tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24217487532131380222024-03-12T16:13:44.137-07:00San Pedro & Los Angeles Harbor HistoryFocusing on the Port of Los Angeles history, San Pedro, CaliforniaDennis Piotrowskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17247236710669192137noreply@blogger.comBlogger35125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2421748753213138022.post-52730706135060501752023-05-06T19:01:00.000-07:002023-05-06T19:09:05.355-07:00Fort MacArthur K-9 Command -- First Dog Arrives at Fort Mac!<p>It's been a long time since I've posted on this blog, so it's overdue for an update! I've completed more research on the World War II era Fort MacArthur K-9 Command. Someday I'd like to write the history of this interesting facet of Los Angeles Harbor history, but in the meantime I'll post some historical tidbits. </p><p>The original Fort MacArthur K-9 Command was organized in December 1940 "for the purpose of conserving manpower and strengthening the guard by replacing men with dogs." This was according to Colonel Francois H.K. Reynolds of the Veterinary Corps Chief, Veterinary Section of Service Command Surgeon as written in the History of the Veterinary Activities of the Ninth Service Command (World War II).</p><p>The original Canine Command at Fort MacArthur consisted of six dogs obtained through donations by civilians. The number would increase to thirty in January 1942. </p><p>The first dog offered to the fort was a two-year old German shepherd named Lady from nearby Wilmington. Here is an article from the San Pedro News Pilot from February 7, 1941 that describes this:</p><p><br /></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh8gBoyKTiB-EnFQ6O0jAvP-2-aFh-L4U9XlaosGx7I6UtLBzEcGg-L46n8NM0is_8JwY-vx6HoeTtXFZ9OsVcjNavUTkrqG-PRvK26IXgGsHHf4NVwTzXYW6YILHUoQBgCaLwpGqCDvDGCQFlXul-0F-dmIt_5oQzAVUgm5I1EJGHS7l-R4WlabvTw" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="450" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh8gBoyKTiB-EnFQ6O0jAvP-2-aFh-L4U9XlaosGx7I6UtLBzEcGg-L46n8NM0is_8JwY-vx6HoeTtXFZ9OsVcjNavUTkrqG-PRvK26IXgGsHHf4NVwTzXYW6YILHUoQBgCaLwpGqCDvDGCQFlXul-0F-dmIt_5oQzAVUgm5I1EJGHS7l-R4WlabvTw=w274-h450" width="274" /></a></div><br /><br /><p></p>Dennis Piotrowskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17247236710669192137noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2421748753213138022.post-18357591511375109392012-12-17T19:31:00.000-08:002012-12-17T22:07:47.922-08:00Local Swimmer Completes Remarkable Feat From Deadman's IslandOn August 28, 1910 Los Angeles athlete Mabel Lawson swam from the southern end of Deadman's Island at San Pedro to the bath house at Long Beach, a total of 7 miles. Reports at the time state that no man or woman had been able to do this before. Hundreds of people on the Long Beach pier cheered her arrival.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdkQVmsk-A9Ipkr6otoKFp5VZIcoNeYirtySuixu8Fpp0PfI2Q-Ks7TSV_0p5yBdKj-bjozz9YdKpmgz2gxzIcig75RNYjh9yV77urGYemh7tPQKQPAQop4zxgPgu45ssXUdz0wUCtgbw/s1600/Mabel+Lawson+001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdkQVmsk-A9Ipkr6otoKFp5VZIcoNeYirtySuixu8Fpp0PfI2Q-Ks7TSV_0p5yBdKj-bjozz9YdKpmgz2gxzIcig75RNYjh9yV77urGYemh7tPQKQPAQop4zxgPgu45ssXUdz0wUCtgbw/s320/Mabel+Lawson+001.jpg" width="204" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mabel Lawson image; Los Angeles Herald , October 28, 1910</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/utils/getthumbnail/collection/p15799coll65/id/3827" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/utils/getthumbnail/collection/p15799coll65/id/3827" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Deadman's Island ca. 1910 <br />This small island was removed<br /> in the late 1920s.<br />USC Digital Library</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Lawson used the English overhand stroke and covered the distance in 4 hours 20 minutes. She lost half an hour battling the tide rip, and more minutes when a gigantic fish swam along side and scared her. Her aquatic exploit was a test of strength and endurance, however, and was not to set a speed record. <br />
<br />
Her victorious swim was all the more impressive considering the fog bank "held her in most of the way and she had to swim within sound of the surf to prevent getting lost" -- the same thick fog that had delayed her endeavor for several days.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
The athletic Lawson was 19 at the time and weighed 145 pounds. Part of her training consisted of being "massaged daily with olive oil to lessen the action of the sea water or retain as much as possible the heat of her body while in the water." She credited her coach William Mehler, a lifeguard employed by the bath house, with her development as a swimmer.<br />
<br />
Lawson boasted afterwards that she "could have gone three or four times further had it been necessary" and challenged other local swimmers to race against her. She had previously swam for two summers, but this was her first long swim.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYWVSc_hvOnT4-uK0GrZ1uQzf6nFcTrtE1QzJ0SX4IjF30Fg5pGDXE-LwBxshhyphenhyphenL8KNzU38wvgS3jr2B29WlQa3kI6jZucn9OTKcEPGmB_IQ4p7mLe5F8e0VusgICim54URZQ1h83BTds/s400/Pier+at+Long+Beach+-+1910.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="127" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYWVSc_hvOnT4-uK0GrZ1uQzf6nFcTrtE1QzJ0SX4IjF30Fg5pGDXE-LwBxshhyphenhyphenL8KNzU38wvgS3jr2B29WlQa3kI6jZucn9OTKcEPGmB_IQ4p7mLe5F8e0VusgICim54URZQ1h83BTds/s200/Pier+at+Long+Beach+-+1910.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Sources: Los Angeles Herald, Los Angeles Times, Oakland Tribune </span>Dennis Piotrowskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17247236710669192137noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2421748753213138022.post-35019083837068214892012-08-25T12:00:00.003-07:002012-08-25T12:05:27.278-07:00The Navy Once Again in San PedroAs part of Los Angeles Navy Days 2012, the new guided missile destroyer <em>USS Wayne E. Meyer</em> (DDG-108) recently visited San Pedro and docked at the World Cruise Terminal in the Port of Los Angeles. <br />
<br />
The ship is a 509' 1/2" multi-mission vessel designed to operate independently or with an associated Strike Group. The ship's weapons include Tomahawk Land Attack Missiles, AEGIS Weapons Systems, and SH-60B/R LAMPS MK 111 Helicopters. <br />
<br />
Public tours of the ship were available for free, while on August 18 invited guests were treated to dinner aboard and mingled with Rear Admiral Mike Shatynski, <em>Wayne E. Meyer's</em> Commanding Officer William H. Baxter, Los Angeles Air Force Base Lieutenant General Ellen M. Pawlikowski, other military officers and Navy crew. <br />
<br />
Rear Adm. Shatynski delivered a State of the Navy speech, and discussed the Navy's budgetary challenges, the Persian Gulf, and other topics. Later, guests enjoyed a thorough tour of the ship from Navy officers.<br />
<br />
Many thanks to the Navy League for sponsoring and coordinating such an interesting and educational event. Here are some photographs:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGZRNDPyD_d7pU9dud0nV94IKkxdpODR1dMqacsbvUCHIhIvyqiGXxSsmQwQ1WNc4Hmt7m8KI1grIp-eU9qcESIKRoLgQJFZTBC_hOzchAvyHse0hpsCfLW5aee9h6RAkoW4IaHELgFQs/s1600/088.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGZRNDPyD_d7pU9dud0nV94IKkxdpODR1dMqacsbvUCHIhIvyqiGXxSsmQwQ1WNc4Hmt7m8KI1grIp-eU9qcESIKRoLgQJFZTBC_hOzchAvyHse0hpsCfLW5aee9h6RAkoW4IaHELgFQs/s320/088.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkO7cqDPHZ12RUzXHdBtZcDeDPOO9jUAWXkIaFVlAejrDNL99w7ReDSZ_W4SldjzFkeK6RDL7SLsmvYMUSlBV4K2m-eft6VGJ6Lx5o3EiHFaD7UkYsL3mOogIkJTv6xDB-vUVLLb2MBtA/s1600/016.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkO7cqDPHZ12RUzXHdBtZcDeDPOO9jUAWXkIaFVlAejrDNL99w7ReDSZ_W4SldjzFkeK6RDL7SLsmvYMUSlBV4K2m-eft6VGJ6Lx5o3EiHFaD7UkYsL3mOogIkJTv6xDB-vUVLLb2MBtA/s320/016.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">USS Wayne E. Meyer in the Port of Los Angeles. The USS Iowa can be seen in the background.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdrQq9b1PRMA9vnzBqQF_SqYNj5e8ntH3wiogti-vl52wmD3bS3Q0u2Gqn1_R8iSKr0PBpurUZLOOZTazBCGjkq7eXbN6xHCJRJCwMIqxIJhNkYTo4vCLHzL8L6f58fnuTK0cU2FZdTc8/s1600/061.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdrQq9b1PRMA9vnzBqQF_SqYNj5e8ntH3wiogti-vl52wmD3bS3Q0u2Gqn1_R8iSKr0PBpurUZLOOZTazBCGjkq7eXbN6xHCJRJCwMIqxIJhNkYTo4vCLHzL8L6f58fnuTK0cU2FZdTc8/s320/061.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The bridge<br />
<br />
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzK-jGTBqawdW1vdVrs9nAT6UDu0EHTpzkMdG5TZ3-uGus3ui2raxsRLgQWjKYCYbT31t9QXe15QscOEP9XnLvLWkz7QrOfsDxxr59W4KV6xRdNTEV7WexQu00vZNTW-ue7ZC4dvSQaEA/s1600/050.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzK-jGTBqawdW1vdVrs9nAT6UDu0EHTpzkMdG5TZ3-uGus3ui2raxsRLgQWjKYCYbT31t9QXe15QscOEP9XnLvLWkz7QrOfsDxxr59W4KV6xRdNTEV7WexQu00vZNTW-ue7ZC4dvSQaEA/s320/050.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The mess hall</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI_ukT2mzN69d7w51HCiw6JcjvIgrr6ZWWP9rEHvWJSYRPsU_Zqfhk9CFqcZJdMrve4SIe3fNkIr0__OA62JcNTgvYw2flvWvqsf5hgocRZ3tJLfhwMgzovTiljWin0vwRBj_AIzVZQvo/s1600/068.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI_ukT2mzN69d7w51HCiw6JcjvIgrr6ZWWP9rEHvWJSYRPsU_Zqfhk9CFqcZJdMrve4SIe3fNkIr0__OA62JcNTgvYw2flvWvqsf5hgocRZ3tJLfhwMgzovTiljWin0vwRBj_AIzVZQvo/s320/068.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of the ship's weapons systems. The blue lights of the Vincent Thomas Bridge can ben seen in the background.<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggskORamdZgN02ZKEBW4sheYyfvcSrIKzcYbeJb0PHMShftn2zBa5q8N8w7jyVddXJo-ZcRc3tWgODKb80mSEH7LKwqCAgV3F-10YzEWsJb_r3j12pWEcw0v_m-Cz9HfItSgjJyV0yceY/s1600/064.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggskORamdZgN02ZKEBW4sheYyfvcSrIKzcYbeJb0PHMShftn2zBa5q8N8w7jyVddXJo-ZcRc3tWgODKb80mSEH7LKwqCAgV3F-10YzEWsJb_r3j12pWEcw0v_m-Cz9HfItSgjJyV0yceY/s320/064.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjm6VzYv7xr9xJ5oj2bsBJOcAx8GHML4dk5NKlHvDcVhPjPg6_719bHJTCtg-IcyTuQPe8vLxnRqU8z7hux35Ya0vLIegjuMnYi3BqNH_A-TwYgcUHRFETDkcE8rta0bSG_YintiNauKfE/s1600/062.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjm6VzYv7xr9xJ5oj2bsBJOcAx8GHML4dk5NKlHvDcVhPjPg6_719bHJTCtg-IcyTuQPe8vLxnRqU8z7hux35Ya0vLIegjuMnYi3BqNH_A-TwYgcUHRFETDkcE8rta0bSG_YintiNauKfE/s320/062.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbKgNfi06FdJ72e4k6KfYLPzMXTQAzFxc8K7m8X-cWzCim2HjwMp901vo3RUKnAE0LAUGJi-uXFNpLmKeQDTXv_flOphNrv0ri29-qc-oKiF0XIMQ35PBQagqdtvHfjvo2gSMGgqg5bjk/s1600/076.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbKgNfi06FdJ72e4k6KfYLPzMXTQAzFxc8K7m8X-cWzCim2HjwMp901vo3RUKnAE0LAUGJi-uXFNpLmKeQDTXv_flOphNrv0ri29-qc-oKiF0XIMQ35PBQagqdtvHfjvo2gSMGgqg5bjk/s320/076.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Dennis Piotrowskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17247236710669192137noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2421748753213138022.post-63361407106802708522012-06-16T19:05:00.001-07:002012-06-16T19:11:55.667-07:00The U.S.S. Iowa Has ArrivedThe Big Stick is now at her permanent new home in the main channel of Los Angeles Harbor, next to the Los Angeles Maritime Museum. The Iowa will open next month for tours. Here are some photos from the museum's back deck:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsxlPofkFSrTfB69f0mWFas2zGUpsujuZuZMJOc4GowZ1SYFxdB0z6la6CljQJ1vQihEP1bgM0QQEQZDW8ENibDl8Wu1XiWAlNVyV-kZGEf0KF67m1oEwQhDLOlWaND3sIZaCZQBA5Emk/s1600/012.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsxlPofkFSrTfB69f0mWFas2zGUpsujuZuZMJOc4GowZ1SYFxdB0z6la6CljQJ1vQihEP1bgM0QQEQZDW8ENibDl8Wu1XiWAlNVyV-kZGEf0KF67m1oEwQhDLOlWaND3sIZaCZQBA5Emk/s320/012.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
