In the decades following the historic voyage of Christopher Columbus to America in 1492, Mexico underwent much exploration and development – not to mention financial exploitation – by conquistadors under the aegis of the Kingdom of Spain. But Spanish and other European explorers knew very little about the lands along the coast north of Mexico.Continue reading “Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo explored the California coastline in the 1500s”
Tag Archives: california
How and when did the South Bay come to be known by that name?
Geography tells us why the chunk of coastal Los Angeles County land south of Ballona Creek became known as the “South Bay.” The area from Playa del Rey down to the Palos Verdes Peninsula forms the lower half of Santa Monica Bay, hence the “South Bay” sobriquet. The South Bay’s boundaries are less well-defined thanContinue reading “How and when did the South Bay come to be known by that name?”
Why Assemblyman Vincent Thomas deserved having a bridge in his name
When Vincent Thomas was 16, he used his boxing skills – he earned $2.50 per fight – to help support his family. His parents, Visko and Vinca Tomas (shortened from Tomasevich) arrived from Croatia in eastern Europe in 1903. They were living in Biloxi, Mississippi, when Vincent, one of eight children, was born on AprilContinue reading “Why Assemblyman Vincent Thomas deserved having a bridge in his name”
Tony Trutanich’s seafood restaurants became fixtures on the Redondo Beach pier
Tony Trutanich’s parents, Martin and Mary, were Croatian immigrants who settled in a house on 15th St. in San Pedro after originally coming to the port city of Tacoma, Washington in the early 1900s. Anthony Andrew Trutanich was born on Nov. 29, 1922. As a young man, he worked in the commercial fishing industry inContinue reading “Tony Trutanich’s seafood restaurants became fixtures on the Redondo Beach pier”
San Pedro’s South Shores housing development proved popular in the 1950s
Veteran real estate developer Fred W. Marlow was fresh from launching major home building projects in Westchester and upscale Windsor Hills when he began looking toward the San Pedro coastline for his next project. By then, he’d established ten real estate brokerage offices in the southwest Los Angeles County area, where the Marlow-Burns Development Co.Continue reading “San Pedro’s South Shores housing development proved popular in the 1950s”
Some ideas for using Alondra Park land didn’t work out, but others did
According to the official list kept by the Paris-based Bureau International des Expositions, World’s Fairs in 1938 were held in Berlin, Helsinki and Glasgow. Missing from that list: Alondra Park. I wrote about the history of the county park ten years ago, but I thought a look at some of the early plans for theContinue reading “Some ideas for using Alondra Park land didn’t work out, but others did”
Redondo Beach’s Casino was a popular attraction on the city’s waterfront
When sea captains J.C. Ainsworth and R.R. Thompson began developing Redondo Beach in the mid-1880s, they saw the potential in transforming the sleepy seaside town into a major tourist attraction, especially once railroads could be built connecting it to Los Angeles. The Santa Fe railroad came first in 1888, followed two years later by AinsworthContinue reading “Redondo Beach’s Casino was a popular attraction on the city’s waterfront”
The first San Pedro breakwater transformed the Port of Los Angeles
Wilmington shipping magnate Phineas Banning was among the first to understand the importance of improving the Harbor Area shoreline to accommodate larger ships. His freighters brought all manner of goods to the growing city of Los Angeles 20 miles to the north, building and construction materials chief among them. In 1869, he opened the firstContinue reading “The first San Pedro breakwater transformed the Port of Los Angeles”
A long tale of a short freeway: California State Route 47
The 47 Freeway may not be the longest in the Los Angeles area – only the 3.1-mile Marina Freeway is shorter – but it provides a vital link to the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. Officially known as California State Route 47, or California 47 for short, the freeway was part of theContinue reading “A long tale of a short freeway: California State Route 47”
Torrance planners struggled for years to connect Cabrillo and Eshelman avenues
Though scarcely more than a decade old, the city of Torrance was humming during the 1920s. Major industrial plants had set up shop there, employing thousands of workers, and developers were kept plenty busy trying to build enough housing for them Many of the workers from outside the area who commuted to their jobs atContinue reading “Torrance planners struggled for years to connect Cabrillo and Eshelman avenues”
