altadenablog

Historical Society looks at Altadena's Latino heritage Jan. 27

by Timothy Rutt

After the Native Americans, some of Altadena's earliest pioneers were Mexicanos who moved in to unsettled lands.  Author and historian Roberta Martinez will look at Altadena's Latino heritage in an Altadena Historical Society program on Mon., Jan. 27.

ALTADENA: HOMESTEADERS, SQUATTERS AND EARLY PIONEERS

Before real estate developers discovered Altadena in the 1850s, Mexicanos, homesteaders and squatters laid claim to areas near Altadena’s canyons.  Setting up residence on unoccupied land, our earliest pioneers have a historical legacy not yet fully told. Using photos and maps, Roberta will discuss her recent discoveries about early local land use relative to the Homestead Act instituted in the 19^th century to populate the wide-open western United States.  After the event Roberta will be selling and signing her book, Latinos in Pasadena.

 Roberta H. Martinez is the Executive Director of Latino Heritage, an organization that is dedicated to promoting knowledge of the Latino experience and history through cultural and educational programs in Pasadena and the San Gabriel Valley.  Roberta graduated from UC Riverside with a degree in Music History.  An author, historian, television producer, advisor for the Pasadena Historical Museum, Roberta published her most recent book Latinos in Pasadena in 2009.   Her specific area of research is Latino heritage and women’s issues.  She currently co-chairs Pasadena City College President’s Latino Advisory Committee.   

The presentation will be Monday, Jan. 27, at 7:30 PM at the Altadena Community Center, 730 E. Altadena Drive.

 

No horsing around: celebrate Altadena's equestrian heritage Saturday

by Timothy Rutt

Don't forget that Saturday, Oct. 19, Altadena Heritage dedicates the Equestrian Block, remembering Altadena's horsey set, at Altadena Stables, 3064 Ridgeview Drive., from 2-4 PM.

The event commemorates Altadena's equestrian past present with a demonstration of riding styles, some presentations, and the food that Altadena Heritage events are famous for.

The event is open to all -- cancelled in case of rain.

 

It's movie night at the Historical Society Oct. 28

by Timothy Rutt

The quarterly meeting of the Altadena Historical Society is a Mt. Lowe movie night:

• The 1912 silent film "What the Doctor Ordered," starring Mabel Normand, Mack Sennett, Jack Pickford, and Eddie Dillon, shot on location at a local orange grove and on Mt. Lowe in the snow.
• "To Mt. Lowe with Love" by Phil Callahan and Bill Myers, produced in partnership with the Edison Co.  This 32-minute film takes us back in time with black and white motion pictures and stills to experience the world's greatest trolley adventure.

In addition, there will be excerpts from "The Pacific Electric Northern District in Spectacular Color," written and researched by Charles Seims, produced by Alav Sishel, released in 1993. The film features the line that went from downtown Los Angeles to Pasadena, Sierra Madre, Monrovia, and Glendora (not Altadena) from 1947-51.  The video will be available for purchase in VHS format the night of the event for $7.

The Altadena Historical Society meeting is free and open to the public.  It starts at 7:30 PM on Monday, Oct. 28, at the Altadena Community Center, 730 E. Altadena Drive.

 

Happy Trails Oct. 19 as Altadena Heritage celebrates our equestrian past

by Timothy Rutt

Altadena Heritage will celebrate Altadena's horsy past Oct. 19 as it dedicates the "equestrian block" at Altadena Stables.

The equestrian block will be the seventh AHA! (Altadena Heritage Area) singled out by the organization, according to Michele Zack.

The block -- bounded by Mariposa, Las Casitas, Altadena Drive, and Ridgeview Drive -- are actually supposed to stand in for all of Altadena's equestrian past, Zack said.

Altadena has been a horse-loving area from the very beginning: "Back in the mission days, Altadena was an area for horses put out to pasture," Zack said.  Since then, horse lovers have always had a presence in town, even to this day with many properties having back yard stables. Zack said that even some people who are new to the area are coming in and bringing horses.  "It's a neat thing about Altadena that distinguishes it."

The program, which is still being put together, will include demonstrations of different kinds of riding, light refreshment, and speakers.  

The event will be at Altadena Stables, 2064 Ridgeview Drive, from 2-4 PM on Oct. 19.

 

 

Four decades of Altadena photos in Historical Society meeting tomorrow

 

Leon Rick's photo of the Market Basekt, which was on the site of the current Ralphs market.

Leon Ricks, "The Mayor of Maiden Lane" (1928-2013)  was an accomplished and dogged photographer who documented four decades in the life of Altadena.

 

On Monday, July 22, the Altadena Historical Society will look at a fraction of the 1,000 slides in the Ricks collection that were donated after his death.  The evening ofers a chance to see how Altadena was, and how it relates to how Altadena is today.

The meeting, open to the public, starts at 7:30 PM at the Altadena Community Center, 730 E. Altadena Drive.  Admission is free.

Related articles

Golden Poppy Awards celebrate Altadena's gardens and gardeners

Altadena Sheriff's Station open house: protect and serve

Former Altadena Capt. McLean to be Santa Paula's top cop

Sunday event No. 2: Celebrating ten years of the community center

Altadena Junction: the end of the line

New benches honor Altadena preservationist Astrid Ellersiek

 

Heinz Ellersieck on the benches installed in honor of his wife Astrid at the Altadena Community Center. Photo courtesy Altadena Historical Society.

 

by Timothy Rutt

After several years of waiting, the Altadena Community Center, 730 E. Altadena Dr., has finally installed courtyard benches in honor of Altadena Realtor and preservationist Astrid Ellersiek.

According to Jane Brackman, president of the Altadena Historical Society, the benches were purchased with a gift from Heinz Ellersiek, to honor his late wife. In fact, the plaques say in "In Honor of Astrid Ellersiek," not  "in memory of ..."

