Water and Power Associates Informing the Public about Critical Water and Energy Issues facing Los Angeles and California

Historical Notes

In 1903 the Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary purchased fifteen-acres in Hollywood on which to develop a school. Two years later on April 24, 1905 a ground-breaking took place for the first campus building (shown here), which included classrooms for high school and elementary school students, boarding facilities, as well as living quarters for the nuns.

Historical Notes

Moorish Revival architecture, or Neo-Moorish, is a style that became popular in Europe and the Americas in the mid-1800s. It takes inspiration from traditional Moorish architecture and Islamic styles, featuring designs that reflect Islamic culture's artistic richness. Key elements include horseshoe arches, detailed tile work with complex geometric patterns, decorated stucco, domes, minarets, and bright colors. This style grew during the Romanticist movement, which admired exotic cultures. By the late 1800s, Neo-Moorish was at its height, giving architects new design options beyond the classical and Gothic styles.

Historical Notes

The three-story mission-style building features multicurved parapets, arched windows, several arcades, and dormer windows. About a dozen young trees are planted in the well-maintained yard.

Historical Notes

During this period, Western Avenue changed from a rutted wagon road to a major artery, Los Feliz from a cow path to a boulevard, and the surrounding olive and orange groves yielded first to California bungalows, then to apartment structures and business and industrial complexes. The school was originally called Immaculate Heart College, even though it began as a high school. The College portion opened in the following decade.

Click HERE to see more in Early Views of Hollywood (1850 - 1920)

Historical Notes

The Santa Fe Railroad Hospital was built for railroad employees and was one of four employee hospitals run by the railroad Santa Fe Employees Hospital Association.  It opened to great fanfare in 1904 and even had its own Jersey cows, chickens, and a garden to provide patients with the freshest milk, butter, eggs, poultry and vegetables. This original Moorish-style hospital building designed by Charles Whittlesey, known as the Santa Fe Coast Lines Hospital, was razed and rebuilt in 1924 in the current Mission Revival Style structure. In 1989 it was renamed the Linda Vista Community Hospital.

Historical Notes

In 2011, the 4.2-acre Linda Vista Hospital complex was purchased by AMCAL Multi-Housing Inc. The structures, including the main hospital and former nurses dormitory, were renovated into the Linda Vista Senior Apartments and now provide a total of 97 apartments for fixed-income seniors plus a medical facility.^*

In 2002, the Santa Fe Coast Lines Hospital was designated LA Historic Cultural Monument No. 713.

Historical Notes

The Alvarado Terrace Historic District is within the original Spanish Pueblo of Los Angeles boundaries established in 1781. During the late 19th century, the land was owned by Doria Deighton Jones, the widow of a wholesale grocer. In 1897, the Los Angeles Golf Club (predecessor of the Los Angeles Country Club) leased the land and built a nine-hole golf course that came to be known as "Windmill Links," due to the use of an old windmill as the clubhouse.

Jones subdivided the land into residential lots in 1902. The lots were sold for $10 each, with the caveat that the buyer was required to build a house costing at least $4,000.  The area was promoted as a "second Chester Place," referring to the city's most prestigious street in the West Adams district. By 1906, the development was full.

Historical Notes

The Mission Revival Style home is located in the Alvarado Terrace Historic District, at 1345 Alvarado Terrace.  In 1971, it was designated LA Historic Cultural Monument No. 86 (Click HERE to see complete listing).

Six homes and a church in the district were designated as Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monuments in 1971, and the entire district was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.

Historical Notes

Built in 1901, this Mission Revival-style house was first occupied by Reuben G. Simons, a member of a successful brick-making family.

In 1906, Simons sold the house to Wiltcie B. Ames, a Wisconsin-born, self-made lawyer who arrived in Los Angeles in 1905 after studying law at the University of Oregon and living in Spokane and Oregon. One of his early ventures was the Ames Mercantile Agency, which would play a prominent role in his life a few years later.

Historical Notes

This two-story building features Spanish tiled roofs, multicurved parapets, and an arcade walkway. The corner walls display multicurved parapets, with window wells below holding plants. To the right, an arcade walkway is visible, and at the left, stairs lead up to another arcade walkway with a balcony above. Additional multicurved parapets are visible in the distance, with other homes in the background.

In July 1909, Ames arranged a swap sale of the house, selling it to Joseph Metzler of the Metzler Investment Company for $48,000, including the neighboring building—a price that seemed high until reading a few columns over. As it turns out, "W.B. Ames, president of the City and County Bank, has expanded his rural holdings by purchasing a 40-acre alfalfa and apple ranch from Joseph Metzler to add to his investment in a San Dimas fruit farm."

Historical Notes

The house was built on an unusually large lot, with additional living in back, as well as two flats out of frame left in the photo above.

About ten years after the house was built, the Los Angeles Children's Orthopedic Hospital began expanding along the east side of Flower Street, gradually changing the character of the area. This expansion, along with the construction of the Harbor Freeway, likely contributed to the house's demolition by 1956.

Historical Notes

Today, the former site of the 2733 S. Flower residence lies over the Harbor Freeway, just before it passes under Flower Street.

Historical Notes

Polytechnic High School opened in 1897 as a "commercial branch" of the only high school at that time in the city, the Los Angeles High School. As such, Polytechnic is the second oldest high school in the city. The school's original campus was located in downtown Los Angeles on South Beaudry Avenue, the present location of the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) Board of Education headquarters.

Historical Notes

In 1905, Polytechnic moved to the corner of Washington Boulevard and Flower Street, in downtown Los Angeles. Polytechnic High School was the first school to offer studies in multiple class subjects, which is now modeled by many high schools, as "periods".

Historical Notes

In 1935, to honor the school's founder and first principal, John H. Francis was added to the school's name.

Historical Notes

Fifty years after the campus on Washington and Flower was built, it was decided that the high school should be relocated to the San Fernando Valley. In 1957, the new John H. Francis Polytechnic High School campus was built in Sun Valley.

Since Poly's relocation, the former site has been the campus of Los Angeles Trade-Technical College.

