Irvine Ranch Conservancy: C-135 crash site

(Continued from 11-28-08...) The second leg of our Irvine Ranch Conservancy tour took us to the site of Orange County’s worst air disaster.
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At 1:35 a.m. on June 25, 1965, under fog and light drizzle, an Air Force C-135A transport jet, (see contemporary photo above), took off from MCAS El Toro. (The C-135 is the military equivalent of a Boeing 707.) The plane was en route from McGuire Air Force Base in New Jersey to Okinawa, with another scheduled stop at Hickam AFB in Hawaii. Aboard were 71 Marines on their way to Vietnam, along with 12 U.S. Air Force crew members.
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At 1:46 a.m., about 4 miles from the control tower, the jet disappeared from radar. For reasons unknown, the pilot did not (or could not) make a planned left hand turn and flew directly into Loma Ridge. The plane was destroyed, killing all 83 people on board.
.Navy sailor Steve Bedunah was scheduled to take the flight as far as Hawaii. However, a family emergency waylayed him. He arrived at El Toro just in time to see the plane heading down the runway. Seconds later, he saw a huge orange fireball. "I was supposed to be on that plane," he said in a 2005 O.C. Weekly interview, "I've spent 40 years trying to live that down."
Here you see Greg from KOCE-TV filming Mike Bornia, Chris Epting, and Maria Hall-Brown at the crash site. It was fitting (although unplanned) that we visited this site on Veteran’s Day. A group called Project Remembrance is planning to put a stone memorial here in the near future.

The jet was about 1,150 feet up and traveling at 300 mph when it impacted the hill, scattering wreckage and bodies across at least a mile. The bodies and all the large plane parts were recovered after the crash, but small bits of the jet are still strewn everywhere. Although mangled in the crash, many metal parts are still in remarkably good condition after 43 years of exposure to the elements. Just last year, a readable set of dog tags were found in the brush.
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It turned out that our traveling companion Jim had once been part of a search/clean-up crew after a different MCAS El Toro crash on the Irvine Ranch. He had some very sobering tales to tell that I won't relate here.

Update (11-3-2013): Chris Hoctor sent me the following message and list:

"For the benefit of your readers, this is the complete list of the crew and passengers based on everything I could find (all 84). Many little details added, a number of names, middle names, and places corrected here. Some missing rank, could not find that."

The twelve crew:
Pilot:  Capt. William F. Cordell, JR., 27, GA
Copilot:  First Lt. John A Zietke, JR., 27, MI
Copilot:  First Lt. Gary M. Rigsbee, 23, CA
Navigator:  Capt. Jacques G. Senecal, 32, CA
Navigator:  First Lt. Robert H. K. Shannon, 29
Flight Engineer:  S/Sgt James E. Burns, 29, IL
Load Master:  S/Sgt Bobby L. Calhoun, 28
Flight Engineer:  M/Sgt William H. Meredith, 34, KY
Flight Engineer:  T/Sgt Marlin W. Tatom, 41, MI
Load Master:  Airman 3/C Elwood C. Van Nole, Jr., 19
Flight traffic specialist:  Airman 1/C Charles A. Reives, 23
Cadet Gary L. Zimmerman, 20, class of 1967, Air Force Academy

