Attendees gather for the Gardner Building dedication on Sept. 13, 1925 at Malaga Cove Plaza in Palos Verdes Estates. (Photo: Palos Verdes Library District, Local History Collection.) The Gardner Building may not be Malaga Cove Plaza’s most famous landmark – the Neptune statue and fountain probably wins that honor – but it was theContinue reading “The Gardner Building”
Author Archives: Sam Gnerre
San Pedro’s bascule bridge
San Pedro’s bascule bridge is shown shortly after its completion on this undated postcard. In the early part of the 20th century, Southern Pacific and Pacific Electric trains made their way to San Pedro using trestles to traverse the tidal waters that surrounded it. These railroad bridges made it impossible for ships to use theContinue reading “San Pedro’s bascule bridge”
Bert Lynn
Bert M. Lynn was born in Mount Vernon, NY on April 6, 1917. After attending Mount Vernon High School and graduating with a degree in ceramics engineering from Alfred University in western New York state, Lynn served in the Pacific as a lieutenant in the U.S. Navy. Lynn, shown at left in a 1961Continue reading “Bert Lynn”
Wienerschnitzel at 50
The first Der Wienerschnitzel fast-food restaurant opened in Wilmington in 1961. John Galardi was a student at Pasadena City College when he encountered Glen Bell Jr. in a chance meeting across the street from campus. Bell hired him at 50 cents an hour for part-time work making hot sauce in a commissary he owned. GalardiContinue reading “Wienerschnitzel at 50”
Korean Friendship Bell
The Korean Friendship Bell in Angels Gate Park in San Pedro. Daily Breeze photo by Chuck Bennett, June 2011. A group of about 30 craftsmen from South Korea arrived in San Pedro in 1976 to assemble a most distinctive Korean gift to the United States for the Bicentennial. On a windswept hilltop in Angels GateContinue reading “Korean Friendship Bell”
The storm of ’95
A driver walks away from his car after floodwaters swamped it on Sepulveda Boulevard just east of Vermont Avenue in the unincorporated area just east of Torrance. Daily Breeze staff photo, Jan. 4, 1995. How hard did it rain on Wednesday, Jan. 4, 1995? The powerful Pacific storm system that rolled through the SouthContinue reading “The storm of ’95”
Urho Saari Swim Stadium
Urho Saari (left, 1973 Daily Breeze file photo) was born on Nov. 17, 1912, and was raised as the son of Finnish immigrants in Buffalo, New York. He majored in English at Buffalo State Teachers College (now known as the State University of New York College at Buffalo) before he and his wife Wanda cameContinue reading “Urho Saari Swim Stadium”
Old Towne Mall
The Old Towne Mall opened on Hawthorne Boulevard in Torrance in October 1972. Developer Robert R. Brindle described his concept for Old Towne Mall in Torrance as “recreational retailing.” The 320,000 square-foot enclosed mall located at 19800 Hawthorne Boulevard, near Del Amo Boulevard, opened on Oct. 9, 1972. It cost $30 million to build,Continue reading “Old Towne Mall”
San Pedro’s Carnegie library
Andrew Carnegie (1835-1919), left (Library of Congress photo), was one of the earliest and most powerful captains of industry to rise to prominence in the late 19th century. From humble beginnings, he eventually built his Carnegie Steel Company in Pittsburgh, Pa. into an industrial powerhouse, becoming enormously wealthy in the process. Some estimated that heContinue reading “San Pedro’s Carnegie library”
The Goodyear blimp
The Goodyear blimp Spirit of America at rest at its Carson base on May 11, 2011. Daily Breeze photo. The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company, which was founded in Akron, Ohio, in 1898, opened its Los Angeles tire factory on June 14, 1920. Blimps were part of the corporate culture even then; an AprilContinue reading “The Goodyear blimp”
