Leland Stanford

Entrepreneur

Birthday March 9, 1824

Birth Sign Pisces

Birthplace Watervilet, NY

DEATH DATE Jun 21, 1893 (69)

#135,112 Most Popular

About

Former California governor who founded what became Stanford University. He was president of both the Southern Pacific and Central Pacific railroads.

Before Fame

He practiced law in Wisconsin. His university started out on 650 acres in Rancho San Francisquito.

Trivia

He contributed to the organization of the California Republican Party in 1856.

Family Life

He married Jane Elizabeth Lathrop, the daughter of a city merchant. They founded Stanford University in the memory of their late son Leland Stanford Jr.

Associated With

His university's first admitted student was future president of the United States Herbert Hoover.