HomeOctober 2014Orange County’s Jewish History

Orange County’s Jewish History

According to a 1979 Orange City News article by Ann Pauline Herrlein, the first store in Orange was opened by Jewish merchant Joseph Fisher in 1874. “By 1875 the value of unimproved land soared … Yet only one year before the first store had been built in Orange. The store reportedly was operated by a Mr. Fisher.” The business was located at the corner of Glassell St. and the Plaza, at what is 100 N. Glassell today, and was run by brothers Joseph and William. They immigrated from Austria, and Joseph served in the Union Army during the Civil War. In 1878, after leaving Orange, he moved to West Texas and built up a large retail trade. His younger brother William stayed in the area a little longer and was naturalized in Los Angeles in 1879. The store passed through a number of different Jewish owners, including Abraham Kolsky, who then partnered with Lee Goldsmith (Kolsky & Goldsmith), who then partnered with a Mr. Baranovich (Goldsmith & Baranovich). In 1909 the store was torn down to make way for Campbell’s Opera House (now the Masonic Temple building).

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