USA > California > Los Angeles County > History of Los Angeles county, Volume I > Part 32
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Goods were forwarded to Los Angeles, twenty-four miles, in carts, each with two yoke of oxen, yoked by the horns. The regular train was of ten carts, like the California carretas. The body was the same, but they had spoked wheels tired, which were imported from Boston. Freight was $1 per hundred weight. This style of importation continued until after 1850.
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The first stage line was started by Alexander and Banning in 1852; the next by that man of iron, J. J. Tomlinson, whose death was early for the public good, June 7, 1867. In 1851, D. W. Alexander purchased at Sacra- mento ten heavy freight wagons that had been sent in from Salt Lake by Ben Holliday, and in 1853 a whole train, 14 wagons and 168 mules, that had come through from Chihuahua, paying therefor $23,000. So ox-carts were supplanted.
Alexander and Mellus became a new firm, at Los Angeles City, in 1850, continuing until 1856. Wilson and Packard dissolved partnership Decem- ber, 1851. Other merchants were: Jacob Elias, Charles Ducommon, Samuel Arbuckle, Waldemar, O. W. Childs and J. D. Hicks-Childs and Hicks; Charles Burroughs, M. Michaels, H. Jacoby, of violin celebrity, and who went rich to Europe, Jordan, Jose Vicente Guerrero, Jose Maria Fuentes, Jose Baltazar of Prussia, Rimpau, Fritze and Company, with Morris L. Goodwin as clerk, John Behn and Frank Laumeistre, a German ; afterward, in the same year, Behn & Laumeistre, and Mattias Savichi. The latter named estimable gentleman was of Dalmatia. He died in 1852, leaving two young sons. George Walters also had commenced business in this year. He was born at New Orleans, April 22, 1809.
Mr. B. D. Wilson was Indian agent for Southern California in 1853, and in the same year sold his place on Alameda Street to the Sisters of Charity for their institute ; and in 1854 began to put into effect his plans for Lake Vineyard. He removed there in 1856. Mr. Packard went to Santa Bar- bara, entered into the practice of law. Wheeler & Morgan began in 1849 with trading establishments at Rincon, San Luis Rey, Pala, Agua Caliente. They, in fact, succeeded Wilson & Packard, in their store, in August, 1850. Mr. Wheeler was clerk of the U. S. District Court of the southern district of California from 1861 until its discontinuance in 1866; then deputy clerk of the circuit and later deputy collector of U. S. internal revenue of second division, first district, comprising Los Angeles, San Bernardino and San Diego counties, which office he resigned January 1, 1876.
In 1851-52-53 appear Lazard, Arbuckle & Bauman, Lazard & Bauman, S. Lazard & Company, Lazard & Kremer, Douglass & Sanford, 1852, Childs, Hicks & Wadhams, Thomas Brown and Prudent Beaudry, Myles & Hereford, Bauman & Katz, Hoffman & Laubheim, Thomas S. Hereford, J. S. Mallard.
In January, 1853, there were three large dry goods stores and ten or more smaller houses that also kept a general assortment. Half a dozen others sold groceries and provisions exclusively. The liquor shop-its name was "legion."
In 1853 John Schumacher introduced lager beer, from San Francisco. It was not manufactured at Los Angeles until Christopher Kuhn of Wirtem- berg established a brewery in the latter part of 1854.
John Kays was a good baker, 1847. Confectionery was made in 1850, by Papier; Joseph Lelong followed with the Jenny Lind Bakery in 1851. French bread was used altogether until August Ulyard commenced his bakery in 1853.
The merchants of 1853 besides those already mentioned were Joseph Newmark, Jacob Rich, J. P. Newmark, John Jones, who was the first whole- sale liquor dealer, at the corner of Main and Commercial streets. Others
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were Felix Bachman, Phillip Sichel and Samuel Laubheim, Harris New- mark and E. Loewenthal, H. K. S. Labatt, Samuel Meyer and Loewen- stein, M. Norton and E. Greenbaum, H. Goldberg, I. Cohen, Charles R. Johnson and Horace S. Allanson, Heiman Tischler, Barruch, Marks and Loeb Schlessinger, Matthew Lanfranco, Louis Phillips, H. Hellman, Casper Behrend.
