Quote:
Originally Posted by Chuckaluck
I would not place much reliance on this Monrovia advertisement, except for maybe its geographic spelling , but it raises a few other questions. Since it doesn't seem to specifically reference any Freeways, could it date to the late '40s? The estimated travel times are interesting too. They seem to be based on current Freeway speeds, but on what Freeways? This might be imaginable when leaving the city, e.g., to Palm Springs, San Diego or Big Bear, on roads unencumbered with stop signs and traffic - on Christmas Morning. Monrovia to Malibu in 90 minutes? Either all the traffic lights were synchronized years ago . . . or there were very few of them. Or maybe the times were optimistically based on drafting downhill express street cars .
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Unfinished Foothill Freeway - undated
http://www.kcet.org/updaily/socal_focus/FRE02-001.jpg
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First, with respect to the Monrovia card, while it has the 'feel' of a 1930's or early 40's type card, the first TV tower was errected on Mt. Wilson in 1947--KTLA-5. Therefore, this must be from the very late 40's or very early 50's.
Next, and
most interesting, is the photo of the I-210 bridge under construction. At the time of the construction of the I-210 through Pasadena, LaCanada, and LaCrescenta, I was both living and working (daily) in the immediate area, and watched its progress from first dig, to first traffic.
This is the bridge which crosses the Arroyo Seco, just a few hundred feet south of the actual Devils Gate Dam, and the two old roads and bridges, one very narrow roadway from the teens/20's, over the dam itself, and the other more modern wider two-lane, built in the 50's to support growing traffic in L.A. ( you can see a portion of it with that car driving w/b.) In this photo, you can just make out a portion of the dam wall structure and the old dam house tower, with the San Gabriels, above Altadena in the far background.
On
Oct. 17, 1972, while the concrete pour (w/b lanes as I recall) was in its final stages, in the afternoon, the bridge section collapsed and left
six men dead and another 21 injured.
I was working that day, and got to the scene, so soon after the collapse, that the dust was still rising from the pile of wooden forms and wet concrete and steel. It took well into the second day, as I recall, to recover the last of the bodies, as the pile of debris was so tough to deal with.
What is amazing is, this was such a catostrophic/tragic event, yet there is very little info or photos available on the net, documenting this event. Most, who drive over this bridge to and from work each day, have no idea of this event.
I found one photo of the scene, most likely a few hours after the collapse, which shows a line of ambulances and rescue equipment from both the City of Pasadena and the County of LA.