Note the container ship on the right, and Vincent Thomas Bridge in the back:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT-jErItLcks6lKAi9Co-WZT4yfUIKRNukoGNb6F06Ufd6AGjGaHleZrxDWjK6wzpmsA2HYMhaLbUwfmAInzPgBhHSpWWnrQy830bgx6mT31Txnqz-XDYEb-2vrt2ERMd-2JjkoLTXr8M/s1600/015.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT-jErItLcks6lKAi9Co-WZT4yfUIKRNukoGNb6F06Ufd6AGjGaHleZrxDWjK6wzpmsA2HYMhaLbUwfmAInzPgBhHSpWWnrQy830bgx6mT31Txnqz-XDYEb-2vrt2ERMd-2JjkoLTXr8M/s320/015.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
The following image shows the beginning of the water cut (on left) that will be adjacent to the museum. The Iowa can be seen in the rear right of the photo, behind the Crowley tugs and to the right of Fire Station 112:</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh98yxgIExp9Wgvk8FigRRvbd4SDUxGwZZh2OxFZEa0XpCd5ciQG0qzN3jVglkp5LHWc-bDSYukIy_GrTVnw2vRk2Vo0mSog9urSQn9FmIHuexQV9cpm5DzoZ0t0eIKPn5ILUi8CZHKjRo/s1600/003.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh98yxgIExp9Wgvk8FigRRvbd4SDUxGwZZh2OxFZEa0XpCd5ciQG0qzN3jVglkp5LHWc-bDSYukIy_GrTVnw2vRk2Vo0mSog9urSQn9FmIHuexQV9cpm5DzoZ0t0eIKPn5ILUi8CZHKjRo/s320/003.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<div align="center" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
</div>Dennis Piotrowskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17247236710669192137noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2421748753213138022.post-32846546164212470362012-03-18T13:23:00.003-07:002012-03-18T18:35:16.982-07:00The History of the U.S.S. Iowa at San Pedro and Long BeachWith the exciting news that the <em>USS Iowa</em> (BB-61, commissioned in February 1943) will soon be towed to the Port of Los Angeles where she will become a major waterfront attraction, it's worth taking a look back at the prior visits of the battleships named <em>Iowa</em> to the Los Angeles-Long Beach Harbor areas.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="font-size: x-large;">USS Iowa (BB-4) </span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="font-size: x-large;">"Queen of the Navy"</span></strong><br />
<br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">The BB-61 will not be the first battleship named <em>Iowa</em> to anchor at San Pedro. <br />
<br />
<strong>March 11-12, 1900:</strong> the <em>Los Angeles Times</em> reported 4,000 people visited an earlier battleship with the same name, the BB-4 (commissioned on June 16, 1897) <strong>--</strong> at San Pedro Harbor. This ship sailed from San Diego and was on her way to Santa Barbara when she visited Los Angeles Harbor for a couple of days, coated in dust from the coaling she had received down south. Three tugs from the Banning Company, the <em>Warrior,</em> <em>Collis,</em> and <em>Falcon,</em> helped ferry visitors for 50 cents each to the famous battleship.<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/images/h60000/h60249.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="159" src="http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/images/h60000/h60249.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">USS Iowa (BB-4) at anchor early 1900s.<br />
U.S. Naval Historical Center photo</td></tr>
</tbody></table><strong>Late October 1900</strong>, the BB-4 returned and, along with the cruiser Philadelphia (C-4), lay about a mile off San Pedro. (The <em>Philadelphia</em> had served as the flagship of the Pacific Station until February 1900, when it transferred its flag to the <em>Iowa</em>.) Two tugboats from San Pedro and smaller launches from Terminal helped ferry visitors to the <em>Iowa.</em> As reported at the time, the whole of the ship, from "conning tower to stoke hole was thrown open to the visitors." The conning tower was made with walls that were two feet thick.</div><br />
Before her arrival at San Pedro and the West Coast, the BB-4 had played an important role in the Spanish-American War in the Battle of Santiago (July 1898), helping to smash Spain's naval forces in the Western Hemisphere. The BB-4 served along the West Coast until 1902. <br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://lcweb2.loc.gov/pnp/det/4a10000/4a14000/4a14200/4a14289r.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="160" src="http://lcweb2.loc.gov/pnp/det/4a10000/4a14000/4a14200/4a14289r.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Group under 12-inch guns on the BB-4,<br />
1898; Library of Congress photo </td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
The USS Iowa (BB-4) was largely tied up during World War I, and afterwards the aging battleship was used for experimentation concerning "the control of ships by wireless." In December 1922, the Iowa's death sentence was read aboard Admiral E.W. Eberle's flagship <em>California</em> in Los Angeles Harbor. The <em>Iowa</em>, once referred to as the "Queen of the Navy," was to be used as long-range target practice.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="color: red; font-size: large;">***</span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="color: red; font-size: large;">***</span></strong></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="font-size: x-large;">USS Iowa (BB-61) </span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="font-size: x-large;">"The Big Stick"</span></strong><br />
<br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">San Pedro's soon-to-be waterfront attraction, the BB-61, was commissioned on February 22, 1943, and was decommissioned nearly a half century later. Between these years, she was was no stranger to the Los Angeles and Long Beach harbor areas. Here is the history of the<em> Big Stick's</em> local visits, including the story of her famous AWOL canine mascot named Victory. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/images/h44000/h44528.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="160" src="http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/images/h44000/h44528.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">U.S. Naval Historical Center</td></tr>
</tbody></table></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><strong>November 1, 1945: </strong>The <em>Iowa</em> led two groups of warships into L.A. Harbor. The cruiser <em>Atlanta</em> accompanied the <em>Big Stick</em>, along with the destroyers <em>Barton, Hale, Nicholas, Walke,</em> and <em>Walker</em>. The other group consisted of the light cruisers <em>Amsterdam</em> and <em>Topeka</em>, along with the destroyers <em>Allen Sumner, Franks, Heermann, Moale, Taylor</em> and <em>Woodworth</em>. The ships <em>Marine Tiger</em> and <em>Thetis Bay</em> also entered the harbor, and together carried about 4,500 troops of the Avengers of Bataan 38th Infantry Division. A day earlier, the battleships <em>Wisconsin</em> (<em>Iowa's</em> sister ship), <em>Alabama</em> and <em>South Dakota</em>, light cruiser <em>Vicksburg</em> and the destroyer <em>Buchanan</em> had also dropped anchor at Los Angeles Harbor. On November 9, the <em>Iowa</em> left San Pedro to visit Santa Barbara briefly so residents there could view the mighty battleship. </div><br />
<strong>November 29, 1945</strong>:<em> <strong>USS</strong></em> <strong><em>Iowa's</em> "Dog Mascot Goes A.W.O.L. Again</strong>" <br />
Search parties looked all over the Long Beach environs for the small brown and white canine named "Victory" or "Vicky/Vickie" for short, with no initial luck. The <em>Times</em> reported that Vicky had been with the<em> Iowa</em> since its commissioning, had substituted for President Roosevelt's dog Fala when the the commander-in-chief went to the Tehran conference aboard the ship in 1943, and "was the first American dog in Japan" after the Japanese surrender. Vicky, who was said to have a "number of decorations on his white collar," had gone "absent without leave" before (in San Francisco & on an island in the Carolines), but had always returned before the <em>Iowa</em> left port. <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn9P97YRcTtUJ9QWqnpjUqkSSYeKIHAuBNvNfDXdoMI_NwINjn_fLrTE1vQAY7SvAc46GqfidEw4J3exnQNxBsEBdBVSLngFoQJoPAE4LJbuync1uH9_6_PJx01Sa2j6MKt975iCbxE-w/s1600/USS+Iowa+Vicky+001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn9P97YRcTtUJ9QWqnpjUqkSSYeKIHAuBNvNfDXdoMI_NwINjn_fLrTE1vQAY7SvAc46GqfidEw4J3exnQNxBsEBdBVSLngFoQJoPAE4LJbuync1uH9_6_PJx01Sa2j6MKt975iCbxE-w/s320/USS+Iowa+Vicky+001.jpg" width="215" /></a></div>The <em>Iowa</em> crew's calls for help from Long Beach and Los Angeles residents apparently worked. A report a couple of weeks later states that Vicky was aboard the ship in Long Beach Harbor playing with <em>Times</em> newspaper carriers who were visiting. It was also noted that Vicky's "201,778-mile voyage aboard the<em> Iowa</em> has earned him the reputation of the most-traveled dog in the Navy."<br />
<br />
<strong>December 3, 1945</strong>: Fifteen hundred Southern California transplants, former residents of the state of Iowa, visited the <em>Big Stick</em> which was at anchor off Los Angeles-Long Beach Harbors. Captain Frederick I. Entwistle, commanding officer of the ship, presented the Iowans with a "ship's pennant, the ship's banner and the American Flag flown by the <em>Iowa</em> in its raid off the shores of Japan." The Long Beach Iowa Society gladly accepted these historic gifts. Long Beach Mayor Herbert E Lewis proclaimed at the time that "Long Beach is as proud of the Iowans as the Iowans are of the U.S.S. Iowa."<br />
<br />
<strong>December 16, 1945: </strong>The <em>Times</em> also reported that the <em>USS Iowa</em>, "the biggest battleship in the world," went into the "biggest drydock on the North American continent," -- the 1100-foot long Morreel Drydock on nearby Terminal Island. This was the first drydocking the<em> Iowa</em> had received since the war ended.<br />
<br />
This drydock was described as an enormous bathtub able to accommodate any ship afloat. While Morreel handled the 887-feet long, 45,000-ton battleship with ease, due to the ship's weight, the drydock pumps emptied the "bathtub" in less than an hour. This operation usually took up to two and one-half hours.<br />
<br />
Captain George T. Paine, commander of the Terminal Island Naval Shipyard, boasted how this showed that the area had the facilities to care for "any and all needs of the Fleet." It was also reported that more than 70 naval vessels were then undergoing repair or conversion at the Los Angeles and Long Beach harbors.<br />
<br />
<strong>April 7, 1946</strong>: The <em>USS Iowa</em>, flagship of the U.S. 5th Fleet under the command of Vice Admiral Frederick C. Sherman, dropped anchor in Los Angeles-Long Beach Harbor after a 13-day sail from Japan. According to the Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, from about this time through September 1948, the <em>Iowa</em> "operated from West Coast <span style="letter-spacing: 0.35pt;">ports, on Naval Reserve and at sea training and drills </span>and maneuvers with the Fleet."<br />
<br />
<strong>August 7, 1948</strong>: 850 midshipmen from colleges around the country steamed into Los Angeles Harbor aboard the <em>Iowa, </em>where they transferred to four destroyers inside the breakwater and went to San Diego. The <em>Iowa,</em> along with other warships, had just completed an eight-week cruise near Hawaii.<br />