Historical Notes

The Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce's first meetings were held in the old board of trade building on First and Broadway, which has since been torn down. In 1890, the Chamber moved into the Mott Building at 131 S. Main Street, where it stayed for four years. In 1894, the organization moved to new quarters at the southeast corner of Broadway and 4th, in a building designed especially for its use, the then-new three-story Mason Building - which would serve as the L.A. Chamber of Commerce for twelve years. In 1903, it moved into the Southwest Building, located at 130 S. Broadway, and stayed there until January 31, 1925. In 1925 it moved to its brand new building at 1151 S. Broadway and 12th Street. It now makes its home at 350 S. Bixel and 6th streets.*

Historical Notes

The Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce, founded in 1888, is Southern California's largest not-for-profit business federation, representing over 1,600 businesses. The Chamber's early focus promoted the region's abundance of opportunities in agriculture and international trade. In 1967, the Chamber changed its name to the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce.*

Historical Notes

The Chamber of Commerce moved here in 1903 and stayed until January 31, 1925.

Historical Notes

The 6-story Southwest Building was built between 1903. Designers: Allen, William H., Architect (firm); William H. Allen.

Historical Notes

The Los Angeles Daily Herald was first published on October 2, 1873, by Charles A. Storke. The Herald was the first newspaper in Southern California to use the innovative steam press; the newspaper’s offices at 130 South Broadway were popular with the public because large windows on the ground floor allowed passersby to see the presses in motion.

Beginning in the teens and guided by the Hearst-trained editors, Edwin R. Collins and John B.T. Campbell, the local coverage for which the Herald was known started to emphasize scandal, crime, and the emerging Hollywood scene. By the 1920s, editors Wes Barr and James H. Richardson were so well known for their investigative reporting that they became the prototypes for the morally ambiguous, chain-smoking reporters who figured in so many film noir movies of the 1930s. In 1922, the Herald officially joined the Hearst News empire, although several sources suggest that Hearst had secretly purchased the paper in 1911 when Collins and Campbell took the helm.^

Historical Notes

In 1931, Hearst merged the Los Angeles Daily Herald with the Los Angeles Evening Express to form the Los Angeles Evening Express and Evening Herald, which was then the largest circulating evening newspaper west of the Mississippi.^

Historical Notes

The Merchants Trust Company Building was built on the site of the first building designed and constructed as a YMCA structure in Los Angeles (1889). Click HERE to see more.

Historical Notes

In 1921 the Department of Water and Power purchased the seven-story Merchants Trust Company Building at 207 South Broadway, which was to remain its main headquarters building for forty-four years. It is one of the 11 buildings the new DWP General Office Building (now known as John Ferraro Building) replaced in 1965.

Historical Notes

Ebell of Los Angeles was formed as a women's club in 1894, based on the principles and teachings of Adrian Ebell, a pioneer in women's education and organizing women's societies in the late 19th century. Harriet Williams Russell Strong was a founder of the club, serving as its president for three consecutive terms.

The minutes of the first meeting of Ebell of Los Angeles identify its purpose "to interest women in the study of all branches of literature, art and science and the advancement of women in every branch of culture." The club adopted as its motto, "I will find a way or make one -- I serve." ^*

Historical Notes

Between 1897 and 1906 the power house was in use as Edison Electric Company Steam Plant No. 1. This was Edison's first power plant located in the City of Los Angeles.

Historical Notes

At the time of this photo the brick building at the corner of 2nd and Boylston streets, once part of Edison Electric Steam Plant No. 1, was no longer being used as a power plant. It now was serving as an Edison Electrical Sub-Station.

In 1909, Los Angeles Edsion Electric changed its name to Southern California Edison (SCE).

Historical Notes

Over the years the Boylston facility has been used by the West Side Lighting Company, Los Angeles Edison Electric, Southern California Edison, and the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, which has occupied the site since 1940.

Click HERE to see more in Early Boylston Street Yard.

Historical Notes

The Pacific Electric Building was designed by architect Thornton Fitzhugh in the Beaux-Arts style, which was popular in the early 20th century. Though not the first modern building in Los Angeles, nor the tallest, its large footprint and ten-floor height made it the largest building in floor area west of Chicago for several decades.

Historical Notes

The historic Pacific Electric Building (also known as the Huntington Building, after the Pacific Electric founder and developer Henry Huntington) opened on January 12, 1905 as the terminal for the Pacific Electric Red Car Lines running east and south of downtown Los Angeles, as well as the company's main headquarters building.

Historical Notes

The building played a crucial role in the development of Los Angeles' public transportation system. It housed the main terminal for the Pacific Electric Railway, which connected Los Angeles with surrounding cities and suburbs, facilitating the growth and expansion of the region.

Historical Notes

Above the main floor terminal were five floors of offices and, on the top three floors, the Jonathan Club, one of the city's leading businessmen's clubs. The club moved to its own building on Figueroa Street in 1925. Click HERE to see more on the Jonathan Club.

Historical Notes

In 1908, Cole's Pacific Electric Buffet was opened on the lower floor of the building and is still there today. As such, Cole's claims to be Los Angeles' oldest restaurant and pub that has been in operation in the same place since its founding. It is one of two local establishments which lay claim to having invented the French dip sandwich.

Historical Notes

The decline of the streetcar system began with the unprecedented development of single-family tract housing designed for automobiles. This shift in urban development accelerated the downfall of the streetcar system as the region focused more on private transportation.

Historical Notes

In the mid-1900s, the streetcar system, primarily operated by Pacific Electric (1901-1961), was at its peak. However, the rise of automobiles, increased congestion, and the adoption of diesel buses led to a significant decline in streetcar ridership. In 1955, a mass abandonment of streetcar lines occurred, leading to the retirement of many cars. By 1963, the last remaining five streetcar lines and two trolley bus lines were replaced with diesel buses.

Historical Notes

The Pacific Electric Building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is recognized for its architectural and historical significance

In 2005, the Pacific Electric Building was converted by ICO Group into residential live/work lofts and is occupied by tenants. Several commercial tenants have filled the first floor spaces along 6th Street. The original Cole's space was renovated and divided to add another restaurant and bar. The building lobby currently displays a number of artifacts left over from its days as once an exceptionally active interurban rail terminal. "DANGER" warnings are set into the sidewalk at the Main Street location where trains once entered and left the building, remaining as evidence of its original grand purpose.

Historical Notes

The Bryson-Bonebrake Block was one of the more important office buildings built during the 1880s building boom in Los Angeles, CA. It had six stories, with a typical Queen Anne Style variety of shapes, materials and ornamentation for which architect John Cather Newsom was famous.*##*

At the turn of the century chariot races were held at the Pasadena Tournament of Roses at Tournament Park. In 1909 football was substituted for chariot racing as the midwinter attraction. The first game was played between Michigan (49) and Stanford (0). In the years that followed, the Rose Bowl game grew to become the "granddaddy" of all bowl games.

Click HERE to see more in Early Views of Pasadena.