"Astrid was devoted to the preservation of Altadena, both its way of life and its physical environment," Brackman said in an email.  "She was instrumental in saving the Pacific Electric Substation on North Lake Avenue—the last vestige of the Mt. Lowe Railway—and turning it into an office for her employer, the Jim Dickson Co., and a museum of Mt. Lowe memorabilia.  As one of the first local realtors committed to historic preservation, Astrid was a co-founder of the Pasadena Board of Realtors’ Cultural Heritage Committee and a founding board member of Altadena Heritage.  We  hope that this reminder of Astid's devotion to Altadena will instill in all of us an effort to continue to carry out her preservation work. "

Historical society looks at the Scripps Home on April 22

Members of the Altadena Historical Society (AHS) and the Episcopal Home Communities look through the contents of a box of documents and pictures from the Scripps Home on Nov 22, 2011. From left: former Scripps resident Jeanne Guernsey, Mary Lou Langedyke of AHS, Martha Tamburrano, president and CEO of the Episcopal Homes Communities, AHS Archivist Sherry Cavallo, and Kathy Hoskins of AHS.

Historian and archivist Tim Gregory will speak at the quarterly meeting of the Altadena Historical Society on Monday, April 22, 7:30 PM at the Altadena Community Center, 730 E. Altadena Dr.  

Gregory will speak on "A Place Like No Other: The Story of the Scripps Home."  While the Scripps Home is gone forever, a century's worth of residents' memorabilia, photos, scrapbooks, and ephemera was donated to the Altadena Historical Society in 2011. Archivist Gregory organized the more than 1500 documents. Please join us to hear Tim discuss the collection and the history of the home., and have an opportunity to look at some of the most significant parts of the collection.

<

Ian White discusses his father's legacy at Historical Society Thursday

from the Altadena Historical Society

"Harvest Talk" by Charles White (1953).

Altadena artist Ian White will discuss the legacy of his father, Charles White, at the Altadena Historical Society Quarterly Meeting and Lecture this Thursday, January 24, at 7:30 PM.

 

Charles White was one of the greatest socially conscious figurative painters of the 20th century. Like musician Woody Guthrie and photographer Dorthea Lange, who used art to paint vivid pictures of poverty in America during the depression, White used his powerful imagery to challenge the systems responsible for racial injustice.  Ian will talk about growing up in Altadena during the1950s and 60s in a mixed race family, and what it was like to have loving parents who inspired social responsibility and creativity.  

Altadena Community Center
730 E. Altadena Drive, Altadena CA 91001
626-797-8016  altadenahistorical.society@yahoo.com

Programs are free and open to the public

 

Related articles

Altadena Heritage members oppose second Walmart location

Christmas Tree Lane: the Santa Rosa pocket park

Altadena Chamber honors dinner needs your reservation by Jan. 25

Season of giving from Altadena Sheriff's Station

Historical Society celebrates Scripps Home, seeks donations to finish archiving

 

 

The Altadena Historical Society held a tea Sunday to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Scripps Home. From left: Mary Lou Langedyke, Marlane Forsberg, Jane Brackman, Tim Gregory, Mary Smeritschnig and Kathy Hoskins.

 

 

by Jane Brackman, President
Altadena Historical Society

The Altadena Historical Society hosted a nice tea last Sunday,  Nov. 11, to commemorate the100th anniversary of the founding of the Scripps Home. Unfortunately the home didn’t live long enough to join the celebration.

Our guests included donors who’ve made contributions to the Scripps archive fund. 

Last year Episcopal Homes Communities/MonteCedro, which purchased and tore down the buildings, returned the collection of memorabilia to Historical Society.   We’re using the $3500 we’ve received thus far to pay for the professional archiving of the collection.   We need another $500 to reach our goal.  Anyone wanting more information can call us at 626-797- 8016 or emai laltadenahistorical.society@yahoo.com

Mystery history photo: Prohibition in Altadena?

by Marlane Forsberg
Altadena Historical Society

 

This is an advertisement for the Marcell Inn in Altadena during Prohibition (1919 through 1933). The most well-known public watering hole in Altadena, it was an elegant restaurant, ballroom, and sometime speakeasy on north Lincoln Avenue at Palm Street. The picture and additional information on Prohibition in Altadena are found on  pages 114 and 115 of the Altadena Historical Society's book: Altadena: Between Wilderness and City by Michele Zack (2004).

The Inn became infamous on June 8, 1934, when, after a night of partying in the Inn, 19-year old actress and former Ziegfield Follies member, Dorothy Dell, died in a spectacular car accident on Lincoln Avenue in Altadena.

In 1937 the building became the administrative headquarters for The Marcell Academy, which was later renamed The Mount Lowe Military Academy.

The Altadena Historical Society does not have any photographs or other memorabilia of the Marcell Inn in our collection.  If you know where we can find some, please let us know. Additionally, if you have any information or pictures about Prohibition in Altadena, please share it with the Altadena Historical Society.

UPDATE: check out this piece on the Marcell Inn at the Avenue to the Sky blog.

House tour and lecture at the Keyes Bungalow to support Altadena Historical Society

 

Interior of Keyes Bungalow, courtesy of American Bungalow magazine

On August 12,  from 2-4pm, the Altadena Historical Society will be hosting a tea, lecture, and tour featuring the exceptional craftsman-era house, the Keyes Bungalow, built in 1911. Although the architect and builder are unknown, the house, located at 1337 Boston Street in Altadena, CA, is significant as a near perfect example of an airplane bungalow - a complete bungalow home on the bottom floor with an additional room raised above the roof like the cockpit of an airplane. The house was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978.
 
