Claus Spreckels made a fortune in the Hawaiian sugar trade before he became what author Sandra Bonura calls him in her new book: “The Sugar King of California.”
Author Sandee Bonura, who wrote a book called ÃEmpire Builder: John D. Spreckels and the Making of San Diegoà poses for photos with a bust of John D. Spreckels at the Spreckels Organ Pavilion at Balboa Park on Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2020 in San Diego, CA. Longtime San Diegans likely have heard the name. It graces a historic theater downtown and is in the full title of the iconic Organ Pavilion in Balboa Park.
In her new book, “Sugar King of California: The Life of Claus Spreckels,” local author and historian Sandee Bonura explores the life of Spreckels’ father, the man behind the family wealth: patriarch Claus Spreckels. The man immigrated penniless to the U.S. from Germany in the mid-1800s, then made his fortune in the sugar trade in California and Hawaii.
Bonura shared highlights of her newest book during a presentation Saturday at the Rancho Bernardo History Museum. The title comes about four years after she pennedThe historian said John Spreckels spent much of his life emulating his father. “Most people do not realize this, but a lot of the things his dad did, he did,” Bonura told the crowd.
“The Sugar King of California” traces the older man’s rise to wealth and the later fracturing of his family. There are several interesting tales along the way, including a lucrative late-night deal with the king of Hawaii, which was still a sovereign nation.
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