<br />
<strong>August 12, 1950</strong>: 50,000 Iowans gathered at Recreational Park in Long Beach for the 45th annual Iowa picnic. Although this event did not occur on the battleship, W. Ward Johnson of the Iowa Association of Long Beach presented an important gift to the state of Iowa: the flag that had flown on the mast of the <em>Iowa </em>through World War II and was given to the association in 1945 (see the Dec. 3, 1945 entry above). Governor Earl Warren also made ominous remarks at the festivities, warning that the Korean War could reach American shores and that a single atomic bomb dropped on a large city could lead to 400,000 casualties and 200,000 deaths.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><strong>November 3, 1951:</strong> The <em>Times</em> reported that the <em>Iowa</em> dropped anchor in the Long Beach-Los Angeles Outer Harbor, which was then to become her home port. Captain William R. Smedberg III was in command and after a two-hour inspection, granted many sailors of the ship liberty. The <em>Iowa</em> stayed near Long Beach until November 19, when she went to Hawaii for a month-long training cruise and then planned to return to the area.<br />
<br />
The Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships notes that "after Communist aggression in Korea necessitated an expansion of the active fleet" the <i>Iowa</i> was recommissioned in August 1951, and "operated off the West Coast until March 1952, when she sailed for the Far East."<br />
<br />
<strong>December 1951</strong>: As part of Navy repair contracts awarded to local shipyards, the Long Beach Marine Repair Yard was awarded a small contract for work on the <em>Iowa</em>. The reported amount for the work was $815.<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/images/h44000/h44538.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="167" src="http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/images/h44000/h44538.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">USS Iowa in 1952, U.S. Navy Photograph</td></tr>
</tbody></table><strong>January 13, 1952</strong>: 5000 Iowans and former Iowans flocked aboard the <em>Iowa</em> at the shipyard in Long Beach. The ship's crew held hosted an open house for members of the Iowa State Society of Long Beach. Visitors inspected the nine 16" guns, ship's silver and anchor chains. It was also reported at the time that this open house was just one of several slated for the shipyard and the <em>Iowa</em> for the coming weeks. The shipyard was said to have employed have more than 6,000 workers.<br />
<br />
<br />
<strong>January 16-17 1952</strong>: The crew of the <em>Iowa</em> donated 1020 pints of blood to the Long Beach Chapter of the Red Cross. <br />
<br />
<strong>January 20, 1952: </strong>About 12,000 people, including employees, descended upon the Long Beach Naval Shipyard, to tour the <em>Iowa</em> for an open house, and also visited the escort carrier <em>U.S.S. Sicily</em>, and other fighting ships. They also watched "Herman the German" lift and move a 270-ton railroad crane from one pier to another. Herman the German was an enormous floating crane seized from Germany at the end of World War II. A model of this crane can be seen at the <em>Los Angeles Maritime Museum</em> in San Pedro.<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://polb.slideshowpro.com/albums/022/714/album-223078/lg/herman14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://polb.slideshowpro.com/albums/022/714/album-223078/lg/herman14.jpg" width="129" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">YD-171, more commonly known as "Herman the German" at the LBNS<br />
Port of Long Beach image</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
<strong>February 1, 1952</strong>: Dense fog caused a series of mishaps in the Los Angeles area, including one involving the <em>Iowa</em>. As reported at the time, the <em>Admiral</em>, a 58-foot long boat "transporting 49 sailors to the<em> </em>USS<em> Iowa</em> in the Outer Harbor, struck the Long Beach breakwater at about 2:15 a.m." The seamen and two members of the <em>Admiral</em> crew climbed onto the rocks and had to yell off and on until 10:00 a.m. until a fishing vessel named the <em>American Star</em> heard their pleas and rescued them. <br />
<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/27/USSIowa.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="159" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/27/USSIowa.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">USS Iowa (BB-61) off Koje, Korea, <br />
firing her 16-inch guns at the enemy coast<br />
October 17, 1952<br />
U.S. Naval Historical Center Photograph</td></tr>
</tbody></table><strong>November 3, 1952</strong>: The<em> Times </em>reported that the <em>Iowa</em> had earned the name <em>"</em>The<em> </em>Gray Ghost of the Korean Coast," during the previous eight months. On this day, the <em>Iowa</em> tied up at her home port at Long Beach where thousands were on hand to greet the ship's crew. The paper noted the<em> Iowa</em> fired "4000 16-inchers and 8000 five-inchers while steaming 40,000 miles in Korean waters" and although enemy batteries fired at her, she was never hit.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
*If you know of any other historical visits of the USS Iowa to the Port of Los Angeles, please post!<br />
<br />
<strong>Sources:</strong> <em>Los Angeles Times</em>, Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, Naval Historical Center, <em>Popular Mechanics</em>Dennis Piotrowskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17247236710669192137noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2421748753213138022.post-7158769311395818862011-08-03T19:21:00.000-07:002011-08-03T19:21:03.761-07:00Phineas Banning Hailed as Friend of the Workingman<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.parks.ca.gov/pages/22491/images/phineas_banning_photo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://www.parks.ca.gov/pages/22491/images/phineas_banning_photo.jpg" width="171" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">In 1867, the several hundred appreciative employees of General Banning -- widely acknowledged as the founder of the Port of Los Angeles -- presented him with a fine gift. As recounted in the <em>Wilmington Journal</em> in February 1867:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div>"<em>On Saturday evening last the employees in the different establishments of General P. Banning, wanting to testify their respect to that gentleman as the workingman's friend, presented him with a most superb watch and chain. </em><br />
<br />
<em>The instrument is of fine American manufacture, and finished in the highest style of art...The presentation was made by Capt. E.E. Hewitt...The General, in response, replied in a very happy and felicitous manner, and was several times interrupted by the applause of those present.</em><br />
<br />
<em>The testimony was worthily bestowed, and was the free-will offering of those who, knowing Gen. Banning, wished to attest their appreciation of the workingman's friend."</em>Dennis Piotrowskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17247236710669192137noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2421748753213138022.post-36758850922067333042011-06-05T09:53:00.000-07:002011-06-08T15:15:42.362-07:00San Pedro Astronaut Blasts Off Into SpaceAfter a brief delay due to high-altitude crosswinds, former San Pedro resident Dr. Anna Lee Fisher launched into space on November 8, 1984 on board the Space Shuttle Discovery.<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/portraits/fisher-a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/portraits/fisher-a.jpg" width="159" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Anna L. Fisher, (M.D.)<br />
NASA Astronaut, NASA photo</span></strong></td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
On this historic 8-day mission, Dr. Fisher and her fellow astronauts deployed two satellites, operated the Radiation Monitoring Equipment device, conducted an experiment for 3M Company, and completed the first space salvage mission by recovering two disabled satellies (Westar 6 and Palapa B-2). Dr. Fisher operated the shuttle's robotic arm during the satellite rescue operation.<br />
<br />
She also became the first mother in space. <br />
<br />
While in space, the Discovery crew spoke with President Reagan, who asked Fisher if she would recommend a space career to her 14-month-old daughter. She replied: "That I would Mr. President...it's truly an incredible experience..."<br />
<br />
The <em>Los Angeles Times</em> reported that Dr. Fisher once had to keep secret the fact that she was pregnant. In a training exercise, she rescued an "unconscious" crew member from the launch pad in a simulated emergency. As she recalled: "It was a hot day in Florida, and I had breathing equipment on, and I carried somebody out of the commander's seat and another guy out of the pilot's seat. And nobody knew I was pregnant."<br />
<br />
As they prepared for descent to earth, the Discovery crew was concerned about a small amount of leftover maneuvering fuel aboard the two retrieved satellites, but a spill was considered unlikely and they would have been able to jettison the satellites if needed. During their in-flight news conference, the astronauts said that the recovery of the two disabled satellites proved that "astronauts can move large objects by hand in the weightlessness of space."<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://images.jsc.nasa.gov/lores/STS51A-90008.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://images.jsc.nasa.gov/lores/STS51A-90008.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">STS 51-A crew in training with shuttle Discovery on launch pad; </span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">October 25, 1984. Anna Lee Fisher (2nd from right) NASA photo</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>About a month after the successful landing, Dr. Fisher returned triumphantly to her hometown of San Pedro where she received a very warm welcome. She addressed about 1000 students at San Pedro High School, her alma mater where she had earned the title "most likely to succeed."<br />
<br />
Fisher (who has three degrees -- including an M.D. -- from UCLA) stressed the importance of education, and said "Don't be afraid to dream, because there are a lot of neat opportunities out there."<br />
<br />
She also attended a plaque dedication in her honor, a plaque located adjacent to the Los Angeles Maritime Museum that is still well-maintained twenty-seven years later. To see a recent photo of this plaque, click <u><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/usscowell/193038003/">here.</a></u><br />
<br />
On a personal note, I had the pleasure of meeting Anna Lee Fisher several years ago when she visited her mother Elfriede Tingle in San Pedro, when her mother still lived there. Mrs. Tingle was my neighbor, and it's my privilege to have met and know such two wonderful and interesting people.<br />
<br />
Dr. Anna Lee Fisher's current NASA biography<a href="http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/fisher-a.html"> here</a>; latest Space Shuttle news <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/main/index.html">here</a>.<br />
<br />