Historical Notes

Two highly influential figures in 1880s Los Angeles, John Bryson, Sr., the 19th mayor, of LA and Major George H. Bonebrake, President of the Los Angeles National Bank and the State Loan and Trust Company, commissioned John Cather Newsom to erect this 126-room bank and office building. It's cost was projected to be $224,000, a staggering sum at the time. Bonebrake was one of the richest men in the city at the time, and he could afford making such an investment. He located the main headquarters of his bank in the Bryson-Bonebrake Block.*##*

Historical Notes

An annex building of the Los Angeles Times occupies the site today.

Historical Notes

Built in 1904, Engine House No. 18 was designed in the Mission Revival style by noted architect John Parkinson, whose later works included Los Angeles City Hall, Union Station and Bullocks Wilshire.

Fire Station No. 18 was dedicated LA Historic-Cultural Monument No. 349 in 1988 (Click HERE to see complete listing).  It is also listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The Exceptional Children’s Foundation purchased Engine House No. 18 in 2011 with the goal of converting the cultural landmark into a fine arts training center for adults with special needs and a community creative space for the residents of South Los Angeles. The new facility was scheduled to be opened in late 2013.*^

Historical Notes

In 1915, Engine House No. 18 was one of a dozen stations closed because of budget cutbacks resulting from the "two-platoon ordinance" passed by the Los Angeles City Council in 1915. The station re-opened in 1920 and remained an operating fire station until 1968.^##*

Fire Station No. 18 was dedicated LA Historic-Cultural Monument No. 349 in 1988 (Click HERE to see complete listing).  It is also listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The Exceptional Children’s Foundation purchased Engine House No. 18 in 2011 with the goal of converting the cultural landmark into a fine arts training center for adults with special needs and a community creative space for the residents of South Los Angeles. The new facility was scheduled to be opened in late 2013.^*

Historical Notes

Constructed in 1906 at the then almost unheard of cost of $2 million, the hotel then added a large addition in 1911. The addition included a beautiful banquet hall with a spectacular stained-glass ceiling, now known as the Palm Court.^

Historical Notes

The Alexandria Hotel, named for the owner of the property, Harry Alexander, was Los Angeles' most elegant hotel before the construction of the Biltmore in 1923. Among the hotel's illustrious guests were President Theodore Roosevelt, King Edward VIII of England, boxer Jack Dempsey, opera star Enrico Caruso, and movie stars Mary Pickford and Charlie Chaplin. The site was developed in 1906 by the Bilicke-Rowan Fireproof Building Company, at the then almost unheard of cost of $2 million. Designed by John Parkinson, the hotel has a modest Beaux Arts pressed brick and terra cotta façade, distinguished by large sculptures of griffins.^

Historical Notes

Originally, the stately marble entrance lobby had massive marble columns reaching two stories from the lobby to the gold leaf ceiling. The lobby was drastically remodeled in the late 1960s when a mezzanine was added, which cut the lobby height in half.

Historical Notes

The "All Fire-proof" Alexandria was once the queen of Los Angeles' hotels.

Historical Notes

The Alexandria Hotel at 501 South Spring Street became Los Angeles’s first five-star luxury hotel when it opened on February 12, 1906.  It also served as the city’s main social center from 1906 to the end of 1920.

Historical Notes

In 1911 the hotel expanded with a new addition which included a beautiful banquet hall with a spectacular stained-glass ceiling, now known as the Palm Court.^

Historical Notes

Bilicke and Rowan sold the hotel in 1919, and after a succession of owners the hotel went bankrupt and closed in 1932. The Alexandria re-opened in 1937 and has had many different owners in the subsequent years. The hotel was renovated in 1969-70 in a neo-Victorian style, and in 2005 was converted into rental units.^

Historical Notes

In 2005, as the area around the hotel was gradually transformed with the conversion of numerous buildings to expensive lofts, the new owners of the hotel converted it permanently into an apartment building. Remodeling was conducted gradually, as short-term tenants moved out. The building today contains a mix of market rate and subsidized housing. The building was declared a historic place. Its elegant ballrooms are frequently rented for events, filming and weddings.  From 2010-2014, its lobby featured The Gorbals, a restaurant run by Top Chef winner Ilan Hall.^*

Historical Notes

The Palm Court, by the early 1970s, was in relatively good shape, and was declared as a city historic-cultural landmark on March 3, 1971. By this time, there had been a gradual westward movement of the entire downtown business district. The old heart of Los Angeles along Broadway was abandoned and a new downtown grew up west of the Biltmore along Figueroa. The hotel was gradually transformed into a Single Room Occupancy or SRO hotel, housing long-term low-income residents. Its location near Los Angeles's Skid Row meant that it had long since ceased to attract overnight guests. During this period the building became notorious for drug crime and its generally dangerous character.^

Historical Notes

The California Club is a private social club that was incorporated on December 24, 1888.  The first organizational meeting was held September 24, 1887, "in Justice Austin's courtroom," with N.C. Coleman as chairman and H.T. De Wilson as secretary.

The club's first location was in the second-floor rooms over the Tally-Ho Stables on the northwest corner of First and Fort (Broadway) streets, where the Los Angeles County Law Library now stands. It moved to the Wilcox Building on the southeast corner of Second and Spring streets in 1895, occupying the two top floors, the fourth and fifth. The building was distinguished as the first in Los Angeles to have two elevators — one for the public and the other for members. The men's dining room, reading room, bar and lounge were on the top floor. On the floor below was the ladies' dining room.

The club remained at the Wilcox Building for ten years.  Increased membership impelled the club to seek a new location in the southward and westward direction of the expansion of the city. In 1904 the club's headquarters were moved to a new five-story building with a basement and a roof garden on the northwest corner of Fifth and Hill streets.

Historical Notes

In 1930, the California Club moved into a new larger building located at 538 S. Flower Street. The building would then be demolished to make way for the construction of the Title Guarantee & Trust Building (1931).

Click HERE to see the California Club Building (1930 - Present)

Historical Notes

The six-story building, addressed, 427 W. 5th Street (5th and Olive) was funded by the Temple Baptist Church and some neighborhood businessmen, would be the first large reinforced concrete structure in Los Angeles and the biggest theatre west of Chicago. It would also be recognized as the first large space to have a balcony without supporting columns.

This building replaced an older building called Hazard's Pavilion and was dedicated in 1906.

Historical Notes

Opened in 1906 as the Temple Auditorium with a production of "Aida."  It was a $350,000 project funded by the Temple Baptist Church and local businessmen. The building was built on the site of the 1887 Hazard's Pavilion.