The lecture, by dog historian Jane Brackman, will address how the Arts and Crafts movement historically influenced the way we interact with companion dogs today. Owning a purebred dog was strictly upper-crust in the Victorian era, but the aesthetic was claimed by the middle class when ready-cut bungalows from companies like Sears meant regular folks could have a single family dwelling, a garden and a purebred family dog. Jane, the author of two gift books about pets in 19th Century America, will explain why Yorkies were considered dogs of the lower class, Labrador Retrievers were not recommended as pets, and why the U.S. dog population grew four times faster than the general population during the Arts and Crafts era.

Tickets and $25 for members and $30 for non-members.  To obtain tickets, call the Altadena Historical Society at 626-797-8016 or send a check with your request to Altadena Historical Society, 730 East Altadena Drive, Altadena, CA 91001. Reservations must be made in advance of the tour.  Tickets will be on a will-call basis the day of the event.

To read more about the Keyes Bungalow go to American Bungalow Magazine
 http://www.americanbungalow.com/the-keyes-bungalow-at-100-in-full-and-in-color/

 

The last one standing: the Scripps Home's Gloria Cottage

Recently the MonteCedro retirement community gave an update on its progress to the Altadena Town Council.  MonteCedro is at the site of the former Scripps Home, and its one surviving building, the Gloria Cottage, is to be refurbished and incorporated into the MonteCedro development.  The Altadena Historical Society shares this background of the property and the Gloria Cottage.

by Kathy Hoskins
Altadena Historical Society

Anyone who has driven by the large vacant lot on the south side of Calaveras Street between El Molino and Crawford remembers the former Scripps Home that stood on the site for 100 years.  Two artifacts are left of the home.  The first is a small craftsman cottage that still stands in the middle of the lot.  The second is the Scripps Home sign that hung for years at the corner of El Molino and Calaveras.   It now hangs from the ceiling of the Altadena Historical Society archives. 
 
The story of Scripps Home began when William A. Scripps, a British-born newspaperman, moved his family from Detroit to Altadena in 1904.  Mr. Scripps became very involved in his new community and took a particular interest in the Pasadena Emergency League.  This organization was helping to house a number of elderly people.  In 1911 Mr. Scripps purchased a home on the southeast corner of Calaveras and El Molino that had been built by Prof. Thaddeus Lowe (of Mt. Lowe Railway fame) for his son Thad Jr.  In 1913 Mr. Scripps gave this property along with 8 acres of land and an additional wing to the community to be called “The William A. Scripps Home for Aged People.” The original buildings were designed by the architectural firm of Buchanan and Brockway.  The total cost of the gift at the time was $50,000. In its early years the home was always free from debt and supported by contributions, gifts and legacies as well as the Community Chest.
 
In 1914 “Gloria Cottage,” designed by architect C. F. Driscoll, was added as a gift from prominent Altadenan, Mrs. A.F. Gartz (nee Crane; heiress to the Crane Plumbing fortune).  It was named after Mrs. Gartz’s daughter and was used as a small hospital.  In later years it became the caretaker’s cottage.  In 1922 a new building was completed and additional wings were added, financed by the Scripps family and friends.  The name was changed to “The Pasadena Home for the Aged.” The buildings were updated over the years and newer additions were built.  In 1962 the name changed again to “The Scripps Home.”
 
Today the land is vacant but the rich history of The Scripps Home is documented in the archives kept by a series of dedicated residents of the home.  The Altadena Historical Society is in the process of having this collection organized and catalogued. The Gloria Cottage is the only visual reminder of one of Altadena’s finest and oldest institutions.

Millard Canyon past and future is historical society lecture May 14

by Timothy Rutt

The Altadena Historical Society will look at Millard Canyon -- its past and future --  during its quarterly meeting and lecture on Monday, May 14:

Millard Canyon is a gem in our foothills -- a densely wooded area with a perennial stream at the northern edge of Altadena. Home to the Hahamonga people, Altadena pioneers, and more recently a favorite destination for outdoor enthusiasts, Millard Canyon is an integral part of the Altadena story.  A local landowner is willing to sell 13 acres in the canyon for conservation. The Arroyos & Foothills Conservancy is raising awareness and funds to purchase the canyon. Doing so would complete the preservation of the entire canyon north of Canyon Crest Road, leaving only two major unprotected canyons in Altadena.  

Speakers are  John Howell and Elizabeth Pomeroy.  

Powell is the executive director of the Arroyos & Foothills Conservancy.  He is an attorney and represented The Nature Conservancy in acquiring 14 open-space properties, and the Trust for Public Land in acquiring three. He was a founding member of Open Space Now, an advocacy group for natural open space in Pasadena, and is a member of the Arlington Garden Advisory Committee.

Elizabeth Pomeroy, Ph.D., is a member of the Pasadena Unified school board and is a passionate Sierra Club hike leader, writer and editor and who teaches English at Pasadena City College.  Her recent books include John Muir: A Naturalist in Southern California, Lost and Found: Historic and Natural Landmarks of the San Gabriel Valley, and Pasadena: A Natural History.

The lecture will be Mon., May 14, at 7:30 PM at the Altadena Community Center, 730 E. Altadena Dr.  The program is free and open to the public.

Pictured: a vintage photo of Millard Falls.

Mysteries of Altadena: who are Buddy's buddies?

from the Altadena Historical Society

On our Mystery Photo Blog, we post pictures that are missing important parts of their stories. Our Mystery Photo for this month is a case in point.  In our files we discovered a picture of Buddy Ebsen with two unknown (at least to the volunteers at the Altadena Historical Society) actresses. Perhaps they were members of Theatre Americana? We would also love to know what show the three were appearing in.  If you have any information or think you might, please let us know.  You can email us or go to our website to see this photo and others.  