Sources: NASA, <em>Los Angeles Times</em>Dennis Piotrowskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17247236710669192137noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2421748753213138022.post-55437535906970711752011-03-11T10:38:00.000-08:002011-03-20T10:18:18.386-07:00Historic Tsunamis of the San Pedro Area<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>In light of the devastating 9.0 magnitude earthquake that just struck Japan and the resulting tsunami warnings issued for the California coast, I am republishing research I have done on two tsunamis (August 1868 and May 1960) that impacted the Port of Los Angeles:<br />
---<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><span style="font-family: GarmdITC Bk BT, GarmdITC Bk BT;"><span style="font-family: GarmdITC Bk BT, GarmdITC Bk BT;"></span></span><br />
<div class="post-body entry-content" style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="font-size: large;">A Tsunami Strikes San Pedro and Wilmington, August 1868</span></strong></div><br />
<div class="post-body entry-content" style="text-align: center;"><strong><em>‘A Most Startling and Remarkable Tidal Phenomenon’</em></strong></div><div class="post-body entry-content" style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"></span></div>On August 14, 1868 a tsunami struck the harbor area. <span style="font-size: small;">A tsunami is a series of large sea waves usually caused by a large earthquake beneath the sea floor or less frequently by an underwater landslide or volcanic eruption. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><em>For the rest of the article, click on this link and go to page 4:</em></span><br />
<div class="post-body entry-content" style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="post-body entry-content" style="text-align: left;"> <a href="http://www.lamaritimemuseum.org/Vol_3_No_3_Winter_2007.pdf">http://www.lamaritimemuseum.org/Vol_3_No_3_Winter_2007.pdf</a></div><div class="post-body entry-content" style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="post-body entry-content" style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/images/h42000/h42226.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="133" q6="true" src="http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/images/h42000/h42226.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><strong>USS <i>Wateree</i></strong> <br />
Beached at Arica, Chile, after she was washed ashore by a tidal wave on 8/13/1868</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="post-body entry-content" style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="post-body entry-content" style="text-align: center;">****</div><div class="post-body entry-content" style="text-align: center;">****</div><div class="post-body entry-content" style="text-align: center;"></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="font-size: large;">"Largest Earthquake in the World" Impacts Los Angeles Waterfront, May 1960 </span></strong><br />
<div style="text-align: left;"></div> <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div></div><div class="post-header"><div class="post-header-line-1"></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="post-body entry-content">On May 22, 1960, a magnitude 9.5 earthquake struck south central Chile. The United States Geological Survey calls this "the largest earthquake in the world." In Chile, approximately 2,000 people were killed, 3000 injured, and another 2,000,000 were left homeless.<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2005/images/tsunami-wave-warning2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="128" q6="true" src="http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2005/images/tsunami-wave-warning2.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>The Governor's Office of Emergency Services for California estimates that the waves generated by this massive earthquake caused about $500,000 to $1,000,000 worth of damage to the state, and notes that two people were killed. <br />
<br />
Locally, the <em>Los Angeles Times</em> reported that boats and piers were smashed along San Pedro's waterfront, where a series of tidal currents surged back and forth surged through the port's narrow Cerritos Channel. Some 300 yachts and small boats were ripped from their slips, and early estimates were that 15-20 boats had sunk. The surge was estimated at up to 8-9 feet high in places at times. A strong current caused the port's Terminal Island ferry <em>Islander </em>to be swept off course by 300 yards, while "monumental traffic jams" occurred in both the Los Angeles and Long Beach harbor areas.<br />
<br />
A Port of Los Angeles report states that the "Chilean earthquake and tsunami of May 1960 was the maximum event recorded in recent history to impact the Ports."<br />
<br />
For more on this devastating earthquake, click on these links:<br />
<br />
<a href="http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/world/events/1960_05_22_articles.php"><span style="color: #956839;">http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/world/events/1960_05_22_articles.php</span></a> </div><div class="post-body entry-content"></div><div class="post-body entry-content"><a href="http://www.conservation.ca.gov/cgs/geologic_hazards/Tsunami/Pages/About_Tsunamis.aspx">http://www.conservation.ca.gov/cgs/geologic_hazards/Tsunami/Pages/About_Tsunamis.aspx</a></div><div align="center" class="post-body entry-content"></div>Dennis Piotrowskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17247236710669192137noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2421748753213138022.post-34477072642177501722011-02-28T23:01:00.000-08:002011-02-28T23:01:34.527-08:00San Pedro Real Estate Agent Claims Albert Einstein Stole His Theory; Sues in Federal CourtIn February 1931, San Pedro real estate agent Ira D. Edwards sued renowned physicist Albert Einstein in United States District Court. Edwards charged that Einstein pilfered the complex "Unified Field Theory" from Edwards' booklet entitled "<em>The Why and Wherefore of Things</em>" published and copyrighted in November 1929.<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://lcweb2.loc.gov/service/pnp/hec/28600/28667r.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" l6="true" src="http://lcweb2.loc.gov/service/pnp/hec/28600/28667r.jpg" width="159" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Albert Einstein speaking, ca. 1940 <br />
Library of Congress photo</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
Edwards asked the court to grant an injunction forbidding Einstein from using the unified field theory. He also wanted Einstein subpoenaed to answer the charges, and "such further relief as the court may see fit and full costs of the action."<br />
<br />
Einstein's research associate Dr. Walther Mayer swiftly ridiculed the suit as "simply one of those annoying things that people are subjected to at times." <br />
<br />
Professor Einstein was lecturing on the unified field theory at the Mt. Wilson Laboratories at this time, and was in fact residing at his bungalow in Pasadena when first told of Edwards' lawsuit. Einstein remarked that "I never heard the name before," and in his formal reponse to the suit noted while his lectures were based on mathematics, Edwards' work was not. <br />
<br />
Stories about this lawsuit appeared in newspapers around the country. Even Time magazine mentioned it.<br />
<br />
Ira D. Edwards was well-known in the San Pedro business and real estate community. As World War I was drawing to a close in 1918, Edwards, as president of the Community Association of San Pedro, worked to promote the development of the local harbor areas of his hometown, Wilmington, and Long Beach. He was particularly interested in developing new housing for shipyard workers. <br />
<br />
Edwards' San Pedro friends said that while they knew Edwards as a resourceful real estate dealer who had "been heard to expound ideas about the universe which they were not able to grasp," they had not read his book.<br />
<br />
Unfortunately for San Pedro's real estate guru and would-be theoretical physicist, however, Federal judge William Cosgrave agreed with Einstein and quickly dismissed Edwards' lawsuit for copyright infringement in March 1931. <br />
<br />
More on the unified field theory<a href="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/elegant/everything.html"> <u>here</u>:</a><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Sources: Los Angeles Times, Time magazine, Billings Gazette (Montana), Bakersfield Californian, New Castle News (Pennsylvania), Nevada State Journal, Zanesville Signal (Ohio)</span>Dennis Piotrowskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17247236710669192137noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2421748753213138022.post-2364459730067766212011-02-06T11:18:00.000-08:002011-02-06T11:26:08.269-08:00Happy Birthday President Reagan -- San Pedro Remembers "the Gipper"<div>To commemorate what would have been Ronald Reagan's 100th birthday, I have updated with new research the following article I wrote that was published in <em>More San Pedro</em> (Daily Breeze) in 2008, and previously published on this blog:</div><div>----</div><div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://memory.loc.gov/service/pnp/cph/3b20000/3b26000/3b26800/3b26807t.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" h5="true" height="200" src="http://memory.loc.gov/service/pnp/cph/3b20000/3b26000/3b26800/3b26807t.gif" width="156" /></a></div><span style="font-size: large;"><strong>Ronald Reagan's Visits to San Pedro and the L.A. Harbor area</strong></span><span style="font-size: large;"><br />
</span>Ronald Reagan was no stranger to San Pedro and the harbor area. He visited frequently decades before he was elected Governor of California in 1966 and 40th President of the United States in 1980.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
Reagan first came to the area when he traveled to Catalina Island in the mid-1930s as a radio sports announcer to familiarize himself with the Chicago Cubs while they held spring training there. On November 13, 1941, just a few weeks before the attack on Pearl Harbor, he underwent a physical examination at Fort MacArthur in San Pedro. This exam stated that Reagan was “permanently incapacitated for Active Duty due to compound myopic astigmatism -- bilateral, severe – distant vision 6/200 both eyes without glasses.” He was seen during this period at the base and also with his first wife Jane Wyman at the base.<br />
<br />
Reagan (who in 1937 was appointed a second lieutenant in the Officers’ Reserve Corps of the Calvary) went on active duty in 1942 after he passed another exam, although he was classified as limited service only. Reagan soon transferred from the Calvary to the Army Air Force (AAF). Among other assignments, he served one tour of duty as liaison officer at the Los Angeles Port of Embarkation in Wilmington, and was also the adjutant with the 18th AAF Base Unit at Culver City. On September 8, 1945, Captain Reagan was ordered to Fort MacArthur again, this time for separation, which was effective December 9, 1945. Reagan and his second wife Nancy reportedly visited the former stately Matson passenger/cargo marine terminal at Berths 195-198 in Wilmington (dedicated in 1953) during its heyday.</div><div></div><div><br />
On October 2, 1966, while campaigning for Governor, Reagan attended San Pedro’s Fishermens' Fiesta. He praised the traditional blessing of the fleet stating: "There's a new sparkle in the waves and new gold in the summer because of this wonderful custom." (John Mardesich's "North Pacific" boat won the competition with a Flintstones' theme.) </div><div></div><div><br />