Historical Notes

The eight story building had retail on the 5th Street side, a basement banquet hall, two 950 seat halls on the second floor, 118 office/studio spaces plus the main auditorium.

Historical Notes

The following is the chronology of names for the Auditorium Building located on the northeast corner of 5th and Olive Street:

Temple Auditorium (1906-1914): The building opened on November 7, 1906, under this name. It was constructed for the Temple Baptist Church and a group of investors at a cost of $350,000.

Clune's Auditorium or Clune's Theatre Beautiful (1914-1920): In 1914, showman William H. "Billy" Clune leased the auditorium to exhibit silent films. During this period, it was often referred to by these names.

Philharmonic Auditorium (1920-1964): The Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra began using the venue as its home in 1920, leading to this new name. It remained known as the Philharmonic Auditorium for over four decades.

Auditorium Building (1964-1985): After the Los Angeles Philharmonic moved to the newly opened Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in 1964, the building was simply referred to as the Auditorium Building.

Historical Notes

In 1914, the theatre was leased to pioneer showman Billy Clune and became the grandest movie palace west of New York. There was (still) church on Sundays, lots of concerts, and feature films with elaborate prologues.

Historical Notes

Clune's Auditorium was much influenced by the design of Sullivan's Auditorium Theatre in Chicago. The eight story building had retail on the 5th Street side, a basement banquet hall, two 950 seat halls on the second floor, 118 office/studio spaces plus the main auditorium. The theatre was used on Sundays by the Temple Baptist Church.

Historical Notes

The building was known until 1920 as Clune's Auditorium and (sometimes) Clune's Theatre Beautiful. Even though its movie career was brief, given the size of the theatre, the impressive architecture and Clune's dazzling productions, this building ranks as the first true Los Angeles movie palace. Clune used a 20 piece orchestra and reserved the biggest pictures he could get for this venue.

Historical Notes

In 1920, the Los Angeles Philharmonic moved into this building in the orchestra's second year of existence.

The Los Angeles Philharmonic was founded by William Andrews Clark Jr., a multi-millionaire and amateur musician, who established the city’s first permanent symphony orchestra in 1919.

After playing its first season at Trinity Auditorium at Grand Ave and Ninth Street, the Los Angeles Philharmonic moved into the 5th Street and Olive Ave auditorium in 1920.  The venue had previously been known as Clune's Auditorium but was renamed Philharmonic Auditorium after the move.  The LA Philharmonic stayed here until 1964 when it moved into the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion.

Historical Notes

Note how the overhead lines have been removed and streetlights upgraded when compared to previous photo.

Historical Notes

Architects: Charles F. Whittlesey, Otto H. Neher and engineer E.R. Harris designed what was the first reinforced concrete building in Los Angeles and the largest theatre west of Chicago. It was structurally advanced for its time and used no columns to support the balcony.

Historical Notes

This is where the LA Philharmonic played until the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion opened in the mid-1960s.

Historical Notes

The Philharmonic Auditorium was also used for Broadway shows produced by the Los Angeles Civic Light Opera for 27 seasons. After the LACLO and the LAPhil moved to the Music Center in 1964, the building was again known as Temple Baptist Church.

The following is the chronology of names for the Auditorium Building located on the northeast corner of 5th and Olive Street:

Temple Auditorium (1906-1914): The building opened on November 7, 1906, under this name. It was constructed for the Temple Baptist Church and a group of investors at a cost of $350,000.

Clune's Auditorium or Clune's Theatre Beautiful (1914-1920): In 1914, showman William H. "Billy" Clune leased the auditorium to exhibit silent films. During this period, it was often referred to by these names.

Philharmonic Auditorium (1920-1964): The Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra began using the venue as its home in 1920, leading to this new name. It remained known as the Philharmonic Auditorium for over four decades.

Auditorium Building (1964-1985): After the Los Angeles Philharmonic moved to the newly opened Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in 1964, the building was simply referred to as the Auditorium Building.

Historical Notes

The 9-story Hotel Lankershim was completed in 1905 as an imitation of the Hotel St. Francis in San Francisco--far superior to any other hotels in L.A. at the time. It had 200 servants, 250 rooms, and 160 baths.

Before the hotel was begun in 1902, there was a vineyard. The 7th and Broadway site was the home and vineyard of Judge Wilson Hugh Gray.*#^^

Architect Robert B. Young also designed several other hotels including the Hollenbeck, the Lexington, and the Westminster.

Historical Notes

James Boon Lankershim was the son of Isaac Lankershim, a German-born Californian landowner who owned 60,000 acres in the San Fernando Valley.  James joined his father's company, the San Fernando Farm Homestead Association, together with his brother in law, Isaac Newton Van Nuys, focusing on real estate while Van Nuys focused on wheat.  In 1905, he built the Lankershim Hotel on the southeast corner of Broadway and 7th Street.  He also built the San Fernando Building on the corner of 4th Avenue and Main Street, where his name is embedded in the tiles at the entrance.

Historical Notes

Seismic studies apparently finished the hotel before its 80th birthday. In the mid-1980s, the order was signed to bring down the top seven of its nine floors. No one had lived in them for years because they'd been deemed unsafe since the 1971 Sylmar quake.

Historical Notes

Arthur Letts, founder of The Broadway, was born in the small town of Holdenby, Northamptonshire, England, in 1862, and went on to become one of the richest and most influential men in Southern California.*#^

Letts arrived in the Los Angeles, California area in 1896. At the corner of Fourth and Broadway, then on the far southern edge of the downtown Los Angeles business district, the J. A. Williams & Co. Dry Goods Store had gone bankrupt. With the help of an influential friend, who was impressed with Letts’ knowledge of that type of business, a loan of $5000 was secured from the Los Angeles National Bank, and opened his business on February 24, 1896. He named the department store The Broadway.^*

Historical Notes

The Broadway outgrew the handsome building it occupied, and in 1913 revealed plans to demolish half of its structure and take over space in the adjacent Clark Hotel building, which fronted on Hill Street. In place of the old building would be erected a 9-story department store building “in a commercial adaptation of the Italian Renaissance style.” *#^

Historical Notes

The company stated at the time that “the earth will be ransacked for merchandise” to fill the 470,000 sq. ft. building. When the first half of the planned structure opened in February of 1914, the Los Angeles Times described it as an “imposing and harmonious structure.” *#^

Historical Notes

In 1912, Arthur Letts, owner of the Broadway department store built the present building (seen above) at 4th and Broadway, which included 460,000 square feet of retail space. This big box was based on volume selling, which was made possible by its location at the hub of the regional electric railway transportation system. The Broadway was oriented to "budget-conscious" shoppers.*^##

The Beaux Arts building with its restrained Italian Renaissance Revival ornamentation was the work of architects John Parkinson and Edwin Bergstrom. The two also collaborated on the Security Trust and Savings Bank and the Los Angeles Athletic Club. #^*#

Historical Notes

Arthur Letts was also a major real estate speculator. He owned a huge chunk of land in East Hollywood (where his mansion was located) and bought up the remnants of a large Mexican ranch in the foothills west of Beverly Hills in 1919. He created Westwood Village and Holmby Hills on part of this land in the late '20s.*^##

Historical Notes

The Broadway became one of the dominant retailers in Southern California and the Southwest. In 1950, the company merged with Sacramento-based Hale Brothers to form Broadway-Hale Stores.^*

Historical Notes

The Broadway bought out competitors in Los Angeles (B.H. Dyas, Milliron's, and Coulter's), San Diego (Marston's), and Phoenix (Korrick's). In later years The Broadway opened stores in Nevada (Las Vegas), New Mexico, and Colorado. In 1979, it was split into two divisions: The Broadway Southern California, based in Los Angeles; and Broadway Southwest, headquartered in Phoenix (for the non-California stores).^*

Historical Notes

In 1973 The Broadway closed this location and the building sat vacant for over twenty years, during which it faced extensive vandalism and damage from aborted remodel attempts. The State of California purchased the building in 1995 a part of Governor Pete Wilson's plan to move 3,500 state workers into the historic core of Downtown. In 1999 it reopened as the Junipero Serra Building, a modern 350,000- square-foot office building, occupied by 1,700 employees. It was the lowest-cost California State office building in three decades and received a Conservancy Preservation Award in 2000.

Historical Notes

The Broadway's parent Carter Hawley Hale Stores ran into financial difficulties which resulted from poor management decisions and hostile takeover attempts. In 1996 the chain was acquired by Federated Department Stores and the majority of locations were converted to the Macy's nameplate. Several stores in affluent areas where Macy's already had locations were closed, refurbished and reopened as Bloomingdale's, while Federated sold many of the remaining stores to Sears.

Historical Notes

The Lankershim Flats was James Boon Lankershim’s first hotel located at 7th and Broadway. He would sell the property and build his second hotel, the Lankershim Hotel, across the street. In 1906, the building would be demolished to make way for John Bullock’s seven-story department store.

Historical Notes

Bullock's was founded in 1907 at Seventh & Broadway in downtown Los Angeles by John G. Bullock, with the support of The Broadway Department Store owner Arthur Letts.^*

Historical Notes

The original Bullock’s Department Store was designed by the architectural firm of Parkinson and Bergstrom and opened in March 1907 at 639-657 South Broadway.^##^

Historical Notes

In 1907, John Gillespie Bullock and Percy Glen Winnet opened Bullock’s at the corner of 7th & Broadway Streets in downtown Los Angeles. The two had worked at The Broadway and convinced Arthur Letts, Sr, founder of The Broadway to back them in this new retail venture  targeting the more up-scale customer. The store grew over the years as it acquired buildings on 7th Street between Hill and Broadway; one of the buildings was a competing department store. In 1923, John Bullock and P. G. Winnet bought out Arthur Lett’s interest. #*^#

Historical Notes

Bullock’s flagship store proved so successful that it expanded quarters in 1912. The company purchased adjacent buildings in 1917 and 1919 for a total of 460,000 square feet. By 1920 Bullock’s and Robinson’s functioned as anchors to an elite shopping precinct that was unprecedented in Los Angeles.^*

Historical Notes

Between 1923 and 1928, Bullock’s added an additional 400,000 square feet through the construction of three more additions while also purchasing two adjacent buildings.^*

Historical Notes

In 1923, John G. Bullock and business partner P.G. Winnett bought out Arthur Letts' interest after his death and the companies became completely separated. In 1929 Bullock & Winnett opened a luxury branch on Wilshire Boulevard, named Bullock's Wilshire.^##^

Historical Notes

A seven story building anchored the corner of Broadway and 7th Streets. The Broadway and Hill buildings were connected by an alleyway known as St. Vincent's Court. The store caused controversy when it wanted to connect its structures above this passage, but ultimately prevailed.*#^

Historical Notes

Bullock’s Downtown closed in 1986.  The building is now the St. Vincent's Jewelry Center.*

Historical Notes

In 1903, Herman W. Hellman hired architect Alfred Rosenheim to design the Hellman Building named in his honor. The eight-story building in Downtown Los Angeles still stands today, on the corner of Fourth Street and Spring Street.^*

Historical Notes

Herman W. Hellman was born on September 25, 1843 in Reckendorf, Bavaria. He emigrated to the United States with his brother Isaias W. Hellman, arriving in Los Angeles on May 14, 1859 as a sixteen-year-old.

He started working as a courier from Wilmington to Los Angeles. In 1861, he worked for his uncle, Samuel Hellman, who had a store in Los Angeles. Shortly after, he opened his own store at Downey Block.

He established a wholesale grocer's called Hellman, Haas, & Co. with Jacob Haas, the brother of Abraham Haas. They sold groceries in Southern California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas. As his business prospered, he became one of the wealthiest men in Los Angeles by the 1880s. The company later became known as Baruch, Haas, & Co.

In 1890, H. W. Hellman became Vice President and General Manager of The Farmers and Merchants Bank, a bank established by his brother. He was later demoted by his brother, who found his lending practices too lenient. He resigned in 1903, and became the President of the Merchants National Bank instead. He also became a co-founder of the Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce.

Hellman also served as President of the Congregation B'nai B'rith, later known as the Wilshire Boulevard Temple.^*

Historical Notes

In 2002, the Hellman Building was dedicated Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument No. 729 (Click HERE to see complete listing.

Historical Notes

Built in 1905 on the site of the Hellman Residence, the bank was designed by the firm of Morgan and Walls.*

Historical Notes

The Farmers and Merchants Bank’s two-story façade is reminiscent of a Roman temple.  It is punctuated by an entrance framed with Corinthian columns topped by a large triangular pediment.

