For those that that have not heard of Emperor Norton … He came to San Francisco in 1848 after living in South Africa, tried to corner the rice market and lost it all.  He proclaimed himself Emperor of the United States in 1859 and “Protector of Mexico” in 1863.

On January 8, 1880, Norton collapsed at the corner of California and Dupont (now Grant) streets and died before he could be given medical treatment. According to the San Francisco Chronicle, upwards of 10,000 people lined the streets of San Francisco to pay him homage at his funeral.  Norton has been immortalized as the basis of characters in the literature of Mark Twain, Robert Louis Stevenson, and others.

A currency was created in his honor which is the inspiration for this website.

The folks at:  emperornortontrust.org  Are involved in keeping the legacy of Emperor alive … see their latest article ... Emperor Norton Abolished the Democratic and Republican Parties

Biography of Emperor Joshua Norton  See Wikipedia for more.