Category Archives: African Americans

May 3, 1907: Fleenor, Accused ‘Barefoot Bandit,’ Says LAPD Got Him Drunk to Gain Confession

Posted on May 3, 2018 by lmharnisch

  Note: This is an encore post from 2006. On the witness stand, accused “Barefoot Bandit” James G. Fleenor complains that police got him drunk to gain a confession. Fleenor, who was black, had been part of an attempted jailbreak … Continue reading →

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Black L.A., 1947: ‘Behold a Cry’ and an Exploration of the ‘Estate of James Crow’

Posted on May 1, 2018 by lmharnisch

May 1, 1947: The Sentinel publishes an ad for Alden Bland’s “Behold a Cry.” (Available on 14-day loan from Archive.org). The New York Times said: ALDEN BLAND, the Negro author of this short novel, has none of the power of … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, African Americans, Books and Authors | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Black L.A. 1947: Killers Restage Deadly Robbery of Watts Liquor Store for LAPD Movie

Posted on April 19, 2018 by lmharnisch

10952 Wilmington Ave., Watts, in 2012, as shown in Google Street View. Two two-story residences were built on the property in 2014. April 17, 1947: LAPD detectives have three men reenact the killing of liquor store owner Louis de Ciodda, … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, African Americans, Crime and Courts, LAPD | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Black L.A. 1947, Jackie Robinson Joins Dodgers

Posted on April 16, 2018 by lmharnisch

  April 17, 1947: Jackie Robinson’s signing with the Dodgers is Page 1 news in the Sentinel…. … And on the cover of the sports section in the Los Angeles Times – and no picture or even a Page 1 … Continue reading →

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Black L.A., 1947: White Student Refuses to Leave Black School

Posted on April 12, 2018 by lmharnisch

April 10, 1947: James O. Plinton Jr., left, and Sentinel Publisher Leon H. Washington with one of the Grumman planes Plinton bought for his air service. April 10, 1947: Karla Rosel Galarza, 22, is refusing requests by the Washington, D.C., … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, African Americans, Education | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

Black L.A., 1947: 126 Men, 3 Women Arrested in Raid on ‘Wild Stag Party’

Posted on April 10, 2018 by lmharnisch

The former La Vada Apartments, site of a stag party in 1947, via Google Street View. April 10, 1947: Police raided the ballroom of the La Vada Apartments, 249 E. Vernon, arresting 126 men who had paid $1 for admission … Continue reading →

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Black L.A., 1947: Famous Flier James O. Plinton Jr. Visits L.A.

Posted on April 6, 2018 by lmharnisch

April 3, 1947: James O. Plinton Jr., a pioneering African American aviator, visits Los Angeles to buy two Grumman amphibious planes. At the beginning of World War II, Plinton went to the Tuskegee Institute, where he was a flight instructor, … Continue reading →

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Black L.A., 1947: Mother Sues Hospital Over Baby Mix-Up

Posted on April 4, 2018 by lmharnisch

Jewell Sperling with her son James Sperling Jr., Pittsburgh Courier, April 12, 1947. April 3, 1947: Jewell Sperling of 714 W. 32nd St., sues Hoover Hospital for $3,500, charging that she suffered mental distress from being sent home with the … Continue reading →

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Black L.A., 1947: Reward Offered for Leads in Streetcar Conductor’s Killing

Posted on April 3, 2018 by lmharnisch

1117 E. 58th St., where streetcar conductor Harold D. Moon was robbed and killed, March 30, 1947, via Google Street View. April 3, 1947: Harold D. Moon, a conductor on the “U” streetcar, was shot in the back and robbed … Continue reading →

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Black L.A. 1947: Wealthy Coronado Couple Charged With Holding Black Woman in Slavery

Posted on March 27, 2018 by lmharnisch

March 27, 1947: Alfred W. Ingalls, an attorney and former Massachusetts legislator, and his wife, Elizabeth, of Coronado are indicted on charges of holding Dora L. Jones as a slave. Testifying before a federal grand jury, Jones said she was … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, African Americans, Crime and Courts | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

Black L.A. 1947: Bert McDonald Dies; First Black Deputy City Atty.

