The Life and Ventures of the Original John Jacob Astor: Free Audiobook and Listening Guide

The Life and Ventures of the Original John Jacob Astor, credited to Elizabeth Louisa Gebhard, is available as a LibriVox volunteer audiobook. This guide identifies the recording, its source summary and its audio tracks.

About the work

The LibriVox catalogue summary, preserved with the recording, reads:

LibriVox recording of The Life and Ventures of the Original John Jacob Astor, by Elizabeth Louisa Gebhard (1859-1924). John Jacob Astor was pre-eminently the opener of new paths, a breaker of trails. From his first tramp alone through the Black Forest of Baden, at sixteen, his life never lost this typical touch. In America, both shores of the Hudson, and the wilderness to the Northwest knew his trail. The trees of the forests west of the Mississippi were blazed by his hunters and trappers; and his partners and agents planted through this vast region the flag of the American Fur Company. The Atlantic and Pacific Oceans were invisibly lined by the path of his vessels. His were the first American ships to habitually circle the globe, trading around the earth. With his far-sighted vision withdrawn from distant scenes, and centered on Manhattan Island, he led the way toward the upbuilding of the largest, and most important city in the new world. (Summary from book's Foreword)

Recording facts

• Recording title: The Life and Ventures of the Original John Jacob Astor
• Author credits: Elizabeth Louisa Gebhard
• Language: English
• Original MP3 tracks: 33
• Listed recording duration: 7:30:29

Catalogue topics

• history
• biography
• American
• USA
• millionaire
• fur trade
• War of 1812
• Astoria.

Opening tracks: first 24 of 33

1. 00 - Foreword — 7:19
2. 01 - A Pivotal Day — 8:06
3. 02 - The Forest Village on the Old Roman Road — 11:00
4. 03 - The Village School and the Old Church Bells — 7:34
5. 04 - Waiting Years — 8:52
6. 05 - John Helffrich's Journal — 12:21
7. 06 - Leaving Home — 7:31
8. 07 - England and America — 14:39
9. 08 - America — 10:53
10. 09 - Beginning the Fur Business — 11:13
11. 10 - New York a Little City — 8:08
12. 11 - Starting in Business for Himself — 9:40
13. 12 - John Jacob Astor's Home and Family — 9:21
14. 13 - Independence Day While It was New — 11:31
15. 14 - Traversing the Wilderness — 16:24
16. 15 - By Canoe Through the Great Lakes — 19:16
17. 16 - Extending the Fur Trade — 11:07
18. 17 - The East India Pass No. 68 — 13:02
19. 18 - A New Century — 12:20
20. 19 - A Vision that Crossed a Continent — 14:00
21. 20 - The Voyage of the Tonquin — 24:19
22. 21 - Over the Rockies to Astoria — 32:18
23. 22 - Carrying Despatches to Mr. Astor — 18:32
24. 23 - England's Trophy — 31:07

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Source and rights

This is a record from LibriVox's official Internet Archive collection, with a public-domain licence recorded in its metadata. LibriVox's policy includes its catalogue summaries as well as its recordings. Its public-domain assessment follows United States law; copyright status can differ elsewhere. The summary and track facts are reproduced and reformatted from that record. Dates attached to the archive upload are not treated as original book publication dates.