Passengers killed (alphabetical by last name):
Dwight L. Aldridge, 18, AR
PFC Russell J. Babcock, JR., 19, Tomkins Cove, NY
PFC Roger J. Beiter, 18, W. Seneca, N. Y.
Lance Cpl William B. Breen, 20, Bellefonte, Penn.
Cpl James Harold Brock, 25, Birmingham, Ohio.
Cpl Emerson K. Brown, 24, Kent, Wash.
Lance Cpl John G. Brusso, Jr., 22, Ontario, N. Y.
Cpl George C. Burrow, 20, Norman, Ark.
Cpl Tucker Ross Burt, 24, Mt. Vernon, Ohio.
Phillip V. Caraccio, 24
Cpl Paul T. Chapin, 21, Coronado, Calif.
Cpl George E. College, 21, Davisburg, Mich.
Donald A. Davidson, 19, MI
Lance Cpl Douglas D. Everett, 19, Allentown, Pa.
PFC Rosco Ford, 24, Miami, Fla.
Capt Victor M. Girodengo, 28, San Diego, Calif.
Cpl Thomas Barton Gladstone, 25, Largo, Fla.
PFC Dickie L. Glover, 32, Muskegon, Mich.
PFC Gerald Griffith, 18, Jackson, Miss.
Henry D Grimm, 18
Lance Cpl Howard D. Hall, 18, Winfield, Kan.
Lance Cpl Gail K. Haning, 23, Albany, Ohio.
Cpl Charles Harmon, 21, Estill, S. C.
Lance Cpl Robert E. Harvey, 18, Upland, Calif.
PFC Harry R. Hawk, 20, Oberlin, Penn.
PFC Gerald G. Hawkins, 18, Mableton, Ga.
Kenneth J Haywood, 21
Thomas K Heacox, 18
Lance Cpl Danny E. Holder, 18, Nashville, Tenn.
Joseph M Kelly, 18
PFC James T. Kitchens, 19, Madleton, Ga.
Cpl William R. Kittel, 28, Suisun City, Calif.
Sgt James E. Lee, 28, Compton, Calif.
Richard W Leeman, 19
Robert C Lisicki, 23
Cpl Michael J. Mando, JR., 22, Tayler, Pa.
Lance Cpl Brian Elvin Martin, 20, Minersville, Pa.
Cpl James V. Matruski, 23, Johnson City, N. Y.
Henry B McKine, 18, CA
James D Meade, 21
PFC Joseph D Mogelinski, 18, Greenfield, Mass.
Capt Edward M. Morehead, 27, Pittsburgh, Pa.
Sgt James C. Moultrie, 18, Moza City, Okinawa.
Cpl Anthony E. Nelson, 22, Wilmington, Calif.
PFC Franklin Newman, 20, Loomis, N. J.
Cpl Rich G. Pacheco, 20, Portland, Ore.
Lance Cpl Enrique Danny Padilla, 20, Santa Rosa, N. M.
Cpl Michael A. Palmieri, 28, Elmira, N. Y.
Lance Cpl Alfred Eugene Peterson, 20, Littleton Commons, Mass.
Cpl Edward P. Ray, 23, no hometown listed.
PFC Robert J. Rhodes, 19, Patterson, N. J.
PFC Ronald Richard Richert, 18, Pontiac, Mich.
Cpl Lawrence O. Rohde, 22, Las Vegas, NV
PFC Gerald W. Ross, 19
Pvt. Robert S. Shedis, 22, Calumet Park, Ill.
PFC Joseph B. Sheppard, 18, Philadelphia, Pa.
Sgt Jackson Sinyard, Jr
Pvt. Gerald Skidmore, 18, Cincinnati, Ohio.
PFC Arthur Slaughter, 23, Pittsburgh, Pa.
Quinton Smith, 22
Theodore Eugene Stark, 24, Louisville, KY
Lance Cpl Charles L. Stevens, 18, Cambridge, Ohio.
Jimmie I. Swink, 26
Lance Cpl James C. Tischer, 20, Hannibal, Mo.
Cpl Timothy M. Treweek, 24, Los Angeles
PFC Lawrence R. Vanness, 19, Rochester, N. Y.
Elwood C Vannote, 19
Cpl Harrison Wallace, 25, Clemens, Ala.
David E. Walsh, 18
Ralph E White, 23, IN
James R. Wilson, 24, IN
William J Wilson, 29, MO
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(To be continued...)

Irvine Ranch Conservancy: The Hanging Tree

On the 11th of this month (Veteran's Day 2008), the Irvine Ranch Conservancy graciously showed me and some other lucky folks historic sites that are normally inaccessible to the public. Over the next week or so, I'll be sharing some of the sites we visited, starting with today's entry on the Hanging Tree in Precitas Canyon. I've already provided information about the Hanging Tree in earlier posts, which you can read here:

• Searching for the Hanging Tree (June 2008)
• Hanging Tree history and old photos (June 2008)
• Mike Bornia at the Hanging Tree (Sept. 2008)