Historical Notes

The Farmer's and Merchants Bank was founded by 23 prominent Los Angeles businessmen, with an initial capital of $500,000. The three largest subscribers were Isaias W. Hellman ($100,000), former California Governor John G. Downey ($100,000), and Ozro W. Childs ($50,000) who in later years became the founders of the University of Southern California. Other investors included Charles Ducommun ($25,000), I.M. Hellman ($20,000) and Jose Mascarel ($10,000.)*

Historical Notes

The Farmers and Merchants Bank was the first incorporated bank in Los Angeles, founded in 1871 by John G Downey, the seventh governor of California and Isaias W. Hellman, a successful merchant, real estate speculator and banker, and brother of Hermann W. Hellman. Downey was named the first president. Isaias later served as president of the bank till his death in 1920.*

Historical Notes

The bank's founder, I.W. Hellman, was a cautious lender, insisting that major borrowers have good character and provide good security. Its subsequent presidents, J.A. Graves (who had been Hellman's attorney) and Victor H. Rosetti, continued Hellman's conservative practices, with a large portion of the bank's capital constantly held in Treasury securities. As a result, the Bank survived every panic, from 1873 through the Great Depression.*

Historical Notes

The one-branch downtown bank was eventually seen as not likely to continue to grow. In 1956, it merged with Security First National Bank, which became in later years Security Pacific National Bank, and ultimately was acquired by the Bank of America.*

Historical Notes

In 1983, the Farmers & Merchants Bank Building was dedicated Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument No. 271 (Click HERE to see complete listing).

Historical Notes

Designed in the Classical Revival style, the Farmers and Merchants Bank remains one of Southern California's finest examples of the early "temples of finance" which were popular at the turn of the century.*

Historical Notes

Up to 1906, this corner was considered too far south for a large business. This building was occupied by a saloon at the corner. In 1906, John H. Norton built the steel frame structure, and made it the strongest building, size considered, in Los Angeles. It was designed for heavy goods, and was occupied in its entirety by the H. Jeyne Co.*           

Historical Notes

A colony of civic-minded women formed the LA-YWCA in 1893 in two rooms at 212 S. Broadway, then moved into the Schumacher Building at 107 S. Spring in 1894. They then shuttled off into the shelter of the old City Hall at 211 W. Second, and finally took over a whole floor of the Conservative Life building at the NE corner of Third and Hill in ’06. They were renting out a small building as their annex, on the same side of Hill, forty feet north of Third, and finally decided to erect their own sky-scraping headquarter building (seen above).  They dropped the cornerstone in 1907 and moved in 1908. #^#*

Historical Notes

The building’s basement held an auditorium for 500, a gymnasium, and a 30×50’ swimming pool. It was most noted for its gargantuan light well, which formed an open-air patio famous for its flower boxes filled with color-coordinated flora cascading to a fancy tile floor.

4,000 women, including 1,600 students engaged in the study of the domestic sciences, swam and ate and sewed and so on and all was fine and good until 1919, when the Y gals sold the building, deciding “to be nearer the shopping.”  In 1926 they opened their grand Y-hotel at 939 S. Figueroa, moving their offices into this building (now the site of the Hotel Figueroa’s pool).

The YWCA Building was purchased by the Union League Club of Los Angeles, where the Republican Women’s Club (the incipient CFRW) often met.  It was sold in 1924 to Alexander Mayer who converted the building into the Hotel Belmont. #^#*

Historical Notes

In 1924, Alexander Mayer purchased the YWCA Building (Union League Building) for $400,000 and converted it into the Hotel Belmont. 

The summer of 1971 saw the Bunker Hill Redevelopment Project at the tail-end of its demolitions and the YWCA/Union League/Belmont, one of the last standing Stalwarts, tumbled under wreckers’ hammers. #^#*

Historical Notes

The Mason Opera House opened in 1903 and was the leading stop for dramatic stars in Los Angeles for decades.
In the late 30s, the Mason was the site of a number of Federal Theatre Project productions. Later known as Fouce's Mason Theater, it was operated for years by Frank Fouce showing Mexican films.**^

Historical Notes

The Mason was the leading stop for dramatic stars in Los Angeles for decades. Just a sampling: In March 1907 it got a run of "The Free Lance," a comic opera by John Phillip Sousa. In April, 1911 Sara Bernhardt appeared at the Mason for a four night engagement. In March 1912 the Mason was running the hit Broadway musical "The Pink Lady." In March 1914 the De Koven Opera Company presented "Robin Hood" and later in the month the Stratford-upon-Avon Players presented seven productions as part of their first American tour.^

Historical Notes

The Mason Opera House had a seating capacity of 1,650 seats. It was a two balcony house. Later it was listed as 1,552 and in the 1907-1908 Henry's Official Western Theatrical Guide it was listed as 1,400. The 2nd balcony only had access from the rear of the building. It evidently wasn't used during the theatre's final decades.^  

Historical Notes

Historical Notes

In 1937 the management was turned over to Frank Fouce and it was advertised as Fouce's Mason Theatre. Fouce also operated the Million Dollar Theatre and the Mayan Theatre as Spanish language houses.

Historical Notes

The 1,600 seat two-balcony house opened in 1903 as the Mason Opera House and was for decades a major stop for touring attractions. In its final decades it was a home for Mexican film and vaudeville. But its end would be coming soon. In the December 21, 1954 issue of the L.A. Times:

"Historic Mason Opera House to Come Down - Passing of a famous Los Angeles landmark was revealed yesterday with the announcement that the Mason Opera House at 127 S. Broadway will be torn down. Frank Fouce, owner of the theater, said it has been sold to the state. He said the state had acquired title to a major portion of the block for expansion of the Civic Center. The Mason’s star began to fade in the early 20s, when the Biltmore theater became the leading legitimate theater. In recent years the Mason has been a Mexican film theater. Final presentation before the state takes possession will be the showing of a Mexican film 'Pueblerina,' starring Columba Dominguez." ^

Historical Notes

The Mason, and everything else on the block, was demolished in 1956 to make way for the short-lived Junipero Serra State Office Building (1960-2006).

Historical Notes

The Junipero Serra State Office Building was razed in 2006. The lot sat empty until 2014 when construction began for the First Street U.S. Courthouse Building (completed 2016).

Click HERE to see contemporary view.

Historical Notes

In 1894, Nelson Story bought the property at 610 S. Broadway from J.B. Lankershim for $48,000.  He and his son, Walter, would go on and build the Walter P. Story Building on this sight in 1909.  It was one of the first skyscrapers in Los Angeles and still stands today as The New Story Building.^*

Historical Notes

This 1909 Beaux Arts building was built by Walter Perry Story on a lot his father had purchased in 1894. Story Sr., a successful Montana cattleman and the first person to drive cattle along the Bozeman Trail from Texas to Montana, also financed one half of the building's million-dollar construction.

