Here's my shot of
Manny. This little house is next door to a convenience store where we stopped for refreshments and a break.
I can't begin to show you all the architecture of Lincoln Heights in one post. It's vastly diverse and there's a lot of change going on according to Manny. A lot of gentrification. One really great project you might want to look at is the
Brewery Arts Complex.
This was the original LA jail.
*(update: I'm incorrect on that. See dbdubya's comments; he's a LAPD veteran and has a lifetime of knowledge of all things LAPD.) Manny says there are plans in the works to use it as some kind of housing. I don't know about you but I love this type of industrial architecture. There's something so
Brazil about it, don't ask me why.
Kitty corner from jail we found confection.
That's Bellis in the door at right (and me in the middle). The street was too busy for me to step out and get you the whole building...
...but here's some detail.
And then, just around the corner, this little place. I got the impression there were once several like it along here but businesses have swallowed them up. There's a lot of manufacturing in the area. This was down near San Fernando Road and Barranca Street.
Now, this is up on Broadway (I'm tellin' you, we covered some ground!). I like this building. Brick buildings aren't the norm in Los Angeles. We have a few in Pasadena, but not many. I'm told it's because of earthquakes and I'll bet it's also because we have mild winters. Bricks are apparently winter material. This building reminds me of Chicago.
In a way, this photo exemplifies Lincoln Heights. Talk about juxtapositions: a glamorous old Victorian, plunked down in the middle of all these commercial buildings. Manny says a lot of gentrification happens in the neighborhood when folks with money buy these homes to live in them and fix them up. It can be a good thing: the neighborhood gets new people (with means) who care what happens there.
We saw this jewel as we hightailed it toward the train station. I was tired by then and I don't know what direction we were going or what street we were on. But damn. I mean--
damn. Who's going to make a building like this today?
Tomorrow I'm not going to show you turkey. I like turkey, but I have this nagging feeling that tomorrow you can see turkey just about anywhere. So tomorrow I'm going to show you more of Lincoln Heights.
24 comments:
What a wonderful variety of styles-
I think I like them all!
http://mancunianwave.blogspot.com/
My friend owns the complex with the pink house and thats where I pay my water bill.
I do too, Chrissy!
PA, do you know if I'm right in my guess--that there were once more of those little houses?
Homes are shoulder to shoulder with businesses there, and sometimes the business fronts the home. And sometimes the home is in front of the Eastlake Gang's favorite hangout (that would be house #1).
Really? I missed that part. Uhoh. I wonder if I should take that one down...
I wouldn't worry. Manny said the whole Eastlake Gang is now middle aged and harmless. A gang in name only. Back in the day, their biggest rival was the Happy Valley Gang.
The old gaol fascinates me. You can see the fence of the exercise yard on the roof.
I'm enjoying this so much. First the walk, and now these visual memories and extra information. I've just watched the trailer of Brazil, and the making of a Lexus commercial on the Brewery Arts website, and now there's new info coming in from PA and AH.
I wouldn't worry about the gangs hanging out on here too much.
This stroll you're taking made me wander around googlemaps to look for old haunts.
Took me more time than I care to admit, but finally found my friend's childhood home in Boyle Heights. Funny how a place you used to drive to half asleep with no problem, you now stumble around the 'net trying to find.
LOVE the architecture! I wonder if Manny wants to start a Lincoln Heights tour---ala the old boat architecture tour in Chicago?
An interesting place...
What a glorious gallimaufry of architectural styles, Petrea.
I am so in love with that beautiful little Art Deco masterpiece in the last photo that I may sneak over there and steal it.
The Lincoln Heights Jail was not the first LA City Jail, but it was in operation for decades. It closed in the mid 50's when Parker Center, the new police headquarters building, opened. That building has since been replaced. The last time Lincoln Heights Jail was used for that purpose was during the 1965 Watts Riot. It was later used as a storage facility for Public Works. As far as I know, it's been vacant for years, and I don't see any way it could be rehabbed into housing.
Right around the corner is the headquarters of the Goodwill Industries of Southern California, a great organization. They are located in another industrial building.
The gem of Lincoln Heights is the California Center. It was formerly an outdoor dining center run by Lawry's. They closed it years ago but its gardens are still maintained and it can be used for banquets. We attended a very beautiful wedding there a few years ago. It was officiated by an African-American preacher from South LA and included Mexican food and a Mariachi Band. The bride and groom were both raised Catholic. Only in LA.
I didn't know that Lincoln Heights reached across the Arroyo Seco and Pasadena Parkway to the California Center - I'm learning so much today! But where is Happy Valley? (There's one of those in London but so many yuppies with babies have moved in that it's now called Nappy Valley. (Nappy = diaper))
I'm not quite sure where the border is between Lincoln Heights and Glassell Park. I know the Home Depot on San Fernando is known as the Glassell Park store.
The Brewery was originally a Pabst brewery and then Brew 102. When they moved out it sat vacant for many years and then was turned into a loft development targeting artists. There used to be a great restaurant in the middle of the Brewery. I don't know if it's still there.
Thanks for all the fantastic comments today, everyone. Dbdubya, I'm typing on my phone at the moment but when I get to a larger computer I'll amend the post to direct readers to your corrective comments about the jail.
Okay. I made a notation in the post about the jail. Thank you, dbdubya.
PA, I remember the tomato king.
The restaurant is still there in the middle of the Brewery complex. Manny said it attracts a lot of people from outside the neighborhood, and that many people who live in the neighborhood don't even know it's there. He also said it's a great place.
I wonder about "borders" of all the neighborhoods. Are there actual dividing lines, or do they bleed into one another?
I don't know about a "great" restaurant at the Artists Brewery - but the one I visited was respectable. The AB has been around since last century. Last time I checked, a few yrs past, it was not what I wood call gentrified.
I also seem to recall the LH people have a love/hate relationship with it.
Fascinating group of photos, info, and comments! Looking forward to tomorrow's post. :-)
Great images. The architecture you are seeing is the sort that could be found throughout East LA when I was growing up. Our house about 600 square feet, but there were so many lovely touches throughout. It had some of the most beautiful ceiling light bases.
I'm betting that those houses were section houses - we had groups of them here in Pasadena.
As for the jail, it functioned as a cultural center for a short while around 2001 or 2002. Maybe even as late as 2003.
Oh, I believe you were headed north on Eastern Avenue.
What is a "section house," Roberta? I'm not familiar with the term.
Great comments today. I love it when it's like this.
What a great post!
My best school friend joined the Los Angeles Police Department years ago. (Her father was a lieutenant in the Pasadena PD, and nepotism was not permitted.) Her first assignment out of the Academy was in female intake in that Lincoln Heights Jail. Something shocking for nice preppy Pasadena girl!
You mentioned brick buildings. Off topic, you mentioned a few in Pasadena. One I check out and blow a kiss to is at the northeast corner of Del Mar and El Molino. My parents "went to housekeeping" there when it was brand new in 1931. Very posh in those days, it included a Filipino houseboy and had service entrances for staff to enter. My late Mother worked so hard the rest of her life, I know she remembered this first home very fondly.
Thanks for the tour!
BG
Hi BG, thanks for your comment. Yes, that building at El Molino and Del Mar is one of my favorites. And thank you for the bits of history about it!
15-25November I was in NY, NY.
Now I can say I was in Lincoln Heights, too.
Oh, how fun! I hope you had a good time. I've never been to New York City.
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