Tag Archives: Downtown Los Angeles
Rush hour with around a dozen Los Angeles Railway streetcars lined up on East 7th St waiting to cross Main St, downtown Los Angeles, 1914
Back in 1914, when this photo was captured, Los Angeles hadn’t yet become the city built for the private automobile. For most people, streetcars were the way to get around town and in this shot we can see that “rush … Continue reading
The beacon at the top of Los Angeles City Hall shines over downtown Los Angeles into a misty night, circa 1930s
In this gloriously atmospheric night shot, we’re seeing the beacon at the top of Los Angeles City Hall shining over downtown LA. I don’t know if there was a filter over the camera lens over Maynard Parker’s lens or if … Continue reading
The Los Angeles Fire Department marches down Main St in LA’s first civic parade, Los Angeles on July 4, 1871
The handwritten caption along the bottom of this photo says “The first civic parade in Los Angeles Cal. July 4th 1871 – Los Ang. Fire Department.” According to the LA Almanac, the population of LA in the early 1870s was … Continue reading
Westminster Hotel on the northeast corner of Fourth and Main Streets, downtown Los Angeles, circa 1900
Here we have a turn-of-the-century glimpse of Los Angeles life. This four-story building with the tower was the Westminster Hotel, which stood on the northeast corner of Fourth and Main Streets in downtown Los Angeles. The shot was taken around … Continue reading
A late-1930s Buick Roadmaster is parked out front of a then-new Union Station on the edge of downtown Los Angeles, circa 1939
The Los Angeles Public Library posted this charming photo yesterday and I wanted to share it here, too. It was taken outside what would then have been the new Union Railway Station at the edge of downtown Los Angeles. The … Continue reading
Color photo looking northwest across Pershing Square, downtown Los Angeles, 1965
Since its dedication in 1866, Pershing Square in downtown LA has been through many incarnations: La Plaza Abaja, St. Vincent’s Park, Los Angeles Park, 6th Street Park, Central Park, and then finally in 1918 Angelenos landed on a name that’s … Continue reading
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Tagged Biltmore Hotel, Color photo, Downtown Los Angeles, Hotels, Pershing Square
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A nighttime view of the newly finished Los Angeles City Hall 200 North Spring St, downtown Los Angeles, 1928
What a magnificent view of Los Angeles City Hall lit up at night. Standing at 200 N. Spring St in downtown, the building’s dedication ceremony took place on April 26, 1928. The caption for this photo pegged the date as … Continue reading
Color photo of a newsstand with its own neon light in downtown Los Angeles, 1960
And from the “You Don’t See Many of These Things Anymore” file comes this photo of a newsstand. But not just any newsstand — the longest I’ve ever seen, and the only one to have its own neon sign. The … Continue reading
Looking north up an unpaved Los Angeles River from the Olympic Blvd Viaduct, Los Angeles, circa 1938
In early March 1938, Southern California endured four days of extraordinarily heavy rains that resulted in devastating floods. Consequently, Los Angeles decided to engage the Army Corps of Engineers to pave over the Los Angeles river so that it could … Continue reading
New-fangled horseless carriages parked outside Rambler Bicycles at 209 W. 5th St, downtown Los Angeles, 1910
Obviously, them there new-fangled horseless carriages are never going to catch on, but don’t tell those three people who have parked their funny-looking vehicles out front of Rambler Bicycles at 209 W. 5th St, downtown Los Angeles, near the corner … Continue reading