Mining engineer; born in Aix-la-Chapelle,
Prussia, April 29, 1830; came to the
United States in 1850; and later went to
California, where he was in business for ten years; visited
Nevada in 1860; learned of the unfavorable condition of the mines; and planned the great
Sutro tunnel, through the heart of the mountain where lay the Comstock lode.
He interested capitalists in the project; obtained a charter from the Nevada legislature, Feb. 4, 1865; and the authorization of Congress, July 25, 1866.
The tunnel was begun Oct. 19, 1869; before the close of 1871 four vertical shafts had been opened along its line, one of which was 552 feet deep; and it was completed at a cost of nearly $4,000,000. The main tunnel is 1,650 feet from the surface, 20,000 feet long, 12 feet wide, and 10 feet high.
Mr. Sutro sold his interest in the tunnel and went to
San Francisco, where he invested in
real estate, and became one of the richest men on the
Pacific coast.
He was elected mayor of
San Francisco in 1894.
He gave to the public a beautiful park in 1880; built an aquarium and salt-water bath; gave statues and fountains to the city; and bequeathed $10,000 to Vassar College.
His library of more than 200,000 volumes and documents was very rich in early Americana, especially in subjects relating to the history of the
Pacific coast.
He died in
San Francisco, Cal., July 8, 1898.
