Banning family.

Biographical Note

The Banning Family played a pivotal role in the development of southern California. Phineas Banning (1830-1885) immigrated to California from Philadelphia in 1852, and soon became a partner in a freight and stage-line business that ran between San Pedro and Los Angeles. He founded the settlement of Wilmington near San Pedro, which served as the hub of the Banning Company. Banning’s many business interests included shipping, warehousing, real estate, and transportation services to Los Angeles and inland areas. The Banning Company continued under the direction of Phineas’s sons, William, Joseph Brent (J.B.), and Hancock, until the company dissolved in 1920.

...