Albert Kuner
Encyclopedia
Georg Albrecht Ferdinand Kuner (October 9, 1819, Lindau
, Germany
– January 23, 1906, San Francisco, CA, U.S.A.) was the engraver of California's State Seal
, which was designed by Robert S. Garnett
. The seal was adopted October 2, 1849 by the California Constitutional Convention.
company. But he and his three friends did not tarry long once the news of "gold" in California was voiced about the city. On January 1, 1849, Kuner, his three Lindau friends and their collectively owned dog, "Attila," engaged passage for San Francisco aboard the sailing ship, Sutton.
After many harrowing adventures, the remaining 54 passengers aboard the ship arrived safely into the bay of San Francisco on July 22, 1849. Two passengers were lost at sea during the passage.
In May 1854 he departed San Francisco for New York via Panama. While there he secured an American passport and proceeded to Le Havre
, France. The purpose of the lengthy trip was not only to visit his mother and relatives, but also to convince Miss Judith Rhineck of Lindau to marry him. He was successful and on July 14, 1854 the couple were married and in late 1854 journeyed to California via the "Nicaragua
overland route."
The couple had 5 children: Anna, Bertha, Rudolph, Ida, and Martha. All born in San Francisco and all survived to majority.
Albert and Judith Kuner remained residents of San Francisco until their deaths. He died on January 23, 1906, only three months before the devastating earthquake which he clearly and emphatically had predicted in one of his 1850 letters written to his mother in Lindau, Bavaria. His death allowed him to escape having to view the destruction of his beloved city. His wife survived him by only four years.
Lindau
Lindau is a Bavarian town and an island on the eastern side of Lake Constance, the Bodensee. It is the capital of the Landkreis or rural district of Lindau. The historic city of Lindau is located on an island which is connected with the mainland by bridge and railway.- History :The name Lindau was...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
– January 23, 1906, San Francisco, CA, U.S.A.) was the engraver of California's State Seal
Seal of California
The Great Seal of the State of California was adopted at the California state Constitutional Convention of 1849 and has undergone minor design changes since then, the last being the standardization of the seal in 1937...
, which was designed by Robert S. Garnett
Robert S. Garnett
Robert Selden Garnett was a career military officer, serving in the United States Army until the American Civil War, when he became a Confederate States Army brigadier general. He was the first general officer killed in the Civil War.-Early life and career:Garnett was born at the family plantation...
. The seal was adopted October 2, 1849 by the California Constitutional Convention.
Personal background
Albert Kuner was the son of Johann Ludwig Kuner (1785–1849) and Regina Magdalena Bodler (1785–1858). Albert and three Lindau friends left Europe on September 3, 1848 and arrived at New York City on October 28, 1848 aboard the sailing ship, Swyzerland. According to family history, he quickly secured employment as an engraver with the TiffanyTiffany
-People:* Tiffany * Tiffany * Tiffany , an American pop artist* Tiffany , a K-pop artist* Charles Comfort Tiffany, American Episcopal clergyman* Charles Lewis Tiffany, a founder of Tiffany & Co....
company. But he and his three friends did not tarry long once the news of "gold" in California was voiced about the city. On January 1, 1849, Kuner, his three Lindau friends and their collectively owned dog, "Attila," engaged passage for San Francisco aboard the sailing ship, Sutton.
After many harrowing adventures, the remaining 54 passengers aboard the ship arrived safely into the bay of San Francisco on July 22, 1849. Two passengers were lost at sea during the passage.
In May 1854 he departed San Francisco for New York via Panama. While there he secured an American passport and proceeded to Le Havre
Le Havre
Le Havre is a city in the Seine-Maritime department of the Haute-Normandie region in France. It is situated in north-western France, on the right bank of the mouth of the river Seine on the English Channel. Le Havre is the most populous commune in the Haute-Normandie region, although the total...
, France. The purpose of the lengthy trip was not only to visit his mother and relatives, but also to convince Miss Judith Rhineck of Lindau to marry him. He was successful and on July 14, 1854 the couple were married and in late 1854 journeyed to California via the "Nicaragua
Nicaragua
Nicaragua is the largest country in the Central American American isthmus, bordered by Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south. The country is situated between 11 and 14 degrees north of the Equator in the Northern Hemisphere, which places it entirely within the tropics. The Pacific Ocean...
overland route."
The couple had 5 children: Anna, Bertha, Rudolph, Ida, and Martha. All born in San Francisco and all survived to majority.
Albert and Judith Kuner remained residents of San Francisco until their deaths. He died on January 23, 1906, only three months before the devastating earthquake which he clearly and emphatically had predicted in one of his 1850 letters written to his mother in Lindau, Bavaria. His death allowed him to escape having to view the destruction of his beloved city. His wife survived him by only four years.
The Horseman or Vaquero
The Horseman also known as the Vaquero is a rare gold coin engraved by Albert Kuner for the Baldwin & Co. of San Francisco in 1850. The signature of Albert Kuner "A KUNER" can be found on the left of the ground base. The Vaquero coin can be found on display at the "Stories on Money" exhibition at the National Museum of American History at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington D.C. USA.Further reading
- Edgar Holmes Adams: Private Gold Coinage of California, 1849–1855, New York, 1912.
- James L. Betton (ed.): Money Talks: a numismatic anthology selected from "Calcoin News", Irvine, California, 1970.
- Stephan Kienberger, A Brief Overview of Germans in California and San Francisco and their Contributions to Society and the Lutheran Church.
- Memorial Record for Albert Kuner, Vol. 11 – Alice Phelan Sullivan Library, Society of California Pioneers, San Francisco.
External links
- http://www.pcgs.com/articles/article_view.chtml?artid=2787&universeid=313 http://www.pcgs.com/articles/article_view.chtml?artid=2787&universeid=313
- CALIFORNIA’S LEGISLATURE