California pioneer M. C. Close and his mermaid Trixie. La Jolla. February 29th, 1910.
Do you love viewing or collecting old postcards?
Postcards are experiences frozen in time. Images and a few words are meant to be shared and remembered.
Postcards that were printed long ago can also be windows into history.
I saw an old postcard of the San Diego Zoo the other day. I then wondered how many cards depicting San Diego and its attractions are in the public domain.
Upon visiting Wikimedia Commons, I discovered quite a few!
Here’s a diverse selection of old postcards that you might enjoy looking at. In several instances the image information wasn’t very detailed, so I did a little extra research. Postcard dates were taken from Wikimedia Commons, or in one case inferred: the Spreckels Organ Pavilion showing a wicker electriquette cart. Read the captions.
Anyone who has memories or additional information, please feel free to leave a comment!
San Diego Zoo. Entrance to the zoo. 1961.El Toreador Motel, San Ysidro. Date uncertain. El Toreador opened in October 1948.U. S. Grant Hotel, San Diego. Date uncertain.Fifth Avenue Auto Wash at Fifth and Kalmia. Circa 1920-1929.Fred Vinyard Overhead Garage Doors, 3600 block of Pacific Highway, opposite Consolidated Aircraft. Between circa 1930 and circa 1945.Japanese Tea House, Panama-California Exposition, San Diego, 1915.Little Chapel of the Roses, Chula Vista. Between circa 1930 and circa 1945.Pickwick Hotel in downtown San Diego. Between circa 1930 and 1945. Today the 1927 building is home to The Sofia Hotel.Panoramic view of San Diego, circa 1900-1909. The foreground appears to be Bankers Hill.Hotel Del Coronado. Circa 1900-1909.Steaming through San Diego County, California. Between circa 1930 and circa 1945. Santa Fe train passes through orange groves.Mission San Diego. Founded by Padre Junipero Serra. Circa 1900-1909.Caves of La Jolla. Circa 1900-1909.The Barcelona Hotel and Apartments in Bankers Hill. Between circa 1930 and circa 1945.Tropic Motel, 2611 San Diego Avenue (off U.S. 101), in Old Town San Diego. Between circa 1930 and circa 1945.Ferry Boat Ramona. San Diego. Circa 1910.Twin Inns, Carlsbad. Between circa 1930 and circa 1945.State Normal School, San Diego, 1905. State sponsored teacher training college in University Heights. Demolished in 1955.Carnegie Library, San Diego, 1905. Opened in 1902 at Eighth and E Streets. It was demolished in 1952.Amusement Center, Mission Beach, San Diego. Between circa 1930 and circa 1945. Today this is Belmont Park with its Giant Dipper Roller Coaster.Point Loma Homestead. 1906. Lomaland of the Theosophical Society, established in 1900.Postcard of The San Diegan at San Diego’s Santa Fe Depot train station in August 1973.Tugging A Sailing Boat to Sea. San Diego. Circa 1910.The Open Air Organ, Balboa Park, San Diego. The Spreckels Organ Pavilion. Circa 1915.Bath House. San Diego. Circa 1910. Los Baños pool and public baths opened downtown in 1897 near the foot of D Street (Broadway).Portion of Business District, San Diego. Image predates 1920.
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To see a list of Irving Gill’s other works in San Diego and Southern California, visit his Wikipedia page here.
The Buel-Town Building, 1898.
With its arched corner entrance, bay window, and corbelled brick cornice, this building reflects the originality of the architects Hebbard and Gill. Gill, the principal designer, had a preference for natural forms, over the highly ornate European styles common of his era. This is evident in this structure, which was one of his earliest works. After serving tenants such as the Western Metal Company and Buel-Town Chemicals, the building was converted for use as The Old Spaghetti Factory Restaurant in 1974.
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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!
I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!
I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!
This morning, in San Diego, a 50th Anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War ceremony was held on the flight deck of the USS Midway Museum.
A large audience assembled to recognize Veteran service members who returned from Vietnam fifty years ago–including those prisoners of war held by the North Vietnamese who were released and repatriated on March 29, 1973.
The ceremony was emotionally powerful. Many silent tears were wiped away. Memories were shared of pain and grief, and relief and gratitude.
Four speakers shared their experiences.
Retired U.S. Marine Corps Col. James M. Collins spoke of his tour in Vietnam, and how he was injured by an enemy hand grenade. He has gone on support those in the military through his leadership in various organizations.
Roy A Knight, III spoke of the loss of his father during the Vietnam War, and the miraculous discovery of his father’s remains. He has gone on to serve as a search and rescue pilot with the Civil Air Patrol.
