The Kettler Ranch acreage in present-day Southeast Torrance was built on a ranch that once belonged to German immigrant Emil Kettler. Born in 1847, the pioneering farmer and landowner and his wife, Amalie, originally had settled on farmland he bought in Wilmington in 1877. Two years later, he sold that land in order to purchaseContinue reading “Huge postwar Kettler Knolls development carpeted Southeast Torrance with homes”
Tag Archives: history
The U.S. Merchant Marine played a key role in Southern California during World War II
The United States Merchant Marine traces its origin back to the outbreak of the Revolutionary War. In June 1775 in Machias, Maine (then part of Massachusetts), townspeople refused to provide the British with lumber to build barracks for their troops, resulting in the British bringing in the armed ship HMS Margaretta to retaliate. The settlersContinue reading “The U.S. Merchant Marine played a key role in Southern California during World War II”
Trailblazer LeRoy Grannis set high standards for surf photography
LeRoy Grannis fell in love with the ocean and surfing at a very young age, and at a time when the sport was also at a very young age. He was born at home, blocks from the ocean in Hermosa Beach on Aug. 12th,1917. The family made the most of living near the beach. Grannis’Continue reading “Trailblazer LeRoy Grannis set high standards for surf photography”
The Great White Steamship delighted millions before meeting its ignominious end
The S.S. Catalina was one popular ship in its heyday. During its fifty-plus years of operation beginning in 1924, she carried an estimated 25 million passengers from the Port of Los Angeles to Santa Catalina Island and back again. The Catalina wasn’t the first ship built specifically for transporting tourists across the sea to Avalon,Continue reading “The Great White Steamship delighted millions before meeting its ignominious end”
The USS California served as flagship of the U.S. Navy’s Pacific Fleet for nearly two decades
Seven U.S. Navy vessels have been named the USS California since 1867. Perhaps the most famous is the fifth one, the Tennessee-class battleship given the identification number BB-44 (“Battleship #44”) by the Navy. The ship got its official launch on Nov. 20, 1919 in Vallejo, California at the Mare Island Navy Yard where it wasContinue reading “The USS California served as flagship of the U.S. Navy’s Pacific Fleet for nearly two decades”
President Jimmy Carter makes a campaign stop at North High in Torrance in 1980
When President Jimmy Carter’s re-election campaign advisers were planning a key West Coast swing through Washington, Oregon and California in mid-September 1980, they decided to hold the campaign’s 19th Town Hall meeting in Southern California. The Town Halls were question and answer sessions with rank and file voters on topics of their choosing. Under theContinue reading “President Jimmy Carter makes a campaign stop at North High in Torrance in 1980”
Wartime sabotage was a major concern at defense plants, key infrastructure locations
A recent viewing of the admittedly obscure 1944 film “Secret Command,” during which Pat O’Brien goes undercover in a defense plant to expose Nazi saboteurs, inspired this look at how the fear of sabotage was a major concern during the 1930s and 1940s. The film is a routine thriller, but is of historic interest. MuchContinue reading “Wartime sabotage was a major concern at defense plants, key infrastructure locations”
Major 1953 North American Aviation strike was disruptive, but not that productive
When workers at North American Aviation went on strike on June 5, 1941, just months before the Pearl Harbor attack brought the U.S. into World War II, alarm bells went off in Washington, D.C. The company, founded in 1928 and headquartered at 5701 W. Imperial Blvd. at the southeastern edge of Los Angeles International Airport,Continue reading “Major 1953 North American Aviation strike was disruptive, but not that productive”
The Gardena Buddhist church has endured for nearly 100 years despite challenges
The first Buddhist churches of any kind in the country were built in the Bay Area in the early 1850s by Chinese migrant workers who had come to the U.S. to work in the mining and railroad industries. The first Japanese Buddhist church in the U.S. was built in San Francisco much later, in 1899.Continue reading “The Gardena Buddhist church has endured for nearly 100 years despite challenges”
William Howard Taft remains the only U.S. President ever to visit San Pedro
A little less than a year after being elected the 27th president of the U.S. in 1908, William Howard Taft planned an official trip to Los Angeles that included visits to not only the city itself, but also to several of its outlying areas. These included the first, and so far, the only visit toContinue reading “William Howard Taft remains the only U.S. President ever to visit San Pedro”
