According to author John Haskell Kemble, William Henry Aspinwall was “a man of vision and courage, and, where small men could only see the probability of the moment, he could grasp the possibility of the future.”

Born in New York City on December 16, 1807, Aspinwall would lead a rich life and leave a far-reaching legacy that few of his contemporaries could even begin to comprehend. Yet, despite the magnitude of his later achievements — which included founding both the Pacific Mail Steamship Company and the Panama Railroad — his career began unremarkably with a position in the family business when he was 25. Howland & Aspinwall, founded by his cousins, specialized in trade with the Caribbean.

Pacific Mail flag

Aspinwall learned the business quickly and was in charge of the firm just three years later. He soon oversaw the expansion of the business into new markets like South America, China, Europe, the Mediterranean, and the East and West Indies. In 1840, his younger brother John followed in his footsteps, and Aspinwall focused his attention on a new horizon of possibilities.

Train Loading at Aspinwall, 1861

At first, Aspinwall concentrated on his interest in ship design — faster ships meant greater profits — and was one of the first to commission the noted naval architect, John Willis Griffiths, to design what some have called the first clipper ship, Rainbow. With a few successful shipbuilding projects behind him, Aspinwall cast his eyes and his interests even further.

In 1845, Congress authorized a number of ocean mail contracts to be sold. Of all the contracts offered, the one between Panama and the Oregon Territory appeared the least profitable. Beyond the government subsidy for carrying mail, only minimal returns could be expected until the population of the West increased substantially. Revenues from passenger travel could not be counted on, as most travelers were in no hurry to get to the West until after the discovery of gold. This, combined with the higher cost of travel by steamer, meant that most passengers opted for the six-month journey around Cape Horn on a sailing ship.

In addition, there were no great ports, no facilities, no industry of any kind, no coal, and no repair yards that could service steamers. But Aspinwall correctly assessed the region’s potential, and on April 12, 1848, the New York Legislature incorporated the Pacific Mail Steamship Company and designated Howland & Aspinwall as its agent.

Aspinwall ordered three new steamships to inaugurate the trade, the California, the Oregon, and the Panama. When he sent his first vessel, the California, to take its place in the Panama-Oregon service, it was the first American steamer to navigate the Strait of Magellan and the first vessel of its kind to arrive in San Francisco after the discovery of gold in California. It entered the San Francisco Bay on February 28, 1849, and was soon followed by its sister ships. Together, these three ships became the backbone of Aspinwall’s empire as the California gold rush quickly catapulted the Pacific Mail to success.

But Aspinwall was not a complacent man, and in the early 1850s he built a railroad across the Isthmus of Panama. Construction proved extremely difficult and costly, but in the end the railroad was completed. The first coast-to-coast train departed the East Coast on January 28, 1855. When Aspinwall finally came to Panama to inspect the railroad, he continued on to California. That trip marked the only time Aspinwall ever traveled on either his Pacific Mail line or the Panama Railroad.

In 1856, Aspinwall resigned as president of Pacific Mail. In semi-retirement he traveled, and dabbled in politics and philanthropy. In 1866 he became a founder of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) and in 1869 helped to found the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

On January 18, 1875, William Henry Aspinwall died at home of a heart attack. Howland & Aspinwall continued for a short time, closing in 1895. The Pacific Mail Steamship Company survived 100 years in one form or another. The Panama Railroad today remains a vital link in the world’s trade routes.

Perhaps the best description of William Aspinwall was written by his clerk, Robert Graham, in his diary: “he is a man, take him all in all. I fear we shall never have another like him.”

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