Courtney Herrmann was a young girl when her family evacuated from Saigon. Her family was flown onto the USS Midway during Operation Frequent Wind. Her memories of a harrowing experience, and her gratitude that she now lives in freedom in America, brought about a rousing ovation.
Retired U.S. Navy Cmdr. Everett Alvarez, Jr. was a prisoner of war at the Hỏa Lò Prison, also known as the Hanoi Hilton, where he was beaten and tortured. He survived his brutal imprisonment through faith and the support of other prisoners. He finally came home with honor intact.
The audience welcomed every Vietnam veteran home.
After the speeches, four memorial wreaths took wing, remembering those who sacrificed for their country in a difficult war half a century ago.
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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!
I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!
I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!
Tomorrow, March 29th, 2023, marks an important anniversary. Fifty years ago United States troops completed their departure from Vietnam, and the last group of prisoners of war were freed.
A powerful exhibit at the Coronado Historical Association museum remembers the POWs who returned to freedom, and tells their moving stories. It’s titled Open Doors: Vietnam POWs Fifty Years of Freedom.
I wandered about the museum today and tried to imagine the horror. Displays recalled how prisoners of war in Vietnam suffered. It had been a struggle to merely survive.
I then gazed at portraits of freed POWs and read the accompanying profiles. I saw how differently each man adjusted to life after their experience.
Many successfully returned to a more “normal” life. Many, having risen out of hell, experienced a strengthened sense of purpose.
As the exhibition description states: Open Doors is a testament to the strength of the human spirit and the power of human will, it is also a celebration of that second chance at freedom.
This same exhibit originally debuted in Coronado 20 years ago. Today, after traveling around the nation, it has returned.
Visitors are reminded that we all have the capacity for extraordinary strength.
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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!
I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!
I had walked into Coronado’s bayfront Centennial Park this afternoon, making my way toward the Coronado Ferry Landing, when I noticed work being done on the historic old ferry ticket booth.
I paused to watch for a few moments, then asked some questions.
I learned this old ticket booth, dating from 1886, has suffered pretty badly from rot and termites. A substantial portion of the structure must be replaced.
I was also told this ticket booth, back in the day before the Coronado Bridge opened, was located closer to the water, where ferries crossing San Diego Bay would land. The booth also stocked newspapers that were sold to ferryboat passengers.
If you’d like to learn a little more about the booth and see its historical plaque, you can read a past blog post here.
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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!
I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!
I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!
A couple of incredible projects are now underway that will improve and beautify the Palisades area of Balboa Park.
One project I wrote about yesterday. Two life-size grizzly bear sculptures and two flagpoles will be added to the roof of the San Diego Automotive Museum. You can read that blog post here.
The second project concerns the historical building directly across Pan American Plaza: today’s Municipal Gymnasium. This building was originally built for the 1935-1936 California Pacific International Exposition in Balboa Park and was called the Palace of Electricity and Varied Industries.
Back in 1935, a large themed mural greeted visitors above the entrance to the Palace of Electricity and Varied Industries. It was a bas-relief designed by Arturo Eneim, carved out of layers of wallboard. It’s long gone.
But that mural is coming back! And it will be made of cold cast bronze!
In late 2021 I visited the San Diego studio of Bellagio Precast where the 12′ x 20′ cold cast bronze fiber glass reinforced concrete mural is being created. You can see interesting photos from that visit, plus renderings and more description, by clicking here. And here.
I visited the same studio again a couple days ago and observed how the enormous mural is coming together, piece by piece!
Architectural plans for the Palace of Electricity and Varied Industries mural are spread near a small model at Bellagio Precast in San Diego.A small model of the cast bronze mural, which includes industrial imagery, an electrical generator, and three human figures.Here’s the mold used for the small model’s creation. You can see how the images are reversed.The design for the electrical generator element that will be included in the large, finished mural.And here is the generator! Just one element of many that will be pieced together to create a mold for the massive cast bronze mural.More elements to be incorporated into the Palace of Electricity and Varied Industries mural include huge gears!
Two huge golden grizzly bears have come to life in San Diego, and are ready to stand on a Balboa Park rooftop!
Yesterday the two amazing sculptures were previewed. I took photographs!
The life-size bronze bears–each weighing about 400 pounds–will soon be placed atop the roof of the 1935 California State Building, which today is home of the San Diego Automotive Museum. The sculptures will stand on the front corners of the building, as bears once did almost a century ago, back when the building debuted for the 1935-1936 California Pacific International Exposition.
Artists Mike and Kevin Matson of Bellagio Precast have been busy working on these new bear sculptures at their San Diego studio. Perhaps you remember my blog post from late 2021 with photos of one partially cold cast bronze bear.
