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When I Think of Home: Images from L.A. Archives

Colorado Street Bridge, 1913

This bridge was designed by architects Waddell and Harrington of Missouri but the local contractor from Los Angeles, John Drake Mercereau, changed the design to use natural strong footing in the Arroyo saving money to the city and giving the bridge it's distinctive curve. It was the first high bridge across the Arroyo Seco with an eleven-arched reinforced concrete structure. It connected Pasadena with Highland Park and gave way to more development of both sides of the Arroyo.

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Contents of this tag:
1. Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, home to many sports teams and events
2. Los Angeles as it appeared in 1871 Bird's eye view of Los Angeles surrounded by vignettes symbolizing key moments and features in the city's history to 1871, including ranchos; old and new city halls; a view of the pueblo in 1853; zanjas and waterwheels; Placerita Canyon, site of discovery of gold; early vehicular traffic (the Spanish carreta); hacienda life; Chinese dragons from fiesta parades; the Battle of La Mesa 1847; the Federal Building, site of many vigilante hangings; and more.
3. Lanterman House Exterior, West Elevation, 1915 Built in 1915, the Lanterman House was one of the first reinforced concrete homes built west of the Mississippi River. This innovative building material was chosen because of the Lanterman’s interest in preventing fire and earthquake damage. Designed by Arthur Haley, the house features a U-shaped Mexican Colonial hacienda design with a fountain courtyard in the middle, pergolas with plantings on all sides of the house, and English Arts and Crafts design elements throughout.
4. Streetscape of the corner of Wilshire Boulevard and South Normandie, Los Angeles, 1942
5. Colorado Street Bridge, 1913 This bridge was designed by architects Waddell and Harrington of Missouri but the local contractor from Los Angeles, John Drake Mercereau, changed the design to use natural strong footing in the Arroyo saving money to the city and giving the bridge it's distinctive curve. It was the first high bridge across the Arroyo Seco with an eleven-arched reinforced concrete structure. It connected Pasadena with Highland Park and gave way to more development of both sides of the Arroyo.
6. Brochure excerpt for the Hollywood Miniature, 1946 This is an excerpt from a larger brochure highlighting the six miniatures made in the 1930s that toured the country from 1946 to 1948, as a celebration of Hollywood and Los Angeles. This page is the short text explaining the miniature of Hollywood and how it came to be. The brochure covers all the models but we are including just the pages on this specific model. The brochure was created to promote the tour of the models.
7. Chavez Ravine, 2016 Chavez Ravine by Miyo Stevens-Gandara depicts Dodger’s Stadium, a triumphant icon of Los Angeles pride and identity, with the bulldozed phantom of the Chavez Ravine community that existed in its place before the stadium’s construction. Stevens-Gandara draws parallels between the historical accounts and testimonies of the Chavez Ravine community’s displacement and the present issue of gentrification and displacement facing communities everywhere.
8. Brochure excerpt for the Hollywood Miniature, 1946 This is an excerpt from a larger brochure highlighting the six miniatures made in the 1930s that toured the country from 1946 to 1948, as a celebration of Hollywood and Los Angeles. This page is an image of the Hollywood Miniature. It is the companion to the text page submitted separately. The brochure covers all the models but we are including just the pages on this specific model. The brochure was created to promote the tour of the models.
9. Home of an Aerospace Engineer, 1958
10. Aerial view of the Northrop Aircraft plant, Hawthorne, looking east from Prairie Avenue, 1946 Aerial view, 1946, of the Northrop Aircraft plant in Hawthorne, between 120th St. (right) and Jack Northrop Ave. (right), looking east from Prairie Avenue, showing housing for Northrop employees. Note the difference between the houses in the foreground and the near left, which appear to have been built individually, one at a time, and the houses in the upper left and upper right, which were built by developers.
11. Rendering, Tennis Court House Experimentations in domestic architecture are a feature of the landscape in L.A. Renowned L.A. architect Edward Fickett, known for his work on large tract-home developments, designed the Tennis Court House for a 1971 issue of Architecture and Interiors magazine, which featured case study houses for the community of Bon Vivant in Woodland Hills. The “roof” of the house takes the unusual form of a tennis court sitting atop the living spaces below.
12. "Stop Demolition" This poster opposes the demolition of public housing in Los Angeles. Gentrification and a lack of affordable housing creates life-threatening conditions in Los Angeles and throughout the world. Posters are key for organizing resistance. Whether the residents win or lose, they become empowered by the process of fighting for the stability of their communities—and posters such as this one record their struggle and empowerment.
13. Children Playing in Front of Porch