Today's first photo (above) shows me standing under the tree. Although fires have swept through the area in recent years, the tree is only a little scorched and seems pretty healthy. You might be able to see the tree from the right lane of the southbound 241 Toll Road, if you knew exactly where to look, and were on the passenger side of a high-profile vehicle. Our trip came about when author Chris Epting read my blog entries about the tree, and wanted to do a segment about it with Maria Hall-Brown for KOCE-TV. Mike Bornia of the Irvine Ranch Conservancy organized the trek and added some other sites of interest to the itinerary. When Epting asked if I wanted to come along, I immediately answered "Yes!," followed by, "and can I bring two other people?"
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The other two were Orange County historians Jim Sleeper and Phil Brigandi who have both wanted to see this site again for many years. In the photo above, Jim stands under the tree and shows Phil and Mike Boeck photos of the area that he took in the 1960s.
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Mike is a docent for the Conservancy and was one of our drivers for the day. He really knows the back country and was as enthusiastic as we were.
This last photo shows (left to right) Dave Raetz (also from the Conservancy), me, Jim and Phil, in front of the tree's historical marker. It reads, "Under this tree General Andres Pico hung two banditos of the Juan Flores gang in 1857." Below that, in smaller print, it reads, "Dedicated El Viaje de Portola Ride, April 1967." The annual El Viaje de Portola equestrian ride used to follow the trail of Gaspar de Portola's expedition through much of Orange County. Today, however, very little of that land is accessible to the public.
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(To be continued...)

Turkey Day in La Palma

La Palma/Dairyland historians Ron and Elfreide MacIver sent me this cartoon with the note, "Happy Thanksgiving from La Palma, where even the turkeys say 'Moo!'"

Happy Thanksgiving

Today's first photo (top) shows Thanksgiving dinner at William Webb Sr.'s house, 146 S. Rose St., Anaheim, around 1906. The group includes William P. Webb, Sr., William Jr., Lamont Roe Webb, Nellie Webb, Darroll Dewey Webb and Estella Webb Ramm.

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The second photo shows Santa Ana's Thanksgiving-themed float in the 1950 Rose Parade.

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Hope you all have a great Thanksgiving.

A giant turkey, Disneyland, Vanishing O.C., etc.

Today's images are from 1975. The first (top) is a design for the giant turkey that appeared in America On Parade, Disneyland's Bicentennial cavalcade, which debuted that year. (Illustration courtesy Atomic Treehouse.) The second image comes from my family's collection and shows me meeting Pluto for the first time in April 1975. You can see a little of the park's entrance gate in the background.
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Today's Register features an article about Chris Epting's new book, Vanishing Orange County. He will sign the book at California Greetings, 301 Main St., Huntington Beach on Dec. 7, Noon-3pm. You can also see some of the images from the book in this YouTube video. Many of the images came from the Orange County Archives.

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In case you haven't seen it before, KOCE-TV's "Historical Snapshot" of the 1933 Earthquake is now posted on YouTube.

OCIR, Orange, El Toro and a Victorian Christmas

By special request, today's photo is from the opening of the Orange County International Raceway (OCIR) in Aug. 1967. This drag racing "super track" was located in Irvine, between the I-5 Freeway and MCAS El Toro. The OCIR closed to make way for more development on Oct. 30, 1983.
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Phil Brigandi will hold a signing for his latest book, Images of America: Orange, on Dec. 12, 6-8pm at the Barnes & Noble, 791 S. Main St., in Orange. Phil writes, "This is my ninth book on the history of Orange, and features more that 200 pre-1950 images of the community and its residents."
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Heritage Hill Historical Park in El Toro has a number of public holiday events on tap next month. First they'll host a Victorian Christmas , Dec. 6, 11am-3pm, which will include live entertainment, children’s crafts, living history demonstrations, historical exhibits, Santa Claus, and tours through decorated historic buildings. This will be followed by Candlelight Tours, on Dec. 13 & 14, 5:30-8:30pm. These evening events will include luminaria lit paths, historic buildings aglow with holiday lights and decorated with period décor. Also expect Victorian carolers, storytellers, and visits with Santa. Admission is $4.

LIFE, El Toro, drag racing, holiday party & Neutra

Google now hosts millions of images from the archive of LIFE magazine, including many images of Orange County. The first example above (top) shows John Glenn at MCAS El Toro in Nov. 1964. Glenn had retired from NASA earlier that year, and would retire from the Marine Corps just a month later.

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The second image shows a 1950s National Hot Rod Association drag race at the Santa Ana Drag Strip, next to the Orange County Airport. It is often credited as the world's first commercial drag strip

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The public is invited to attend a Holiday Open House on the third floor of the Old Courthouse Museum on Dec. 9, 11:30am-1:30pm. There will be refreshments, crafts and music inspired by the exhibit "All the World's a Stage: Modjeska's Arden." The event is hosted by OC Parks, OC Community Resources and the Orange County Historical Commission. The Old Courthouse is at 211 W. Santa Ana Blvd. in Santa Ana. (If you attend, stop past the Orange County Archives downstairs and say hello to me.)

