Levi Strauss

February 26, 1829, Buttenheim, Landkreis Bamberg, Bavaria, Germany

September 26, 1902, San Francisco, San Francisco County, California

Levi Strauss, made famous and wealthy from innovative blue denim trousers strengthened with a rivet, built a massive family mausoleum in the Home of Peace Cemetery and Emanu-El Mausoleum in Colma, California.

Strauss, his mother and two sisters immigrated to the United States, first working in a family dry goods business in New York.  In 1853, however, he struck out on his own to San Francisco where he built a business serving the hordes of Forty-Niners rushing to California to pan for gold.  He partnered with Jacob Davis to create a tougher pair of work pants using metal fasteners.  They shared the patent, which Strauss agreed to pay for in exchange for the right to manufacture the trousers.  At first the pants were made of canvas but he switched to blue denim which was more effective at hiding dirt and stains.  Strauss found his gold in clothing which made him a millionaire.

Strauss built a mausoleum made of a light Salisbury pink granite at the staggering cost of $48,000.  The domed tomb has fluted Doric columns supporting a portico and flanking decorated bronze doors.  Levi Strauss, who never married, left a fortune of nearly 900 million in 2025 dollars. He shares his tomb with his mother and other relatives.