Julius Loving: first African American deputy and penology pioneer

In this 1930's photo from his private collection, LA Sheriff's Deputy Julius Loving is flanked by two African American sheriff's deputies. One man’s identity is unknown; the other was R. C. Robinson. 

by Sgt. John Stanley
Altadena Sheriff's Station

The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department system of jailing has been at the cutting edge of reforms in penology for over a century. One of the unsung heroes, and the man responsible for the creation of many of its jail programs, was also the LASD’s first African American Deputy Sheriff: Julius Boyd Loving. 

Julius Loving was born in 1863 in Washington, D.C. A Buffalo Soldier in the mid-1880’s, Loving moved to Los Angeles from Hartford, Connecticut in 1891 and quickly established himself as a businessman and leader in the city’s African-American community. Loving either founded or was a co-founder of many of the area’s African-American fraternal organizations. 

He was a member and held leadership roles in the Elks, Foresters, United Brothers of Friendship and Knights of Pythias. He personally founded the Golden Leaf Court, which was the women’s chapter of the Knights of Pythias. His first wife Nannie was a leader in the Golden Leaf Court and the women’s auxiliary of the United Brothers of Friendship. In 1898, Loving was also elected the vice president of the city’s Afro American League, a forerunner of the NAACP. A few years later he would be the co-founder of a cooperative of African-American businessmen who established a building and loan to assist their fellows. 

When William “Billy” Hammel was running for Sheriff in 1898, he promised the Afro American League that, if elected, he would appoint an African-American man as one of his deputies. Upon Hammel’s election many men vied for the position. Due to the often fractious infighting for the spot, Hammel offered it to Loving who was not even one of the men who was seeking the job. Hammel had done business with Loving’s hauling company and respected him. Loving accepted Hammel’s offer and was sworn in as a Los Angeles County deputy sheriff in January 1899. 

Altadena's mystery history photo: the puzzling poppyfield

Altadena Historical Society mystery photo blogmeister Marlane writes:

We have upwards of a thousand photographs that give us the big picture of our community's history. But sometimes we're stymied by the little details in the picture. We're appealing to history buffs to help us out.

On our mystery photo blog, we post pictures that are missing important parts of their stories. This postcard is a recent acquisition. The picture was taken about 1915. The caption at the bottom says, "Poppy Field Altadena, California near Pasadena". The Craftsman building in the background is probably demolished, but the mountains might reveal the location. If the building or its location look familiar, please let us know where it is and if it is still there.  You can respond in the comments section here or you can go to our website to see this photo and others.    

http://www.altadenahistoricalsociety.org/blog.htm

The early history of the Altadena Sheriff's Station on Jan. 23

by Timothy Rutt

Altadena has always been patrolled by the county sheriff, with the first Altadena station established in 1927.  The Altadena Historical Society presents a look at the station's early years on Mon., Jan 23, at the Altadena Community Center, 730 E. Altadena Dr., at 7:30 PM.

The speaker is Altadena Sheriff Sgt. John Stanley, who is also a published historian with a master's degree in history from Cal State Fullerton.  Stanley's lecture will look at the history of the station through 1950, with lots of anecdotes and colorful stories, and numerous rare photos.

The program is free and open to the public.

 

The rise and fall of the Rose Bowl Motel

by Jane Brackman
President, Altadena Historical Society

Although Pasadena lays claim to the Rose Parade, Altadena also had a part in its beginning.  Michele Zack wrote that the concept came together in the Altadena home of Banyard  Smith (now the site of the Theosophical Society on the northeast corner of Santa Rosa and Mariposa, across from the McNally house). "It was at Smith's home that the Valley Hunt Club was founded in the early 1890s, from whence grew Pasadena's Rose Parade." ( Altadena: Between Wilderness and City, 2004, p. 122)  

The elite Club may not have had the Pasadena Rose Bowl Motel in mind as their idea of upscale lodging (see attached history), but it’s the motel that became part of Altadena’s inheritance.

BTW -we still have Michele Zack’s Altadena history book available. It makes a great Christmas gift.  Go to  http://www.altadenahistoricalsociety.org/bookorder.htm  or call us at 626-797-8016.

And finally, as you do your end of the year tax planning, please consider making a charitable contribution to help us keep Altadena’s history alive. Gifts can be an excellent means of not only making meaningful donations for the public good, but also establishing the basis for potential tax benefits to you, the donor.

On behalf of all of us at Altadena Historical Society, have a wonderful holiday.  See you in 2012!

Altadena Historical Society receives Scripps Home archives

Members of the Altadena Historical Society (AHS) and the Episcopal Home Communities look through the contents of a box of documents and pictures from the Scripps Home.  From left: former Scripps resident Jeanne Guernsey, Mary Lou Langedyke of AHS, Martha Tamburrano, president and CEO of the Episcopal Homes Communities, AHS Archivist Sherry Cavallo, and Kathy Hoskins of AHS.

by Timothy Rutt

The Altadena Historical Society welcomed a treasure trove Tuesday morning, as the Episcopal Home Communities donated a large cache of documents, pictures, and artifacts from the Scripps Home to their archive.

The Scripps Home was a senior housing community that opened in 1912, at the now-vacant site on North El Molino Avenue between East Calavaras Street and Alameda Street. The Scripps Home was acquired by the Episcopal Home Communities, which closed the home in 2007 and tore down the buildings to create a more modern facility, MonteCedro. Residents of Scripps were relocated to other senior housing owned by the Episcopal Home Communities, but the bad economy has stalled construction of MonteCedro and the property remains vacant.

Pictured: Episcopal Home's director of pastoral care The Rev. Sarah Nichols moves a large framed photograph into the Historical Society's office at the Altadena Community Center.