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Mariners Medical Arts Building Update: A large section of original aluminum louvers were recently stolen off the (already endangered) Mariners Medical Arts Building (1963, Richard Neutra) in Newport Beach. Like the brass plaques that have disappeared from other sites lately, the louvers disappeared in the middle of the night.

First National Bank of Tustin, circa 1925

This photo shows the First National Bank of Tustin in the mid-1920s. The Bank was located at the corner of Main St. and D St. in Downtown Tustin, and its president was C. E. Utt. D Street is now known as El Camino Real. Sorry there isn't time for a longer post today.

Camp Bonita, Irvine, Anaheim, and Laurel & Hardy

Today's photos show Camp Bonita, which was an old cattle camp on the Irvine Ranch. The first image is a 1937 postcard I scanned from Tom Pulley's collection. I took the other two photos recently. Three of the camp's building still stand, along with a cluster of old trees. I was surprised to find so much left. The camp's site is now just off California Ave., south of Adobe Circle Rd., and adjacent to UCI's big new sports building. If you look closely at the older photo, you can see Turtle Rock in the distance. (Which is how I figured out this site was from Irvine.)

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The City of Anaheim and the Anaheim Public Library will sponsor a "Victorian Christmas Open House" at the historic Woelke-Stoffel House (the Victorian "Red Cross House"), at 418 N. West St., Saturday, Dec. 13, noon to 3pm. The Mother Colony House next door will also be open for viewing.

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As an archivist, I find it hard to convince some people that lengthy research among stacks of government documents can lead to extraordinary things. But a YouTube video I saw recently, "Laurel & Hardy On Location," made the point better than I can. It's about a man who used various government and historical records to create a 3-D digital model of Culver City as it appeared in the films of Laurel and Hardy (70 years ago). Granted, this is not Orange County history, but you could do this anywhere, and take people on virtual tours through time.

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And speaking of YouTube, also check out this video about the Santa Ana Historical Preservation Society's tours, featuring Guy Ball.

Santa Ana Canyon, trains, stolen plaques, etc.

Today's photos show Santa Ana Canyon in less perilous times. The color image is from Oct. 1966 and shows a lot of new development in the Yorba Linda area. The black and white image is from the 1930s and came with no further description.

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Tonight, the Fullerton City Council will discuss whether the proposed Southern California Railroad Experience museum should remain as part of the Fullerton Transportation Center plans. The meeting will begin at 6:30pm.

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The Santa Ana Historical Preservation Society will hold their Holiday Open House at the historic Howe-Waffle House on Sat., December 6. Entry to the museum will be free from noon to 4pm. From noon to 2pm, authors Roberta Reed, Phil Brigandi, and Guy Ball will be on hand to sign their books (even if you've bought them elsewhere).

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Bronze commemorative plaques at several Santa Ana schools (Santa Ana High School, Martin Elementary, Mitchell Child Development Center, and Carr Intermediate) have been stolen recently. Some of these were memorials to local soldiers who died for our country. $10,000 in reward money is available for information leading to the arrest and conviction of individuals responsible for the theft. Anyone with information to report is asked to call the anonymous WeTip hotline at 1-800-78-CRIME or log on to www.wetip.com to submit a tip. Callers can also report information to Santa Ana Unified School District at 714-558-5111 or contact school police at 714-558-5535.

Pancho Barnes, Wm Wendt, Laguna, Tustin, etc.

Tomorrow night, Mon. November 17, 7:30-9:30pm, the Laguna Beach Historical Society will meet at the City Council Chambers, 505 Forest Ave. Speaker Nick Spark will discuss Florence L. "Pancho" Barnes, (see photo above,) who was Hollywood's first woman stunt pilot and a Laguna resident. Barnes' home and airstrip were located on what is now McKnight Drive. Nick Spark's documentary, "The Legend of Pancho Barnes" will air on KOCE-TV early next year. .
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Speaking of Laguna Beach, the Laguna Art Museum's new exhibit is devoted to the work of Laguna impressionist William Wendt. In Nature's Temple: The Life and Art of William Wendt will run from Nov. 9 to Feb. 8.
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The Register's October article about famous dead people buried in O.C. continues to garner attention and has had additional names added to the list. Check it out online.
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The Register has also started promoting Huntington Beach's Centennial, which arrives next year.
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Tustin's new Citrus Ranch Park, at 2910 Portola Parkway, will include 900 to 1,100 lemon trees - a welcome reminder of the community's roots.

