Author Archives: Sam Gnerre

Born in Kentucky in 1827, Colonel Blanton Duncan served with distinction for the Confederacy during the Civil War, leading the First Kentucky regiment of the Army of the Confederacy into the First Battle of Bull Run in 1861.. But to Manhattan Beach residents, Duncan is the larger-than-life figure behind the city’s most famous haunted house.Continue reading “Col. Blanton Duncan and Manhattan Beach’s haunted house”

Seeing photos such as the one above now, it’s hard to imagine that you’re looking at the South Bay and not West Texas. Following the end of World War I, oil companies began quietly studying Torrance as a potential site for an oil field. There had been successful oil strikes in Huntington Beach, Santa FeContinue reading “Torrance becomes an oil boom town in the 1920s”

The Otis College of Art and Design has only been in Westchester since 1997, but it can trace its origin back almost 100 years. Its benefactor was a key figure in the early history of Los Angeles. Harrison Gray Otis made his reputation during the Civil War. He entered the war on the Union sideContinue reading “Westchester’s Otis College of Art and Design”

If not for Captain John Barneson, the ExxonMobil oil refinery might never have come to Torrance. Born in Scotland on Jan. 1, 1862, Barneson spent his early years piloting transport ships before establishing his own shipping company in San Francisco in the 1890s. Barneson’s company was called upon to operate troop ships during the Spanish-AmericanContinue reading “Capt. John Barneson brings an oil refinery to Torrance”

Pro wrestler Gorgeous George revolutionized wrestling, television and popular culture in post-World War II America, and he lived in Hawthorne for a time while doing it. He was born George Raymond Wagner in Seward, Neb., on March 24, 1915. His family moved around during his childhood, living in various locations in Nebraska and Iowa andContinue reading “Flamboyant pro wrestler Gorgeous George once called Hawthorne home”

Sakae “Sak” Yamamoto was born in Tacoma, Washington, on Jan. 17, 1914. He married his wife, Greta, in 1937. They would remain married for 60 years, until his death. After Pearl Harbor in 1941, Yamamoto and his wife were sent to the Japanese internment camp at Tule Lake, Calif., one of the largest such campsContinue reading “Sak Yamamoto, former Carson mayor and unlikely film star”

The Port of Los Angeles dates its founding to the establishment of the first Board of Harbor Commissioners on Dec. 9, 1907, after San Pedro’s harbor won out as the location for the newly established Port of Los Angeles. The port officially became part of the City of Los Angeles with the annexation of SanContinue reading “Marine Exchange: Keeping track of port traffic since 1923”

The Smith Bros. Fish Shanty story begins far away from Torrance in both distance and  time. In 1848, Gilbert Smith started a fishing business near Sheboygan, Wisconsin, using seine nets to catch huge amounts of fish in Lake Michigan. The family operated the fishing business for the next several decades, expanding into wholesaling and establishingContinue reading “Smith Bros. Fish Shanty becomes a fixture in Walteria”

Torrance Municipal Airport has been a busy hub for private planes ever since it was transformed into a general aviation airport following World War II from its earlier days as the Lomita Flight Strip. Over the years, the inevitable serious crashes and resulting deaths have occurred at the airport, but they have been relatively rare.Continue reading “Torrance Municipal Airport’s worst crashes”

Thursday, Aug. 28, 2014, marks the 60th anniversary of the opening of Marineland of the Pacific. In this third installment on the park, we’ll take a look at its closure in 1987, a wrenching demise that resulted in sadness, bitterness and a good deal of community outrage. After its heady days of regularly breaking theContinue reading “Marineland’s tumultuous final days”