In 1854 were Adolph Portugal, O. W. Childs, Samuel Prager, Jacob Letter, M. Pollock and L. C. Goodwin. In 1855, Wolf Calisher, Charles Prager, Potter & Company, William Corbett, G. F. Lamson, P. C. Williams, J. C. Nichols, Dean & Carson, I. M. Hellman, B. Cohen, Morritz Schles- singer, L. Glaser & Company, Louis Cohen. In 1856, Calisher & Cohen, Henry Wartenberg-W. Calisher & Company. In 1857, Mendel Meyer, H. G. Yarrow. In 1857, Samuel Hellman. 1859, I. W. Hellman, eminent afterward as banker, L. Leon, Corbett & Barker, Wm. Nordholt, David Solomon, H. Fleishman and Julius Sichel-Fleishman & Sichel.
In 1860, Edward Newman and Isaac Schlessinger, Jean B. Trudell-in company with Lazards-Domingo Rivera. In 1861, M. W. Childs.
The mercantile link continued as follows: J. H. Still & Company, book- sellers and stationery, 1863 ; H. D. Barrows and J. D. Hicks-J. D. Hicks & Co., 1864. Eugene Meyer and Constant Meyer-Eugene Meyer & Co .- Polaski & Goodwin, 1865 ; Thomas Leahy, S. B. Caswell and John F. Ellis- Caswell & Ellis-1866. Potter & Co. consisted of Nehemiah A. Potter and Louis Jayzinsky. The latter gentleman soon afterward went into business at San Francisco. George Alexander, in 1872, removed to Columbia, California.
Francis Mellus was born at Salem, Massachusetts, in 1824 and died at Los Angeles City, September 14, 1864. He married Miss Adelaide John- son, who survived him with seven children. Mrs. Mellus was a daughter of Don Santiago Johnson, an Englishman, who had lived at Sonora, and came to this coast in the year 1833. He married Dona Maria del Carmen Giurado, sister of the wives of Don Manuel Requena and Alexander Bell. Brought early in contact with men like A. B. Thompson of Santa Barbara, David Spence of Monterey, Abel Stearns, Alfred Robinson, W. D. M. Howard, and himself having received the ordinary Boston high school edu- cation of that day-which must have been good, for at fifteen years he understood French and navigation, and was a neat draftsman-Mr. Mellus soon amassed the maximum of experience which fitted him to succeed in the California trade. His spirit and independence are worthy to be made a model by youth just entering among the currents and shoals of commercial life. "March 4, 1839,-The Bolivar arrived from the islands," we quote from his diary: "March 9 .- I went aboard as clerk for Mr. Thompson, at $300 for the first year and $500 for the next, which I think is a most excellent salary for me. I hope from this time forward to be a burden to nobody, but to be able to look out for myself."
Bachman & Co. invested deeply in the Salt Lake trade. Merchants were the soul of every enterprise formed to develop the resources and expand the commerce of this country. Fortunes were rapidly accumulated. Some sped away to fatherland to spend the rest of their days. Soloman Lazard having once more beheld "la belle France," returned March, 1861, to our sunshine and flowers. Mendel Meyer studied the Vienna Exposition and
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wandered the world over in gratification of a rare musical tatse, "but to feel better at home," as he often says.
John Temple made the European tour in 1858. He was born at Read- ing, Massachusetts, in 1796; came to California in 1828, and died at San Francisco May 30, 1866. Juan T. Lanfranco of Italy died May 20, 1875. Prudent Beaudry arrived at San Francisco April 26, 1850, and settled finally at Los Angeles, April 26, 1852. Beaudry's Block, on Aliso Street, finished in 1857, was at the time a surprise. What may we have said to "Beaudry Terrace" and its oranges and other magical fruits of his energy? Edward Neuman, another merchant, in the bloom of youth was murdered in 1863, on the Cucamonga plain.
