Leland Stanford

Leland Stanford was an American businessman and politician who became a leading figure in the Central Pacific Railroad and the construction of the western half of the first transcontinental railroad. He also served as governor of California and later as a United States senator.

Stanford and his wife Jane founded Stanford University in memory of their only child, Leland Stanford Jr., who died in 1884. His fortune and public career were closely tied to railroad monopolies, land grants and the political influence of California’s so-called “Big Four”.

In John Jakes’ California Gold, Chance encounters figures such as Leland Stanford, William Randolph Hearst, Ambrose Bierce and Theodore Roosevelt as his pursuit of success repeatedly tests the people he loves and the principles he claims to possess.