Meet Mendes Cohen, the Globe-Trotting American Jewish War Veteran

Mendes Cohen was born to Jewish immigrants in Richmond, VA in 1796; his family moved to Baltimore when he was a child. During the War of 1812, he fought in the Battle of Baltimore, made famous in the American national anthem. He later went into banking with his brothers, and became so successful that he retired at age 33, thereupon deciding to travel the world. Joe Sugarman writes: