Category Archives: Downtown

Street Sweeping — Cut to Save Money — Resumes

Posted on June 30, 2009 by lmharnisch

June 30, 1899: The city will resume sweeping streets after a two-month suspension to cut expenses.

Posted in Downtown, health, Transportation | Comments Off

Woman, Baby Hurt in Bike Crash

Posted on June 27, 2009 by lmharnisch

June 27, 1899: The Times published many stories about fires that were started by gasoline stoves. Given the primitive nature of firefighting at the time, the results were often tragic. June 27, 1899: A woman with her baby … Continue reading →

Posted in 1899, Downtown, LAPD | 1 Comment

Man Builds Model of 1881 Los Angeles

Posted on June 26, 2009 by lmharnisch

Nov. 8, 1931: For its 50th anniversary, The Times re-creates Los Angeles as it was in 1881. Above, Robert H. Sexton Jr. displays an elaborate model of the city in 1881, measuring about 8 feet by 5 feet. The model … Continue reading →

Posted in 1881, Architecture, Downtown | 1 Comment

Police Raid Colored Republican Club

Posted on June 26, 2009 by lmharnisch

Dec. 15, 1887: Effie Smith, a prostitute on Los Angeles Street, burns to death. She took a dose of morphine and lapsed into unconsciousness after lighting a cigarette. I found this item while trying to determine the location of … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, Downtown, Food and Drink, LAPD, Politics | Comments Off

Found on EBay — Burbank Theater

Posted on June 24, 2009 by lmharnisch

This postcard of the Burbank Theater, 548 S. Main St., has been listed on EBay. The theater was built in 1893 and torn down in 1974. Bidding starts at $8.

Posted in Downtown, Film, Hollywood, Music, Stage | Comments Off

Downtown Street Used as Racetrack!

Posted on June 24, 2009 by lmharnisch

June 24, 1889: No more racing on Grand Avenue!

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Nuestro Pueblo: Central Jail

Posted on June 23, 2009 by lmharnisch

June 23, 1939: I think this is my favorite "Nuestro Pueblo" so far. The dialogue could come right out of some 1930s movie. Interestingly enough, the text was completely rewritten for the book.

Posted in Downtown, LAPD, Nuestro Pueblo | Comments Off

Crude Oil Floods Figueroa Street!

Posted on June 23, 2009 by lmharnisch

June 23, 1899: Crude oil floods Figueroa Street. A city inspector discovered that workers dismantling a storage tank on a triangular lot at 1st and 2nd streets (recall that several downtown streets have been realigned since 1899) directed about 200 … Continue reading →

Posted in Downtown, Environment, Transportation | Comments Off

Found on EBay — First Methodist Episcopal Church

Posted on June 22, 2009 by lmharnisch

Aug. 20, 1899: The cornerstone is laid for First M.E. Church This postcard showing First M.E. Church has been listed on EBay. The church was designed by Austin and Skilling and built on the northeast corner of 6th and Hill … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, art and artists, Downtown, Religion | Comments Off

Drunks and Small Boys in Trouble!

Posted on June 20, 2009 by lmharnisch

Posted in #courts, Downtown, LAPD | Comments Off

Officer Rescues Girl From Streetcar Tracks!

Posted on June 20, 2009 by lmharnisch

Siegel the Hatter at 1st and Spring. June 20, 1889: Police Officer Church saves a life.

Posted in Downtown, LAPD, Transportation | Comments Off

Council Debates Cow Ordinance

Posted on June 18, 2009 by lmharnisch

June 18, 1889: The City Council debates measures on keeping cows and chickens in downtown Los Angeles.

Posted in City Hall, Downtown, Food and Drink | Comments Off

A Kinder, Simpler Time: Your Rights

Posted on June 17, 2009 by lmharnisch

June 18, 1953: Irwin Edelman, Pershing Square orator, is enmeshed in the Rosenberg case. He was convicted in 1949 as a "vagrant dissolute person" in a case that went to the U.S. Supreme Court. In 1953, he sought refuge in … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, Downtown | Comments Off

Chinese Opium Dens of Los Angeles

Posted on June 16, 2009 by lmharnisch

June 16, 1889: After quite a long rant on the degenerate nature of the Chinese — the maids and cooks are corrupting the good white homes of Los Angeles by providing narcotics to young, idle society men and women — … Continue reading →

Posted in Downtown | 1 Comment

Man Kills Wife, Attempts Suicide

Posted on June 15, 2009 by lmharnisch

June 15, 1899: Earl Hanchett kills his wife and attempts suicide. The nurse who was hired to tend their baby says: "Why didn't you do as good a job on yourself as you did on her?" Hanchett lived to stand … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, Downtown, Homicide, Suicide | Comments Off

All-Night Bakery

Posted on June 13, 2009 by lmharnisch

June 13, 1889: The Vienna Bakery, 1st and Spring streets, open all night.

Posted in Downtown, Food and Drink | 1 Comment

Nuestro Pueblo: Weller Street

Posted on June 12, 2009 by lmharnisch

Today, we know Weller Street as Little Tokyo's Onizuka Street, named for the astronaut who was killed in the explosion of the Challenger space shuttle in 1986.

Posted in Architecture, Downtown, Nuestro Pueblo | 1 Comment

Found on EBay — Oriental Cafe

Posted on June 9, 2009 by lmharnisch

This postcard showing the interior of the Oriental Cafe, 445-447 S. Main St., has been listed on EBay. Bidding starts at $9.99, a little steep for my blood. Look what else you could get at 447 S. Main in 1903! … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Downtown, Food and Drink | Comments Off

The Pershing Square Mystery, Part II

Posted on June 9, 2009 by lmharnisch

Photograph by Boris Yaro / Los Angeles Times Dec., 11, 1975: "The Last Argument of Kings" cannon is at Travel Town. Note that the plaque is missing from the base. I went to Travel Town on Sunday in search of … Continue reading →

Posted in Downtown, Nuestro Pueblo, Parks and Recreation | 2 Comments

Nuestro Pueblo: The Pershing Square Mystery

Posted on June 8, 2009 by lmharnisch

"The Last Argument of Kings" Sept. 20, 1953: The cannon was moved to Travel Town in Griffith Park. This simple post about a cannon at Pershing Square has become ridiculously complicated. All I want to know is what became of … Continue reading →

Posted in Downtown, Parks and Recreation, San Fernando Valley | 1 Comment