Tag Archives: Downtown Los Angeles

Aerial photo taken from a balloon looking north between Main St and Los Angeles St towards the plaza, downtown Los Angeles, 1850

**UPDATE** THIS IS ACTUALLY A PHOTO OF A MODEL OF WHAT 1850 LOS ANGELES WOULD HAVE LOOKED LIKE. (Scroll down for further info.) After posting a daily vintage photo of Hollywood/Los Angeles/Southern California for more than 10 years, I suspect … Continue reading

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Night shot looking north up Broadway from 7th Street, downtown Los Angeles, 1939

This is one of those photos I want to dive through my screen and plunge into. We’re looking north up Broadway from 7th Street in downtown LA. It was taken in 1939, when Broadway and 7th was one of the … Continue reading

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The old Los Angeles County Courthouse and the Hall of Records dwarfed by the new Los Angeles City Hall, downtown Los Angeles, 1927

This photo captures a time when downtown Los Angeles wasn’t all shiny glass skyscrapers. Here we have the old Los Angeles County Courthouse (on the left) and the Hall of Records (right) dwarfed by the then-new Los Angeles City Hall. … Continue reading

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Looking south on a busy Broadway from 4th Street, downtown Los Angeles, 1931

In this photo we’re looking south along a busy Broadway from 4th Street in downtown Los Angeles. Back in 1931, when this photo was taken, downtown LA was much more of a thriving heart of LA than it is these … Continue reading

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Two enormous residences on Figueroa St near 5th Street, downtown Los Angeles, circa 1905

This photo gives us an idea of the sort of mansions that used to fill the streets of downtown Los Angeles around the turn of the century (This photo is circa 1905.) Narrowing down their location is a bit tricky. … Continue reading

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Looking down the Angels Flight funicular railway from the top of Bunker Hill to 3rd St, downtown Los Angeles, circa 1960s

These days, the Angels Flight funicular railway shuttles riders between Olive St at the top and the station at the bottom situated between 3rd and 4th St in downtown LA. But when this photo was taken, Angels Flight was in … Continue reading

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Los Angeles Railway “M” streetcar at the corner of Broadway and 7th Street alongside a very crowded sidewalk, downtown Los Angeles, circa 1920s

I’ve read in a number of places that the intersection of Broadway and 7th Street in downtown Los Angeles was the city’s busiest intersection. I have not, however, been able to understand why that was. But when you see photos … Continue reading

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Looking west along Wilshire Blvd from around Figueroa St, Los Angeles, circa 1946

As an Angeleno who often finds himself stuck in traffic, I take a measure of satisfaction knowing that my fellow Angelenos from yesteryear had to deal with much the same thing. These poor drivers were stuck in a traffic jam … Continue reading

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Looking out across downtown Los Angeles at the Hall of Justice, Old County Courthouse, Hall of Records, and “new” City Hall, circa late 1920s

This image gives us an idea of what the view across the northern end of downtown LA looked like in the late 1920s. From left to right, we’ve got the Hall of Justice, Old County Courthouse (the corner of Temple … Continue reading

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A new electric streetcar passes an old cable streetcar at the corner of Spring and 1st Streets, downtown Los Angeles, 1896

One name for this 1896 photo could be “Out with the Old, In with the New.” A new electric streetcar is passing an old cable streetcar at the corner of Spring and 1st Streets in downtown LA, looking south. And … Continue reading

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