorfer adhered to the principles of the Democratic Party, but joined no political organization, and maintained an independent position.
13.
Oswald Ottendorfer was an advocate of civil service reform, and active in promoting improvements in the public school system.
14.
Oswald Ottendorfer supported Stephen Douglas in 1860; he was a "Union Democrat" opposed to Fernando Wood's "Peace Democrats" who were Confederate sympathizers.
15.
Besides other charitable gifts, Oswald Ottendorfer gave $300,000 to build and endow an educational institution in his native town in Austria.
16.
In later life, Oswald Ottendorfer retired from active journalism on account of failing health, and spent most of his time in Europe.