LAhistory

July 15, 1926: LAPL's beautiful Central Library was dedicated on this day 100 years ago. Postcard views of this Los Angeles Public Library from LMU Library's wonderful Werner von Boltenstern Postcard Collection.

One of my favorite moments from the film Zoot Suit, screened last night at the Ford in honor of the film's 45th anniversary. There's a new documentary about the iconic Zoot Suit playwright, screenwriter and director titled American Pachuco: The Legend of Luis Valdez, which will be screened at Vidiots in late July.

Westlake Park (now MacArthur Park) courtesy of the Los Angeles City Archives.

On this Fourth of July, a look at the Burbank hydrants painted in honor of the US Bicentennial 50 years ago. Loved that someone wanted to include Spock in this series (...at least I think that's Spock). Photos courtesy of the Roy Hankey collection at the Los Angeles Public Library.

C is for Challenge / What We Do Matters

"At Manzanar alone, there were more than 100 men’s baseball teams....The camp also fielded 14 women’s basball teams, with one, the Dusty Chicks, that competed against and beat men’s teams," Ben Railton.

Over 400 artists painted their favorite books for the Very Well Read exhibit, currently on view at the Mural Conservancy of Los Angeles.

This photo (1942) of New Chinatown comes from the @huntingtonlibrary archive, which also houses the invitation to the opening day festivities.

Julius Shulman's photograph of the LA Department of Water and Power headquarters, dedicated on June 24, 1965 (photo courtesy of SFMOMA).

“Certainly the children of Southern California are especially favored, for there is no time of the year when they may not, with impunity, frolic on the sands of the seashore, or wade in the gentle surf that rolls off the bosom of the broad Pacific.” Image & text from the Los Angeles Graphic (June 1918) courtesy of the Los Angeles Public Library. Cover design by artist Ray Winters.

Postcard via LMU Library's Digital Collection.

"As Black Texans moved to California, they brought Juneteenth with them, although the commemoration wasn’t officially recognized in California until 2003," Susan D. Anderson (2021).

The Grand Canyon Scenic Railway ride on Fraser's Million Dollar Pier in Ocean Park. The short-lived amusement park opened on June 17, 1911 and was destroyed by fire in September 1912. Image from the Pomona Daily Review (1911).

When the new Sixth Street Viaduct opened in 2022, I wrote a PBS SoCal article about the Bureau of Engineering photos that documented the 1930s construction of that beautiful bridge.

The 1989 menu for the popular restaurant Ma Maison in Los Angeles, designed by David Hockney (RIP!). Menu courtesy of the LA Public Library's amazing menu collection.

⚽️ "Ricochet" by Roberto Salas

June 9, 1870: The Pico House opened for business on this day 156 years ago. “For a time no other hotel in California matched it in elegance and quality," Carlos Manuel Salomon (author of Pio Pico's biography). This photo (1875) comes from NHMLA's Seaver Center.