Tag Archives: Los Angeles City Hall
The steel frame of the new Los Angeles City Hall nears completion in downtown Los Angeles, 1927
Angelenos could finally see what shape their new City Hall would take when its steel frame neared completion as it had in this 1927 photo. I wonder if they knew it would become an icon of the city. That building … Continue reading
A Santa Fe Railway Super Chief locomotive crashes into a wall on Aliso St, downtown Los Angeles, January 25, 1948
My eyes nearly popped out of my head when I was sent this photo a few weeks ago. No information came with it so I had to go digging. Apparently, this Santa Fe Railway Super Chief locomotive had been uncoupled … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged Downtown Los Angeles, Los Angeles City Hall, Trains and Railways
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Aerial photo of Los Angeles City Hall enshrouded in smog, downtown Los Angeles, circa November, 1954
The smog in this photo is so thick and so gritty that I can almost taste it, 68 years later. This photo was taken circa November 1954 on a day that was particularly heavy that pretty much the only building … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged Aerial photographs, Downtown Los Angeles, Los Angeles City Hall, Smog
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An ivy-covered Los Angeles County Courthouse glimpsed at the corner of Temple St and Broadway, downtown Los Angeles, circa 1930
I know that progress marches ever forward, and populations grow, and cities need to expand upward as well as outward, but wouldn’t it be nice if some of the more charming buildings could have been saved? The beautiful ivy-covered building … Continue reading
A view of the Los Angeles Civic Center as seen from the Hollywood Freeway, Los Angeles, circa early 1950s
This is how the uncrowded Los Angeles Civic Center used to look like from the Hollywood Freeway. That slick two-toned Buick is from 1949, so I’m guessing this photo (it looks like it may have been a postcard) is circa … Continue reading
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Tagged Color photo, Downtown Los Angeles, Freeways, Los Angeles City Hall
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Looking toward downtown Los Angeles the night of New Year’s Eve, December 31, 1951
<<< 10th ANNIVERSARY POSTING >>> Aside from the odd vacation, every day for the past 10 years, I have posted a vintage photo of Los Angeles. Today’s post is a very special one as it marks the 10th anniversary of … Continue reading
A view of the old Los Angeles County Courthouse seen through the colonnade of the newly-opened LA City Hall, downtown Los Angeles, 1928
I love it when I find a shot by a photographer who has taken some time to line up an interesting angle. In this particular case, the photographer was standing in the forecourt of what was then the brand-new Los … Continue reading
The City of Los Angeles float in the Tournament of Roses Parade, Pasadena, California, January 1, 1946
Every New Year’s Day, the city of Pasadena hosts the Tournament of Roses parade, in which the floats are made of flowers. This shot was taken on January 1st, 1946 and shows us, in vivid color, the float put together … Continue reading
Looking past Victorian homes on Hill Street toward the new Los Angeles City Hall under construction, downtown Los Angeles, circa 1927
In this photo we’re looking at a stretch of old Victorian homes that lined Hill Street in downtown Los Angeles. They would still have been a fairly common sight at the time, but in the background, we can see the … Continue reading
A layer of thick smog blankets downtown Los Angeles, December 11, 1958
All too often these vintage Los Angeles photos I post each day document how much better / cleaner / slower / prettier LA used to be compared to nowadays. So it’s nice to be reminded that some aspects of LA … Continue reading