Tag Archives: 1800s
Los Angeles City Hall, 226 Broadway between 2nd and 3rd Streets, downtown Los Angeles, 1889
A little part of my heart aches when I see some of the buildings Los Angeles has lost. This building served as Los Angeles City Hall and stood at 226 Broadway between 2nd and 3rd Streets from 1888 to 1928, … Continue reading
Aerial photograph of Los Angeles taken from a balloon in 1887
At first glance, this photo might not seem too interesting . . . until you learn it’s a shot of Los Angeles taken in 1887 from a hot-air balloon, and therefore quite probably the first overhead shot ever taken of … Continue reading
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Tagged 1800s, Aerial photographs, Downtown Los Angeles, Los Angeles
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View of Hollywood in the time of Harvey and Daeida Wilcox, the founders of Hollywood, circa 1890s
In 1887, Harvey and Daeida Wilcox the founded the city of Hollywood. This photo gives us an idea of what the area looked like at around that time: lots of fruit trees, some shade trees, and every now and then … Continue reading
Pearl Morton’s Municipal Brothel in the old Los Angeles Courthouse at Spring and Main, downtown L.A., circa early 1890s
When the city of Los Angeles had outgrown its Courthouse at Spring and Main Street in the early 1890s, it built a magnificent new Romanesque Courthouse at Spring and Temple Streets. This left the old one available—but not for long. … Continue reading
A streetcar approaches to the intersection of Boyle Ave and 1st Street, Boyle Heights, Los Angeles, 1895
Along with Angelino Heights to the north of downtown L.A., Boyle Heights to the city’s east is one of the places where Los Angeles’s 10-million-people sprawl first began. In this photo from 1895, we see a streetcar approach the intersection … Continue reading
Queen Anne style mansion known as “The Castle,” 325 S. Bunker Hill Ave, Los Angeles, circa 1890s
This late Victorian mansion was built around 1888 and stood at 325 S. Bunker Hill Ave in downtown Los Angeles. Known locally as “The Castle” (it had 20 rooms and a three-story staircase) it took a battalion of staff to … Continue reading
Looking down Bunker Hill along Second Street, downtown Los Angeles, January 1887
In this photo from January 1887, we can see how steep Bunker Hill was before the city flattened it in the 1950s. We’re looking down Second Street where the streetcars ferry passengers who were, I’d imagine, glad they didn’t have … Continue reading
A horse-drawn omnibus brings public transportation to Los Angeles, 1873
By the 1920s, Los Angeles had one of the most comprehensive network of public transportation in the world. Like most things, though, it had a humble beginning, and this photo shows us how it all started. On September 22, 1873, … Continue reading
The first Los Angeles Times Building at Broadway and First Street, downtown Los Angeles, 1886
This is one of the earliest photos I’ve ever posted. It shows us the Los Angeles Times building at Broadway and First Street, downtown Los Angeles before it gained its iconic tower, and before the whole thing got destroyed by … Continue reading
Pasadena’s first telephone exchange, 1898, with Claude Braden, night operator
Spare a thought for poor Claude Braden, who got stuck with the job of night operator of Pasadena’s first telephone exchange in 1898. I don’t know how many telephones Pasadena had at the end of the 19th century, but judging … Continue reading