Gustave Niebaum

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Born in Oulu, Finland, Gustave Niebaum - originally Nybom - (1842-1908) acquired his maritime schooling in Helsinki, Finland. By the end of 1850s - now a Sea Captain - Gustave Niebaum had become the world's leading fur trader. Among his many known accomplishments Captain Niebaum founded the Alaskan Commercial Company in San Francisco, California.

Captain Niebaum was an important contributor in the drawing of some of the first official maps of the Alaskan coast line. As the Consul of Russia in USA in 1867 (at the time Finland was an autonomous Grand Duchy of Russia) Captain Niebaum was a major contributor in the expedition and ratification of the purchasing contract through which USA bought Alaska from Russia.

In 1879 Captain Niebaum established Inglenook Winery in Rutherford, California a small village in Napa Valley. It was the first Bordeaux style winery in USA. Captain Nienaum's wines became world-renowned. His Inglenook wínes won gold medals for instance in the World's Fair of Paris in 1889. Captain Niebaum's was winery acquired by Francis Ford Coppola in 1975 and it is now the home to Coppola's Rubicon Estate Winery.