Grand Ventures

by Sitton, Tom

• ISBN13: 9780873282437
• ISBN10: 0873282434
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2010-09-10
• Publisher: Huntington Library Pr

Summary

"A massive frame, dynamic in action, a keen brain, violent passions, and an abundant heart"- in the eyes of one of his contemporaries, Phineas Banning (1830-1885) was a figure larger than life. Banning played a crucial role in Southern California, not only through the blood-and-guts work of building the region's mercantile and transportation infrastructure but also by envisioning its future. In rough mountain passes, dusty plains, and tidal mudflats, Banning saw roads and railways, and the harbor that would one day become the busiest container port in the nation. The Bannings who followed this formidable patriarch shaped the engine of Southern California's growth-tourism-by developing Santa Catalina Island as a leisure destination. And once the physical fabric of the region took shape, they devoted their attention to building the social service, reform, and philanthropy networks that would sustain the modern metropolis. Sitton's balanced and searching portrait reveals the crucial role of this First Family of Los Angeles, whose insight and energies shaped Southern California at every stage.

Table of Contents

Foreword	p. vii
Preface and Acknowledgments	p. ix
Introduction	p. 1
The Bannings
From the Old World to America	p. 7
The Southern California Patriarch
A Young Delawarean in Frontier Southern California	p. 25
Phineas Banning & the Alexanders & Other Partnerships	p. 41
Delaware on the Pacific	p. 61
Civil War Southern California	p. 77
William and Phineas: Railroad Entrepreneurs	p. 99
The Postwar Years and the Death of Phineas Banning	p. 119
The Banning Brothers and Sisters
The Sons Take Over	p. 155
Santa Catalina Island Adventure: The Early Years	p. 185
A Family Rift and the Remaining Years at Santa Catalina	p. 213
The Bannings in the Progressive Era	p. 233
The Next Generations
The Second Generation Emerges-The 1920s	p. 269
The Bannings in the Great Depression and Second World War	p. 293
Another Generation and Preserving the Banning Legacy	p. 319
Yesterday and Today	p. 335
The Bannings from England to America	p. 339
Phineas Banning's Great-Grandchildren Who Left Southern California	p. 342
Phineas Banning Genealogy	p. 344
Banning Family Connections	p. 347
Notes	p. 349
Selected Bibliography	p. 427
List of Illustrations	p. 452
Index	p. 457
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.