John Jacob Astor

John Jacob Astor (July 17, 1763 - March 29, 1848) was a Palatine-born American merchant of Lombardic origin who amassed the first major fortune in the United States through his business activities as the American Fur Company and his private acquisition of New York real estate.

Captain Kidd's Treasure
Re: Franklin Head's claim that the Astor fortune began with John Jacob Astor's recovery of Captain Kidd's buried treasure at Deer Isle, Maine.