13 Things Concerning Isaias Hellman

I recently finished reading Towers of Gold: How One Immigrant Named Isaias Hellman Created California by Frances Dinkelspiel, and I have to say I’m a bit jealous. Isaias Hellman is the great-great grandfather of Ms. Dinkelspiel. It’s not just anyone who can claim ancestory to a man who almost single-handedly birthed the state of California. While I’ll admit that it took many, many people to birth the great state of California….Isaias Hellman’s contributions cannot be denied.

The book is well written. It kept my interest with stagecoach robberies, an assassination attempt, bank runs, the 1906 earthquake, and is the final product of eight years of research during which Ms. Dinkelspiel poured over more than 50,000 archival documents.

Isaias Hellman isn’t just an American who should be taught about in a course including California history, but he should be included in courses that include early immigration, growth of the west, growth of early cities and towns, Jewish contributions to the making of America, and 19th century financial American History.

So, just who was Isaias Hellman? Well, you really need to read the book for a clear picture, but here are a few facts:

1. Isaias Hellman was a Jewish immigrant from Reckendorf, Bavaria. He immigrated to Los Angeles in 1859, a few years after California being admitted to the Union.

2. In fact, at the time Hellman reached California the U.S. territory was still heavily entrenched in Mexican culture…..Pueblo type buildings and the rules of Spanish society were the norm.

3. Today, Hellman is thought to be one of the greatest Pacific Coast financiers during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Library Journal advises [Hellman] is attributed with stabilizing the financial panic of 1893 in Los Angeles by stacking $500,000 worth of gold coins on the counter of the Farmers and Merchants Bank in plain public view, hence the title of [Ms. Dinkelspiel’s] book.

4. He founded one of the territory’s first banks which later became the Farmer’s and Merchant’s Bank. Ms. Dinkelspiel advises at the height of his power in the early 20th century, he controlled more than $100 million in capital and served as president of 14 other banks.
5. Because of his financial backing Hellman was instrumental in developing at least seven other industries that shaped California: transportation, oil, electricity, land development, water, wine, and education.
6. He controlled the California wine industry for almost twenty years, and helped develop the famous Pacific Electric red cars that crisscrossed the Los Angeles region. Hellman was also involved in agriculture raising oranges, walnuts, and lemons at Rosemeade…the Hellman Ranch.

7. Hellman was the president of the first synogogue in Los Angeles.

8. He was very involved in the founding of the University of Southern California by donating land the college sits on today, and he served as Regent for many years for the University of California.

9. Following a move to San Francisco, Hellman opened Union Trust Company, the first trust company in California. He also was involved with the Nevada Bank which later became Wells Fargo Bank.

10. During tough times it was Hellman that kept Californians moving ahead. Following the 1906 earthquake Hellman ran the Wells Fargo Bank out of home when the building that housed the bank was damaged.

11. Sugar Pine Point State Park at Lake Tahoe was originally a Hellman home before it was donated to the state.

12. San Francisco Magazine states visionary financier Isaias Hellman was the Warren Buffet and Alan Greenspan of early California rolled into one. He arrived in Los Angeles as a practically penniless, 16-year-old German Jew when there were only 300 other Europeans in town. Three decades later, he controlled much of the booming city’s capital, land, and public works….Hellman starred in so many aspects of the state’s phoenixlike rise between the Civil War and the Depression that he became our Zelig, only with a really thick portfolio.
13. The San Francisco Gate states the book is a carefully researched and superbly written memoir…Dinkelspiel’s biography not only brings to life the transformation of California into the state with the strongest economy in the nation, and the outside personalities that forged it, but rescues from the proverbial dustbin of history the remarkable life and achievements of a man whose energy, creativity, resourcefulness and love for his adopted country had been all but forgotten.
If you are looking for a great biography to read then I suggest you give Towers of Gold a try.

Other bloggers are posting their 13 lists today as well. You can locate them here.

Unconstitutional? Anti-Immigrant? Racist?

