Augustus Shapleigh

Augustus Frederick Shapleigh
Born (1810-01-09)January 9, 1810
Portsmouth, New Hampshire[1]
Died February 27, 1902(1902-02-27) (aged 92)
St. Louis, Missouri[2]
Nationality American
Occupation President of the A. F. Shapleigh Hardware Company
Years active 1843–1901[3]

Augustus Frederick Shapleigh (1810–1902) was an American businessman and early pioneer of St. Louis during the Second Industrial Revolution.[4][5] He was president of the A. F. Shapleigh Hardware Company, which by the 1880s grew to be one of the largest wholesale hardware firms west of the Mississippi River.[5] He was also involved in a number of other business endeavors in the banking, mining, and insurance industry.

Life

Shapleigh was the son of Captain Richard Waldron Shapleigh and Dorothea Blaisdell Shapleigh.[6] His father was captain of the Granville.[6] In 1813, at the age of 37, Captain Richard Shapleigh died at sea with his ship, which was wrecked off Rye Beach, New York.[6]

In 1843, Shapleigh founded one of the first hardware stores in St. Louis on behalf of Rogers, Field & Company.[5] The following year the company was renamed Rogers, Shapleigh & Company.[5] The original store was a four-story building at 412-422 Main Street.[7] The site was chosen for its proximity to the Mississippi River, which was the main source of transportation for goods at the time.[7]

Aside from his connection with the hardware industry, Shapleigh was associated with various other business concerns all of which constitute elements in the development of St. Louis.[6] In 1859, he became identified with the State Bank of St. Louis and in 1862 was elected a director of the Merchant's National Bank, so continuing until 1890, when he resigned in favor of his son Alfred.[6] He was also president of the Phoenix Insurance Company, vice president of the Covenant Mutual Life Insurance Company.[6] He was also invested in the Hope Mining Company and the Granite Mountain Mining Company.[6] Shapleigh also served as a board director of the Hope Mining Company.[8]

Shapleigh died of natural causes at the age of 92.[5] He had been in failing health for many years, but retained his mental faculties.[5] He is buried in Bellefontaine Cemetery in St. Louis.[5]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Stevens, Walter Barlow (1911). St. Louis, the Fourth City, 1764-1911. St. Louis: S. J. Clarke Publishing Company. p. 1. Retrieved 26 October 2016.
  2. ↑ White, James Terry (1894). The National Cyclopedia of American Biography. New York: James T. White & Company. p. 376. Retrieved 26 October 2016.
  3. ↑ "Has Capital of $1,000,000: Norvell-Shapleigh Files Incorporation Papers". St. Louis Republic. St. Louis. 30 June 1901. p. 10. Retrieved 26 October 2016.
  4. ↑ Denny, Jane. "Augustus Frederick "Fred" Shapleigh". Find A Grave. Retrieved 26 October 2016.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 The Iron Age. Pennsylvania: Chilton Company. 1902. Retrieved 26 October 2016.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Stevens, Walter Barlow (1911). St. Louis, the Fourth City, 1764-1911. St. Louis: S. J. Clarke Publishing Company. p. 3. Retrieved 26 October 2016.
  7. 1 2 Henry, Virginia Anne (1947). The Sequent Occupance of Mill Creek Valley. St. Louis: Washington University in St. Louis. p. 49.
  8. ↑ "Mining Notes". The New North-west. Deer Lodge, MT. 14 February 1890. p. 3. Retrieved 26 October 2016.

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