But old records, scrapbooks, and photos from the Scripps Home were saved and put in storage.  Jeanne Guernsey, a former Scripps resident who now lives at The Windsor facility in Glendale, took charge of the items and worked to insure their collection and preservation.  

Pictured: Archivist Sherry Cavello watches as Episcopal Homes' CEO Martha Tamburrano signs over ownership of the collection to the Altadena Historical Society.

"My heart and soul is in this, and I treasure every item," Guernsey told a group of women from the Episcopal Homes and the Altadena Historical Society during the delivery.

The Episcopal Home Communities offered to donate the Scripps ephemera to the Altadena Historical Society to be preserved and catalogued, at a location not too far from where the home was located.

"This is a real gift to Altadena's collection," said Mary Lou Langedyke, a board member of the Historical Society.

Pictured: the trove of documents included photographs, framed newspaper and magazine articles, and other large items.

 

(Note: fixed the identifications on the first picture -- never, never do anything before that first cup of coffee!)

"This is the people's bid": the nail-biting drama of the Cobb Estate

Bob Barnes told the dramatic story of the purchase of the Cobb Estate  Monday night -- and has a surprise reunion with the student who made it possible.

by Laura Monteros

Maggie Stratton has impeccable timing and a flair for the dramatic.

She had it on Oct. 1, 1971, when she led a band of students in claiming the Cobb Estate for the people in an eleventh-hour nail biter of an auction. She had it on Monday night when she stood up at the end of Bob Barnes’ presentation and announced, “I am Maggie Stratton.”


Pictured: "I am Maggie Stratton."

Barnes, a social studies teacher at John Muir High School who was instrumental in organizing students and raising money to purchase the 107-acre estate to keep it out of the hands of developers, had lost track of the girl he had worked with so closely for eight days in 1971.  He had no clue that she was sitting in the middle of the audience, listening to make sure the story was told correctly.

And what a story it is.

The call to action
Barnes was the speaker last night at the Altadena Historical Society's presentation on the acquisition of the Cobb Estate, the hiking area behind the gates at the top of Lake Avenue.  As Barnes told it, it was a story full of suspense and game-changing events, and at the last minute good prevailed in a way as corny as the ending of a Frank Capra film.  But it really happened.

Back in 1971, Barnes was only filling in for a colleague who was the faculty advisor of the Muir Conservation Club when he drove Maggie, the president of the club, to a conservation meeting on a September evening.  The topic of the meeting was the impending sale of the Cobb Estate, a former grand estate that had sunk to dereliction and finally disappearance, as the land changed hands many times over the years.  Formerly owned by the Marx Brothers, among others, a developer was now eyeing the estate for a housing development, which raised the alarms of the Audobon Club and other conservationists.

“We need help from the community and the young people here tonight,” Barnes remembers the leaders of the Audubon Society saying.  He slunk lower in his seat as Maggie sat taller in hers.

“Barnes, we need to do this,” she told him.

Past-a-dena: Boulder Crest

Jane Brackman at the Altadena Historical Society shares this article on a notable home in Altadena's past:

Boulder Crest, one of the grand homes of Altadena, was destroyed in the 1935 Las Flores fire.  Altadena Historical Society has a rare copy of a limited edition booklet that the builder, Reinhardt J. Busch published about 1915, proudly describing his Millard Canyon mountain lodge.  We’re closed in August, but please make plans to visit the Altadena Historical Society archives anytime Monday or Tuesday between 9:00 am to 12:30 pm.

Tea & Tunes with Ian Whitcomb July 8

Altadena's own British-Invader-pop-star-turned-vintage-tunesmith Ian Whitcomb brings his ukulele stylings to Tea & Tunes, a Pasadena Museum of History salon to be held at the Altadena Town & Country Club on Thursday at 2 PM.  An elegant tea accompanied by Victorian/Edwardian era popular music -- what could be better?  Tickets are $45 for museum members, $50 for non-members, reservations are required and are available here.

This is one in a series of salons to be held at the club to explore that era as part of the museum's current exhibition, Pasadena Patron: The Life and Legacy of Eva Scott Fenyes.   Future salons include "Quackery, Snake Oil and Flim-Flam Medicine" on Sept. 16, "Straight-Laced and Buttoned-Up: Dress and Undress at the Turn of the 20th Century" on Oct. 22; "Artful Giving," or how the era did Christmas, Nov. 11; and "Behave Yourself! Manners for Proper Ladies and Gentlemen" on Jan. 27, 2011.  It sounds like proper fun!

End of an era: Ronnie's Automotive gas pumps are removed

Mark Goldschmidt, who is appropriately chairman of Altadena Heritage, saw a little of that heritage disappear from the vantage point of his office today.  He writes us:

Looked out my office windows (upstairs from Tangles & Locks and the Coffee Gallery) this afternoon, just in time to see a couple of guys load up the old gas pumps at Ronnie's. I rushed out to take a photo.

Until last year, Ronnie's Automotive was the longest continually operating business in Altadena  (since 1923 I've been told). It has fallen on darker days since the departure of its last owner and operator George Lewis late in 2009. On Friday, July 2, the old Gilmore gas pumps, which haven't functioned in decades, but starred in countless movies, commercials, TV shows and music videos, were hauled off... who knows where. Another bit of Altadena's Heritage has disappeared.

Blast from the past: Harold Lloyd and JPL

Local trail guy Paul Ayers shares some great "then and now" classic pictures with us:

As some of you know, one of the other things I do is serve as a researcher on John Bengston’s series of books that reveal the shooting locations for the great silent movie comedians. Having contributed to John’s Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin books I am now working on a book on Harold Lloyd and have found that a nice little scene from Lloyd’s 1924 film Girl Shy was shot on what is now the access road which runs from the corner of Ventura and Windsor to the JPL parking lot.

