One of LA’s most popular streetcar routes was the one that took Angelinos along Hollywood Blvd. However when the original tracks were laid, Hollywood Blvd was still known by its original name, Prospect Ave. Lucky for us, some intrepid photographer captured this image of the Los Angeles Pacific Railway laying down the tracks on what looks to be a dirt road. Work on the route began on December 15, 1899, and took five months to complete. So I’m guesstimating this photo was taken circa early 1900. When I look at images like these, I can’t help but wonder what those road workers would think if they saw how Hollywood Blvd looks these days.
Andrew S says: “A single set of rail road tracks had existed since 01/11/1887 when Mr James McLaughlin laid the original Cahuenga Valley Railroad tracks to Prospect & Wilcox. This track connected travelers to Temple & Hoover St to connect with the Temple Street Cable car.”
Gary H says: “I’ve seen this photo dated to 1898. Not sure which is correct, but this is actually a shot of them grading the road in order to lay down streetcar tracks. By 1900 the tracks extended along Prospect/Hollywood Boulevard to La Brea, so my guess is that this photo is them extending it west past La Brea to Laurel Canyon.”
It is hard to believe it ever looked like that. In photo, looks like mom and son watching in font yard?
My Grandfather is listed working as a clerk in 1905 directory for LA Ry Co, and living at 1703 Dixon Ave. Is LA Pacific different from LA Ry Co?
LA-P/LAP was an inter-urban operation that became the Western District lines of (new) Pacific Electric after the Great Merger of 1911. This included (old) Pacific Electric and several other companies. LAP management effectively took charge of the combined operations which were now entirely controlled by Southern Pacific as the parent.
Some services were considered to be “local lines”. The lines were either converted to standard gauge or built that way from the start.
Los Angeles Railway, aka Yellow cars, was the narrow gauge local streetcar system largely within the confines of the City of Los Angeles making it intra-urban. (Eagle Rock was outside until it joined the city in the 1920’s.) Additionally, Pacific Electric lines were freight haulers doing both local transfer work and shipments across the major steam railroads (SP,UP,SFe). The State of California ultimately viewed this as far more than a local streetcar concern.
Thank you, Al, for the information. My mom had always called them the red cars. They probably changed from yellow to red at some point.
No, the Red Cars were always a reference to the Pacific Electric, a color inherited from Southern Pacific back in the days of steam-era coaches on local trains. They became red, orange, and silver during the later years but kept that nickname. And some of the component roads had actually been green and brown in the very early years. But Los Angeles Railway remained largely yellow with the tri-color “fruit salad” yellow/green/white in later years…going pale green under MTA for the end. Probably a lot of people back then just thought of the whole shebang as Red Cars.