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What I find interesting in these renderings is that it looks like they took great care to retain Olvera Street, the Plaza Church and the old Plaza itself; however everything else around that area looks like they didn't find it worth saving. Also, the 101 freeway today would run through what would be the center of these renderings. What would be cool is if these renderings could somehow be superimposed over what that area looks like today. |
Looking north on Spring Street from 2nd Street, 1939:
http://img66.imageshack.us/img66/249...rthonsprin.jpg USC Archive |
^^^That's a great pic from 1939 sopas_ej.
Thanks for the info about the Fort Hill Pioneer Memorial. I read an article about it a few months ago, and couldn't place it for the life of me. Proposed Music Center at 6th and Hoover. 1950 http://img98.imageshack.us/img98/647...dmusiccent.jpg usc digital archive below: Another view, Music Center proposal for 6th and Hoover. 1950 http://img98.imageshack.us/img98/211...musiccentq.jpg usc digital archive |
Really cool renderings. Just pen/ink, no digital photo realistic computer rendering.
The proposals above are really cool. You think about the people involved back then, probably had little idea they were planning the downtown of one of the worlds largest cities of the 21st century. The street sizes and amount of park/landscape space strike me. They seem to be very formal plans, that obviously never happened. I wish some of the grand European style plans that were created at the turn of the century actually came to fruition. Burnhams plan for Chicago & SF would be interesting today, even the just the street patterns. Frederick Olmsteds parks plan for LA would be great today.... This link shows Olmsted plan from the 1930's http://www.flickr.com/photos/citypro...7601849458554/ |
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I find the architectural style of this proposal kind of interesting, too; very simple mid-20th Century Modern. Interesting that they would also use a 3 theater combination with underground parking, which is what the Music Center on Bunker Hill is also like, albeit with a different style of Modern architecture. |
Another obscure (to me anyway) proposal.
A 1951 plan for an Auditorium and Trade Fair Center at 4th Street between Figueroa and Flower Street. http://img98.imageshack.us/img98/198...auditorium.jpg usc digital archive |
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Very interesting, considering what's actually there now. I guess the idea of a "Trade Fair Center" evolved into what is now the LA Convention Center? Looking at these renderings, particularly of the proposed Music Center, made me think of the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium. That building is a definite time warp, totally a product of that Space-Age/Atomic-Age era of the mid-late 1950s. I've been inside once while some kind of rinky-dink arts & crafts fair was going on; the event space inside is very utilitarian, which surprised me, because this used to be the venue for the Academy Awards from 1961 to 1968. Here's what it looks like today: http://www.you-are-here.com/modern/civic.jpg From you-are-here.com Here's what it looked like when it first opened in 1958, images from the USC Archive: http://img29.imageshack.us/img29/6580/exmn123610095.jpg http://img195.imageshack.us/img195/1...n123610093.jpg Hmm, the lobby looks kinda fun in that pic... Here's what it looked like inside during an Oscars ceremony; Eddie Fisher is escorting Elizabeth Taylor to the stage, after Yul Brynner announced that she just won Best Actress for "Butterfield 8." April 17, 1961: http://img207.imageshack.us/img207/6...orwinsosca.jpg From Life Magazine She beat out other Best Actress nominees Greer Garson in "Sunrise at Campobello," Deborah Kerr in "The Sundowners," Shirley MacLaine in "The Apartment" and Melina Mercouri in "Never on Sunday." Here it is during the Academy Awards, 1968: http://jpg3.lapl.org/pics28/00063856.jpg From LAPL.org |
Excellent information about the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium sopas_ej.
I agree with you, that lobby photograph is tres chic'. Oh, and in my opinion...Shirley Maclaine should have won for 'The Apartment'. (It's one of my favorite movies) |
below: A death along the Los Angeles river, July 1948.
http://img190.imageshack.us/img190/9...y1948death.jpg usc digital archive below: Gas Explosion November 1948 http://img190.imageshack.us/img190/4...asblastnov.jpg usc digital archive below: Boy points to playmate's death 1953. http://img190.imageshack.us/img190/2...oplaymates.jpg usc digital archive |
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Below: An audacious plan for a helicopter terminal attached to Union Station.