14. Aerial View of Pueblo del Rio, ca. 1948 This aerial view showcases the bold yet rational design of Pueblo del Rio. Built in 1940 for African-American defense industry workers, the mid-century modernist project, located at 52nd Street and Long Beach Avenue, was designed by the Southeast Housing Architects, led by African-American architect Paul Revere Williams. The group also included Richard Neutra, Gordon Kaufman, Adrian Wilson, and the firm of Wurdeman & Becket.
15. Beyond Neutra & Schindler: Did Modern Design Improve the California Lifestyle? (September 22, 1976) The tape begins with short clips of the participants. At 4:19, Shelly Kappe introducing Whitney Smith, A. Quincy Jones, John Lautner, and Carl Maston. Kappe silently presents a selection of slides depicting each panelist's work. At 13:11, a brief video with highlights of last week's design forum is presented, featuring Gregory Ain, Harwell Harris, Thornton Abell, and Raphael Soriano. Ain argues that architecture is about solving a problem while Harris argues that architecture is about solving personal goals as opposed to social goals. Abell discusses form and function, and Soriano argues that style is thought with a minimum amount of words. At 25:13 the live discussion begins. Carl Maston remembers Raphael Soriano and reflects on some stories from Soriano's history. Whitney Smith jokes about how various generations all believe they are going to save the world. He talks about the importance of communication, the AIA, and he compares the profession to a fraternity. A.Quincy Jones discusses the importance of ecological design. Lautner defines architecture as a search for a better human environment, the need for meaning in the work, and the difficulty of progress. John Lautner discusses his arrival in California and getting started as a young architect. Whitney Smith brings up the subject of programming and collaboration. A. Quincy Jones discusses client relationships and programming in terms of a project for a factory. Carl Maston talks about clients in rocky marriages who turn to two things as a solution; building a home or having a baby.
16. Walkway View of Pueblo del Rio, ca. 1948
17. San Fernando Valley is Home
18. View of Pueblo del Rio, ca. 1948
19. Hollywood Miniature
20. Art Center students photographing a 1952 Ford Crestline Sunliner on the front lawn of the Third Street campus, circa 1952
21. Groves of the Italian Vineyard Company Established by Secondo Guasti in 1900, the Italian Vineyard Company accounted for thousands of acres of agricultural land, and at one point became the largest vineyard in the word. The acres of vineyard and accompanying walnut groves depicted here helped to create the town of Guasti, California. Secondo Guasti's heavy Italian influence in the area led to the Italian consulate in Los Angeles to promote the agricultural town to Italian workers during this time.
22. Art Center's Hillside Campus, circa 1977.
23. The Darling House in Claremont Designed by the Greene and Greene architectural firm of Pasadena, the Darling House was built for Mrs. Mary Darling at College Avenue and 8th Street in 1903. In 1921, the house was sold to Pomona College professor, M. B. Jones. This photograph is part of the Wheeler Scrapbooks, which chronicle life at Pomona College and in the city of Claremont from 1884 to 1938. The digitized scrapbooks are featured on the Claremont Colleges Digital Library.
24. Luxury Townhomes
25. Compton Architecture
The Research Library and Archives has been collecting material relating to the history of Pasadena since 1924. The archives contains approximately 1 million historic images (including photos, negatives, postcards, stereographs) of Pasadena and surrounding areas. There are 45 cubic feet of maps and plans of the area, as well as a set of Sanborm fire insurance maps for Pasadena. There is a large collection of ephemera, scrapbooks, and photo albums relating to the history of the city. There are about 250 special collections, including the Sylvanus Marston set of architectural drawings; the Tournament of Roses Collection; the Giddings-Hollingsworth Family Collection; the Fenyes-Curtin-Paloheimo Papers; the Black History Collection; the Hugh Anderson/Model Grocery Company Collection. There are more than 1,000 books and 50 linear feet of periodicals on the history of the city and general Southern California area, including a nearly complete run of Pasadena city directories from 1895-1976.
Contents of this tag:
1. Pasadena Cycleway looking north from the Raymond Hotel, 1900 Horace Dobbins dreamed of building the first ever elevated cycleway from Pasadena to Los Angeles. The construction began in 1899 and the first phase was completed and just under 1.5 miles of cycle pathway from Hotel Green was open to the public on January 1st, 1900. Unfortunately, the next phase of construction of this cycleway never took place. This photograph shows a view looking north from Raymond Hotel. Tracks in foreground are Santa Fe Rail Road. Fair Oaks Avenue in Pasadena is on left side.
2. Colorado Street Bridge, 1913 This bridge was designed by architects Waddell and Harrington of Missouri but the local contractor from Los Angeles, John Drake Mercereau, changed the design to use natural strong footing in the Arroyo saving money to the city and giving the bridge it's distinctive curve. It was the first high bridge across the Arroyo Seco with an eleven-arched reinforced concrete structure. It connected Pasadena with Highland Park and gave way to more development of both sides of the Arroyo.
3. Dedication of the Arroyo Seco Parkway