Successful Move for the Donnelley House!

See the pics below taken by Charles Miller last night.
The House was moved by truck from Chinatown to Ave. 64 in Garvanza!

Update to Donnelley House Move!!!

The Donnelley House is scheduled to move Thursday, June 25, starting at 11:59PM. The move will be finished by Friday, June 26 at 1:30am. At 7am on Friday morning, the house will lifted by a crane 100' up in the air to its final resting spot.

Come watch the show!!!

The Donnelley House is Moving to Garvanza!

The Donnelley House is moving to the Northeast Community of Garvanza! The 1870s Gothic Revival Cottage will be coming through Highland Park from Chinatown to Garvanza along Marmion Way to Monte Vista, turning onto Piedmont then N. Figueroa Street, proceed East on York Boulevard and, finally, North to its new home at 1135-1153 N. Avenue 63 across from the Church of the Angels. Due to a Caltrans glitch this week, the move was postponed until the week of the June 22.

The Donnelley house has been located on 829 W. Bartlett Street in Chinatown since it was moved there in 1886 on land that had been subdivided by former Los Angeles Mayor Prudent Beaudry. John A. Donnelly and his family initially leased the land from Beaudry, but then bought it in 1889. Beaudry also owned the land in Garvanza where the house will settle until he sold it to Augustine Campbell-Johnston whose family established a ranch on the property. The House is one a very few remaining extant structures dating from the period of Los Angeles history between the Civil War and the coming of the Great Land Boom of 1885-1888.


Preservationist Brad Chambers is the owner of the Garvanza land. He plans to place the house on a hillside above Avenue 64, across the street from the Historic Church of the Angels, which is an Ernest Coxhead designed stone Gothic church that was built in 1889. Chambers has a proven track record with preservation and restoration, including in the area of stucco removal. He received an award from the Highland Park Heritage Trust for the removal of stucco and the restoration of another Garvanza area home several years ago. In addition, Chambers is currently serving on the Whitley Heights H.P.O.Z. Board in Hollywood.

The house had been sheathed in stucco since 1986 and was scheduled for demolition until it was researched for the landowner and its true rarity was determined. Arrangements were made with Chambers to move the house to the Garvanza property where he moved and restored another historic Chinatown home several years ago.

In preparation for the move, Chambers had the stucco removed and exposed the structures original siding and shingled gable. The aluminum slider windows were removed and historic windows matching the original openings were installed. At its new site, the house will be lifted by a crane onto its new foundation that is on a small bluff at the rear of the Garvanza property. Once reassembled and restored, the house will be nominated as a Historic Cultural Monument for the City of Los Angeles. Below is a before picture:

Lummis Day in Sycamore Grove Park

Lummis Day rocked! The beautiful day in the park was full of live music, tasty treats and local booths.

At the Highland Park Heritage Booth, Tina and Charles Miller were having tons 'o fun. Brian Sheridan was looking happy from Heritage Square. The Main Stage at the Historic Band Shell featured many local musicians. Janet Hansen was holding the fort at the Office of Historic Resources SurveyLA Booth. Casa de Adobe was open for the day .The courtyard hosted a plein air painter and other artists. A family even brought their baby duck!

Map of LA in the 1920s

This post is for map lovers. The map below shows Elysian Park in the center.

Arroyo Seco Parkway Now and Then

The Arroyo Seco was once untouched and untamed. It was a muse for many artists and craftsman looking for a "simpler way of life". Looking towards the Southwest Museum to the West, this photo was taken in 1937.

Ever wonder what the Arroyo used to look like before it was turned into a concrete flood channel? The photo below shows how it looked before 1937 when plans to build a Parkway began.

After the freeway was constructed in the 1940s, this photograph was taken near Shults Street, looking South.

Below is a photo taken in 1954. It shows the Pasadena freeway (now known as Arroyo Seco Parkway) at the Marmion Way exit. View is looking towards the North.

In the not so distant future, Cal Trans will work on the oldest freeway in the West.

See the image below for the State's "improvements" to the Parkway. Such changes include, a low concrete wall with "curve decoration" dividing the north and south bound sides. A guardrail with a "stone-like" stamped concrete base, chain-link and "historic-style" lamp posts.

What do you think?

Gold Line is Old Line!

Old photographs are wonderful windows into the past. We often forget what came before and take for granted what we have. Not too long ago, before the Metro Gold Line went in, Marmion Way had two lines of transit running side-by-side. The Santa Fe Railroad and the "Yellow" Car. The Yellow Electric Car was part of the L.A.R.Y. (Los Angeles Railway). The photo below shows the W line and the Locomotive trains travelling concurrently.

For those of you who take the Gold Line from Mt. Washington, you most likely park on this stretch of road near the Southwest Museum station. Look at how it was in the 50s.