I will be adding pictures soon.

This bank - a rearing cast iron hose bank was repoduced in the 1960's by my father Arnold Stoltz to be sold in gift shops. This bank is easy to recognize since "A Stoltz Mercantile Co. Est 1849" is embossed IN THE CAST IRON on the base.  It measures aprox 6 & 1/2 inches by 6 & 1/2 inches.  He also repoduced a standing Stag - this has "A. STOLTZ MERCANTILE CO, EST 1849" embosed in the cast iron INSIDE the body of the bank - you have to open the bank to see it.  My sisters and I did the painting and packing when were in our teens and this was a family business.  The A. Stoltz Mercantile co. was our family business name since his grandfather Aron Stoltz opened a shop in San Francisco.  Aron Stoltz had come across the USA in a covered wagon.  When the wagon train hit the mountains and the cold weather he traded the extra clothing he had brought with other members of the wagon train for pots, pans, books, whatever extra itmes they had with them.  When he arrived in San Francisco he found a shop to rent and put the items in it - Because the gold rush had just started (not the reason he had made the trip - it had not started when he left St. Louis, Mo.) he sold everything out in one day to the men who had come to look for gold!  He went down to the docks and spent everything he had made to buy more things from the incomming ships and took those back to his store - this was the begining of his business that lasted many years.  His brother even came out to San Francisco to join him in the business and then opened a branch in Oregon.