Walter Story went on to become a successful businessman, civic leader, and Major General in the California National Guard. #^*#

Historical Notes

The Beaux Arts style building was designed by Morgan, Walls and Clements, Architects.*

(ca. 1915)* - View showing an early model roadster parked in front of the main entrance to the Walter P. Story Building, located on the southeast corner of South Broadway and West 6th Street.

Historical Notes

Opened in 1910, the Walter P. Story building’s ground floor contained the largest plate glass windows west of Chicago. There were twelve of them and each cost $1000.*

Historical Notes

The first three stories and the basement of the building were initially designed for retail, and the upscale clothier Mullen and Bluett occupied the space from 1910 through the 1960s. Walter P. Story and his wife lived in the penthouse. #^*#

Historical Notes

The ground floor and basement were occupied by the Mullen & Bluett clothing store. The clothing store, which occupied 28,000 sq. ft. of space, was a proud Los Angeles retailer. The Times writes that "every piece of furniture, all of the window decorations, cases and other fixtures" were made in Los Angeles.*^#*

Historical Notes

If you look at the side of the building today you can still see the outline of the Mullen & Bluett name on the side of the building.

Historical Notes

When Gen. Story died the building was sold at auction. It was purchased for $1,500,000 by Fisher-Cooper Realty Associates of New York City. At the time of the sale the building was still referred to as the "Walter P. Story Building." A story the following year about a renovation is the first to call the structure the "New Story Building." In the time since the building's ownership had been transferred to the "610 Broadway Co." and renamed. Looking closely behind the "New Story" type, you can still see the outline of the old name.*^#*

Historical Notes

The building now houses offices and jewelry businesses. The lobby, with its compact marble staircase, wide bannisters and two story newel posts, is clad in lightly-veined white marble, and features a Tiffany-style stained glass skylight. #^*#

Historical Notes

This was first location for horse racing in Arcadia, located on Baldwin's Santa Anita Ranch. The site later became the Los Angeles County Park located at Santa Anita and Huntington.

Santa Anita Park was originally part of "Rancho Santa Anita," which was owned originally by former San Gabriel Mission Mayor-Domo, Claudio Lopez, and named after a family member, "Anita Cota." The ranch was later acquired by rancher Hugo Reid, a Scotsman. Later, it was owned by multimillionaire horse breeder and racer Lucky Baldwin. Baldwin initially built a racetrack adjacent to the present site in what is today Arcadia, outside of the city of Los Angeles, in 1904. It closed in 1909 and burned down in 1912.^*

Historical Notes

The 'first' Santa Anita Racetrack was built on Elias Jackson ("Lucky") Baldwin's immense estate of "Rancho Santa Anita" and opened on December 7, 1907, but closed just two years later after horse racing was banned in California due to an anti-gambling bill that became law.*

Historical Notes

After Baldwin's death in 1909, horse racing was banned in California and the track was forced to close. Racing in Arcadia did not begin until 1934, where it continues each year from December 26th to April 20th at Santa Anita Park.

Historical Notes

San Pedro was named for St. Peter of Alexandria, a Fourth Century bishop in Alexandria, Egypt. His feast day is November 24 on the local ecclesiastical calendar of Spain, the day on which Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo discovered the bay in 1542 which would be known as San Pedro. Santa Catalina Island, named after Catherine of Alexandria, was claimed for the Spanish Empire the next day, on her feast day, November 25. In 1602–1603, Sebastián Vizcaíno (1548–1624) officially surveyed and mapped the California coastline, including San Pedro Bay, for New Spain.

The land was granted in 1784 by King Carlos III to Juan Jose Dominguez, a retired Spanish soldier who came to California with the Gaspar de Portolà expedition.

Under United States control after 1848, when the United States defeated Mexico in the Mexican-American war, the harbor was greatly improved and expanded under the guidance of Phineas Banning and John Gately Downey, the seventh governor of California.

In 1906, the City of Los Angeles annexed the Harbor Gateway, a long narrow strip of land connecting the city to the coast, and in 1909, the city annexed San Pedro and the adjacent town of Wilmington.^*

Historical Notes

The Classical Revival style City Hall building was constructed in 1909, the year San Pedro was annexed by the City of Los Angeles.

San Pedro's previous City Hall (it's second) was on the northwest corner of 11th Street and Palos Verdes Street.  It was built in 1905 and served as City Hall for only 3 short years until the new building seen above was erected. The building is now the City Hall Market and the Alhambra Bar, 1039 S. Palos Verdes St.^**^

Historical Notes

The Pacific Mutual Building, located at 523 W. 6th Street, was built between 1908 and 1912. From 1916 to 1926 the building was modified and expanded to include: a north side addition, another 12-story structure, a garage building, and a west side addition. In essence, it became three interconnected buildings by 1926.*

Historical Notes

A North Side addition was built in 1916 by William J. Dodd as seen above.*

Historical Notes

A North Side addition was built in 1916 by William J. Dodd; a twelve-story structure was built in 1921 by William J. Dodd and his associate William Richards; the Garage Building was added in 1926 by Schultze and Weaver; and the West Side addition was erected in 1929 by Parkinson and Parkinson. The building underwent Moderne remodeling in 1936 by Parkinson and Parkinson.*

Historical Notes

The Pacific Mutual Building, located at 523 W. 6th Street, are actually three interconnected buildings built between 1908 and 1929. The original structure was designed and built between 1908-1912 by John Parkinson and Edwin Bergstrom. It has undergone many changes since it was built.

In 1974, the building underwent an extensive restoration by Wendell Mounce and Associates, with Bond and Steward, which brought it back to its Beaux Arts revival. And in 1985, the entire building was renovated again by the Westgroup, Inc.*

The Pacific Mutual Building is listed as Historic-Cultural Monument No. 398. Click HERE to see complete listing.

Historical Notes

The three-story, 55-room hotel was built in 1908.  It was located at 2216 West Sixth Street, overlooking Westlake Park.^#*

Historical Notes

The canals converged on a large saltwater lagoon that later became a traffic circle. The bulk of the canals were filled in 1929 to create roads.^*

Historical Notes

Today, the traffic circle at Pacific and Windward Avenues is located on top of what once was the Venice Lagoon.*^

Historical Notes

Ground was broken for the St. Mark's Hotel on December 5,1904. It was one of Venice's original buildings and stood until 1964 when it was demolished.****

Historical Notes

In 1905, the founding year of Venice, Windward Avenue was two blocks long, stretching between the canal system and the pier, lined with hotels that featured hot salt water in every room.****

Historical Notes

The colonnade, made up of dozens of Corinthian columns supporting Venetian-style arcade buildings on Windward, Pacific, and Market avenues, still serves as the gateway to the city and is one of Venice's most recognizable landmarks.

