One of my favorite bits of trivia for San Francisco is Norton I, the self-proclaimed Emperor of the United States and the Protector of Mexico.
The Emperor, Joshua Norton, would make regular proclomations in the newspaper and issued his own currency that was accepted by many businesses.
Some of his more famous proclomations were commanding the construction of the Golden Gate Bridge, the dismissal of the Governor of West Virginia - he even ordered the disolve of the United States.
My favorite decree:
"Whoever after due and proper warning shall be heard to utter the abdominal word 'Frisco,' which has no linguistic or other warrant, shall be deemed guilty of a High Misdemeanor." Penalty for noncompliance was $25.
Here's a link to some of the monetary notes issued by the Emperor.
More links about the Emperor:
- background of the Emperor
- SF Museum info on the Emperor
- Wikipedia entry for the Emperor
The Emperor died in 1880, but there was an Empress Norton, of sorts. Jose Sarria, a somewhat famous San Francisco drag queen, proclaimed his/her self Empress Norton I in the 1960's.
Read more about the Empress and her duties and charitable events.
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San Francisco trivia - Emperor Norton |
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Juro Kothari
Like a dog on a bone
Join date: 4 Sep 2003
Posts: 4,418
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12-19-2005 12:05
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Aimee Weber
The one on the right
Join date: 30 Jan 2004
Posts: 4,286
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12-19-2005 12:12
Very cool. I am familiar with Emperor Norton from one of the stories in Neil Gaiman's The Sandman.
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Billy Grace
Land Market Facilitator
Join date: 8 Mar 2004
Posts: 2,307
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12-19-2005 12:47
All I can say after reading this is... long live the queen!!!
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I find it rather easy to portray a businessman. Being bland, rather cruel and incompetent comes naturally to me.
John Cleese, 1939 - |
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Pablo Neruda
Confieso Que He Vivido
Join date: 30 Sep 2005
Posts: 109
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12-19-2005 13:22
Que viva el General Mariano Vallejo! _____________________
You begin saving the world by saving one man at a time;
all else is grandiose romanticism or politics." Charles Bukowski (1920-1994) |
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Torley Linden
Enlightenment!
Join date: 15 Sep 2004
Posts: 16,530
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12-19-2005 13:24
Very cool. I am familiar with Emperor Norton from one of the stories in Neil Gaiman's The Sandman. I like Neil Gaiman too! Sure hope he and Ragnar Tornquist will collab someday... Anyhoo, I think one of the best of the things to come out of Emperor Norton is the record label named in his honor. _____________________
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Ulrika Zugzwang
Magnanimous in Victory
Join date: 10 Jun 2004
Posts: 6,382
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12-19-2005 20:28
For Juro and all other San Francisco history buffs, you might be interested in the weekly podcast from www.sparkletack.com. You can subscribe to it for free at the iTunes Music Store. It's a great way to learn about the history of San Francisco by a long-time resident. It's a great podcast (and website).
 ~Ulrika~ _____________________
Chik-chik-chika-ahh
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Bertha Horton
Fat w/ Ice Cream
Join date: 19 Sep 2005
Posts: 835
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12-20-2005 15:42
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So, you think you're Emperor, eh? BANG! ZOOM! _____________________
 Trapped in a world she never made! |