Empire Builder: John D. Spreckels and the Making of San Diego

by Sandra Bonura, Uwe Spiekermann (Foreword)

"With exhaustive research and a storyteller’s flair, historian Sandra E. Bonura offers a sweeping narrative of one of the nation’s most important and unjustly forgotten industrialists. Bonura weaves a tale that is at once epic and intimate." —Charles Slack, award-winning author, journalist, and business editor  2021 San Diego Book Award

Empire Builder is the previously untold story of a pioneer who almost single-handedly transformed the bankrupt village of San Diego into a thriving city. When he first dropped anchor in San Diego Bay on a warm June day in 1887, John Diedrich Spreckels set into motion a series of events that later defined the city. Within just a few years, this son of the German immigrant Claus Spreckels, known as the “Sugar King,” owned and controlled the majority of San Diego’s industry by demanding advanced techniques of building construction, water supply management, and energy production, as well as improvements in transportation—particularly by ship, rail, electric streetcar, and automobile.

After successfully building empires in sugar, shipping, and transportation and building development up and down the coast of California and across the Pacific, Spreckels rubbed shoulders with world leaders, bailed out royalty, and even successfully sued the U.S. government twice, all while contributing to numerous educational, charitable, and cultural institutions in San Diego and San Francisco.

Despite the fact that Spreckels created and owned much of San Diego’s early twentieth-century infrastructure, his name is unknown to many contemporary San Diegans. Nobody, especially not Spreckels himself, could have foreseen that his empire would be all but forgotten in so short a time. Sandra E. Bonura strives to correct this oversight by providing a behind-the-scenes look into the Spreckels family and its role in business and into the man himself. This deeply researched biography, which includes newly discovered family documents and photos, paints a realistic portrait of cultural, economic, and political aspects of late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century California. 

Genres: History

440 pages, Hardcover

Published November 1, 2020

Reviews

[Jeanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely loved this book! I knew some of the history of the Spreckels family in San Francisco area (especially "Big Alma") but had no idea the total influence the son had in San Diego, Coronado Island, etc. So glad I read this.

[Vincent Dicks · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anyone who has been to Coronado has to wonder about the history of the hotel, the resort, and then San Diego itself. Compared to Europe, or even the east coast of the United States, California's history is limited, but the characters so rich. Dr. Bonura does a fantastic job of telling the life story of one of the giants of the West.
In researching another member of the Spreckels family for my own work led me to the website of the author Sandra Bonura. Since then, it has been the book I most eagerly anticipated during a crazy 2020. Having read "Light in the Queen's Garden", her Ida May Pope book (I'm a Hawaiiphile as well), I knew her book would be well researched and new facts would be brought to light. Sandee did not disappoint. When a man lives as full and complicated life as John D. Spreckels, writers of history often lose the thread in the details. Not so here. A good man, with a complicated family, Spreckels portrait shows both the will and determination that helped shape San Diego.

The book is recommended for anyone who has visited or plans to visit Coronado or greater San Diego. Residents will learn more about their lovely city, and those interested in the Gilded Age wealth of the late 1800s and early 1900s California will be more than satisfied. The product of quality research and told with an even hand, this book is an enjoyable few days spent in a glorious past, where one man controlled the destiny of the city.

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a really interesting look at the early history of San Diego and Coronado. As a San Diego native, I was fascinated to learn how John D. Spreckels came and basically set San Diego on the path that it is today. He was also extremely instrumental in developing the island of Coronado.

The book explores the various members of the Spreckels family and their relationships with each other, which I loved. It also talks about their sugar business holdings in Hawaii and their relationship with the Hawaiian royal family. There is no shortage of drama, intrigue, and even politics in this book.

Well worth anyone's time if they wish to learn more about a very influential man and his family and the early history of San Diego and Coronado.

[Dale Huntington · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book was interesting.
There are a few errors and often the author repeats ideas and sometimes uses cliche. Sometimes she pops in and out of eras and dates for subjects which renders the reader a bit of whiplash. I’m glad I read it.
It felt a bit homer-ish at times, which I don’t think was her desire. I don’t think his enemies were as bad as it sounds, note is he as altruistic as the author sometimes makes him sound. I think the book could be even better with another solid edit.
I appreciate having more history of our fair City.

[Kathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent. Well research and documented (nearly 1/3 of the book is footnotes). Although a San Diego native and well aware of the Spreckels name, I had no idea the extent of the Spreckels empire, of other members of the family other than John D., nor the enormous influence he had on the development of San Diego in the early 20th century. I had a little problem with keeping all the family members straight...a family tree addendum might have been helpful.

[Eva-Lynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved learning about this history of San Diego and Spreckels. While I found it annoying to have the back and forth of time in each section...I like more linear, the story was amazing and the aftermath of his death.

I moved here 25 year ago and have been to many of the areas mentioned. I will now look at these places with a new view and appreciation.

[Jody]

In depth look at a man who built much of San Diego, but few residents today know him.

[Belinda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent biography of John D. Spreckels life. Really enjoyed reading about his major contributions to the development of San Diego into a city.

[Ruth Pannell Crider · Rating 5 out of 5]

wonderful historical memoir

enjoyed reading this book about Coronados history and the fascinating Spreckels family! A must read for anyone interested in San Diego or Coronado

[Liam Barrett · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well-researched and provided interesting information about San Diego’s history, but difficult to look past the poor technical writing and odd speculative editorializing