Napa Valley Jewish Pioneers

Solomon Schocken: Pioneer Jewish Merchant of Sonoma, California

Solomon Schocken Values Codes  I – E – L   Solomon Schocken was born in 1842 in Rosasen, in Prussian-occupied Poland. Little is known about his life in Europe, but he was described as “short (and) redheaded.”   Along the way… Solomon Schocken arrived in New York

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The Frank Family: Early Jewish Pioneers of Calistoga, California

Frank Family Values Codes  I – E – L   The Frank family is thought to be the first Jewish family to settle in Calistoga, California -around 1860. Their home, a modest Victorian cottage, built in the 1870’s, now houses the Sharpsteen Museum at 1317 Washington Street.

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Leopold Lazarus: Early Jewish Pioneer of St. Helena, California

Leopold Lazarus Values Codes  I – E – L   Leopold Lazarus was born in France in 1827. Lazarus left France in 1848 at the age of 21, to seek his fortune in America.   Along the way Leopold Lazarus journeyed from New Orleans to California. In California,

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Jules Eugene Straus: Early Jewish Pioneer Merchant of St. Helena, California

Jules Eugene Straus Values Codes  I – E  L   Jules Straus was born in Alsace, France, in 1844. His brother-in-law was Leopold Lazarus, another St. Helena pioneer.   Along the way . . . At age fifteen, Jules Straus came to America, sailing from Havre de Grace to

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Henry Getleson and Abraham Friedberg: Early Jewish Pioneers of Calistoga, California

Henry Getleson and Abraham Friedberg Values Codes  I – E – L   Trained as a sculptor in Germany, Henry Getleson came to Calistoga, California in 1866. By the invitation of Sam Brannan, Getleson built the town’s first general store at Washington and Lincoln Streets. A sister store in

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Herman Shwarz and Elizabeth Fleishman Shwarz: Early Jewish Pioneers of Napa, California

Herman Shwarz and Elizabeth Fleishman Shwarz Values Codes  I – E – L   Herman Shwarz was born in Germany in 1848.   Napa Herman Shwarz arrived in Napa, California in 1871. In 1871, Herman and his new wife, Elizabeth, opened a hardware store that, by 1906, was the largest

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