Huntington Beach, Fountain Valley, Epting, etc.

The Orange County Archives is in the midst of processing a collection of materials by early local surveyor H. Clay Kellogg. The map above is one of many wonderful surprises that have come to light during this process. This map is from 1897 and shows the Willows Drainage District, which encompassed parts of what is now southeast Huntington Beach, Fountain Valley, and southeast Westminster. (Click map to enlarge.) The district was formed to drain the rich, marshy land and make it available for farming.
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For purposes of clarity, I've added modern street names and place names to the digital image in red and I've colored the ocean blue and Mile Square Park green. Note how one of the Santa Ana River's old alternate courses - just below the bluffs of Huntington Beach - has water flowing in it. Also notice that only a few buildings are shown, and only in Talbert (at Talbert Ave. and Bushard St.) and near the corner of Bolsa Ave. and Brookhurst St.
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The photo below is contemporary to the map, and shows the digging of one of the District's ditches, near the modern intersection of Altanta Ave. and Magnolia St. The ditch remains today - much improved - near the Ida Jean Haxton Post Office on Atlanta.
Many thanks to author Chris Epting for his very kind words about me on tonight's episode of Real Orange on KOCE-TV. I also appreciated the plug for the Orange County Archives (my day job). As if that weren't enough, Chris also posted about my blog on his own blog. Thanks, man!

Hippo boats, vanishing O.C., and a holiday Waffle

For a long time, I've hoped someone would come up with a good photo of the pedal-powered hippo boats at Lion Country Safari. Leave it to Gorillas Don't Blog to come through for us! (Yes, I've blatantly stolen this photo from one of Major Pepperidge's recent posts.) Link over to GDB to read more about this great 1971 image.
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Chris Epting has a new book out entitled, Vanishing Orange County. On the back cover, the publisher describes it as an "evocative compendium of photographs revisit[ing] many of the places locals held near and dear, including the Golden Bear nightclub, Japanese Village [&] Deer Park, Lion Country Safari, plus popular stores, restaurants, and, of course, the ever-shrinking farmlands." There's also a companion post card set available.
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The Santa Ana Historic Preservation Society's (SAHPS) Holiday Open House will be held Saturday, Dec. 6th, noon to 4pm. Admission to (and tours of) the Howe-Waffle House Museum will be free. Also, Phil Brigandi, Roberta Reed and Guy Ball, will be signing their books. More details will be available in a few days on the SAHPS website, or can be obtained by calling (714) 547-9645.

Newport Harbor, Farrell's, Guy Ball and Tustin

Here's an interesting 1960ish photo of a 1936 Fleetwings F401 sea plane in Newport Harbor. It's an experimental plane, and as far as I can tell only one was ever built. It's a 4-seater and can fly up to 109 mph. Believe it or not, it seems to still be flying. It's currently owned by Yellowstone Aviation of Jackson, Wyoming.

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After years of rumors, it looks like Farrell's Ice Cream Parlours may finally be coming back to Orange County. A recent Register article has all the details.

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Author Guy Ball will be the speaker at the Nov. 17 meeting of the Tustin Area Historical Society. The meeting will be held at 7:30pm in the lounge at the Tustin Senior Center, 200 S. "C" St., Tustin. Guy will discuss preserving, scanning and possibly donating your old family photos.

Tomato Springs, Jim Lorson, RSM, Pendleton, etc

On July 26, 1769, Padre Gomez of the Portola expedition (the first Europeans in California) discovered a spring that provided the party with a welcome source of fresh water. They camped nearby, and the site was called the "Spring of Padre Gomez." One hundred years later, the place was given it's current name, Tomato Springs, because of the wild tomatos which grew there. The photos above show Tomato Springs as it appears today. The images were provided by Irvine Ranch Conservancy docent Mike Boeck.

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In his Traveler's Guide to Historical Sites on the Irvine Ranch, historian Jim Sleeper writes, "On December 16, 1912, a posse of 200 men shot it out with Joe Matlock, the 'Tomato Springs Bandit' on this spot. After attacking a girl, Matlock dared pursuers to 'come and get him'. One deputy was killed and three others injured before Matlock was cut down."
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Mike points out that "today, the area is called Portola Springs and is located on Old Bee Canyon Road, a stone's throw north of Portola Parkway. Lambert Reservoir, [which was once adjacent to the springs,] has been removed."