On March 16, 1968, Governor Reagan officiated at the groundbreaking of the final $10.5 million link that tied the Harbor Freeway to the Vincent Thomas Bridge. Other officials at the ceremony were local Assemblyman Vincent Thomas and Los Angeles City Councilman John S. Gibson Jr.</div><div></div><div><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Sources: "<em>An American Life</em>" by Ronald Reagan, The National Archives, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Long Beach Independent Press-Telegram</span> </div>Dennis Piotrowskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17247236710669192137noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2421748753213138022.post-69227790070835707432011-01-17T14:00:00.000-08:002011-01-18T23:39:35.553-08:00Smallpox invades Los Angeles; San Pedro Quarantined<div style="text-align: center;"><em><strong> Outbreak, alarm and yellow flags</strong></em></div><br />
In the early months of 1887 smallpox made a deadly resurgence into California. According to the State Board of Health, this disease first appeared in the city of Los Angeles on February 16 after having been imported from Mexico. It ultimately caused fifteen deaths (from about 120 cases) in the city through June of this same year. An estimated 10,000 people fled Los Angeles to avoid contagion. From early 1887 to the end of the fiscal year on June 30, 1888, smallpox caused ninety-four deaths throughout the State.<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://photos.state.gov/libraries/amgov/133183/week_4/043009_DSC_1306_200.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" n4="true" src="http://photos.state.gov/libraries/amgov/133183/week_4/043009_DSC_1306_200.jpg" width="160" /></a><br />
<div align="center"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><em>Unknown victim of milder case of smallpox (not from the 1887 L.A. epidemic). From America.gov: </em></span></div></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left" class="boxtext"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><em>"This case of smallpox was 'made mild' by a vaccination, according to the caption on this undated photo."</em></span></div></td></tr>
</tbody></table> <br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.nlm.nih.gov/exhibition/smallpox/Images/Small/smallpoxinfec.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" n4="true" src="http://www.nlm.nih.gov/exhibition/smallpox/Images/Small/smallpoxinfec.jpg" width="144" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><em>Unknown victim of severe smallpox</em></span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><em> (not from the 1887 L.A. epidemic), NLM </em></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table> <br />
<div style="text-align: left;"></div>Smallpox is a highly contagious and often fatal disease characterized by fever, rashes, pustules and scabs. The World Health Organization states that smallpox is "one of the most devastating diseases known to humanity...decimating populations and changing the course of history." Vaccination is the only prevention.<br />
<br />
Smallpox outbreaks have occurred for thousands of years, but the disease is now eradicated. The last case in the United States occurred in in 1949, and the last natural case in the world occurred in Somalia in 1977.<br />
<br />
An earlier outbreak of smallpox in the City of Angels occurred during the Civil War years. The <em>Los Angeles Star </em>reported in November 1862 that the town's native American population had suffered seven cases of smallpox wth two deaths. In February of the next year, the local Board of Health was aware of 319 cases of the disease.<br />
<br />
During the 1887 outbreak, houses in Los Angeles containing smallpox were ordered to be marked with yellow flags. Twenty thousand circulars about smallpox were distributed throughout California that included the following: <br />
<br />
<em>"After an absence of many years, smallpox has again been imported into our State...The State Board of Health feels its imperative duty to present certain suggestions and precautions...No time should be lost, but a general vaccination insisted upon...it is our great privilege to live in California, the inhabitants of which are too intelligent and well informed not to see the importance of this measure when smallpox invades their town.." </em><br />
<br />
Fortunately the form of smallpox that struck Los Angeles, while prevalent, was of the mildest character. But as the State Board of Health noted at the time, if the type of this disease had not been "devoid of any epidemic tendency, the spread of this disease would have been unlimited, and the death rate consequently increased."<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.nlm.nih.gov/exhibition/smallpox/Images/Large/keep_out_large.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="72" n4="true" src="http://www.nlm.nih.gov/exhibition/smallpox/Images/Large/keep_out_large.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><em>Quarantine poster used in CA. in the early 20th century </em></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>Although the form of smallpox was mild, the 1887 epidemic caused alarm and some panic throughout the state. California Medical Inspectors were sent to San Pedro and other state entry points to "inspect all trains and vessels, and detain every case of a suspicious nature, vaccinate all passengers exposed, etc." Dr. W.A. Weldon was assigned to San Pedro (and was later appointed local Coroner by the L.A. County Board of Supervisors).<br />
<br />
The Los Angeles area at the beginning of 1887 was doing quite well. Real estate was booming. Two transcontinental and four local railroads were running. Streets were being paved with asphalt. Businesses were opening, many schools were being built, and thousands of people from the East and elsewhere were flocking to the growing and well-sanitized city for health and pleasure. Over 45,000 people lived in the city of L.A. at this time.<br />
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4c/LA-aerialphoto-baloon-06-27-1887.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="150" n4="true" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4c/LA-aerialphoto-baloon-06-27-1887.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><em>Aerial photo of Los Angeles in 1887</em></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table> As might be expected, news of a smallpox outbreak was not welcome. Indeed, the local press reacted quickly and harshly against the often exagerated claims from San Francisco and elsewhere that Los Angeles was "overrun with the plague." The <em>Los Angeles Times</em> emphasized the "sporadic cases" of a "mild type" of smallpox in the city, opined on the "foolish smallpox excitement," and declared the "scare entirely needless and imbecile."<br />
<br />
Los Angeles Mayor William H. Workman in March 1887 diplomatically stated that: "Rumors of the State Board of Health, having in view the quarantining of this city, are entirely erroneous...There is no cause for alarm from smallpox in this city...The authorities are taking the most effective measures to eradicate the smallpox from our midst."<br />
<br />
The State Board of Health, however, while acknowledging that the smallpox situation was not as dire as portrayed, nevertheless was upset with what it saw as "extreme secrecy" and lack of urgency and recogntion of potential danger from the Los Angeles press and residents.<br />
<br />
The board complained that their "worthy efforts were belittled...Instead of cooperating and doing all in their power to throttle the disease in its first visitations, these would-be sanitarians scoffed and sneered...The result of this was to make people comparatively careless." They lamented that the local media attacked their board members in the "most shameful manner" and impugned their motives.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><em><strong>The "Great indignity," "vicious stab" and "infection" of L.A.; </strong></em></div><div style="text-align: center;"><em><strong>San Pedro quarantined </strong></em></div><br />
As hostile as it was to the State Board of Health, however, the Los Angeles press was even more bellicose towards the city's northern rival San Francisco, whose local Board of Health (that included San Francisco mayor Edward B. Pond) adopted this resolution in March of 1887:<br />
<br />
"<em>Resolved, that the city of Los Angeles be declared infected with smallpox, and as the port of San Pedro is the port of departure from that city, it be declared infected, and that all vessels arriving therefrom shall be placed in quarantine until thoroughly inspected by the quarantine officer.</em> <br />
<br />
The<em> Los Angeles Times</em> was outraged, criticizing San Francisco's "narrow-minded capitalists" and stock jobbers" that have "been ever ready to stamp this southern city into the dust." The Times particularly criticized San Franciso's health board for its "vicious stab," "asininity" and "spite-work" for quarantining San Pedro which was as "unnecessary as vacinating the moon." When the health board refused to lift the quarantine in early April, the <em>Times</em> sarcastically declared the board "refuses to redeem itself by an intermittent spark of intellect."<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><strong><em>Lessons learned </em></strong></div><div align="left" style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">The State Board of Health learned two important lessons from the epidemic of smallpox in 1887: 1) while isolation and quarantine were critical, they were not were not sufficient in stopping the disease, and 2) vaccinations (as often performed at the time) offered no protection. (In Los Angeles, of the 30,000 vaccinations given during this period, at least one-third had to be given again.) Thorough vaccination and revaccination were an "almost absolute preventative."</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div>And despite the fact San Pedro was declared infected and quarantined -- with the State Board also reporting that the port town's sanitary condition was so "deplorable" that it could propagate contagious disease -- San Pedro suffered only one case of smallpox during this period.<br />
<br />
<u>Sources</u>: <br />
<br />
<em>Centers for Disease Control and Prevention</em>. Smallpox Fact Sheet, Smallpox Disease Overview.<br />
<br />
Tenth Biennial Report of the <em>State Board of Health of California.</em> For the Fiscal Years from June 30, 1886, to June 30, 1888. Sacramento: State Office: J.D. Young, Supt. State Printing. 1888.<br />
<br />
<em>Los Angeles Star</em>. November 1862, February 1863.<br />
<br />
<em>Los Angeles Times. </em>January, February<em>, </em>March, April 1887.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><em>World Health Organization. </em>Smallpox.Dennis Piotrowskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17247236710669192137noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2421748753213138022.post-46343744096894492372010-09-30T19:45:00.000-07:002010-10-01T11:07:21.788-07:00"Greatest Heavyweight Boxing Champion" Jim Jeffries Trains in San Pedro<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://lcweb2.loc.gov/service/pnp/ggbain/04500/04527r.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="145" px="true" src="http://lcweb2.loc.gov/service/pnp/ggbain/04500/04527r.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Click on photo to enlarge</td></tr>
