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, 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.)