In the movie Lloyd’s typical persona, the “glasses character” races from his rural home to the city to try to prevent his sweetheart from marrying a bigamist [a familiar silent movie trope]. He goes from one form of conveyance to another, trains, cars, wagons, streetcars, etc.  In the subject scene Lloyd driving on a one lane road finds his way blocked by a beat-up Model T coming in the other direction.  He trades cars but as he cranks the Ford to start it, it falls down into a canyon and is smashed.  He then races after another car, jumps in the back and continues his odyssey.

Below find the “then and now” comparison shots. 

More pictures after the jump.

"Primitive" art at the Green carriage house tour

The Altadena Historical Society gives us another nugget from their upcoming event:

Something old but new to us, the large painting (10’ x 12’)  in the attached document has never been on view to the public. But you’ll have a chance to see it and learn its story on Sunday April 25, 2010, when Altadena Historical Society will open the G. G. Green carriage house for tours between 10 am and 5 pm. Tickets are  $13 for members, $16 for non-members, and $20 at the door. (The carriage house is located a half  block south of the intersection of Santa Rosa and Mariposa in Altadena.)   Send a check to AHS, 730 E. Altadena Dr., Altadena, CA 91001 or purchase tickets on-line. For details go to:

http://ahscarriagehousetour.eventbrite.com/

Tickets will be held at the door.

Back then: the Altadena Nursery

Jane Brackman at the Altadena Historical Society writes us:

With the recent posting about the demise of the Altadena Nursery, we here at Altadena Historical Society thought readers might be interested in some background.

 Altadena Nursery, on the east side of Lake about a block north of New York, was organized in 1906 by Clyde Colby.  According to an article in the 1924 booklet, Pasadena and Pasadenans celebrating Pasadena’s fiftieth anniversary, the nursery ranked second to none in the entire Southwest.  “The stock of this nursery consists of … row upon row of trees, shrubbery, vines and plants of every description, waiting to be transplanted to the grounds that will surround the many beautiful homes now under construction (p 40).” 

Today some of those very saplings shade our neighborhoods,  but the nursery is gone. It closed its doors in late 2009 after 103 years in business.  The picture on the right is the front view of the nursery, from Lake Avenue looking east down the driveway. The picture on the left is the reverse view of the nursery looking back toward Lake Avenue. (The vacant building that exists today is approximately where the evergreen tree stands.) 

Mt. Lowe Railway talk in San Marino Tues.

Got this message from Rex Mayreis, Altadena resident and a librarian at the Crowell Library in San Marino:

A free trip to the glorious past of the Mount Lowe Railway above Altadena

See historical pictures of the Mount Lowe Railway and hear about the marvelous playground that was developed above Altadena by Thaddeus Lowe in the 1890's. David J. Macpherson was the engineering genius that designed the inclined railway to Mount Echo. The Pacific Electric Railway red cars brought people up to the Rubio Pavilion in Rubio Canyon, where they boarded the incline cars for the exciting trip up to Echo. Guests could stay at the Echo Mountain House, where there was a small observatory and other recreation, or get on another railway for the glorious trip to beautiful Alpine Tavern, tucked away higher up.

Michael Patris, of the Mount Lowe Preservation Society, has gathered a wonderful array of photographs in his book, "Images of Rail: Mount Lowe Railway." He shares some of these pictures and gives a dynamic talk about how all of this came to be. He gave this excellent presentation for the Altadena Historical Society a couple of years ago. If you missed it, or would like to see it again, come to the Crowell Public Library in San Marino this Tuesday, March 2 at 7:00 PM to experience this impressive part of local history. Call the Library at (626) 300-0777 for information. The program is free and there is no need to register. The address is 1890 Huntington Drive, San Marino, just 5 or 6 miles down the hill. The Library's web site is http://sanmarinopl.org and the web site for the Mount Lowe Railway Preservation Society is http://www.mountlowe.org.

Historical Society to tour Col. Green's carriage house April 25

The Altadena Historical Society will be touring Col. G.G. Green's carriage house this spring, and the graphic tells you all you need to know!

LA Auto Show 1910

The LA Times blog The Daily Mirror, which talks about local history, has a feature on the 1910 Los Angeles Auto Show, and references the Pasadena-Altadena Hill Climb (which we today call "driving north up Los Robles"). 

LA Times obituary: Owen Brown

One of our readers pointed us to this link, an In Memoriam for Owen Brown, who died this day in 1889, and resides somewhere unmarked on Little Round Top, below the mountain named for his father, John Brown. We like the last line: "These men deserve to be remembered with gratitude."

"The Health Seekers of Sierra Madre"

by Michele Zack
Special to Altadenablog

Our friend & Altadena historian Michele Zack's new book is Southern California Story: Seeking the Better Life in Sierra Madre. She shares with us her Dec. 2 talk at Vroman's Bookstore about the different "tribes" that inhabit the Tricities Area (Pasadena, Altadena, and Sierra Madre), and the surprising history of how illness shaped the character of these towns, and indeed all of Southern California.

Tribes of Settlers: the San Gabriel Valley, and the Illness Legacy

My new book clearly focuses on Sierra Madre, but at the same time is outward looking, I use this little San Gabriel Valley town as a lens through which to connect to neighbors, as well as to larger histories.

An anthropological bent runs deep in me. My father in law is an anthropologist, my husband skipped the 2nd grade to live with him and his mother in a mud hut on Mount Elgin in Uganda, and I myself wrote a popular ethnography of a wandering hill tribe in Southeast Asia. Some fellow Altadenans might remember being likened to the Lisu, who are sometimes called “the Anarchists of the Highlands,” when the Altadena book came out. I also invoked a Lisu aphorism I felt resonated with my home town: “It is better to live close to the water and far from the ruler.”

