William C. Edenborn | |
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| Born | March 20, 1848 Plettenberg, Westphalia, Prussia |
| Died | May 13, 1926 (aged 78) Shreveport, Louisiana, U.S. |
| Occupation(s) | Inventor Entrepreneur Businessperson |
| Known for | Invention of barbed wire manufacturing process Founding of Louisiana Railway and Navigation Company |
| Spouse | Sarah Edenborn (née Drain) |
William C. Edenborn (1848–1926) was an inventor, steel industrialist, and railroad magnate. He patented the design for a machine for inexpensive manufacture of barbed wire. Edenborn founded the Louisiana Railway and Navigation Company, which operated between Shreveport, Louisiana, and New Orleans, Louisiana.[1] Through a series of mergers and acquisitions, this railroad formed the Louisiana and Arkansas Railroad and eventually part of the Kansas City Southern Railroad.[2]: 3
By the time of his death in 1926, Edenborn was reputed to be the wealthiest resident of Louisiana.[2]: 3 The New Orleans Times-Picayune stated that Edenborn was "one of the most colorful and picturesque, and at the same time one of the least known, of the Louisiana captains of industry."[3]
- ^ Hémard, Ned. "A Remarkable Multi-Millionaire". neworleansbar.org. New Orleans Bar Association. Retrieved February 23, 2020.
- ^ a b Fair, James R. (1997). The Louisiana and Arkansas Railway: The Story of a Regional Line. DeKalb, Illinois: Northern Illinois University Press. ISBN 0-87580-219-2.
- ^ "William C. Edenborn Obituary". The New Orleans Times-Picayune. May 14, 1926.