Historical Notes

The entire row of buildings on the left, including the Vista Theatre, was demolished and later became the location of Windward Plaza Park. The St. Marks Hotel on the right would be demolished one year after the above photo was taken.

Historical Notes

Venice of America was founded by tobacco millionaire Abbot Kinney in 1905 as a beach resort town, 14 miles west of Los Angeles. He and his partner Francis Ryan had bought two miles of oceanfront property south of Santa Monica in 1891. They built a resort town on the north end of the property called Ocean Park.

Historical Notes

Kinney built a 1,200-foot long pleasure pier with an auditorium, ship restaurant, and dance hall, constructed a hot salt-water plunge, and built a block-long arcaded business street with Venetian architecture. Tourists, mostly arriving on the "Red Cars" of the Pacific Electric Railway from Los Angeles and Santa Monica, then rode Venice's miniature railroad and gondolas to tour the town.

Historical Notes

The Venice Beach Aquarium exhibited the finest collection of marine specimens on the Pacific coast. It later became the official marine biological station for the University of Southern California. In 1920, along with the pier, the beautiful Venice Aquarium was destroyed by fire.*

Attractions on the Kinney Pier became more amusement-oriented by 1910, when a Venice Scenic Railway, Aquarium, Virginia Reel, Whip, Racing Derby, and other rides and game booths were added.

Historical Notes

In 1920, along with the pier, the beautiful Venice Aquarium was destroyed by fire.

Click HERE to see more in Early Southern California Amusement Parks

Historical Notes

When it was built in 1905, the Ocean Park Bath House was one of the most elaborate structures on Santa Monica's beach. It was Moorish in style, 3 stories high with 5 domes. An ad from 1906 claimed it had the largest swimming pool in the US.

Historical Notes

Looking more like a movie set, the Ocean Park Bath House was one of the most talked about buildings of its day-and a great draw for the beach area. The lavish indoor plunge (heated for those who didn’t take to cooler ocean swimming) was built by A.R. Fraser.

Historical Notes

Click HERE to see more in Early Views of Santa Monica.

Historical Notes

By 1925, Venice's politics became unmanageable. Its roads, water and sewage systems badly needed repair and expansion to keep up with its growing population. When it was proposed that Venice be annexed to Los Angeles, the board of trustees voted to hold an election. Those for annexation and those against were nearly evenly matched, but many Los Angeles residents, who moved to Venice to vote, turned the tide. Venice became part of Los Angeles in November 1925.^*

Historical Notes

The Los Angeles Motordrome opened on April 8, 1910 near the present-day intersection of Culver and Jefferson boulevards in Playa del Rey. Promoters Fred Moskovics and Walter Hemple had taken notice of the success of automobile races involving now-legendary driver Barney Oldfield at Los Angeles tracks in the early 1900s, and hired velodrome designer Jack Prince to design a raised wooden track designed specifically for motorized racing.

Construction on the one-mile round banked track began in Feb. 1910. The Los Angeles Pacific Railway built a special spur to bring fans to the track, which held 12,000 spectators. Sportswriters immediately began referring to the structure as a "pie pan" due to its circular shape and banked track.

The motordrome at Playa del Rey was the first of several that eventually would be built in the Los Angeles area, including wooden tracks in Beverly Hills, Culver City, and the Los Angeles Coliseum motordrome at Hooper Avenue and 35th Street.

On the afternoon of Aug. 11, 1913, a fire broke out under the wooden track in Playa del Rey. Though it did not fully destroy it, the damage was severe enough that rebuilding it wasn't feasible. A Los Angeles Times news story detailing the fire blamed it on vagrants sleeping beneath the track who were careless with matches.

Wooden tracks eventually died out as other surfaces such as asphalt began to be used for auto racing tracks in the late 1920s, replacing the more dangerous wooden structures.^^

Historical Notes

Photo was taken by Howard I Morris, a young engineer working on the LAP's Playa Del Rey Substation equipment. The passenger station and electrical substation are just out of the picture to the left in the tiny village of Playa Del Rey. Courtesy Malcolm Atwill collection.

Historical Notes

Mount Washington was founded in 1909 as a subdivision laid out by real estate developer Robert Marsh. Marsh built the Mount Washington Hotel at the summit of Mount Washington, and the Los Angeles and Mount Washington Railway Company was soon established as a funicular railway up the hill as an alternative to constructing roads up the area's steep hillsides. The railway operated until January 1919.

The railway scaled the western slope of Mount Washington. For a nickel, passengers could disembark from a Yellow Car at the intersection of Marmion and Avenue 43 and ride the funicular to the top of Mount Washington. There, they could stay at a grand hotel or explore the vacant housing lots awaiting a home.^*

The base station on Avenue 43 was declared Historic Monument No. 269 in 1983 (Click HERE to see complete listing).

Historical Notes

The Mount Washington Hotel building remains standing today, having been purchased by the Self-Realization Fellowship in 1925. It was declared Historic Monument No. 845 by the City of Los Angeles on August 16, 2006 (Click HERE to see complete listing).^*

Historical Notes

The Belasco Theatre was opened in 1901 by David Belasco. Initially it was devoted year round to productions by the Belasco stock company. In the 1915 city directory it's listed as the Republic Theatre. By 1919 it had been renamed the Follies.

Belasco later re-surfaced with another theatre with his name on it when the new Belasco Theatre on S. Hill St. opened in 1926.**^

Originally the 337 South Main St. Theater was called the Belasco in 1901. It was renamed the Republic Theater in 1915 and then the Follies Theater in 1919.

The theatre was demolished in 1974 after a long and happy career as a legit theatre, occasional movie venue and many years as a burlesque theatre.**^

Historical Notes

As was the case with most of the older theatres, the Follies Theatre’s entrance was off the street, through a long hallway. Advertising displays were merely cardboard signs.*#*

Historical Notes

The house was built in 1905 for Alfred Jeremy, described by the local papers as a "Pittsburgh capitalist".  It was designed in old mission style by architect Dennis & Farwell and built for about $10,000. The grounds surmounted a knoll from which a fine view of the surrounding country can be had--the ocean to the south and Hollywood and the mountains on the north.

Mervin Jeremiah Monnette purchased the South Western Avenue home from Alfred Jeremy ca.1910 for $55,000. Monnette made his fortune in the early 1900s in the mines of Goldfield, Nevada.  He later became president of the American National Bank, which he purchased, and VP of another, Citizens National Bank.^#^#

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