(notice the 4 tiny helicopters on the roof....this place is immense) http://img98.imageshack.us/img98/958...lhelicopte.jpg usc digital archive Below: Dated April 4th, 1965. http://img98.imageshack.us/img98/833...h1965propo.jpg usc digital archive |
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Very interesting. That proposed helicopter site is now where the MTA headquarters building is located, I think. |
Proposal for a Labor Center 1945 at Third and Vermont St.
http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/102...540/pQyal9.jpg http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/cdm/si...id/91207/rec/1 |
Previously I posted a proposal for a Music Center at 6th and Hoover.
Below is an illustration I overlooked. http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/102...538/b5HKNz.jpg http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/cdm/si...id/91144/rec/3 # # # # below: I will re-post this excellent view for comparison. http://img98.imageshack.us/img98/647...dmusiccent.jpg usc digital archive |
Here's an interesting illustration from 1938 showing a viaduct to be constructed adjacent to Sunset Blvd.
http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/102...909/y1imIH.jpg http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/cdm/co...id/17212/rec/4 I'm not too familiar with this area. So......what tunnel is that? Also was this proposal eventually built.....if so, what did they gain? ...sopas_ej? |
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Cool find! I looked at this for a number of seconds and then I knew where this is. The drawing isn't to scale, but this is the southern edge of the modern Chinatown, where Broadway intersects Cesar Chavez Ave. (of which that stretch used to be Sunset Blvd.), the view is looking south. The tunnel is the Broadway tunnel, which no longer exists, because most of the hill has been removed. The viaduct was never built. I don't remember if I posted these photos a while back and hehe I'm too lazy to look through the pages of this thread, but here are some comparison photos, courtesy of the LAPL: Sunset and Broadway looking south, 1929: http://jpg2.lapl.org/pics08/00013680.jpg Same view, 1951: http://jpg2.lapl.org/pics08/00013681.jpg Same view, 1971: http://jpg2.lapl.org/pics08/00013677.jpg As you can see the hill and tunnel are gone. I remember when I first learned that there used to be a hill and tunnel there and was totally surprised. The one story brick building on the corner still exists today. Here's the same general view today, courtesy of Google Earth: http://img98.imageshack.us/img98/252...esarchavez.jpg That viaduct plan is interesting. I'm very sure it was a plan to make traffic flow more smoothly, especially considering back then, there were the PE streetcars going through that area. The viaduct looks similar to one that does exist a little west of this location, where 1st St., 2nd St., Beverly Blvd. and Glendale Blvd. all intersect. |
Wow, great information and comparison pics sopas_ej.
It's absolutely amazing that the one-story building survived all the changes. Not in a million years would anyone guess that there once had been a hill and a tunnel directly behind that building. Looking closely at the 1929 foto really makes me long for the old days. All the characteristics that made that small area interesting have been wiped off the map ....and all to accommodate more and more traffic. Thanks again sopas_ej, for taking the time to answer my questions. |
This thread has educated me on one thing in particular. Just how much hills were completely flattened in some cases to make way for new roads and developments, as we see in the latest set of photos. The total level of earth moving over the years must have been enormous. The Los Angeles "basin" must have been a much hillier place than it is today.
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____________________________________ Here's the west end of the 3rd Street tunnel through Bunker Hill in 1963: http://jpg2.lapl.org/spnb1/00017498.jpg From lapl.org Here's the same view in 1985: http://jpg2.lapl.org/pics08/00013872.jpg From lapl.org Completely different view, you wouldn't think it was the same place. The tunnel still exists, but Bunker Hill has been graded lower, and virtually nothing exists from the earlier photo. Here's the east end of the same tunnel, the Angels Flight end, circa 1934: http://jpg2.lapl.org/pics49/00059389.jpg From lapl.org I love this pic. The guy in the foreground is blurred, obscuring his identity, but in my mind, he's a guy who's down on his luck, just finished walking through the tunnel, maybe he's gonna grab a sandwich at the place on the corner, maybe he's gonna do something seedy... or not. I love the streetlamp, too; already by 1934, it's from a totally different era, from the generation before, like it represents a part of the city that the city forgot/neglected... I think this photo is cool, I've never seen a pic from this era which shows the inside of the tunnel: http://jpg3.lapl.org/pics35/00067370.jpg From lapl.org |
^^^LOL. Sometimes I can be pretty slow.