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James Lorson, owner of Lorson's Books & Prints in Fullerton, passed away this week. His shop has been a favorite of local historians for 30 years. He will certainly be missed by those who knew him. The store's website says, "Our shop will continue on, maintaining his high standard of service and quality.

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Faye Jonason, Director of the Camp Pendleton Command Museum, will discuss the history of the Rancho Santa Margarita y Las Flores and Camp Pendleton at the next Orange County Historical Society meeting, this Thursday, Nov. 13, 7:30pm, at Trinity Episcopal Church, 2400 N. Canal St., in Orange. A related tour of historic sites on Camp Pendleton will be held on Dec. 9th. (One need not attend one event to attend the other.) Details are available on the OCHS website.

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Merrilee's/Tripp's Market Update: It seems the new owners of 124 Main in Huntington Beach have not yet submitted their plans for demolition to the City Planning Department. I hope this means they've changed their minds. But it may also mean they don't know CEQA and will suffer the fate of the guy who illegally tore down Johnnie's Broiler in Downey. I'll keep an eye on this.

Goldwater, Buena Park, theme parks & Bob Fraser

Today's images come from a huge Memorial Day campaign rally at Knott's Berry Farm for 1964 Republican presidential candidate Barry Goldwater. (He was a Republican senator from Arizona who lost to a big government Democrat.) The program comes from the fascinating Conelrad.com. It's quite an interesting line-up, including Goldwater, Ronald Reagan, John Wayne, Walter Knott, John Tower, and local figures like James Utt and John Murdy. Most of these guys would've been surprised to learn what the words "Conservative" and "Republican" would mean by the year 2008. The photo comes from the L.A. Times collection at the UCLA Library.

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Longtime Orange County attorney Robert W. "Bob" Fraser has died. His many accomplishments are outlined in his obituary, but many of you historical folk will remember him best from meetings of the Old Courthouse Museum Society.

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Werner Weiss over at Yesterland.com just added a major update to his entry for the Mine Train Through Nature's Wonderland.

Tripp's Market Building, Huntington Beach

A neighbor emailed me today, informing me that 124 Main St. in Huntington Beach has a new owner who's "going to tear it down and rebuild. I think that building is quite old... It will be sad to see another building on Main Street go."
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The building, (home to Merrilee's Swimwear for decades now,) is historically known as the Tripp's Market Building. It was built in 1912, and yes it would be very sad to see it go. So little of historic downtown H.B. remains that every new loss is a major loss. At the very least, the facade should be preserved.
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Over the last century, this building has been home to a large number of businesses, including a number of cafes. It was also the first location of O'Barr's Drug Store in 1914. Architecturally, the Tripp's Market Building is a Western Falsefront with a Moderne stucco facade added in the early 1930s. A narrow stucco addition was added much later on the back of the lot.
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For those of you keeping score at home, yes, this building is directly across the street from 123 Main St. - another historic building which was demolished last year. (Don't worry though,... The owners put a plaque on the new building describing why the old one they demolished was significant.)

Giant folk art in Cypress

In the 1930s, folk artist Isador Bastianon created a fantastic and strange landscape out of stone, concrete and brick on the property of his friend, pioneer Cypress dairyman Charles E. Baroldi. The works were adjacent to Baroldi's home, on Cerritos Ave, east of Holder St. The centerpiece was the pond and swan-topped towers seen above. Other features included a huge barbecue pit surmounted by a giant steer head, an enormous stone mosaic depicting a sailing ship, a gazebo-sized milk can, a huge human head, and more.
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By 1970, developers were building tract housing on the Baroldi ranch, . The 1.5-acre lot on which the Baroldi home sat was to become a community park, and Leo Baroldi (Charles' son) offered the house to the City of Cypress as a new home for the local Cultural Arts Association. By accepting this deal, the City had to agree to preserve the folk art. Ultimately, the City declined the offer, saying the art was unsafe and difficult to maintain. As far as I can tell, all of it was ultimately destroyed.
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I've posted several more images of these works below. They were taken in 1970, and you can see homes being built in the background. The last image shows a large concrete lizard in front of what appear to be giant termite mounds. (Thanks to Ron and Elfriede Mac Iver for the photos and for bringing this to my attention.)