The Guggenheims: A Family History

(Paperback)

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Meyer Guggenheim, a Swiss immigrant, founded a great American business dynasty. At their peak in the early twentieth century, the Guggenheims, as a family, were reckoned among America's wealthiest, and the richest Jewish family in the world after the Rothschilds. They belonged to Our Crowd, that tight social circles of New York Jewish plutocrats, but unlike the others-primarily merchants and financiers-they made their money by extracting and refining copper, silver, lead, tin, and gold. The secret of their success, the patriarch believed, was their unity, and in the early years Meyer's seven sons, under the leadership of Daniel, worked as one to expand their growing mining and smelting empire. Family solidarity eventually decayed (along with their Jewish faith), but even more damaging was the paucity of male heirs as Meyer and the original set of brothers passed from the scene. In the third generation, Harry Guggenheim, Daniel's son, took over leadership and made the family a force in aviation, publishing, and horse racing. He desperately sought a successor but tragically failed and was forced to watch as the great Guggenheim business enterprise crumbled. Meanwhile, "Guggenheim" came to mean art more than industry. In the mid-twentieth century, led by Meyer's son Solomon and Solomon's niece Peggy, the Guggenheims became the agents of modernism in the visual arts. Peggy, in America during the war years, midwifed the school of abstract expression, which brought art leadership to New York City. Solomon's museum has been innovative in spreading the riches of western art around the world. After the generation of Harry and Peggy, the family has continued to produce many accomplished members, such as publisher Roger Straus II and archaeologist Iris Love. In "The Guggenheims", through meticulous research and absorbing prose, Irwin Unger, the winner of a Pulitzer Prize in history, and his wife, Debi Unger, convey a unique and remarkable story-epic in its scope-of one family's amazing rise to prominence.

Reviews

"A richly developed portrait of the rise and decline of one of America's best known social klans...a great tale." -- BusinessWeek

"This fascinating family saga told with the brisk spirit of its subjects, evokes the strength necessary to create a dynasty." -- Nicholas Fox Weber, Los Angeles Times Book Review

"The stories [the Ungers] compile are a rich and fascinating tapestry." -- John C. Ensslin, Rocky Mountain News

"I am enthralled. A page-turner. . . . What a palatable way to learn American history!" -- Leonard Dinnerstein, author of Natives and Strangers

"The best-informed account of the clan. . . . An engaging history of the famous family." -- Booklist

"Indelible and intriguing . . . meticulously researched and very well written. An American saga." -- Norman F. Cantor, author of The Sacred Chain: The History of the Jews

"Fascinating...an engaging story recounted by the Ungers in fast-paced, well-documented style." -- Robin Updike, Seattle Times

"Excellent...pitch-perfect...their narrative moves more swiftly than any 550-page group biogrpahy has any right to." -- Francis Morrone, New York Sun

Author Bio

Irwin Unger has won the Pulitzer Prize in history for The Greenback Era. Together, the Ungers have two Guggenheim fellowships and co-authored LBJ: A Life.