I have those pics, but I never put two and two together that the pics are of the SAME tunnel until your explanation "Here's the east end of the same tunnel." No wonder I'm always confused by the tunnel pics. I never considered the other side of the hill. Duh! below: A photo of the 3rd Street tunnel, west entrance. http://img260.imageshack.us/img260/8...okingeast1.jpg usc digital archive below: The only description on this photo was Hope Street, Bunker Hill. http://img260.imageshack.us/img260/7...illhopestr.jpg Cal State Library above: Can you imagine the sordid 'going-ons' inside the Hotel Elmar. This is a good example of a photograph with 'noir' qualities..... The transient SRO hotel...the lone man....the empty streets and overcast sky. |
OK, the caption on this photo was
"looking southwest from 1st and Clay Street." But isn't this the west entrance to the 3rd Street tunnel? (I recognize the 3-story building from previous pics) Obviously many buildings have already been torn down. But where's 2nd Street then? And I can't find Clay Street on the map I have. Perhaps it was mislabeled. http://img8.imageshack.us/img8/9538/...illsouthwe.jpg usc digital archive |
Haha, that heliport is sweet. Why couldn't stuff like that have happened? kind of a bummer how positively boring the actual future(now) turned out to be.
Though they never envisioned things like the internet or cell phones either, so maybe its a wash. |
I agree.....but it's hard to grasp the 'future' in the now.
(if you know what I mean) |
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I feel fortunate in that last year on ebay, I bought a Renie Atlas of Los Angeles County that dates from 1943, so it shows Clay Street on Bunker Hill, though the tunnels aren't denoted for some reason. But comparing it with my 2001 Thomas Guide, which does denote the tunnels, I can see that the 2nd Street tunnel is longer than the 3rd Street tunnel. Here are some photos from Tom Wetzel/uncanny.net. This shows Angels Flight actually crossing over Clay Street in 1943: http://www.uncanny.net/~wetzel/clayat3rd.JPG Here are some before and after shots. Looking up Clay Street from 4th Street, back in the day: http://www.uncanny.net/~wetzel/claystreet.jpg The same view in a more recent photo: http://www.uncanny.net/~wetzel/North...etSite2000.PNG Completely different now. |
Thanks for clarifying sopas_ej.
That 1943 atlas sounds like quite a find. Below: Angels Flight with the destruction of neighboring buildings. http://img8.imageshack.us/img8/2955/...courtfligh.jpg usc digital archive Below: Angels Flights with many of the surrounding buildings demolished. http://img8.imageshack.us/img8/9656/...lightneari.jpg usc digital archive |
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A rare photo of Court Flight, the sister funicular railway of Angel Flight I believe it's been abandoned in this pic. http://img8.imageshack.us/img8/6893/...ightshorte.jpg usc digital archive Court Flight (1904-1943) was shorter but steeper than Angels Flight, rising 200 feet in just over 200 feet. Court Flight only charged for rides up and not down. I'm not sure if this was the case with Angels Flight. Below: In this small but cool photo, the incline and steps are still there....minus the railway cars. http://img137.imageshack.us/img137/5262/11court2.jpg www.onbunkerhill.org |
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I'm not "getting" these pictures. Are there two Angel Flights, or multiple Angel Flights? Is this the same rail line in both pics? If you look below at the building I'm pointing to with the yellow line, in one picture it is on the "right" of the Angel Flight rail alignment, in the other picture, it is on the "left" of the Angel Flight rail alignment. Am I missing something? These are two different rail lines, right? http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i2.../untitled2.jpg http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i2...untitled-2.jpg |
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Where was Court Flight?