</tbody></table>James J. Jeffries, considered by many to be the greatest heavyweight boxing champion of the early twentieth century and one of the greatest of all time, was no stranger to San Pedro and the Los Angeles Harbor area.<br />
<br />
Born in Ohio in 1875, he moved with his family to Los Angeles at a young age, and lived in the area for the rest of his life. He was nicknamed "The Boilermaker" because he had worked as one for the Lacey Manufacturing Company during his early pugilistic days.<br />
<br />
Jim Jeffries knocked out Bob Fitzsimmons on June 9, 1899 to win the world's heavyweight title. Jeffries retired undefeated in 1905, but mounted a comeback against famed heavyweight champ Jack Johnson in July 1910, who stopped Jeffries in the 15th round in the "Battle of the Century."<br />
<br />
<object height="364" width="445"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube-nocookie.com/v/Z6TW83KkHWM?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0&border=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube-nocookie.com/v/Z6TW83KkHWM?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0&border=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="445" height="364"></embed></object><br />
<br />
Johnson would later say that "When I faced Jeffries in the ring I had a feeling of fear come over me for the only time in my life. It was a horrible sensation."<br />
<br />
Jeffries retired and lived in Burbank, where he died at the age of 77 in 1953. At the time of his death, his sister Mrs. Millian Metcalf was reported to be living in San Pedro, along with his brother Jack. <br />
<br />
Newspaper accounts from the time document Jeffries' many trips to San Pedro. For example, in July of 1899, Jeffries visited his friends and brothers and took a cruise on the steamer <em>J.C. Elliott</em>. He also demonstrated his well-known physical strength on this trip when he visited a blacksmith shop, and with a few blows from a sledgehammer, severed a piece of heavy iron shafting that was ready to be cut.<br />
<br />
In March of 1900, Jeffries did some preliminary training in San Pedro for his upcoming fight with fellow boxing legend "Gentleman" Jim Corbett (Jeffries knocked Corbett out in the 23rd round). Jeffries later recounted that he would run 12-15 miles a day while in training.<br />
<br />
After his training for the Corbett fight, he left the port for Catalina Island. A couple of years later, in March of 1902, Jeffries visited friends in San Pedro, intending to go on to Catalina.<br />
<br />
On February 27, 1910, while preparing for his upcoming epic battle with Johnson, Jeffries took a day off and again went to San Pedro. Jeffries visited his close friend Luke Kelly, a prominent San Pedro citizen and saloon keeper. They had previously enjoyed many fishing trips in the area, but on this day they spent a quiet afternoon at Kelly's house. They later went to a local half-way house for an Italian dinner, where about a dozen San Pedran sportsmen were invited.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong>Top left photo</strong>: Jim Jeffries holding jump rope in unknown athletic ring; photo credit: </span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, [reproduction number, e.g., LC-B2-1234]</span>Dennis Piotrowskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17247236710669192137noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2421748753213138022.post-69893084179510442992010-04-11T13:33:00.000-07:002010-04-11T13:35:27.275-07:00Stone Age Murder at White Point?From the <em>Evening News</em>, <strong>April 10, 1919</strong>:<br />
<br />
---<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv1CwxnOzWi2eg-SN4r3NQ51504hZezMRpqdYoNYFL16U9HZ0dnvwpAMKrnvuP2pyFA6-9rz8EhvoBoqHOJ4Pk1RIBEX0q5oWjKzeCAItpmItlvsq7O55j4PJeDGDQKpHEP1NvK41kUKY/s1600/WhitePoint.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="140" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv1CwxnOzWi2eg-SN4r3NQ51504hZezMRpqdYoNYFL16U9HZ0dnvwpAMKrnvuP2pyFA6-9rz8EhvoBoqHOJ4Pk1RIBEX0q5oWjKzeCAItpmItlvsq7O55j4PJeDGDQKpHEP1NvK41kUKY/s200/WhitePoint.jpg" width="200" wt="true" /></a><br />
<br />
<br />
LOS ANGELES, April 10 -- Evidence of a mysterious and cowardly murder of an unidentified man has been unearthed by curators at the Exposition Park museum.<br />
<br />
While studying a skeleton brought to them they found death had been caused by an arrow embedded in the spinal column.<br />
<br />
"This is a particularly cowardly case," declared Edward James, detective. "This man was shot in the back. But I see no clew [<em>sic</em>] leading to the guilty party nor can I determine the motive."<br />
<br />
The skelton, it might be added, was that of a cliff dweller, dug from beneath a rock 100 feet underground at White Point, near San Pedro. He was murdered during the stone age.<br />
<br />
---<br />
<br />
*above image shows the White Point area (near San Pedro), c. 1930<br />
<br />
**To read more about <em>Stone Age Spear and Arrow Points of the Southwestern United States</em>, click <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Stone-Points-Southwestern-United-States/dp/025333912X/ref=pd_sim_b_1">here</a>.Dennis Piotrowskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17247236710669192137noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2421748753213138022.post-34078734225657256562010-03-31T15:21:00.000-07:002010-04-02T10:30:08.022-07:00Harbor Area Reacts to Civil War's End and President Lincoln's AssassinationAlthough Los Angeles had been known as a "hot bed of secession," the harbor area was jubilant at the end of the Civil War and the prospect of peace. In April 1865, a correspondent from the <em>San</em> <em>Francisco Bulletin</em> reported that "On the receipt by telegraph of the occupation of Richmond, 100 guns were fired in Wilmington, and crowds of the right kind of people perambulated the streets with torches, while the town was as bright as day with bonfires."<br />
<br />
Wilmington is near San Pedro and is part of the Los Angeles Harbor area.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/american_originals_iv/images/emancipation_proclamation/abraham_lincoln.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" nt="true" src="http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/american_originals_iv/images/emancipation_proclamation/abraham_lincoln.jpg" width="141" /></a></div>As seen throughout the country, however, this jubilation quickly turned to grief after President Abraham Lincoln was shot and died shortly thereafter on April 15, 1865. When the telegraph of Lincoln's assassination reached Wilmington, businesses and public houses were closed and hung with crape by grief-stricken residents. <br />
<br />
General Phineas Banning, a successful businessman known as the "father of Wilmington," ordered his employees to suspend work on the day of Lincoln's funeral. The "heavy blows usually resounding in Banning's huge blacksmithing establishment" were temporarily silenced, and other locals followed this example and suspended work. <br />
<br />
The <em>Bulletin's </em>correspondent<em> </em>noted that on the sacred day of Lincoln's funeral "not even a team or pleasure wagon was to be seen leaving the little town" and "it was a strange sight to see billiard tables and card-tables utterly deserted among so fun-loving a population as Wilmington contains."<br />
<br />
While General Banning and the whole of Wilmington's population was described as having "shown themselves the true stuff," the local establishment of Tomlinson & Co. was criticized for being "utterly indifferent to the great national calamity that had just taken place" by continuing work with all their men until dark after news of Lincoln's funeral arrived -- unlike A.W. Timms who instantly closed his store and trimmed his whole establishment with black.Dennis Piotrowskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17247236710669192137noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2421748753213138022.post-24325225157403720902010-03-13T18:43:00.000-08:002010-03-13T18:43:44.320-08:00Deadman's Island: British Whaling Captain Hanged by Mutineers<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi83Pr_ojwBVUGTWkGFlOTsBP6htLuc0oyd2iy1SqDBF3xa__VFOttDGekPXqXDwaRJkUFuL9KjBtYy6bh3GyQP4NjvLl4o2ccyXrOGg_ZOAp0A9L4PyMKMtd-OofW2qV5ansVGKJad1DU/s1600-h/DeadmanI1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="129" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi83Pr_ojwBVUGTWkGFlOTsBP6htLuc0oyd2iy1SqDBF3xa__VFOttDGekPXqXDwaRJkUFuL9KjBtYy6bh3GyQP4NjvLl4o2ccyXrOGg_ZOAp0A9L4PyMKMtd-OofW2qV5ansVGKJad1DU/s200/DeadmanI1.jpg" vt="true" width="200" /></a></div><br />
<strong>Deadman’s Island</strong> was a San Pedro landmark, a rocky isle about 800-feet long, 250-feet wide, and over 60-feet high that guarded the entrance to Los Angeles Harbor. It was removed in the late 1920s to make room for large ships in the growing harbor.<br />
<br />
The following story is from the <em>Evening News</em>, June 1901:<br />
---<br />
<br />
<strong><span style="font-size: large;">Hanged by Mutineers</span></strong><br />
<strong>Pieces of Rope Found Clinging to Captain's Crumbling Skeleton</strong><br />
<br />
San Pedro, Cal, June 7 -- Through the caving down of a bank and the discovery of a mass of crumbling human bones a clew has been bound [<em>sic</em>] to a mystery that has existed for over a century. <br />
<br />
A hundred years ago the captain of a British whaling ship, lying off this port, was killed by his crew, which mutinied.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuTP5qNNe-MdUMHBt3_65OGOz_ImfH5PtyaSB2o7CSudBAojOeSHNgoo9u1D7WUuBwyEwLSurnKJo9SCRZk75BygWynGwSjEBoKbJln-k8AcnAULm8f0WfQiAlzDpUYo31odlT_GOf6kc/s1600-h/DeadmanI2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="195" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuTP5qNNe-MdUMHBt3_65OGOz_ImfH5PtyaSB2o7CSudBAojOeSHNgoo9u1D7WUuBwyEwLSurnKJo9SCRZk75BygWynGwSjEBoKbJln-k8AcnAULm8f0WfQiAlzDpUYo31odlT_GOf6kc/s320/DeadmanI2.jpg" vt="true" width="320" /></a></div>It was known that they buried him on Deadman's Island, but the manner in which they accomplished the killing was kept a secret and, although in later years the subject was one of much inquiry, the direct cause of death was never determined.<br />
<br />
Gradually the sea has washed away the base of Deadman's Island, which stands near the entrance to the inner harbor, and the upper part has kept caving away.<br />
<br />
A party of boys fishing near the place Wednesday discovered the contents of the grave, which had fallen by the caving away of the bank.<br />
<br />
The bones had fallen only a short distance from their resting place, so that the arrangement was only partly destroyed.<br />
<br />
Although solid, as if preserved by the dryness of the sandy soil, the bones were greatly yellowed, showing<br />
that they had been resting there probably a hundred years.<br />
<br />
Looking more closely the boys found an old rope, rotted with age, wound about the skeleton, between the head and ribs.<br />
<br />
The rope was of the size used by hangmen.<br />
<br />
