#17 – Who am I?

Stop at Henry’s statue in front of Tower Grove House / Photo of younger Shaw

Well, hello again! This is a statue of me, Henry Shaw. I was born on July 24, 1800 in Sheffield, England. I received my education in Sheffield, and then at the Mill Hill School near London. My father Joseph’s iron business had fallen upon hard times and the family could no longer afford my education. Eventually, I was forced to return home and join my father’s business ventures.

In looking for new markets, my father turned to the Americas. In 1818, I accompanied him on our first trip across the Atlantic Ocean to Quebec, Canada. I must have impressed him, because the following year, he sent me to New Orleans – alone at age 18 – to recover a lost shipment. I was successful, but could not find a buyer for the goods. Determined to find a market, I purchased a passage up the Mississippi River on a steamship, the Maid of Orleans. The 40 day trip cost me $120. On May 3, 1819, I landed in a small French town called St. Louis. I spent 20 years here, selling hardware, cutlery and other metal products to the settlers headed westward. Business was very good. I made more than $22,000 in 1839 alone, “more money than any man in my circumstances ought to make in a single year.”

I retired at 39 with nearly $250,000 and focused my attention, skills and resources on real estate. I bought and rented many city and rural properties. Throughout the 1840s I traveled extensively around Europe and parts of North Africa and the Middle East. Inspired by my travels, I returned to St. Louis and began building this Garden around my country estate.

You can learn more about my travels by reading my Travels with Henry blog at www.mobot.org.