Let me take you back to last night. Friday night. The Friday my Spring Break began. Who wants to cook? My husband and I decided to call our local take-out restaurant that features chicken wings and Mexican food. They have great food and best of all a phone call gets it delivered to our door. No muss, no fuss. I kept calling but couldn’t get anyone. I decided I would just go on by the place since I had to take my daughter to a friend’s house. The restaurant, aptly named “Wing-It”, was closed. A big sign was on the door. “To support our fellow Hispanics we will not be open for business on March 24, 2006.” No chimichanga for me, no wings for hubby.

Yesterday, according to a Hispanic group spokesman, 80,000 Hispanics did now show up for work in Georgia. The Hall County school system, located north of Atlanta, reported that 40% of Hispanic students stayed home. The reason for the day long boycott was to protest Georgia Senate Bill 529, also known as the Georgia Security and Immigration Compliance Act.

The bill prohibits illegal aliens from tax-payer funded benefits, companies that maintain public contracts can only hire legals, and tough penalties can be imposed for human trafficking. Children and mothers who are pregnant are exempt from the benefit restrictions. Both houses of Georgia’s General Assembly have approved different versions of the bill. Hispanics are upset because it appears that a final version of the bill will be written by a conference committee before the legislative session is over. One version of the bill contains a 5% surcharge on any money that is wired out of the country. Several state senators have already stated they want that provision removed.

Tisha Tallman of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund attacked the bill calling it unconstitutional, anti-immigrant, and racist.

One Hispanic high school student who attended a rally at the state capital told reporters, “Everybody should have the same rights---we just want justice.”

Another student, whose family is legal and have resided in Georgia for 13 years, said, “I think this bill discriminates against people who work hard.”

The word is still out on the impact the day long boycott. Some areas were probably more affected than others. My husband reported that the Mexican restaurant he had lunch at was slower than normal because some of the cooks didn’t show up. While my take out place was closed last night two of the busiest Mexican restaurants in town did a booming business. On my way to work I usually pass several cars full of Hispanics heading to construction sites. Yesterday was no different. I passed several vans and trucks. We had to opt for steak last night and while I was in the grocery store I passed several Hispanics purchasing groceries. I dared myself to ask them about the boycott, but I didn’t. My school reported no rise in absenteeism due to the boycott.

As an educator I am one of the people in the state who deals directly with Hispanic immigrants. Since they are children I have no knowledge if they are in the country legally or illegally. However, the state estimates we currently have somewhere between 250 to 800,000 illegals. While our burden is not as great as some states, Georgia is seeing a tremendous strain in certain segments of our government namely education, prisons, and healthcare. Yes, illegals do pay some taxes in the form of sales tax, but I’m fairly certain that the amount of sales tax they pay does not equal or exceed the amount of services received.

Georgians are debating the issue at the AJC website here. (scroll down to reach the comments).

Is it fair for illegal aliens to benefit from these services without reciprocating by paying taxes in the same manner as other Georgians? I don’t see how the bill is unconstitutional. Someone clue me in. The students at the rally seem to think illegal aliens deserve the same rights as citizens because they work hard and everyone should have the same opportunities. They are somewhat correct. Everyone should have the same opportunities if they are following the rules. I’m tired of hearing the argument that we should just allow illegals to remain as they are since they are doing the work Americans don’t want to do. Are these jobs Americans won’t do or is it because Americans won’t accept the wages paid for those jobs?

What really gets my fur up is the states that are most affected are having to take the initiative to do something about the problem. GW and the United States Congress are woefully behind the curve in handling this issue. Certain aspects of the problem need to be handled at a federal level. Our borders need to be strengthened. Paperwork allowing immigrants into our country should be streamlined, and let’s mend some fences by allowing everyone who is currently here illegally to register without penalty.

President Bush urged the nation on Friday to remain civil in our discourse on the matter. Apparently he will be attending a citizenship ceremony on Monday while the Senate Judiciary Committee will be considering the issue.

As a history teacher I know that the current debate on immigration is not the first one our nation has experienced. I did a little research and have a second post in the works as a follow up to add a little enlightenment to the issue. While doing the research I located the next topic I plan to post on at the American Presidents site. Funny how these things seem to dovetail and fit together…that’s what I love about history.

Well….Wing-It is open tonight and my chimi is on the way. Let’s eat!