Morris L. Goodman (–1888) was the first Jewish Los Angeles City Council member.Henry Sutherland,"Historical Marker Will Note City's 1st Jewish Cemetery," Los Angeles Times, September 29, 1968, image 31
Career Goodman was elected to the Los Angeles Common Council in 1850 and was the only American citizen on that body as well as the only Jew."Exhibit," Los Angeles Times, November 29, 1991, image 655
He was a Los Angeles council member from 1850 to 1854, after which he became a deputy sheriff and served in the San Fernando Valley. Goodman began a term on the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors in January 1861, but resigned after five months.
In 1872, he opened up a dry goods business in partnership with Theodore Rimpau, in Anaheim, California.
Biography Goodman was a member of Masonic lodge No. 42."Lodge to Mark 100th Anniversary," Citizen News, Hollywood, October 20, 1953, image 3 He was also a member of the Central Committee of the local Democratic Party.
Goodman moved from Los Angeles to Anaheim, where he was a City Council member for a "number of years." He died there on January 23, 1888, at age 69 or 70."Death of a Pioneer," Los Angeles Herald, January 24, 1888, image 4 "Local Jewish History Traced in Times Files," Los Angeles Times, August 28, 1960, image 45
References
Resources "Holidays in the Valley: The Jewish Experience Immigration". David Silver. Los Angeles Times, November 29, 1991.