Difference between revisions 771481109 and 771948997 on enwiki

{{EngvarB|date=September 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2013}}
{{Infobox person
| name        = Lars Kovala
| image       = 
| image_size  = 150px
| caption     = 
| birth_date  = 25 May 1818
(contracted; show full)ington).</ref> At the end of November the same year, Kovalainen and other shareholders sailed away in the brig. Their goal was the [[Pribilof Islands]] in the northern Pacific Ocean. That which lured them to the distant islands was the possibility of buying up valuable seal skins. They became wealthy seal-skin traders. They sold Alaskan seal skins in San Francisco and made California their new home. In 1879 Niebaum established Inglenook Winery in Rutherford, California, a small village in Napa Valley
.<ref>Gaughan, Timothy (July 3, 2009). "When the valley met the vine: A perfect storm, and the big five". Napa Valley Register. Napa, CA: Lee Enterprises, Inc. Retrieved September 30, 2011.</ref>. Francis Ford Coppola, with his family, expanded his business ventures to include winemaking in California's Napa Valley, when in 1975 he purchased the former home and adjoining vineyard of Gustave Niebaum in Rutherford, California using proceeds from the first movie in the Godfather trilogy.<ref>Hamlin, Suzanne (July 10, 1996). "A Director's Vision for Celebrating Food, Wine and Film". New York Times. Rutherford, CA. Retrieved October 15, 2010.</ref>. Coppola released his first vintage in 1977 under the Niebaum-Coppola label. In 1995 Coppola purchased the remaining acreage and chateau style winery which were part of the original Niebaum estate.<ref>Hamlin, Suzanne (July 10, 1996). "A Director's Vision for Celebrating Food, Wine and Film". New York Times. Ruterford, CA. Retrieved October 16, 2010.</ref>. 

Profiting from the seal skin trade Kovala began [[real estate investing|investing in real estate]] in the [[Great Lakes region]], Canada, and later expanded into the American West and Pacific coast.<ref>Vestnik Evropi May 1898</ref> On the advice of corporate attorney Elbert Henry Gary, Kovala also began investing in [[railroad]]s.

(contracted; show full)

Much of Kovala's wealth was confiscated by [[Nicholas II of Russia|Emperor Nicholas II of Russia]], while the remainder of his fortune is believed to have been passed to Kovala’s 2nd great grandson living in the U.S.
.<ref>TV Guide & Sunday Times Magazine (STM); 2005: 20 Feb</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kovalainen, Lauri}}
[[Category:1818 births]]
[[Category:1894 deaths]]
[[Category:American businesspeople]]
[[Category:Finnish emigrants to the United States (1809–1917)]]