Posted on March 13, 2018 by lmharnisch

The latest records by Jimmy Rushing, Duke Henderson and King Perry are at 1065 N. Fairfax Ave. 1065 N. Fairfax Ave., where you got the latest hip 78s in 1947, via Google Street View. March 13, 1947: The Sentinel publishes … Continue reading →

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Black L.A. 1947: Late-Night Streetcar Service Captures the Heartbeat of the City

Posted on March 9, 2018 by lmharnisch

Feb. 27, 1947: I missed this ad for Los Angeles Transit Lines in my previous pass through the Sentinel and I just had to run it. Militant Angeleno: This is for you!

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Black L.A., 1947: Robberies of Merchants Raise Racial Tensions in Little Tokyo/Bronzeville

Posted on March 8, 2018 by lmharnisch

March 6, 1947: North American Aviation had a male choir called the Navioneers that performed at Second AME church at 43rd Street and San Pedro Place. On the editorial page, the Sentinel seeks to defuse racial tensions in Little Tokyo … Continue reading →

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Black L.A., 1947: Onyx Club Opens in Pasadena; Cafe Was Site of Sensational 1950 Killing

Posted on March 6, 2018 by lmharnisch

March 6, 1947: The Onyx Club opens at 109 S. Fair Oaks in Pasadena. The former site of what was variously called the Onyx Club, Onyx Cafe or Onyx Bar on South Fair Oaks in Pasadena, via Google Street View. … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, 1950, African Americans, Crime and Courts, Food and Drink, Music, Nightclubs, Pasadena | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Black L.A., 1947: Animator George Pal Sponsors Youth Basketball Team

Posted on February 28, 2018 by lmharnisch

Feb. 27, 1947: The Sentinel never wrote anything further about the Newton Pals basketball team. The team members were listed as Charles Ward, Louis Augistine, Marion Person, Charles Davis, Henry Morrison, Aroyce Robinson, Ralph Swere, Roland Bundice and James Howard. … Continue reading →

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Black L.A. 1947: Huge Blast Kills 17, Show Dangers of Industry Moving Into Black Neighborhoods

Posted on February 27, 2018 by lmharnisch

Feb. 20, 1947: An aerial view of the devastation from the explosion at the O’Connor Electroplating Corp.,  926 E. Pico Blvd.  Los Angeles Public Library Herald Examiner collection. The site of the O’Connor Electroplating explosion via Google Satellite View. The … Continue reading →

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Black L.A., 1947: Husband Suspected of Killing Mary Tate

Posted on February 26, 2018 by lmharnisch

  Feb. 27, 1947: Terry Tate, of 123 N. San Pedro Street, is arrested in the death of his wife, Mary, at 107 Weller Street, described by the Sentinel as a rooming house or hotel. Tate was strangled and beaten … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, African Americans, Black Dahlia, Cold Cases, Crime and Courts, LAPD | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Black L.A., 1947: Willie Earle Lynched by South Carolina Mob

Posted on February 21, 2018 by lmharnisch

Feb. 20, 1947: The lynching of Willie Earle drew nationwide attention. Here is the New Yorker’s 1947 account of the trial in which 28 men were acquitted.

Posted in 1947, African Americans, Crime and Courts | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Black L.A., 1947: ‘Milk Bottle Murder’ – Couple’s Fight Ends in Death

Posted on February 20, 2018 by lmharnisch

  Feb. 20, 1947: Lois Ellis, victim of the “Milk Bottle Murder.” The neighborhood of 1207 E. 47th St. via Google Street View. From his bed in the jail ward of county hospital, Sam Ellis told of killing his wife, … Continue reading →

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Black L.A., 1947: Stylish Men in Harlem Wearing Berets

Posted on February 15, 2018 by lmharnisch

At top, the home at 2443 S. St. Andrews Place is for sale at $16,500 cash or $18,000 “terms.” Above, the 2400 block of South St. Andrews Place via Google Street View. Feb. 13, 1947: Columnist Bill Smallwood says “Richard … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, African Americans, Books and Authors, Fashion, Real Estate | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments