Charles Nordhoff was born on August 31, 1830, in Erwitte in present-day Germany. His family immigrated to America around 1834 and settled in Cincinnati, Ohio. He attended school there and apprenticed as a printer. He moved to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, around 1844, and he joined the United States Navy the following year. According to an early biographer, he served for three years, “making a voyage around the world.” He then spent another six years working on “merchant and whaling ships.”

 

He returned to Philadelphia around 1854, and he earned a living as a reporter. He married Eliza J. Letford on August 25, 1857, and they had at least five children: Charles, born around 1858; Anna, born around 1861; Lawrence, born around 1863; Evaline, born around 1865; and Elsie, born around 1869. He moved to New York City around 1861 and spent the next ten years working for the New York Evening Post. By 1870, he owned $20,000 of real estate and $2,500 of personal property. He spent the early 1870s travelling to California and Hawaii, and he worked for the New York Herald from 1874 until 1890. He retired in the late 1800s and settled in California. He died of diabetes in San Francisco, California, on July 14, 1901.

 

Image: Charles Nordhoff (courtesy Wikicommons)

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