In studying the San Gabriel Valley, so far I’ve focused on three places, Altadena, Pasadena, and now Sierra Madre — and the micro-histories and cultures of each has always struck me as curiously distinct, as if different tribes of people settled them, even though they obviously have a lot in common. Cultural history, which has to do with the meaning people make of the times they are living through, often through art and books and other media, is something I love to explore. Here are a few distinctions that make these three places unique:

The not-so-good old days

Apparently rainy days cause people to reminisce.  We've have a couple of items about the not-always-good old days.

Paul Ayers' father collected the first section of the LA Times during historic incidents.  Today, he shared with us pictures of mud and debris flows in the Montrose area on Jan. 2 and 3, 1934.

[This picture] is described in the LAT as “Honolulu avenue [sic] in Montrose.”  Based on the mountain profiles in the background, the fact that an intersection is depicted and that one of the major debris flows came down just to the west of Rosemont at or near where the present flood control channel is I think the view is looking west down Honolulu from a point just east of Rosemont and Honolulu.

 

Described in the LAT as “Montrose Avenue, in Montrose.”  I think this view was shot on Montrose Avenue looking east at a point between Rosemont and Briggs.  I think you can see Holy Redeemer’s spire and the rectory house in the background.  Note man on horseback to the left.

 

[This picture] is described in the LAT as “Living–room of home at Ethel and Mountain avenue [sic], Glendale, after storm waters swept through house”.  This house still stands [on] Mountain.  I have attached a present day photo of the house showing the arched window, the small square window and the fireplace/chimney depicted in the LAT photo.

The house is now unlived in and in a state of disrepair.  It is looked after by the neighbors across the street who park cars in the driveway to give some sign of life. They related the following: The owners of the house at the house at the time of the flood took many photos of the flood and damage to the home; these photos are still in the house along with a great deal of other material.  Apparently a piano that was in the house at the time of the flood was carried 2 miles downstream from the house. The home was inherited by a daughter who passed away in the last ten years; the house is now owned by her husband who lives out of the area.  I asked them to ask the husband if he would consider donating the historically significant material.  That was two weeks ago and I haven’t heard anything yet and kinda doubt that I will.

Our second blast into the past is found on Radigan Neuhalfen's site (he lives in Mongolia???) and takes us a few years ahead: Altadena resident and future Nobel Laureate Linus Pauling suffered a graffiti attack on his home in 1945.  Why?  He hired George Miniaki, a young Japanese-American whose parents lived in a relocation camp, as a gardener.  Click on the link for a fascinating walk through a not-always-proud past.

Remembering the Red Cars at the Community Center next Mon.

The Altadena Historical Society and Altadena Library are pleased to announce a presentation by railroad expert and co-founder of the Scenic Mount Lowe Group, Brian Marcroft. who will be sharing rare, never before seen images, maps, photos and documents of the Pacific Electric Railroad from the Ray Younghans estate, courtesy of the Orange Empire Railway Museum.  Altadena’s historic Mount Lowe Railway became part of the PE in 1902.  Charles Seims, author of Mount Lowe, the Railway in the Clouds and Trolley Days in Pasadena will be honored at this exciting event.

The presentation will be Mon., Nov. 23, at 7:30 PM at the Altadena Community Center, 730 E. Altadena Dr.  Admission is free.

For more information, contact Jane Brackman at the Altadena Historical Society, ahspresident@earthlink.net (626-797-8016) or 
www.altadenalibrary.org ; 626 798-0833; pdutton@altadenalibrary.org

Business as it used to be on Mariposa

Altadena Historical Society president Jane Brackman gave us permission to reprint their November newsletter:

This attachment seems appropriate to post on the blog in light of the conversation going on about businesses closing their doors.  This is what Altadena used to look like, and if people shop local, it will again.

Click to enlarge.

Owen Brown's body lies a moulderin', etc.-- we just don't know where!

Matt Horman at the (Altadenablog sponsor) Hometown Pasadena website has a nice piece on the history of Owen and Jason Brown, and the scene at Little Round Top, which suffered from the Station Fire.  Owen's headstone is still missing!

Railroads, trolleys, and the Red Cars

The Altadena Library and the Altadena Historical Society are hosting a joint event for lovers of local history and transportation.

Expert Brian Marcroft will share rare images, maps, photos and documents of the Pacific Electric Railroad. Charles Seims, author of Mount Lowe, the Railway in the Clouds and Trolley Days in Pasadena will be honored at this exciting event. It takes place at the Community Center at 730 East Altadena Drive on Mon. Nov. 23 at 7:30 PM.

Zane Grey goes green

Vickey Kalambakal is a writer specializing in local history.  Her History, Los Angeles blog takes a flattering look at the Zane Grey mansion and how it's "greening" into the future.

Locals only Wednesdays at Pasadena Museum of History

Well .... locals get free admission on Wednesdays to the Pasadena Museum's "Family Stories" exhibition, if you live, work, or go to school in Alhambra, Altadena, Arcadia, Bradbury, Duarte, Eagle Rock, Glendale, Highland Park, La Canada Flintridge, La Crescenta, Monrovia, Monterey Park, Pasadena, Rosemead, San Gabriel, San Marino, Sierra Madre, South Pasadena and Temple City. PSN has the details.

Altadena history to your in-box

The folks at the Altadena Historical Society (of which we are a member) have been sending great emails about local history -- but it's not just restricted to members!  (And membership is reasonable!)  Here's what we received that they want to share:

Altadena Historical Society president Jane Brackman  is looking for history enthusiasts who might be interested in receiving  digital historical documents on a monthly basis.  It’s a free service.   To sign up send an email to ahspresident@earthlink.net

Each mailing features something unique from the files.

Altadena DID have a newspaper at one time! Click to enlarge and get the full scoop!

