Sixty Years in Southern California, 1853-1913: Containing the Reminiscences of Harris NewmarkNewmark, Harris
History
Sixty Years in Southern California, 1853-1913: Containing the Reminiscences of Harris Newmark
Newmark, Harris
California, Southern; Los Angeles (Calif.)
About 1860, Nathan Jacoby came to Los Angeles, on my invitation, as I
had known him in Europe; and he was with me about a year. When I sold
out, he entered the employ of M. Kremer and later went into business
for himself. As the senior partner of Jacoby Brothers, he died
suddenly in 1911. Associated with Nathan at different periods were his
brothers, Herman, Abraham, Morris, Charles and Lesser Jacoby, all of
them early arrivals. Of this group, Charles and Lesser, both active in
business circles in their day, are also dead.
Toward the end of 1860, Solomon Lazard returned to France, to visit
his mother; but no sooner had he arrived at his old home and
registered, according to law, with the police, than he was arrested,
charged with having left his fatherland at the age of seventeen,
without having performed military duty. In spite of his American
citizenship, he was tried by court-martial and sentenced to a short
imprisonment; but through the intervention of the United States
Minister, Charles J. Faulkner--the author of the Fugitive Slave Law of
1850--and the clemency of the Emperor Napoleon III., he was finally
released. He had to furnish a substitute, however, or pay a fine of
fifteen hundred francs; and he paid the fine. At length,
notwithstanding his unpleasant experience, Lazard arrived in Los
Angeles about the middle of March, 1861.
Tired of the wretched sidewalks, John Temple, in December, 1860, set
to work to introduce an improvement in front of his Main Street block,
an experiment that was watched with interest. Bricks were covered with
a thick coating of asphalt brought from La Brea Ranch, which was
smoothed while still warm and then sprinkled with sand; the
combination promising great durability. In the summer season, however,
the coating became soft and gluey, and was not comfortable to walk
upon.
I have already spoken of the effect of heat and age on foodstuffs such
as eggs and butter, when brought over the hot desert between San
Bernardino and Los Angeles. This disadvantage continued for years; nor
was the succeeding plan of bringing provisions from San Francisco and
the North by way of the ocean without its obstacles. A. Ulyard, the
baker, realized the situation, and in December advertised "fresh
crackers, baked in Los Angeles, and superior to those half spoiled by
the sea voyage."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account