Back in the first half of the 20th century, the busiest intersection in Los Angeles was where Broadway meets 7th St. And so it make sense that a good number of photos from that era LA were taken at, around, or of it. And here we have another one. We’re looking north up Broadway from 7th St. Look at how packed those sidewalks are. This might have been because the photo was taken during a Shriner convention, circa 1925. You can see the camel standing under palm trees strung over Broadway. Shriner conventions (and others like it) were a big deal for host cities: trains were packed, hotels were full, stores were bustling.
This is roughly how that view looked in June 2024.
Side note: Film director David Lynch passed away at 78 years. Lynch had reportedly made his home in the canyon areas up behind the old Bernheimer estate in the Hollywood Hills just off of Outpost Drive. (The recent fire was just west of there by a couple of these canyons.)
The Shriners salute is “Peace Be With You!” The Shriners still hold their conventions to this very day, without fail. A beautiful picture, and yes, the hustle and bustle of the 20s, far different than the Depression of the 30s. On the right side of the photo is, what looks like the Sun Drug Company? Must have been an indie pharmacy. Owl Drugs seemed to be everywhere in those days.
I’m not 100% sure but I do believe that I’ve seen other Sun Drug Co. stores before. It sounds like a pretty good name for a Californian drugstore.
Yes, Martin. Sure does. I did some research and there is nothing on Sun Drug, except a company that began operations in the 80s. A good name for sunny California. That 1925 pix is a winner. The 2024 pix by comparsion is rather bleak!
They were all over, but you have to go further back in time when there were numerous operations in Los Angeles. Many were United/Rexall related so Owl ends up with those corners later. I think Sun may have had Western at Santa Monica, which was one of the most traffic heavy intersections while there were studios up the road.
Looks like it could be 4th of July celebration or some kind of celebration with all those flags out?
Oh it’s a Shriner convention-I need to read before I post.