The discovery is taken to indicate that the unfortunate skipper was hanged by his crew, and that they buried him without removing the rope, with which he had been hanged.Dennis Piotrowskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17247236710669192137noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2421748753213138022.post-33739872374715821102010-03-07T22:56:00.000-08:002010-03-07T22:57:27.284-08:00"Largest Earthquake in the World" Impacts Los Angeles Waterfront, May 1960<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://pubs.usgs.gov/gip/2005/15/images/fig25_logo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="147" kt="true" src="http://pubs.usgs.gov/gip/2005/15/images/fig25_logo.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br />
The recent deadly 8.8 magnitude earthquake in Chile caused a tsunami advisory for California's coastline, but fortunately no significant local damage.<br />
<br />
It's worth a look back at another Chilean earthquake that generated tsunami wave surges that did cause some damage to California's coastline and the Los Angeles and Long Beach Harbor areas.<br />
<br />
On May 22, 1960, a magnitude 9.5 earthquake struck south central Chile. The United States Geological Survey calls this "the largest earthquake in the world." In Chile, approximately 2,000 people were killed, 3000 injured, and another 2,000,000 were left homeless.<br />
<br />
The Governor's Office of Emergency Services for California estimates that the waves generated by this massive earthquake caused about $500,000 to $1,000,000 worth of damage to the state, and notes that two people were killed. <br />
<br />
Locally, the <em>Los Angeles Times</em> reported that boats and piers were smashed along San Pedro's waterfront, where a series of tidal currents surged back and forth surged through the port's narrow Cerritos Channel. Some 300 yachts and small boats were ripped from their slips, and early estimates were that 15-20 boats had sunk. The surge was estimated at up to 8-9 feet high in places at times. A strong current caused the port's Terminal Island ferry <em>Islander </em>to be swept off course by 300 yards, while "monumental traffic jams" occurred in both the Los Angeles and Long Beach harbor areas.<br />
<br />
A Port of Los Angeles report states that the "Chilean earthquake and tsunami of May 1960 was the maximum event recorded in recent history to impact the Ports."<br />
<br />
For more on this devastating earthquake, click on this link:<br />
<br />
<a href="http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/world/events/1960_05_22_articles.php">http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/world/events/1960_05_22_articles.php</a> <br />
<br />
*Stay tuned for future blog entries on other tsunamis that impacted the Port of Los Angeles.Dennis Piotrowskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17247236710669192137noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2421748753213138022.post-8691306669612824992010-02-26T10:11:00.000-08:002010-03-03T18:44:15.870-08:00Fort MacArthur K-9 CommandFt. MacArthur in San Pedro, California started training dogs and turning them into sentries and "soldiers" even before the well-known "Dogs for Defense" program was fully formed in the early years of World War II. <br />
<br />
The following story is from the <em>Dallas Morning News</em>, <strong>October 13, 1942</strong>:<br />
<br />
<strong><span style="font-size: large;">Sentry Dog AWOL Over Attachment For Motorcycle</span></strong><br />
<br />
<strong>FORT MACARTHUR, </strong>Calif., Oct. 12 (AP).-- Every time a motorcycle went by it made King, a big black and tan shepherd sentry dog, homesick.<br />
<br />
So the other day when one passed he jumped an eight-foot barbed wire-topped fence and went A.W.O.L. for the second time. A bewildered man later turned him over to San Pedro police with the explanation he had found King curled up contentedly beside his motorcycle.<br />
<br />
Police checked King's licence tag and solved the puzzle. The dog has belonged to Motorcycle Officer Orville Clutterman of Van Nuys, who gave him to Fort MacArthur for sentry duty.<br />
<br />
King is back at the fort, ordered confined to quarters for two days, but Sergt. Robert Pearce, trainer and handler of sentry dogs, is keeping a motorcycle around until King forms new affections.Dennis Piotrowskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17247236710669192137noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2421748753213138022.post-78602945356764572572010-02-13T17:51:00.000-08:002010-02-13T18:11:32.750-08:00California Fish Company and the Alpha<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4gATth7bzmpxHydjafSg-Dm9w723TmocfYSmtFnVkgk1bMJKjQ1LCMX4WfYVtsRzdm7OTTNBAhc5IyF8A1IbsAbNdDUzyDJYRsDV50Sl6t91P4dFYCOgWfWSV9N5KrFqB7zSeRYIMLdo/s1600-h/Alpha+picture.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ct="true" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4gATth7bzmpxHydjafSg-Dm9w723TmocfYSmtFnVkgk1bMJKjQ1LCMX4WfYVtsRzdm7OTTNBAhc5IyF8A1IbsAbNdDUzyDJYRsDV50Sl6t91P4dFYCOgWfWSV9N5KrFqB7zSeRYIMLdo/s320/Alpha+picture.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>I have completed quite a bit of research on the California Fish Company and its fishing vessel named the <em>Alpha.</em> Here is a preview:<br />
<br />
The California Fish Company opened in 1893 and was the first cannery in Los Angeles Harbor, the first successful Pacific Coast sardine cannery, and the world's pioneer albacore tuna cannery.<br />
<br />
The <em>Alpha</em>, California’s first purse seine boat, was built in 1893 in Alameda, California. The sloop had a 60-foot mast and carried a large main sail, a “jib” (small triangular sail forward of the mast) and a “flying jib” (outermost jib). She was also most likely the first gasoline-powered fishing boat in Los Angeles Harbor. <br />
<br />
The <em>Alpha</em> had a crew of about seven that consisted of a captain, engineer, cook and four fishermen, all of whom fished and helped keep the boat and gear in good working order. Members of the crew were paid wages, as well as a certain percentage of the value of their catch. The crew spotted schools of sardines at the surface in nearby waters. The easiest way to spot a school of sardines was by spotting their fluorescent glow on a dark night.Dennis Piotrowskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17247236710669192137noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2421748753213138022.post-50714292544924723412010-01-23T19:51:00.000-08:002010-01-23T22:57:03.374-08:00USS LOS ANGELES Decommissioning Ceremony<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1CnBlE8q95DtPF0z20YiK_VwK4qYSEpbJmvtgc3qIC2ar1kmFfIl1PZtucnJCnMDldj0uHpaxvGncpIgv4eYuketVDxIOD0KmYZ9KolbJ_I5n2xvkNncxoGORfRMDAa_jzvvcuIa8m6k/s1600-h/USSLA0001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" mt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1CnBlE8q95DtPF0z20YiK_VwK4qYSEpbJmvtgc3qIC2ar1kmFfIl1PZtucnJCnMDldj0uHpaxvGncpIgv4eYuketVDxIOD0KmYZ9KolbJ_I5n2xvkNncxoGORfRMDAa_jzvvcuIa8m6k/s320/USSLA0001.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
</div><br />
From the Navy:<br />
<br />
The Decommissioning Ceremony of the USS Los Angeles (SSN 688) submarine occurred on Janury 23, 2010 at the Port of Los Angeles, San Pedro, California.<br />
<br />
The USS Los Angeles was the fourth naval ship to be named after the City of Los Angeles, and was the lead ship of her class. She was launched on April 6, 1974 at Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock company in Newport News, Virginia.<br />
<br />
On May 27, 1977, she hosted President Jimmy Carter and Admiral Hyman Rickover for an at-sea demonstration of the capabilities of the nation's newest fast attack submarine.<br />
<br />
The USS Los Angeles commenced the first Engineered Refueling Overhaul of a Los Angeles class fast attack submarine in the early 1990s. During this overhaul, she was outfitted with the latest state-of-the-art sonar and fire control systems, as well as the Navy's newest reactor controls equipment. These extensive upgrades made her one of the most advanced submarines in the world at the time.<br />
<br />
Her many capabilities include wartime functions of undersea warfare, surface warfare, strike warfare, mining operations, special forces delivery, reconnaissance, carrier battle group support and escort and intelligence collection.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyA143wZHp0xTHpGWDdxBpirgmjAxfgtlBKiqPSH-EZmkQne6SnLYBZlnWjDbBxkt3cRw3pAHL7vn2a8pWWrPUykIYvpc2krfQqS5s3XobK_zC1uoRViWH-RVcvbSrIVy38YfwROFZZSY/s1600-h/USSLA2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="230" mt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyA143wZHp0xTHpGWDdxBpirgmjAxfgtlBKiqPSH-EZmkQne6SnLYBZlnWjDbBxkt3cRw3pAHL7vn2a8pWWrPUykIYvpc2krfQqS5s3XobK_zC1uoRViWH-RVcvbSrIVy38YfwROFZZSY/s400/USSLA2.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div align="left" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div align="left" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Excerpts from the <em>Daily Breeze</em> newspaper article (1/23/10):<br />
</div><div align="left" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The USS Los Angeles was commissioned in 1976 to spy on enemy Soviet ships during the Cold War, spawning 44 similar models that will eventually be replaced over the next several years by the larger, more technologically advanced Virginia class of submarines.<br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">"The Los Angeles-class subs were designed for a 30-year lifespan and so, unfortunately, it's time to start taking them apart," said Lt. Cmdr. David Benham, a Navy spokesman.<br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Commander Steven M. Harrison was the last Commanding Officer of the USS Los Angeles (SSN 688).<br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">**<strong>San Pedro played an early role in the development of the Navy's submarine force. For part of this history, please see this prior post</strong>:<br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> <a href="http://sanpedrohistory.blogspot.com/2009/10/submarine-disaster-in-san-pedro-harbor.html">http://sanpedrohistory.blogspot.com/2009/10/submarine-disaster-in-san-pedro-harbor.html</a> <br />
</div><div align="left" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div align="left" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Dennis Piotrowskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17247236710669192137noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2421748753213138022.post-49014705280464521492010-01-18T19:27:00.000-08:002010-01-18T23:24:51.613-08:00Early History of the San Pedro Fishermen's Fiesta<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw-mX9FmGihtWKeJ2eJ4IYVohyi-lg0yoVy9XLK4MNYXhmi9TktU3YZJFpp-Z_K7YPTjTBrsEJl2S027_TxeKEqtISnegiiZObpOm7jvpPVG45PY13_6u2AGDpP6Yrakd9fEu-5OAwI04/s1600-h/Fiestaprogram.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" ps="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw-mX9FmGihtWKeJ2eJ4IYVohyi-lg0yoVy9XLK4MNYXhmi9TktU3YZJFpp-Z_K7YPTjTBrsEJl2S027_TxeKEqtISnegiiZObpOm7jvpPVG45PY13_6u2AGDpP6Yrakd9fEu-5OAwI04/s200/Fiestaprogram.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOyflbxln66biDgRo3D7ujbR6-EzzCOWYNBK1t-c2MpavEzKxFljPquMD_HmoxYVM1TZOmpuGIT6dQ2H6anRcBGKIUDKHcmyO5yWsGlLkkN2T4xB_yTtufo6HwzvtNg5nATLnx3r1-c_w/s1600-h/9-11-49+Fiesta.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ps="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOyflbxln66biDgRo3D7ujbR6-EzzCOWYNBK1t-c2MpavEzKxFljPquMD_HmoxYVM1TZOmpuGIT6dQ2H6anRcBGKIUDKHcmyO5yWsGlLkkN2T4xB_yTtufo6HwzvtNg5nATLnx3r1-c_w/s200/9-11-49+Fiesta.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><br />
