Evento

American Disruptor: The Scandalous Life of Leland Stanford

Join us as author and historian Roland De Walk talks about his recently published book, American Disruptor: The Scandalous Life of Leland Stanford.

American Disruptor is the panoramic saga of Leland Stanford whose older brother Josiah was an instrumental force in his life from his birth in a backwoods bar, to his founding of the great university bearing his name that is the birthplace, incubator and sustainer of Silicon Valley. It is the astonishing adventure of how one supremely ambitious man became the nations original disrupter while engineering one of the greatest raids on the public treasury for Americas first Big Tech the transcontinental railroad and lived more opulently than maharajas, kings, and emperors. And, it is the drama of how his underestimated widow saved his legacy, and the university bearing his name even as it teetered and almost closed only to be murdered in one of the great cover-ups of the age. Richly detailed and deeply researched, American Disruptor restores Leland Stanfords rightful place as a revolutionary force and architect of modern America.

Part of a new breed of historians, Roland De Wolk alloys the disciplines of serious, documented history with relevant, vivid storytelling. During his almost four decades in journalism De Wolk has specialized in investigative projects in print, broadcast and online, earning him most major citations in his field, including the Society of Professional Journalists coveted Career Achievement Award. Roland is a history graduate of UC Berkeley, was a fellow at Stanford University and is the author of three previous books.

$10/General, $5/Members. Includes museum admission and house tour. Tickets will be available soon.