Isaac Magnin


Isaac Magnin was a Dutch-born American carver and gilder. He was the co-founder of I. Magnin, an upscale women's clothing store in San Francisco, California.

Early life

Isaac Magnin was born into a Jewish family in Assen or Groningen, the Netherlands in 1842. His father was from Russia and his mother, Dutch-born. He moved to the United States with his parents when he was eight years old.

Career

He worked as a businessman in Texas and New Mexico. During the American Civil War of 1861-1865, he served in the Union Army. He then worked as a pushcart peddler in New Orleans, Louisiana. Next, he moved to London, where he established an arts goods store. A decade later, in 1876, he set sail for San Francisco via Cape Horn, with his wife and children. There, he worked as a frame carver and gilder for Solomon Gump, an art and antique dealer and owner of Gump's. By 1880, he was listed in the census as the keeper of a fancy bazaar. With his wife, he was also the co-founder of I. Magnin, an upscale women's clothing store in San Francisco.
He was interested in socialism.

Personal life

He married Mary Ann Cohen on October 8, 1865 at the Great Synagogue of London. They had eight children: Samuel, Henrietta, Joseph, Emanuel John, Victor, Lucille, Flora, and Grover. They attended the Temple Emanu-El in San Francisco.
He was a freemason, having joined in London and gone up the ranks in California.

Death

He died on January 27, 1907 in San Francisco, California.