From 1850 to 1860 and thereabouts, the cattle trade and shipment of grapes were the main reliance for money. The cattle sold to go out of the county, in the former year, were estimated at 15,000 head, at $15 per head. Subsequent years, until 1856, show a constant demand for stock, if not so great ; in this year, it was considered that $500,000 had been invested in cattle, three-fifths of which belonged to native Californians, and, in part, distributed as follows :
Abel Stearns, 12,000; Juan Abila, 7,200; John Roland, 5,000; William Workman, 5,000; John Temple, 4,000; Ricardo Vejar, 3,500; Bernardo Yorba, 3,500; Ignacio del Valle, 3,500; Teodosio Yorba, 3,500; Leonardo Cota, 2,500; Vicente Lugo, 2,500; Pio and Andres Pico, 2,000; Augustin Machado, 2,000; Nasario Dominguez's estate, 2,000; Felipe Lugo, 1,000; Valdez family, 1,000; Enrique Abila, 1,000; Fernando Sepulveda, 1,000. Making just allowance for defective assessments, the amount was probably considerably- one-third-beyond this estimate.
The drought of the years 1863 and 1864 was more or less destructive throughout California. In Los Angeles County 1865 began with 90,450 head of cattle, 15,529 horses, 282,000 sheep. In earlier times sheep made little figure in the annual calculation of gain. In 1875 the total of flocks was counted at 508,757. From 1860 onward wool became a staple, added to wine and brandy, orange and other fruits, wheat and corn. According to the report of the county surveyor, January 15, 1876, the product of the wool was 2,034,828 pounds. Horned cattle were reduced to 13,000; horses, 10,000.
Sunny Slope, unexcelled for its vintage, and the orange, almond and walnut, was commenced by L. J. Rose in January, 1861. December, 1859, the wine producers were: Matthew Keller, Sansevaine Bros., Frohling & Co., B. D. Wilson, Stevens & Bell, Doctor Parrott, Dr. T. J. White, Henry Dalton, P. Serres, Joseph Huber, Sr., Ricardo Vejar, Barrows, Ballerino, Doctor Hoover, Louis Wilhart, Trabuc, Clement and Jose Serrano. The total manufacture of wine was about 250,000 gallons; in 1875, 1,328,900 gallons, according to the official report of the county assessor, January 1, 1876.
Mechanical industry exhibits a progress slow and difficult for the first few years. In 1851 carpenters had gone to San Francisco, where they could get higher wages. In 1850 Alexander Bell commenced Bell's Row, which was a number of well-known little stores on Los Angeles Street, and an improvement which at the time made a sensation. This work was done by J. R. Barton and William Nordholdt through that and the succeeding year.
1881. LOOKING WEST ON TEMPLE STREET FROM BUNKER HILL
1881. LOOKING NORTHWEST FROM THIRD AND GRAND AVENUE
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In 1853 Anderson & Matthews advertised as carriage makers, carpenters and joiners. September 6, 1861, Perry & Woodworth, Main Street, had matured their pioneer saw and planing mills, with the manufacture of bee- hives, upholstery, etc., and were prepared for contracting. In 1863 Stephen H. Mott entered this firm.
Eli Tayor, later of Los Nietos, was a carpenter in 1854. Others were as follows prior to 1859: George Stone, R. E. Jackson, George Leonard, Matthew Teed, Thomas Grey, C. P. Switzer, Peter Hendell, William Coburn, P. C. Williams, Harris Niles, John McLimond, Willis Stanton, W. Weeks, William Cover, Herman Muller, Herman Koop, Charles Plaissant.
House and sign painters, prior to 1859 were Wm. Shanning, Moses Searles, Charles Winston, Tom Riley, Forbes, Spilling, Viereck, Turnboldt ; plasterers prior to 1857, Joseph Nobbs, T. Stonehouse, Wm. Mckinney ; Newton Foote came in that year. Andrew Lehman set up a shoemaking business in November, 1852; it was three years before he began "to make a living." Afterward, prior to 1858 came Morris and Weber. There was little to do for' shoemakers until 1860. B. J. Virgin was an architect in 1855. Viereck, painter of political transparencies in 1852, left next year for want of employment. But it must have been for some other reason, for he turned comedian at San Francisco. In 1857. C. M. Kechnie was a ยท portrait painter. Henri Penelon afterward was a distinguished artist. .
