Adolph Walter Rich
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Adolph Walter Rich (27 July 1843 – 6 March 1917) was a Milwaukee manufacturer, merchant and philanthropist best known for his work in founding the Jewish agricultural colony at Arpin, Wisconsin, United States.
He was born Adolphus Reich on 27 July 1843 in the town of Somos (now Sumig), in east central Hungary, the son of Emanuel Rich (ca. 1819- 24 April 1888) and Sarah H. Gladstone (ca. 1826 - ca. 1871). Soon after their arrival in the United States, the family Americanized its surname to "Rich". In later life, Rich generally used the given name “Adolph”, but in his patents and passport application styled himself “Adolphus Rich.” In Hungary, Rich learned German, Hungarian, and Hebrew, but eventually became fluent and well read in English.
When he was 10, his family left Europe, arriving at New York City on 24 October 1854 on the ship M. du Emile. In 1855 Emanuel Rich took his family to join relatives in Cleveland, Ohio. After two years in Cleveland, the family moved to Michigan. On 3 October 1857 Emanual purchased 120 acres (0.49 km2) in Saginaw County, Michigan from the United States government. The land was heavily wooded and Rich worked with his father to clear the land. After three years, the family moved to nearby Owosso, in Shiawassee County, where the elder Rich made a living as a peddler. The Emanuel Rich family eventually settled in Pentwater, Michigan.[1][2][3]
Manufacturer
At the age of 17, Rich left Owosso to work as a peddler, factory hand, and eventually as a traveling salesman of eyeglasses. In 1863 he became a naturalized United States citizen. In 1865, he arrived in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and began an optical business, which soon failed. He then began the manufacture and sale of ladies' goods, particularly hoop skirts. Within six years the firm had grown to 300 employees. From 1874 to 1893 he worked in partnership with Lewis Silber, doing business as A.W. Rich and Company with their store located. on Broadway in Milwaukee. The firm handled a complete line of ladies' goods. Rich also continued as a manufacturer, increasingly specializing in the production of shoes. The A.W. Rich Shoe Company manufactured a wide range of footwear products. Perhaps their best-known project was Wigwam slippers. Which were available in black, chocolate, tan and wine colors for $10. He was eventually granted several patents for shoe design. By the 1880s he employed 800 workers and produced 2,500 pairs of shoes a day. The factory was located in a massive brick building at the corner of Reed and Water Streets in Milwaukee; the building survives and is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Another manufacturing enterprise was the Cream City Clothing Company begun in 1883.[1][4][5]
