Sacramento County
Biographies
ISIDORE COHEN
Adventurous
experiences in many localities came to an end with the permanent settlement of
Mr. Cohen in Sacramento, which place had won his liking during previous
sojourns and thus became the eventual instrument affecting his decision to
establish here a permanent business headquarters. Like the majority of the
German people, his talents have led him into different lines of merchandising
and in his youthful years, when he had no capital whatever, he earned a
livelihood through the strenuous existence of a peddler. Through all of his
changes of residence and his variations in forms of work, he has retained his
deep devotion to the Jewish religion and his love for the race of which he is a
member. This does not prevent him from being a true and loyal citizen of his
adopted country. His interest in national issues is constant and his belief in
Republican principles leads him to support that party in all national
campaigns.
Near the city of Posen, Germany, Mr. Cohen was
born April 17, 1843, being a son of S. and Sarah Cohen, whose residence in the
fatherland continued until death. His early educational opportunities were
small indeed, for the necessity of self-support forced him to leave school to
take up occupative labors. The trade which he
learned, that of a baker, occupied him until he left Germany at the age of
seventeen and came via Hull, England, to America, settling in New York City and
securing work as a baker. Next he took up peddling and thus earned enough to
pay his passage to California in 1863, when he traveled via Nicaragua and their took the Moses Taylor to San Francisco and thence came
to Sacramento. As a peddler he visited the principal mining camps of Eldorado county. In about six
weeks he returned to San Francisco where for one year he sold fruit at the
Metropolitan theater. Upon his return to Sacramento he
bought a cigar and fruit store, but this he sold at the expiration of about
twelve months, returning thereupon to New York City via Panama and resuming
business pursuits there with a partner. A year later he removed to
Williamsburg, N. Y., where for two years he carried on a store. Next he engaged
in merchandising in Chicago, Ill., after which he was similarly occupied
successfully to Silver City, Idaho, for six months, and then located in
Virginia City, Nev. A few months later he was burned out in the big fire of
1875 with a total loss, after which, in January, 1876, he became a permanent
resident of Sacramento and began anew.
As
an assistant in the establishment owned by his brother, Benjamin Cohen, a
dealer in carpets and oil cloth, Mr. Cohen remained for nine years, meanwhile
saving his earnings so that finally he was able to buy out a cigar store on J
between Fifth and Sixth streets. Two years after he had bought the business he
disposed of it and spent three months in European travel. Upon his return to
Sacramento he bought from Edward Busch the present cigar store at No. 326 J street, and at this place he since has conducted a jobbing
and retail business in cigars and tobacco. In all of his travels and his
sojourns in various parts of the country he has retained his devotion to the
tenets of the Golden Rule, and has been a liberal and active contributor to
various charities, both private and institutional. Fraternally he is connected
with the Elks, the B. B.'s and the Independent Order
of Odd Fellows, while in politics he is a staunch
Republican and a patriotic supporter of the institution of his adopted country.
There
is no ostentation, no attempted display or show in the acts of Isidor Cohen. By hard labor and close attention to his own
business, he has acquired a modest fortune. The spirit of true, genuine
philanthropy seems to have been born in him. His deep interest in the welfare
of the poor little orphans has made him a central figure in the bestowal of
permanent charity for the care of the helpless orphan children of this
community. The Orphan's Home is largely indebted to his beneficent acts for its
existence. He established comfortable quarters for the boys at the earliest
stage, and later founded an orchard, and garden, where the older boys and girls
might learn the art of agriculture; also provided choice cows for their dairy.
The expense of conducting each and all of these is borne by Mr. Cohen. Recently
he conceived and put into execution the idea of having those orphans old enough
to work, cultivate the gardens and orchards, and after the products necessary
for the use of the home, the surplus should be sold and the proceeds credited
to the producers on their own account. These amounts are given to the producers
in proportion to their earnings, and placed in a savings bank to the credit of
each. The first statement of accounts showed that ten or twelve had bank accounts ranging from $5 to $20 each. There is no man
in this community who has a more charitable heart than Mr. Cohen, who now
devotes his entire income to pure and unselfish charity.
Transcribed by Sally Kaleta.
Source: Willis, William L., History of Sacramento County, California,
Page 571-573.
Historic Record Company, Los Angeles, CA. 1913.
© 2005 Sally Kaleta.