John Goller, a blacksmith and pioneer wagon-maker, was one of the emigrants by the Salt Lake Route. Louis Wilhart outfitted him with tools and helped him to customers. The charge for shoeing a horse was $16. Few carriages were made during the first six or eight years. E. L. Scott & Co. were carriage makers and blacksmiths in 1855. Louis Roeder came to Los Angeles in 1856, worked nine years for Goller, then bought out J. H. Burke, later a wealthy citizen of Los Nietos, and in 1863, with Wm. Schwartz blacksmith, as partner, set up for himself on Main Street.
Ben Mclaughlin also was a wheelwright. Among the early black- smiths were Hiram Mclaughlin, C. F. Daley, Van Dusen, George Boor- ham, Henry King. John Wilson came August 20, 1858, and set up for himself in 1868. James Baldwin, sometime after 1858. Of gunsmiths, August Stoermer came in that year. He was preceded in 1855 by H. C. G. Schaeffer. In the memory of old citizens, from his former little adobe shop, it is a step into a garden where bloomed the choicest flowers of the world. He was still devoted, at sixty-five to floriculture.
S. C. Foy, in 1854, started his saddlery-the first to make any kind of harness. John Foy joined his brother in the following summer. These spirited pioneers led the way soon to flourishing firms in the same line- the brothers Workman, Bell & Green, Heinche, D. Garcia.
The first brick were made by Capt. Jesse D. Hunter in 1852. From the first kiln was built the house at the corner of Third and Main streets in 1853; from the second, in the same year, the new brick jail. In 1854 was built the Guadalupe Ross house. In 1855 the dwelling and store of J. G. Nichols on Main Street, near the courthouse. Joseph Mullaly and Samuel Ayers, coming here in 1854, embarked in brick making the next month. In August of the same year, David Porter arrived. The firm was then
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Mullaly, Porter & Ayers. Their "great year" was 1858, when they sold 2,000,000 of brick for the proposed improvements of 1859.
From 1855 to 1859 there is a hiatus which cannot be better filled than with the "Garden of Paradise," at the Round House, begun in 1856 by George Lehman, and which was a wonder to all by its mystic Adam and Eve, with the profusion of flowers and ingenious disposition of parterre and tree. In 1859 John Temple built and delivered to the city the market house, with its town clock and bell so "fine toned and sonorous," at a cost of $40,000. He also constructed the south end of Temple Block. October 22d Don Abel Stearns rejoiced in the finishing touch to his prided under- taking, the Arcadia Block, bearing the name of his wife, Dona Arcadia Bandini-like the good ship, Arcadia, of Mr. Stearns and Alfred Robinson, that brought the second invoice of goods directly from Boston to San Pedro. In the same month Corbett and Baker removed into the northeast corner of the block, and it was soon filled. Then, too, the dining hall, just finished, of the Bella Union, was reported "one of the finest in California." The prevailing spirit awhile embraced the Plaza within its range. It proved to advantage to all who heeded it, although good William Wolfskill had forebodings, in December, 1860, on his return from the burial of Henry Mellus.
"What a pity !" he said; "if Temple had not built so much he might now be a rich man !" And, at last, Mr. Wolfskill himself ran with the tide and spent $20,000 to build the Lazard Store, Main Street, in 1866. It was completed by his executors.
