Visual Materials

Album of views of Pacific Electric Railway Company and various Southern California sites

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Description: An album with 50 photographs of Pacific Electric Railway trains and scenic views of Southern California, including Dominguez Hills, Long Beach, San Pedro, San Pedro Harbor, Santa Catalina Island, Watts, and Whittier. Many of the photographs are taken along the railway and at railroad stations, but some focus on buildings such as the Carnegie Library and Hotel Virginia in Long Beach and city hall and the public library in San Pedro; views of the harbors in San Pedro, Long Beach, and Avalon; ships in the harbors like the SS Queen of the Pacific Coast line and the USS Hopkins; and the adobe ruins of the Old Dominguez Ranch House. Other images from Long Beach feature Pacific Park, the mammoth hot salt plunge, and a winter scene in Alamitos Park. Most of the photographs are unsigned, but one is stamped by Reyes Photo.
Type: Visual Materials(Opens in new tab)
Production date: approximately 1910
Call number: photCL 65
Creator: Lawrence, Charles S

Pacific Electric Railway Company Photographs

Visual Materials

The collection consists of 3396 black and white photographs (many with corresponding original and copy negatives), 116 unprinted glass plate negatives, memos, correspondence, press releases, and notes related to the Pacific Electric Railway, ca. 1870s-1950s. The collection provides a comprehensive overview of the routes and areas served by the Railway during the years of its operation, and thus a picture of the growth of Southern California during the first half of the twentieth century. The images include views of landscape along, and towns served by, the Pacific Electric routes, including Central Los Angeles; Pacific Electric track and stations; Pacific Electric advertising, publicity, and public relations photographs; Los Angeles and surrounding area parks; Pacific Electric employees and employee activities; construction of Pacific Electric facilities, such as the Hollywood subway, the 6th and Main Street terminal, and the Subway Terminal Building; and Pacific Electric trolley cars and buses. The views along the Pacific Electric routes include beach communities such as San Pedro, Long Beach, Newport Beach, Redondo Beach, Laguna Beach, Venice, Ocean Park and Santa Monica. These images include views of the coastline, the towns, and the amusement areas of Long Beach, Redondo Beach, Venice, and Ocean Park. Also included are many photographs of Mount Lowe—the cable incline railway, the trolley up to Ye Alpine Tavern, the Tavern itself, and the Mount Lowe Tavern. The Riverside, San Bernardino, and Orange County views document the landscape and popular sites in and around the towns served by the Railway; these include the Glenwood Mission Inn and Rubidoux Drive summit. Also of note are the photographs documenting activities of Pacific Electric employees, including construction of and activities in the Pacific Electric Club and outings sponsored by the Railway; and the construction of the Pacific Electric and Subway Terminal Buildings.

photCL 91

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Photograph album of the Pacific Electric Railway, Southern California

Visual Materials

A presentation album with 77 photographs taken along the Pacific Electric Railway lines in Southern California, especially in Los Angeles County and Orange County. The images primarily document street scenes, train stations, and local attractions along the railway lines. Includes the Whittier Line; La Habra Line; Santa Ana-Huntington Beach line; Glendale Line; Pasadena Line; Monrovia Line; Glendora; Covina Line; El Monte; San Gabriel Line; Sierra Madre Line; and many of the Mount Lowe Division. Some of the locations shown are Echo Mountain and Mount Lowe, Rubio Canyon, Covina, and Sierra Madre. Local businesses and attractions that are featured include Echo Park in Los Angeles; the Shorb Ranch in San Marino; Cawston Ostrich Farm in South Pasadena; Casa Verdugo in Glendale; and Busch Gardens in Pasadena. More than a third of the images were taken in and around Mount Lowe, showing the observatory, inclined railway, circular bridge, granite gate, search light, and Ye Alpine Tavern. Two photographs show Mount Lowe with snow and another shows the smoke of a brush fire. There is a view of the moon taken through the Mount Lowe telescope, and a photograph of Dr. Edgar Lucien Larkin, director of the Mount Lowe Observatory, in the observatory room. There are several photographs of orange groves taken from various locations along the railway.

photCL 75

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Photograph albums of Pacific Electric Railway Company employees and advertising

Visual Materials

Two photograph albums compiled by the Pacific Electric Railway Company featuring employees, offices and publicity scenes of Southern California tourist destinations. Views include individual and group portraits of employees (some named); offices, workers and ticket office at the downtown Los Angeles headquarters; substations; streetcars and working equipment. There are numerous views of Mount Lowe and Echo Mountain showing people in the tavern and bungalows reached by the Mount Lowe Railway; crowds on the beaches and piers of Venice, Santa Monica and Ocean Park; the Redondo Beach Bath House; street scenes in Balboa at a crowded ceremony, and the Mission Inn, Riverside. Other views include posed scenes with models or "bathing beauties"; company exhibits at citrus fairs; a group of clowning men in "drag" (possibly employees), and a group portrait of Mexican American children and company nurses at one of Pacific Electric's section camps for Mexican American employees.

photCL 209

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Pacific Electric Railway Company

Manuscripts

Contains map of Pacific Electric Railway and Los Angeles Inter-urban Railway System.

mssHEH

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Photographs of Pacific Electric Railway Company, Los Angeles Railway, and miscellaneous Los Angeles and Seattle, Washington, views

Visual Materials

A collection of 25 photographs, most likely compiled by railroad electrical engineer Samuel Horace Anderson, with an emphasis on early transportation innovations and technologies. The group includes railway-related images in Los Angeles, California, as well as a few from Seattle, Washington (items 3-7); views of various trolley cars of the Pacific Electric Railway and Los Angeles Railway; Barn No. 1 of the Los Angeles Railway with six horse-drawn tower cars lined up in front of the building (item 10); two photographs of a man in an automobile captioned "1910, Mr. Taber & demonstrating his patent wind-shield on Mr. S. Horace Anderson's 1908 Franklin" (items 14-15); views of inventor Joseph Fawke's "Aerial Swallow," an experimental, propeller-driven monorail which was built in Burbank in 1911 or 1912 (items 16-18); a 1918 commercial photograph of two men with a giant swordfish at Catalina Island (item 20); and two photographs of a Chutes amusement park water ride (also known as Washington Garden, at Washington and Grand in Los Angeles) (items 21-22). There are also some recreational group portraits as well as a studio portrait of S. Horace Anderson (Item 1), who also appears to be present in the group photograph taken in Hot Springs, Arkansas (Item 25).

photCL 121

A1.2 - Accidents

Visual Materials

A1.2 - Accidents - Looking west on Anaheim Street at Dominguez Street in the Dominguez Harbor Tract near Long Beach. [Shows 33 kV San Pedro-Long Beach Line, and trolley line in background]

photCL SCE 02 - 01475

Album of views of Pacific Electric Railway Company and various Southern California sites

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Pacific Electric Railway Company Photographs

Photograph album of the Pacific Electric Railway, Southern California

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A1.2 - Accidents