A day at the mausoleum

The Altadena Historical Society hosted a tour of Mountain View Mausoleum today, and we were there with video (Our Flip video looks fine onscreen, but turns into gunk after we send it to YouTube -- don't know why!)

****

*******

We're putting this up now, but we have great Bill Westphal pictures after the jump that you absolutely must see.

Plein air paintings added to June 6 mausoleum tour

The Altadena Historical Society has added an event to their June 6 tour of the Mountain View Mausoleum:

Plein-aire landscape paintings featuring Altadena, Pasadena and the San Gabriel Valley will be for sale on June 6th, Saturday, from 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm during Altadena Historical Society’s tour of the Mountain View Mausoleum.  A painting of the Cobb Estate (pictured) by Sierra Madre artist Lynne Fearman will be featured as a raffle item and fund raiser for the Society.  The Mausoleum is two blocks north of Woodbury on Marengo.  Art viewing is free - many artists will be painting on site - and tours of the building will be $10 for members and $15 for non members.  For more information go to eventbrite.com/event/317870760 or check out the Altadena Historical Society website:
http://abacus-es.com/altadena/history.

History of La Vina

Sid Gally's Monday column for PSN looks at the history of La Vina, which started as a tuberculosis sanitarium (kind of the swine flu of its day).  Apparently, after its closure as a sanitarium it was briefly considered for the site of a prison.  Today, it's a gated community -- draw your own conclusions!

More on historical society's June 6 mausoleum tour

Jane Brackman of the Altadena Historical Society sends us pictures and and update on the society's upcoming tour:

On June 6, 11:00 am to 4:00 pm, Altadena Historical Society will be providing tours of Altadena's (and Pasadena's) best kept secret, the 1925 Mountain View Mausoleum.  Newspapers reported that building costs exceeded $500,000, an astronomical sum in 1925 when average homes could be built for less than $10,000.  The Spanish Revival building is constructed of reinforced concrete,  clad with travertine marble, and roofed with Spanish tile.  The spectacular interior is faced with many kinds of rare marble imported from Italy.  The interior spaces are enriched with art glass windows and ornate bronze doors, light fixtures and grills.  The 180 foot entrance galleria features a vaulted ceiling. Although the building rivals some of the most beautiful cathedrals in Europe, most people in Pasadena and Altadena have never been inside.   

Historical society offers June 6 mausoleum tour

The Altadena Historical Society has announced their summer tour -- one of our favorite places (but we're a frustrated Goth) -- the Mountain View Mausoleum!

Guided tour of Altadena's most elegant landmark.

Designed by Pasadena architect Clarence L. Jay and built in 1925 for a cost exceeding $500.000, this hidden Altadena treasure is enriched with imported Italian marble, art glass windows, ornate bronze doors and features a 180 foot galleria with vaulted ceiling embellished with 200 mural scenes depicting the story of Christianity.

Rarely available for tours, the mausoleum has been featured many times in Hollywood movies and television productions.

Join us for this special outing.  Refreshments included with admission. 

Tour is 1-4 PM, admission is $10/members, $15 non-members.

The mystery of George Garner

The LA Times is on the case about George Garner, a noted black singer and theater actor in the 1930's from the Pasadena/Altadena area.  He accomplished many important things, but what happened to him is unknown -- and the Times is looking for someone who knows.  There is an Altadena chapter of the National Association of Negro Musicians named after him. 

Up telescope

This pic of the day comes from the Hemmings Auto Blog -- they're doing a feature on historic trucks -- in this case, a beauty from 1917 where a truck is going up the Mt. Wilson Toll Road to deliver a 100-in telescope glass to the observatory. (The 200 in. mirror was set up sometime in the 1930's). 

How sweet it is!

Read what happened when JPL archivist and Altadenan Charlene Nichols went before an LA city commission to tell them that history is like a box of chocolates ...

Columbian Exposition days

Sid Gally's Monday PSN excursion into Pasadena history looks at dispatches from the 1893 Chicago Columbian Exposition and Fair (a precursor of the Word's Fair, and whatever happened to those, anyway?)  Ray Conger and Isabelle Bates WInslow covered it for the Pasadena Daily Evening Star.

There are a few Altadena connections to the Fair.  One of them is that (legend has it) the Turkish pavilion was shipped here after the fair and turned into the smoking room at the McNally House.  Of course, the Brothers Green were inspired by the Oriental architecture on display and exercised that inspiration in several notable Pasadena and Altadena locations.  Gally ends by telling us that the largest searchlight at the exhibition ended its days on top of Echo Mountain (just out of range of the Weathercam!)

Mountain Man to Mayor: Don Benito at the Community Center Jan. 26

Author Nat B. Read reveals the amazing tale of the "pioneer, beaver trapper and trader, grizzly bear hunter, Indian fighter, justice of the peace, farmer, rancher, politician, horticulturalist, vinter, real estate entrepreneur, and one of the great landholders in Southern California," Don Benito Wilson.  This is a joint presentation of the Altadena Historical Society and Friends of the Altadena Library, and it will take place at the Community Center, 730 E. Altadena Dr., starting at 7:30 PM.

My greenbacks are red: Altadena's socialist millionnairess

Sid Gally's Pasadena history feature in today's PSN looks at "If This Be Treason: A Foolish Guide to Pasadena" by Sanford Conn and Datlis C. Smith Jr., a 1929 tome that sounds part John Birch, part snarky comment.  Mentioned in the article is Kate Crane Gartz, a Chicago steel heiress who came to live in Altadena and spent her life sponsoring lefty causes.  A list of her books are here, and she's in the Internet Movie Database as a producer for producing Segei Eisenstein's Mexican Fantasy, among other documentary works in the 1930's.

Graphic:  Gartz's 1945 Christmas message.  Click to enlarge.