A once well-known lady of Los Angeles who used to do her "shopping" here seventy years ago, has written a vivid pen picture of the stores of Los Angeles as they were in the year 1850. Her recollections are as follows :
If a person walking down Broadway or Spring Street, at the present day, could turn "Time backward in his flight" seventy years, how strange the contrast would seem. Where now stand blocks of stately buildings, whose windows are aglow with all the beauties of modern art, instead there would be two or three streets whose business centered in a few "tiendas," or stores, decorated with strings of "chilis" or jerked beef. The one win- dow of each tienda was barred with iron, the "tiendero" sitting in the door- way to protect his wares, or to watch for customers. Where red and yellow brick buildings hold their heads proudly to the heavens now, seventy years ago the soft hills slid down to the back doors of the adobe dwelling and offered their wealth of flowers and wild herbs to the botanist. Sidewalks were unknown, pedestrians marched single file in the middle of the street, in winter to enjoy the sunshine, in summer to escape the trickling tears of "brea" which, dropping from the roofs, branded their linen or clogged their footsteps. Now where the policeman "wends his weary way." the vaquero with his lively "cuidado" (lookout) lassoed his wild steers, and dragging him to the "mantanza" at the rear of his dwelling, offered him on the altar of hospitality.
Among the most prominent stores in the '50s were those of Labat Bros., Foster & McDougal, afterward Foster & Wadhams, of B. D. Wilson, Abel Stearns, S. Lazard's City of Paris, O. W. Childs, Chas. Ducommon, J. G. Downey, Schumacher, Goller, Lew Bow & Jayzinsky. With the exception of O. W. Childs, Chas. Ducommon, J. G. Downey, John Goller and
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HISTORY OF LOS ANGELES COUNTY 253
Jayzinsky, all carried general merchandise, which meant anything from a plow to a box of sardines, or from a needle to an anchor. Some merchants sold sugar and silks, others brogans and barrels of flour. Goller's was a wagon and carriage shop. O. W. Childs' first sign read "tins to mend." Jayzinsky's stock consisted principally of clocks, but as the people of Cali- fornia cared little for time, and only recorded it like Indians, by the sun, he soon failed. Afterwards he engaged in the hardware business with N. A. Potter.
Jokes were often played upon the storekeepers to while away the time. Thus, one Christmas night, when the spirit of fun ran high and no police- man was on the scene, some young men who felt themselves "sold" along with the articles purchased, effaced the first syllable of Wadhams' name and substituted "old" in its place, making it Oldhams, and thus avenging them- selves.
It was almost impossible to procure anything eatable from abroad that was not strong and lively enough to remove itself from one's presence before cooking. It was not the fault of the vender, but of the distance and difficulty in transportation.
Mr. Ducommon and Mr. Downey arrived in Los Angeles together. Mr. Ducommon was a watchmaker, and Mr. Downey a druggist. Each had a small stock in trade, which they packed in a "carreta" for transportation from San Pedro to Los Angeles. On the journey the cart broke down, and packing the most valuable of their possessions into carpet sacks, they walked the remaining distance. Mr. Ducommon soon branched out in business, and his store became known as the most reliable one in his line, keeping the best goods, although at enormous prices. Neither Mr. Downey nor any other druggist could have failed to make money in the early '50s, when common Epson salts retailed at the rate of $5 per pound, and every- thing else was in proportion. One deliberated long before sending for a doctor in those days. Fortunately the climate was such that his services were not often needed.
Perhaps the most interesting window display in the city in the early '50s was that of Don Abel Stearns, wherein common candy jars filled with' gold, from the finest dust to "chispas," or nuggets, could be seen from the street adorning the shelves. As gold and silver coin were scarce, the natives working the placer mines in the adjoining mountains made their purchases with gold dust. Tied in a red silk handkerchief, tucked into the waistband of their trousers, would be their week's earnings; this, poured carelessly into the scales and as carelessly weighed, soon filled the jars. What dust remained was shaken out of its folds, and the handkerchief returned to its place. No wonder that the native became the victim of sharpers and money lenders ; taking no thought of the morrow, he lived on, letting his inheritance slip from his grasp.
