Accompanying this ad was an article titled “Reinhaus Sale Recalls Old Days Here,” which went on to laud the virtues of Max and Julius, describing the brothers as “distinctly old school but … enterprising and progressive,” and the store as “an institution of the business life of Orange County.” The brothers were originally from Dusseldorf, Germany; they came to Santa Ana because their brother-in-law Levi Gildmacher (married to their sister Hulda) paid for them to make the journey so they could help him run his store at the corner of 4th and Broadway (302 W. 4th St.). For many years the entire Reinhaus family lived in Levi and Hulda’s house, a few blocks away from the store; Levi kept adding rooms to accommodate everyone. The Reinhaus Bros. department store, founded in 1886 and lasting until 1930, began what became its signature event – the semi-annual clearance sale – when they opened their store and moved into a new building at the corner of 4th and Bush streets (200-204 E. 4th St.). A short time later Reinhaus sisters Theresa, Paulina, and Emilie opened a women’s hat shop, T. & E. Millinery, down the street at 115 W. 4th St. The Reinhaus/Gildmacher family was by far the largest Jewish family in Santa Ana for a number of years, and all three buildings mentioned here are still in existence and in use today.
Dalia Taft, Director of the Orange County Jewish Historical Society, highlights images from the archives every month. For more information, please visit https://www.jccoc.org/Pages/Oc-Jewish-Historical-Society. You can also contact Dalia at Daliat@jccoc.org or at (949) 435-3400, Ext. 360. The Orange County Jewish Historical Society is a program of the Merage Jewish Community Center and is funded by the Jewish Community Foundation Orange County.