Category Archives: Transportation

March 4, 1907: L.A. Streetcars — Another Look

Posted on March 4, 2026 by lmharnisch

March 4, 1907: Despite its saintly image, the Los Angeles streetcar system was problematic, as shown by a 1907 accident in San Pedro in which the car jumped the tracks, injuring 10 people. Continue reading →

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February 18, 1908

Posted on February 18, 2026 by lmharnisch

February 18, 1908: A woman falsely claims to be a famous author, and a man has delusions of great wealth. Continue reading →

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February 11, 1958: As L.A. Grows, Segregation Takes New Forms, Black Official Says

Posted on February 11, 2026 by lmharnisch

February 11, 1958: New patterns of segregation may be forming in L.A., the head of the National Council of Negro Women says. Continue reading →

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February 11, 1907: Woman Fractures Skull Leaping From Streetcar That Passed Her Stop

Posted on February 11, 2026 by lmharnisch

February 11, 1907: Mrs. A.C. Newton of Central Avenue is near death after fracturing her skull by leaping from a streetcar that passed her stop. News reports show someone was injured almost every week by jumping from a streetcar that failed to stop. Image shows a new Baptist church at 2nd Street and St. Louis. Continue reading →

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February 5, 2009: Burbank Time Capsule Revisited

Posted on February 5, 2026 by lmharnisch

February 5, 2009: Burbank opens its 1959 time capsule to discover black and white photos of the city as it was then, plus local newspapers. Continue reading →

Posted in @news, Architecture, City Hall, Education, Environment, Film, Freeways, Real Estate, San Fernando Valley, Science, Transportation | Comments Off on February 5, 2009: Burbank Time Capsule Revisited

February 5, 2009: Burbank to Open Time Capsule!

Posted on February 5, 2026 by lmharnisch

February 5, 2009: One of my favorite stories from 2009 was discovering that Burbank forgot about a time capsule placed in the Magnolia Boulevard bridge in 1959, to be opened February 5, 2009. Continue reading →

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February 3, 1959: Rock Stars Die in Plane Crash

Posted on February 3, 2026 by lmharnisch

February 3, 1958: Buddy Holly, the Big Bopper and Ritchie Valens are killed in a plane crash. Continue reading →

Posted in broadcasting, Film, Hollywood, Music, Obituaries, Rock 'n' Roll, San Fernando Valley, Television, Transportation | Comments Off on February 3, 1959: Rock Stars Die in Plane Crash

January 31, 1959: Matt Weinstock

Posted on January 31, 2026 by lmharnisch

January 31, 1959: Bill Thomas, then a staffer on the Mirror, is assigned to write about American Airlines’ first jet flight to New York. His colleagues buy a life insurance policy. “As the plane goes down it should be comforting to know you are doing a nice thing for your friends,” they say. Continue reading →

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January 23, 1958: Matt Weinstock

Posted on January 23, 2026 by lmharnisch

January 23, 1958: The way one writer analyzes the present situation, the public’s appetite for gossip and scandal, whetted by Confidential, is now being satisfied by the so-called conservative magazines. Editors insist writers get full confessions, regardless of whose privacy is invaded, or no sale. Continue reading →

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January 9, 1907: The Floods

Posted on January 9, 2026 by lmharnisch

January 9-10, 1907: The worst storm in 23 years blows across Southern California with the force of a gale, dumping more than an inch of rain in Pasadena, killing an Orange County rancher, washing out railroad tracks and collapsing tunnels, and leaving nearly every small ship in Santa Barbara sunk, driven ashore or pounded to pieces. Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Downtown, LAPD, Pasadena, San Fernando Valley, Streetcars, Transportation | Comments Off on January 9, 1907: The Floods

January 7, 1959: Matt Weinstock

Posted on January 7, 2026 by lmharnisch

January 7, 1959: A group of grimly playful fellows at USC have changed their names from Asthmatics Anonymous to Asthmatics Militant, bringing a report from Detroit about the new Flatulente Four Fifty auto, Matt Weinstock says. Continue reading →

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December 30, 1941: L.A. Women Are Slackers in Fighting the Axis!

Posted on December 30, 2025 by lmharnisch

December 30, 1941: December 30, 1941: It seems that local women didn’t get the memo about the being the “Greatest Generation.” They’re a bunch of slackers in the war against the Axis and don’t want to work as air-raid wardens. Continue reading →

Posted in 1941, Art & Artists, Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, Jimmie Fidler, Streetcars, Theaters, Tom Treanor, Transportation, World War II | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on December 30, 1941: L.A. Women Are Slackers in Fighting the Axis!

December 30, 1907: Old Soldiers of the Civil War, Held as Drunks, Get Free Run of Jail

Posted on December 30, 2025 by lmharnisch

December 30, 1907: Six Civil War veterans are jailed on charges of being drunk and rowdy in Sawtelle, the settlement outside the gates of the veterans home. Continue reading →

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December 9, 1907: Black LAPD Officer Blames Firing on Racism, Rejoins Fire Department

Posted on December 9, 2025 by lmharnisch

December 9, 1907: Mayor Harper has restored E.J. Bowen to his old job in the Fire Department after the rookie police officer was fired for allegedly being a coward—a charge that Bowen, who is Black, blames on racism. Continue reading →

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December 3, 1907: Gunman Kills LAPD Officer; Dies in Slow Agony Awaiting the Gallows

Posted on December 3, 2025 by lmharnisch

December 3,1907: Daniel Meskil kills LAPD Officer Patrick Lyons, who was trying to arrest Meskil and his companion, Rolla Robe. Meskil was sentenced to be hanged at San Quentin, but died of injuries from jumping off a roof during an escape attempt. Continue reading →

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November 27, 1941: Streetcar Companies Ask Council to End Bus Ban in Downtown L.A.

Posted on November 27, 2025 by lmharnisch

November 27, 1941: The Pacific Electric and Los Angeles Railways ask the City Council to repeal a ban against buses operating in downtown Los Angeles. Continue reading →

Posted in 1941, Art & Artists, Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, Streetcars, Tom Treanor, Transportation, World War II | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

November 21, 1907: Mother, 17, Throws Baby From Train to Hide ‘Shame’ From Family

Posted on November 21, 2025 by lmharnisch

November 21, 1907: Louise Williams is arrested on charges of throwing her baby from an inbound train. “She was suddenly overwhelmed with the shame of meeting her mother and sisters at Los Angeles, who had not learned of her ruin,” her attorney said. Continue reading →

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November 20, 1907: Police Capture Streetcar Bandits

Posted on November 20, 2025 by lmharnisch

November 20, 1907: Police arrest two men who staged daring holdups on the Ascot Park and Eastlake streetcars, robbing the motormen and conductors as the cars reached the ends of their routes. Continue reading →

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November 19, 1959: Paul V. Coates – Confidential File

Posted on November 19, 2025 by lmharnisch

November 19, 1959: A convicted robber who escaped from jail talks to Paul Coates about why he did it and whether to surrender to police. Continue reading →

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November 19, 1907: Crime Wave Sweeps L.A.

Posted on November 19, 2025 by lmharnisch

November 19, 1907: An influx of crooks, petty hoodlums and vagrants drawn by good weather and horse racing at Santa Anita are blamed for a siege of crime throughout the city. Continue reading →

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