The pioneer second hand store of Los Angeles was kept by a man named Yarrow, or old "Cuarto Ojos" (four eyes), as the natives called him, because of the large spectacles he wore, and the habit he had of looking over them, giving him the appearance of having four eyes. Probably, how- ever, this sobriquet attached to him because his glasses had four lenses, two in front and one on each side. His store was on the corner of Requena and Los Angeles streets, in the rear of where the United States Hotel still
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stands. The store room was a long, low adobe building with the usual store front of that day-a door and a narrow window. This left the back part of the long store almost in utter darkness, which probably gave rise to the uncanny tradition that certain persons, of reputed wealth, but strang- ers to the town, had been enticed into his dark interior to their undoing, and that, like the fly in the spider's den, they "ne'er came out again." This idle tale was all owing to Yarrow's spectacles-for in those days all men who wore glasses were under suspicion, the feeling being that they were to conceal their general motives and designs, which were hidden by the masque of spectacles, and were suspected to be murderers.
In the "tienda" of "Cuarto Ojos" were heaped together all sorts and conditions of things, very much as they are now in second hand stores, but the articles differed widely in kind and quality from those found in such stores today. Old "Cuarto Ojos" combined pawn broking and money lend- ing with his other business. In close contact with the highly colored shawls, rebosos, gold necklaces, silver mounted frenos and heavily embroidered muchillas, hung treacherous looking machetes, silver mounted revolvers and all the trappings and paraphernalia of the robber and the gambler out of luck, and forced there to stand and deliver as collateral for loans from old "Cuarto Ojos."
Coming up Requena Street and crossing Main to the southwest corner of Main and Court streets one arrived at the pioneer auction house of 1850. Here George F. Lamson persuaded the visitors to his store into buying wares that at the present day would find their way to the rubbish heaps of the city. This story is told of his sale of a decrepit bureau : "Ladies and gentle, men-ladies minus and gentlemen scarce," said the genial auctioneer, "here is the finest piece of mahogany ever brought across the plains or around the Horn-four deep drawers and keys to all of them; don't lose this bargain, it is one in a thousand !" It was knocked down to a personal friend of the auctioneer for the modest sum of $24. After the sale the purchaser ventured to ask for the keys. "Why," said Lamson, "when I put up that article I never expected you would be fool enough to buy it. There are no keys and more than that, there is no need of keys, for there are no locks to it."
On Los Angeles Street in the same location where it stands today was kept by Sam C. Foy, stood and still stands the pioneer saddlery of Los Angeles.
Of the pioneer merchants of those days, Mr. Harris Newmark was the founder of a house still in existence. If any youth of Los Angeles would see for himself how honesty and strict attention to business commands success, let him visit the establishment of Mr. Newmark and his successors.
In the early '50s some merchants were accused of getting their hands into their neighbors' pockets, or rather of charging exorbitant prices to the depletion of the contents of their neighbors' purses. These same merchants never refused to go down into their own pockets for sweet charity's sake. If a collection was to be taken up for some charitable object, all that was necessary was to make the round of the stores, and money was poured into the hat without a question of what was to be done with it. Now we have the Associated Charities and all sorts of charitable institutions, but for liberal and unquestioning giving, we take off our hat to the "stores of 1850."
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Prof. J. M. Guinn, about twenty years ago, related to the members of the Southern California Historical Society the result of his researches con- cerning the advertising methods of pioneer Los Angeles merchants. Pro- fessor Guinn looked up the old files of the Los Angeles Star, which was the great newspaper of the town in the early days. Professor Guinn said :
Recently, in looking over some copies of the Los Angeles Star of fifty years ago, I was amused and interested by the quaint ways the advertisers of that day advertised their wares and other things. Department stores
PLAZA, PICO HOUSE AND OLD GAS WORKS, 1881
are great advertisers, and the pioneer department store of Los Angeles was no exception. Its ad actually filled a half column of the old Star, which was an astonishing display in type for those days. It was not called a department store then, but I doubt whether any of the great stores of Chicago or New York carry on so many lines of business as did that general merchandise store that was kept in the adobe house on the corner of Arcadia and North Main streets fifty years ago. The proprietors of that store were our old pioneer friends, Wheeler & Johnson. The announce- ment of what they had to sell was prefaced by the following philosophical deductions, which are as true and as applicable to terrestrial affairs today as they were half a century ago:
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