AHC: Better Things for Joshua Norton

My namesake was a business man who did very well for himself, and lost his entire fortune on miscalculating rice fortunes, and subsequently went a bit overboard, declared himself Emperor of the United States, and was a beloved eccentric in San Francisco until the time of his death.

Life wasn't necessarily kind to Joshua Norton. The challenge is to have it be better and see what could become of Joshua Norton and his place in history.
 
Anyone? The man had some plans that, had he been a man of less eccentricity and major business success, could have done a lot. A bay bridge, a league of nations, etc.
 
I don't know if it is better but it would be interesting if he went the Jewish Messiah route. He wanted to merge catholic, Jewish and Protestant faiths into an Americanized faith.
 
He would put into motion a symantec process to realize his visions had he become Governor of California or an actual Emperor of the United States. The amount of foresight that he has is staggering. He would have done a great deal of good.
 
What about instead of investing in rice, Norton gets ahead of the curve and begins investing in Hard rock Gold Mining a few years ahead of it's emergence in California. As a result his wealth expands exponentially and he becomes a successful business man.

As the nation heads towards Civil War in the 1850s, perhaps Norton becomes the figurehead of nativist sentiment in California and begins agitating for Californian secession and the formation of a new nation on the West Coast. The California Party (for lack of a better word) eventually gains enough prominence and is able to take advantage of party splits in 1860 to win and put Norton in the Governors' mansion.

Under Norton's leadership, California secedes via referendum from the United States in 1861 rather than be drawn into the civil war. Britain and France promptly back Californian independence and before long Oregon and Washington State have joined the Californian nation as well...
 
Anyone? The man had some plans that, had he been a man of less eccentricity and major business success, could have done a lot. A bay bridge, a league of nations, etc.

Well, the easy way would just be to avoid his speculation in rice going bad. Maybe he doesn't find a supplier until the market is already being flooded, maybe it takes longer for the bulk of the Peruvian rice to show up so he ends up profiting immensely. He could continue to be a successful businessman and investor, and perhaps go into politics at some point, or at least influence it. Maybe you would see an earlier Bay Bridge or Transbay Tube?
 
The real estate market was still in the process of collapsing which is where his money came from earlier. Dodging the rice woukd probably mean avoiding bankruptcy, but he might just wind up middle class.
 
What about instead of investing in rice, Norton gets ahead of the curve and begins investing in Hard rock Gold Mining a few years ahead of it's emergence in California. As a result his wealth expands exponentially and he becomes a successful business man.

As the nation heads towards Civil War in the 1850s, perhaps Norton becomes the figurehead of nativist sentiment in California and begins agitating for Californian secession and the formation of a new nation on the West Coast. The California Party (for lack of a better word) eventually gains enough prominence and is able to take advantage of party splits in 1860 to win and put Norton in the Governors' mansion.

Under Norton's leadership, California secedes via referendum from the United States in 1861 rather than be drawn into the civil war. Britain and France promptly back Californian independence and before long Oregon and Washington State have joined the Californian nation as well...

Would there even be any secessionist sentiment in California at the time? It was a free state, and most of the people there were immigrants who cared about their own welfare much more than anything else.
 
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