Isaias W. Hellman (1842-1920), L.A.’s first banker, was one of the most important figures in California’s commercial development. He and his brother Herman (1843-1906) were Bavarian Jews who came to L.A. in 1859 to work in their cousins’ stationery shop. Later running his own dry goods store, Hellman – the “W” stood for “Wolf” but was often written “William” – allowed customers to store their gold in his safe. This side business would lead to a powerful banking career, especially with the famously failsafe Farmers & Merchants Bank, which Hellman founded in 1871 with John G. Downey. He financed railroads, water companies, vineyards (Hellman Avenue, named by 1894, is a nod to his share of the San Gabriel Winery), educational institutions (he, Downey, and Ozro W. Childs donated the land for USC), and much more – all while acquiring thousands of acres for himself. In 1890, Hellman left L.A. for San Francisco to take the reins of the failing Nevada Bank; he merged it with Wells Fargo in 1905 and the rest is Big Bank history. After the Great 1906 Earthquake, Hellman was key in rebuilding his adopted city; by then, his California Wine Association had a near monopoly on the state’s wine production. Hellman died from worry over the health of his son Isaias Jr. (a.k.a. “Marco”), who then passed a month later.
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