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Good eye PHX31.
I should have caught the mistake. USC had the first of the two pics flipped. Let's try this......see below. http://img217.imageshack.us/img217/2...courtfligh.jpg usc digital archive (flipped) http://img8.imageshack.us/img8/9656/...lightneari.jpg usc digital archive |
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Court Flight was several blocks north of Angels Flight, directly west of the old Hall of Records and City Hall. Below: Court Flight ascended from Broadway (the horizontal street in the lower portion of the photo) up to Court Street (right side of the photo...the vertical street above the old Hall of Records. This photo is after the railway was removed, but the hill remains. Perhaps PHX31 can draw one of his handy yellow arrows to pinpoint the area I'm trying to describe. http://img217.imageshack.us/img217/5...illfromcit.jpg usc digital archive |
I stumbled upon this thread while doing searches for my L.A. history blog. What fantastic stuff!
I think you'd all like "Los Angeles Past". Have a look sometime! sopas_ej and 213 will enjoy all the "Then & Nows" there, I'm sure. :) Those are here: http://losangelespast.blogspot.com/s...en%20and%20now Finally, while it's not exactly germane to this particular discussion, my post "General Longstreet's palms" should also be of interest. Discover what just might be the oldest surviving trees in Los Angeles! -Scott |
Like this?
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i2...untitled-1.jpg P.S. Great stuff Los Angeles Past... or should it be "Lost" Angeles Past. |
I don't know if this fits this thread, but you can use your imagination. As I said previously, much of my family lives (or is from) the Los Angeles/Orange County area. My Mom's side is from Alhambra and earlier, Highland Park. My Dad's family is from (and still lives) in and around Orange County. My grandfather was actually a city councilman for Placentia. He was also a huge smoker, of cigarettes and pipes. Although he died years ago, my Dad and his uncle came across a gigantic box (like 12" x 24" x 12") full of old used matchbooks, many from the 40s and 50s. Apparently (obviously) he collected them. I got to pick out a bunch of the ones I liked. I stuck with the ones that were Old Vegas themed, many from WW2/propaganda era, and then ones of old buildings. Here are some below:
These are likely from the 40s and 50s. I imagine they were used in the cocktail lounges of the various hotels. For the sake of this thread, let's assume some kind of shady deals were discussed between city representatives and developers/mobsters/crooks/whatever at these various hotels' lounges. If nothing else, they're cool looking. From the Los Angeles area: http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i2...p/P1010445.jpg http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i2...p/P1010446.jpg http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i2...p/P1010447.jpg http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i2...p/P1010448.jpg From other CA parts, SD, SF, etc. http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i2...p/P1010450.jpg http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i2...p/P1010451.jpg http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i2...p/P1010452.jpg Not a single one of these had any matches left in them. He smoked a lot apparently. |
Wow I love LA, I wish I could go back in time and ride around in the streetcars cerca the 20's and 30's.
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The matchbooks from your late grandfather's collection are great PHX31.
They make me want to research some of those long lost romantic places. Also, thx for placing that yellow arrow pinpointing Court Flight. :) |
Hey Los Angeles Past, thanks for the link to your blog! Very fascinating, I know I'll be looking at it more thoroughly and often!