In the decades after World War II, the <em><strong>San Pedro Fishermen's Fiesta </strong></em>was a colorful extravaganza that paid tribute to the Port of Los Angeles-based fishing industry, the largest in the nation for a good part of the twentieth century.<br />
<br />
During its heyday in the 1950s and 1960s the Fiesta attracted hundreds of thousands of spectators and was acclaimed as the third most photographed special event in the nation (behind the <em>Tournament of Roses</em> and the <em>Mardi Gras</em>). Well-known celebrities and politicians such as Ronald Reagan, Pat Brown and Richard Nixon attended.<br />
<br />
The origin of the San Pedro Fishermen's Fiesta dates to the years preceeding the Second World War. Near the end of summer, San Pedro fishermen would take their families to nearby Catalina Island for a "big picnic" before the start of school. Frank Canetti, a former Fiesta director, said in an interview in 1982 that as a young boy he remembered a fleet of 50 to 60 decorated boats being blessed and then sailing with crew and families for a weekend at the Island. <br />
<br />
Although it wasn't called the "Fishermen's Fiesta," on March 26, 1938 about 100 decorated, flag-bedecked purse seiners (fishing vessels) paraded through Los Angeles Harbor. This was a celebration by the Fishermen's Co-operative Association to dedicate its new terminals and clubhouse at the Southern Pacific slip.<br />
<br />
On Sunday, October 21, 1945 what can be called the first "formal" Fishermen's Fiesta took place in the harbor. Thousands of dockside spectators watched more than 100 brightly decorated fishing boats sail a 20-mile course past anchored warships and Cabrillo Beach, into the main channel at Wilmington, and around Rainbow Pier at Long Beach. <br />
<br />
Occurring shortly after the end of World War II, this salute to the local fishing fleet was billed as a Victory Parade. The winner of first prize was the boat <em>City of Naples II</em> that carried a living replica of the famous Flag raising on Iwo Jima. Fishing industry spokesmen proclaimed that the fishing industry at the Port of Los Angeles was an important wartime supplier of food, supplying more than 12,000,000 gallons of sardine oil to strategic war industries for example.<br />
<br />
On October 6, 1946, the Second Annual Fishermen's Fiesta was held from 10:00 A.M. to midnight at the "World's No. 1 Fishing Port." There were no Fiestas in Los Angeles Harbor the following two years, but the nautical parade returned with a vengeance in 1949 (with four days of festivities from September 8-11). <br />
<br />
The 1949 Fiesta featured a coronation of a “King Fisherman” and dedication of a newly built $1,500,000 fishermen’s dock christened by Los Angeles Mayor Fletcher Bowron with a splash of waters brought from the Seven Seas.<br />
<br />
*<span style="font-size: x-small;">Above image shows a photo of the fishing vessel <em>San Antonio</em> participating in the 1949 Fiesta.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;">**Stay tuned for further history of the <em>San Pedro Fishermen's Fiesta</em></span>.Dennis Piotrowskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17247236710669192137noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2421748753213138022.post-74766710864455440192010-01-11T22:27:00.000-08:002011-06-08T00:26:42.672-07:00San Pedro and Palos Verdes Shore Whaling History, Part 1For several years I have been researching the history of the whaling industry at and near Los Angeles Harbor and Portuguese Bend, Palos Verdes Peninsula. Here is a preview:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.parks.ca.gov/listed_resources/images/381_01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="217" ps="true" src="http://www.parks.ca.gov/listed_resources/images/381_01.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
Two sites near San Pedro were active in shore whaling in the years after 1860: (the former) Deadman’s Island and the Portuguese Bend area. California shore whaling, long obsolete, was a method of whaling whereby small boats rowed out by men armed with throwing harpoons, Greener harpoon guns, and “bomb lance” guns intercepted migrating whales. The boats were between twenty-six and thirty feet long, had one sail, and operated within a radius of about ten miles from shore.*<br />
<br />
Shore whaling occurred off the coast of California from 1854 to about 1900. <br />
<br />
In a 1925 interview, Captain John Anderson of Wilmington, described as an “old-timer in the Pacific whaling business,” recalled the old days of local shore whaling in the 1870s when as many as forty whales at one time spouted off White Point, and when three or four whales at one time were cut up for oil at the Deadman’s Island or Portuguese Bend whaling stations. <br />
<br />
As he recounted: “<em>Whaling ain’t what it used to be. We used to take the blubber and try it out, let the birds have the carcass and Davy Jones’s locker the bones. Now they cut the whale up for fertilizer, body and bones. They use everything but the spout</em>.”<br />
<br />
*<span style="font-size: x-small;">The above recent image of the Portuguese Bend area in Palos Verdes southern California, near San Pedro, shows the area near where a shore whaling station operated in the early 1860s, and which was active off and on through at least 1885. </span>Dennis Piotrowskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17247236710669192137noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2421748753213138022.post-7102690670964782442009-12-28T22:50:00.000-08:002010-03-30T21:13:32.499-07:00Fort MacArthur K-9 Command, Part 2<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjql_ARdck4K6i-QsoRgs3H1jIBuj5gobw8y-FdpiuMJvzjuQ67tG3XD29Fn6af6xTv_yJSB2o2OhD7986c0USuuxP9OihJND0b8rcOUhqLva_AIMxYN8B99DrmdfQwqWBVfr4Bw6Lbp_0/s1600-h/wardog001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ps="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjql_ARdck4K6i-QsoRgs3H1jIBuj5gobw8y-FdpiuMJvzjuQ67tG3XD29Fn6af6xTv_yJSB2o2OhD7986c0USuuxP9OihJND0b8rcOUhqLva_AIMxYN8B99DrmdfQwqWBVfr4Bw6Lbp_0/s200/wardog001.jpg" /></a></div><b>Private Accepts War Dog Assignment with Fort MacArthur K-9 Command</b><br />
<br />
In early 1942, one of the sergeants at Fort MacArthur asked for volunteers to work with the fort's new Canine Command and warned that it's "not going to be easy work and we don't want sissies." <br />
<br />
Initially there were no takers for the difficult job that consisted of helping to train dogs for sentry duty at the sprawling base. <br />
<br />
After the sergeant reframed his pitch stressing that the soldier who did this job would be doing a great service, Private Raymond J. Diekman stepped forward and said "I'll take the job" -- even though he had acquired a fear of dogs while driving on a truck route in Illinois before the war. As recounted in a local Illinois newspaper at the time, Diekman thought this would help him get rid of his dislike of dogs. <br />
<br />
Shortly thereafter Diekman's Fort MacArthur service consisted of wearing padded suits, acting as a bad guy in the K-9 training program. His job was to let the dogs attack him. <br />
<br />
Not only did Diekman overcome his fear of dogs, but he also had his fifteen minutes of fame. His photograph was seen in newspapers, magazines, and even thousands of theaters in the Warner Brothers 10-minute movie "<em>Sniffer Soldiers</em>" -- in which he demonstrated the training program for Army dogs at Fort MacArthur as "sentries, messengers, pack dogs, airplane spotters and other duties."<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;">*</span><span style="font-size: xx-small;">above image credit: Cy La Tour, likely taken at Fort MacArthur in 1942 or early 1943, unknown if this shows Diekman </span>Dennis Piotrowskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17247236710669192137noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2421748753213138022.post-3611535133911149502009-12-26T11:03:00.000-08:002010-03-30T21:13:55.642-07:00Fort MacArthur K-9 Command Part 1In 2003, I helped <em>Los Angeles Times </em>columnist Cecilia Rasmussen research the history of the Fort MacArthur K-9 Command for her article entitled "<strong>The Dogs of War Laid Their Lives on the Line for U.S."</strong> <br />
<br />
Fort MacArthur was center of the Harbor Defenses of Los Angeles during the World War II era.<br />
<br />
Since then, I've researched and found further information on other aspects of the history of war dog training at Fort MacArthur that I'll be posting soon. <br />
<br />
Until then, click on the link below to read Cecilia's informative article about the Fort MacArthur K-9 Command: <br />
<br />
<a href="http://articles.latimes.com/2003/may/04/local/me-then4">http://articles.latimes.com/2003/may/04/local/me-then4</a>Dennis Piotrowskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17247236710669192137noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2421748753213138022.post-28426120154792675232009-11-22T11:20:00.000-08:002009-12-28T22:55:35.891-08:00Japanese Warships Visit Los Angeles Harbor<a href="https://www.sandiegohistory.org/journal/78summer/images/p271.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://www.sandiegohistory.org/journal/78summer/images/p271.jpg" style="cursor: hand; display: block; height: 320px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 684px;" /></a><br />
Japanese crusier <em>Asama</em><br />
<br />
In early June 1914, the Japanese cruisers <em>Asama</em> and <em>Azuma</em> visited Los Angeles Harbor. They were welcomed by representatives of the Mayor's office of Los Angeles, the Chamber of Commerce of Los Angeles, and several thousand Japanese Americans. <br />
<br />
Both of these ships were veterans of the Russo-Japanese War, and the <em>Asama</em> earlier had participated in the support of Japanese forces in the Boxer Rebellion in China.Dennis Piotrowskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17247236710669192137noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2421748753213138022.post-55287966700874750392009-11-04T10:44:00.000-08:002009-11-04T13:20:25.256-08:00Silent Film Legend Mary Pickford Visits Los Angeles Harbor<a href="http://www.cbc.ca/gfx/images/arts/photos/2007/11/20/mary-pickford-cp-1356949.jpg"><img style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 157px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px" alt="" src="http://www.cbc.ca/gfx/images/arts/photos/2007/11/20/mary-pickford-cp-1356949.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div>"America's Sweetheart" Mary Pickford visited Los Angeles Harbor on August 12, 1919. Pickford and other dignitaries went aboard the battleship <em>Texas</em> anchored in the outer harbor to honor the crew which had raised $130,000 for the second Liberty Bond campaign, the most of any ship in the U.S. Navy. Pickford presented the men with a silver cup as a reward. The pennant of the <em>George Washington,</em> the ship that had transported President Woodrow Wilson to the Peace Conference in France, was also given to the <em>Texas</em> crew as a personal gift from the President. </div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div> </div><div>While reading her formal remarks, Pickford received the greatest ovation when she quipped that she would prefer to make "a real speech" if she "didn't have to be so formal with the Secretary of Navy" (Josephus Daniels) present. Shortly after this visit, Pickford helped establish the <em>United Artists</em> film studio.</div>Dennis Piotrowskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17247236710669192137noreply@blogger.com1