Isaac Lankershim (April 8, 1818/19/20 – April 10, 1882) was a German-born American landowner and pioneer in
California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
. He was the owner of 60,000 acres in
Los Angeles County, California
Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles, and sometimes abbreviated as L.A. County, is the List of the most populous counties in the United States, most populous county in the United States and in the U.S. state of California, ...
.
Early life
Sources from during his life vary on Lankershim's birth year and place. He was born into a Jewish family in
Bavaria
Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...
, in either the towns of
Scheinfeld
Scheinfeld is a town in the Neustadt (Aisch)-Bad Windsheim district, in Bavaria, Germany. It is situated 14 km northwest of Neustadt (Aisch), and 40 km east of Würzburg. Schloss Schwarzenberg is adjacent to the town. The town is home ...
,
Nuremberg
Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...
, or Albertkunstadt, and on April 8, between 1818 and 1820.
Career
Lankershim settled in
St. Louis
St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...
,
Missouri
Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...
and worked in the grain and livestock shipping business.
In 1854, Lankershim moved west to the
Napa Valley
Napa Valley is an American Viticultural Area (AVA) located in Napa County in California's Wine Country. It was established by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) on January 27, 1981. Napa Valley is considered one of the premier ...
in California.
A year later, in 1855, he sowed and harvested 1,000 acres of wheat in
Solano County, California
Solano County () is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 453,491. The county seat is Fairfield.
Solano County comprises the Vallejo–Fairfield, CA Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is ...
.
Shortly after, he expanded to over 14,000 acres near
Fresno, California
Fresno () is a major city in the San Joaquin Valley of California, United States. It is the county seat of Fresno County and the largest city in the greater Central Valley region. It covers about and had a population of 542,107 in 2020, makin ...
.
In 1868, he purchased a bigger ranch in
San Diego, California
San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...
and grew wheat.
In 1860, the rest of his family moved from St. Louis to California, and he established an office in
San Francisco, California
San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...
.
In the late 1860s, Lankershim moved to
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
, where he became associated with businessman
Harris Newmark
Harris Newmark (July 5, 1834 – 1916) was a Jewish American businessman, philanthropist, and historian who was born in the West Prussian city of Löbau (now Lubawa, Poland). Newmark immigrated to the United States in 1853. He sailed from Europe ...
. In 1869, Lankershim purchased 60,000 acres of the
San Fernando Valley
The San Fernando Valley, known locally as the Valley, is an urbanized valley in Los Angeles County, California. Located to the north of the Los Angeles Basin, it contains a large portion of the City of Los Angeles, as well as unincorporated ar ...
from
Pio Pico
Pio may refer to:
Places
* Pio Lake, Italy
* Pio Island, Solomon Islands
* Pio Point, Bird Island, south Atlantic Ocean
People
* Pio (given name)
* Pio (surname)
* Pio (footballer, born 1986), Brazilian footballer
* Pio (footballer, born 1 ...
["Lankershim's renewed vitality in areas like the NoHo Arts District reflects mass transit's ascent" (22 Dec 2012) ''Los Angeles Times''] for US$115,000 together with other businessmen from San Francisco, known as the San Fernando Valley Farm Homestead Association.
[Cecilia Rasmussen]
"A possible romance led to lawsuit, death"
(Dec. 2, 2007) ''The Los Angeles Times
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
''[Joann Deutch]
"The Tale Of Notable Dead Lankershim"
(April 25, 2009) ''Canyon News
''Canyon News'' is an English-language weekly newspaper published in Beverly Hills, California . It is distributed internationally and is published in conjunction with the ''San Francisco News''. Named for its location and coverage area, ''Can ...
'' These acres included what is now
Woodland Hills,
Tarzana,
Encino,
Sherman Oaks
Sherman Oaks is a neighborhood in the city of Los Angeles, California located in the San Fernando Valley, founded in 1927. The neighborhood includes a portion of the Santa Monica Mountains, which gives Sherman Oaks a lower population density than ...
,
Van Nuys
Van Nuys () is a neighborhood in the central San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles, California. Home to Van Nuys Airport and the Valley Municipal Building, it is the most populous neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley.
History
In 1909, t ...
and
North Hollywood
North Hollywood is a neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, located in the San Fernando Valley. The neighborhood contains the NoHo Arts District, the El Portal Theatre, several art galleries, and the Academy of TV Arts and Sciences. The North ...
.
By 1873, they raised 40,000 sheep on the ranch.
When wool prices fell, they grew wheat instead.
To take the wheat from the valley to
Santa Monica, California
Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...
, he built a wagon path now known as
Interstate 405.
In 1876, he turned it into a toll road.
With his son-in-law,
Isaac Newton Van Nuys
Isaac Newton Van Nuys (; November 20, 1836 – February 12, 1912) was an American businessman, farmer and rancher who owned the entire southern portion of the San Fernando Valley—an area 15 miles long and 6 miles wide. With the approach of ...
, Lankershim started the Los Angeles Farming and Milling Co, and they took over full ownership of the San Fernando Valley Ranch Company.
They also established the Lankershim Ranch Land & Water Co., a 12,000-acre real estate development in what is now known as
North Hollywood, Los Angeles
North Hollywood is a neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, located in the San Fernando Valley. The neighborhood contains the NoHo Arts District, the El Portal Theatre, several art galleries, and the Academy of TV Arts and Sciences. The North ...
.
Personal life, death and legacy
Lankershim married Annis Lydia Moore (1818–1901), an
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
immigrant in 1842.
He relinquished his Jewish faith and converted to the
Baptist faith.
They had a son,
James Boon Lankershim
James Boon Lankershim (1850–1931) was an American heir, landowner and real estate developer.
Early life
James Boon Lankershim was born on March 24, 1850, in Charleston, Missouri. His father was Isaac Lankershim (1818–1882), a German-born Calif ...
(1850–1931), and a daughter, Susanna Lankershim, who married
Isaac Newton Van Nuys
Isaac Newton Van Nuys (; November 20, 1836 – February 12, 1912) was an American businessman, farmer and rancher who owned the entire southern portion of the San Fernando Valley—an area 15 miles long and 6 miles wide. With the approach of ...
(1836–1912).
He died on April 10, 1882.
Lankershim Boulevard
Lankershim Boulevard is a major north-south thoroughfare in the eastern San Fernando Valley, primarily within the City of Los Angeles, in
Los Angeles County, California.
Geography
Lankershim Boulevard begins at San Fernando Road in the Sun ...
in Los Angeles is named for the Lankershim family.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lankershim, Isaac
California pioneers
Businesspeople from Los Angeles
Land owners from California
19th-century births
Year of birth uncertain
1882 deaths
History of the San Fernando Valley
People in 19th-century California
Bavarian emigrants to the United States
Burials at Evergreen Cemetery, Los Angeles
19th century in Los Angeles
Converts to Protestantism from Judaism
American people of German-Jewish descent
19th-century American businesspeople