PHX31, cool matchbook covers! I know where some of those hotels are. The Hotel Carrillo in Santa Barbara must be called something else now, the rendering of it on the matchbook looks very familiar. |
One last pic of Court Flight I found in my file.
http://img515.imageshack.us/img515/5...ightrailwa.jpg unknown |
http://img511.imageshack.us/img511/4...hollywoodb.jpg
unknown I give up on keeping tabs on all these obsolete tunnels. Sopas_ej, which tunnel is this? |
Below: Two views of the same tunnel.
http://img260.imageshack.us/img260/7...nnelhuge2a.jpg usc digital archive Below: And a view from atop the tunnel. http://img8.imageshack.us/img8/6404/...tunnelhuge.jpg usc digital archive |
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And this is the Hill Street tunnel, I'm guessing mid-1940s. Compare the lower view from atop the tunnel here with the view of north Hill St. at the top of this earlier post. Some of the same houses visible in the 1927 photo can also be seen in this 1940s view, though they are noticeably more run-down in the latter... -Scott |
Old City Hall (1888-1928)
One of my favorite buildings in vanished Los Angeles is the 1888 City Hall. It was located on the east side of Broadway, roughly mid-way between Second and Third Streets.
https://otters.net/img/lanoir/EXM-P-...IT-BUI-627.jpg USC Digital Archives I can't recall where I read this, but supposedly, the City Hall's bell tower was the tallest structure in Los Angeles County at the time of its completion. The Bradbury Building can also be seen in the background at the corner of Broadway and Third, where it stands to this day. -Scott |
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Also one of my faves. According to the LAPL website, a year after the current City Hall opened, the furnishings of the 1888 City Hall were auctioned off in January of 1928 before the building was demolished later in the year. It also gives the address as having been 226 S. Broadway. Municipal departments, as well as the offices for: Clerk and Council, Tax Collector, Treasurer, Chief of Fire Department, Zanjero, Building Inspector, Board of Education, Board of Health, Health Officer, Board of Public Works, Mayor's office, Council Chambers, City Attorney, Superintendent of Streets, Assessor, Public Library, and City Surveyor, among others were housed here from 1888 until 1928; a courtroom and several private offices were also located here. When you think about it, at the time of its demolition, the building was only 40 years old, but what a difference in technology, architectural styles, social mores and fashions in those 40 years than say, 40 years ago from today. Such a beautiful building. Too bad they didn't think of "adaptive re-use" back then and somehow had the foresight and the technology to seismically save the structure. Would've made an excellent city history museum or something; in fact I don't think Los Angeles even has a city history museum, at least that I don't know of; many other cities do. What's up with that?? Here's the old city hall in its waning years, circa 1925: http://jpg3.lapl.org/pics45/00072366.jpg From lapl.org Here it is during the auction of its furnishings: http://jpg2.lapl.org/pics17/00018249.jpg From lapl.org http://jpg2.lapl.org/pics17/00018239.jpg From lapl.org http://jpg2.lapl.org/pics17/00018236.jpg From lapl.org Its demolition: http://jpg2.lapl.org/pics17/00018248.jpg From lapl.org http://jpg2.lapl.org/pics17/00018243.jpg From lapl.org http://jpg2.lapl.org/pics17/00018244.jpg From lapl.org |
I just now noticed that in the later picture of the old city hall, its tower isn't as tall as in the older picture. Makes me wonder why it was made shorter; I wonder what happened.
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what a damn shame that these old buildings were all torn down. imagine how freaking awesome the civic center would be today with these old buildings along with all the new modern beauties like the LAPD, Caltrans, Disney Hall and the Cathedral. Wow, im actually angry.
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https://otters.net/img/lanoir/1932EX...IT-BUI-753.jpg Here's a picture from 1936, taken right at the beginning of the building's final demolition. You can see the 1932 roof/cap atop what was left of the tower. https://otters.net/img/lanoir/00070244.jpg Truncating the tops of brick/stone buildings in old L.A. was fairly common. In 1900, the Bryson-Bonebrake block lost its ornate Victorian cupolas, and the Hotel Nadeau lost its Grecian-style roof pediments even before that. I suspect potential damage due to earthquakes was feared/anticipated, or maybe these various ornamental elements were simply found to be structurally unsound after a time. I really don't know for sure... -Scott |
^^^Amazing information Scott. I had no idea about the truncated towers.
I hope you continue visiting this thread.....your input is greatly appreciated. Below: Demolition of the County Courthouse 1936. http://img134.imageshack.us/img134/2...thouseandh.jpg usc digital archive |
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