In yesterday’s photo of Vine St in 1960, I commented that I could almost hear the sounds and inhale the smells. This photo similar, but not in quite the same way. In this aerial photo, we’re seeing the forest of oil derricks that blanketed the Signal Hill oil field in Long Beach south of Los Angeles. Oil was important to the local economy back in 1937, when this photo was taken, but it can’t have been pleasant to work in or live near these oil wells. I’ve never been near one, but I imagine they would have been noisy and stinky—especially in this area where there are so many wells it’d be nearly impossible to count them. Source: pbssocal.org
Marilyn B. said: “If your family worked in the petroleum industry, as mine did, you did not object to the smell. As I said as a little kid, “It smells like money.” We didn’t LIVE near producing oil wells, but joined others to drive out at night to look, if one caught fire. and they did. Then somebody would call Red Adair and he’d come from Texas to put out the fire. If a sump caught fire, it would burn for days, and the looky-loos were out for that, too. There was a certain “romance” to this industry, and I MISS IT.”
This satellite shot shows us what the area looked like in December 2023.
When my Dad returned from WWII, he worked as a truck driver for Signal Oil.
A few years later, my grandparents built two houses on Junipero Dr. on Signal Hill. My sister and I played among the oil rigs. While there were hundreds of them, there were very few workers and no one ever ran us off. The view of the bay from Signal Hill was beautiful and there was always a cool breeze blowing off the ocean.
Being a fan of the BEVERLY HILLBILLIES, what can I say? Cali-for-nee is da place ya oughta’ be! Edward Doheny began it all with oil rigs in LA in the early 1890s. In 1921 a massive oil deposit was found at Long Beach, and the rest is history! Yes, stinky and noisey, but its money! Lots of movie stars put their money in oil, probably at Long Beach. I think it was Huntz Hall (the Bowery Boys) who made lots of money in oil. He bought a new Rolls Royce every year the story goes. Good friends with Cher.
There are of course still plenty of oil wells in operation in the Signal Hill area. Just drive down Willow between Cherry and California, and north on California or Orange or Walnut from Willow. Lots of pump jacks pumping oil, but no more derricks as we see in the 1937 shot. The old Alamitos Well #1 still exists at the corner of Temple and Hill. The plaque reads Discovery Well.
https://www.lbutilities.org/files/content/utilities/v/2/about-us/news-media/press-releases/long-beach-celebrates-100-years-of-gas-utility-service/gas-holder_100-year-photo.jpg?w=1280&h=761
This is the view from the Long Beach Airport side of the hill in the late 20’s. Also shown is the gas works. I remember as a kid seeing that adjacent to the 405 fwy at the Cherry St North exit.