Today is the 12th day of the Omer.
On this day in 1920, California bid farewell to one of its principal architects, Isaias Hellman. A native of Reckendorf, Bavaria, Hellman arrived in Los Angeles penniless at the age of sixteen, but, within six years, earned enough money to purchase a dry goods store at the corner of Main and Commercial streets. As a courtesy, he stored his customers’ gold and valuables in a store safe, which ultimately inspired him to launch a career in banking.
Hellman co-founded the city’s first successful bank, the Farmers and Merchants Bank, Los Angeles’ first successful bank. In that role, he financed Edward Doheny’s oil discovery, Harrison Gary Otis’ purchase of the Los Angeles Times, Henry Huntington’s trolley and railway developments, water, gas, and electric utilities, as well as the Southern Pacific Railway’s line into Los Angeles. He later founded Wells Fargo Bank, and, at one time, served as president of 17 West Coast banks.
However, Hellman’s influence reached far beyond commercial pursuits: Hellman led the building of Los Angeles’ first synagogue, the Wilshire Boulevard Temple, helped found and fund the University of Southern California, and served as Regent of the University of California.
But Hellman’s lasting image and contribution came from the confidence he exhibited and elicited as a financier. In 1890, Hellman moved north to rescue the Nevada Bank of San Francisco from ruin, only to return to Los Angeles four years later to end a run on the banks that was quickly becoming a panic. With banks closed and investors lining the streets to withdraw their deposits, Hellman famously stacked more than $500,000 in gold coins upon the customer service counter at the Farmers and Merchants Bank, in full view of the bank’s customers. As the towers grew, panic subsided, and investors returned their deposits, ending the panic. In 1906, following the San Francisco earthquake, Hellman once again averted a panic, operating the Wells Fargo Nevada National Bank from his son in law’s home until the San Francisco headquarters was rebuilt.
Isaias Hellman’s career demonstrated the value of emunah—faith—in our public institutions. By building and sustaining people’s faith in the commercial, educational, and civic success of California, he helped shape a frontier state into one of the world’s greatest economies. His legacy begs us to ask: How can we bolster faith in the public and communal institutions that serve the public good?
— Rabbi Josh Knobel