The two huge bears are now one hundred percent finished and ready for transportation to Balboa Park! Once the roof of the San Diego Automotive Museum is structurally prepared for the heavy sculptures, they will be lifted by crane up to their respective corners. All of this should occur in April. Watch for it!
As I mentioned, the original 1935 bears were only temporary (likely made of plaster-like material) and disappeared long ago. A few old photographs show them atop the California State Building. Here’s one:
In the above enlarged photograph, you might also glimpse a flagpole over the building’s front entrance. Two flagpoles are also returning to the historic California State Building! Brackets for them have already been created:
The new bears and flagpoles are part of an ongoing effort by the Balboa Park Committee of 100 to restore the Palisades area of Balboa Park to something more like its original 1935 appearance. The organization has been working to preserve Balboa Park’s historic architecture, gardens and public spaces since 1967.
The Committee of 100’s initial undertaking in the Palisades was the reproduction of historical murals above the entrance to this same building. Perhaps you’ve seen those beautiful tile murals. If you haven’t, click here.
The California State Building’s new life-size bears have been years in the making. At yesterday’s event we were shown small working models that preceded the finished sculptures. Kevin Matson held them up for examination:
So how exactly were life-size cold cast bronze bears made?
Each of the finished bear sculptures has a Glass Fiber Reinforced Concrete skin that is about 3/8″ to 1/2” thick. Two sculpture halves are joined together with a stainless steel frame inside. Each bear’s volume is then filled with a high density urethane foam.
How awesome are these golden grizzlies? Take a look!
The Balboa Park Committee of 100 is engaged in another fantastic project! They are recreating a large historical mural that will be placed above the entrance of the Municipal Gymnasium building. It, too, will be breathtaking!
I’ll be blogging about that shortly!
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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!
I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!
I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!
An exhibit at the San Diego Natural History Museum explains how San Diego County is the richest region in California for precious gems.
Gemstones that can be found in the mountains of San Diego County include tourmaline, garnet, topaz, beryl and spodumene. We are world-renowned for our tourmaline!
The exhibit demonstrates how these precious gems form inside pegmatites–a rock formation that can occur as magma cools. Large gem bearing pegmatites are found in San Diego’s North County, near Palomar Mountain.
Tourmaline has been mined in San Diego County since the 1890s. The Himalaya Mine alone has extracted about 250,000 pounds of mineral specimens.
I remember as a boy heading with my family up to the Stewart Lithia mine in Pala. For a fee, we spent an hour on hands and knees sifting through the mine tailings, searching for gems. We were delighted to find a handful of small pink, green and watermelon tourmalines! We also found a fair amount of lepidolite (a source of lithium). It was a lot of fun!
I see the Himalaya Mine has a Facebook page. Check it out here.
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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!
I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!
I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!
When I took a walk through La Mesa a couple weeks ago, I noticed a historical plaque on the above building.
With walls that are partly made of stone, this little old building is located directly adjacent to the larger, more modern Adult Enrichment Center, which is operated by the City of La Mesa.
BUILT BY UNITED STATES WORKS PROGRESS ADMINISTRATION 1937
According to an online timeline, two New Deal WPA projects in La Mesa include this 1937 Senior Clubhouse.
I spoke to a city employee inside the Adult Enrichment Center, and she indicated there are plans to move this building, stones and all, to MacArthur Park.
The old clubhouse is beautiful in a rustic way. To me, it appears like a visitor center or ranger station you’d find nestled in the forest of a National Park.
I assume that small stone structure across a walkway was built back in 1937, too.
Anyone who knows more, or has memories to share, please leave a comment!
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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!
I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!
I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!
The very first house built in Solana Beach was located on today’s Highway 101. That’s what a sign that I saw during a recent walk attests.
Perhaps driving along you’ve seen the above Plaza 101 sign, about a block south of Lomas Santa Fe Drive. It features the following plaque:
When I do some quick research, however, I find the first house in the area might have actually sat on Pepper Tree Lane, now called Del Mar Downs Road. Built in 1887, the Stevens House was moved to La Colonia Park and now houses the museum of the Solana Beach Civic and Historical Society. (It’s a museum that I have not yet visited.)
I believe the plaque refers to the Estes Home at 155 S. Highway 101. The Solana Beach Civic And Historical Society website explains: When Colonel Ed Fletcher bought Solana Beach in 1922, there were only two houses, George Jones’s house on Barbara Street (later occupied by Herschell Larrick Sr. and his family) and this Highway 101 house of Jones’s sister, Lucy Estes and her husband, N. H. Estes, and their son, Herb. The Estes family was originally from San Francisco. They built this first home in Solana Beach on the narrow dirt road highway 101 and put in a well.
During walks on and around old Highway 101, Solana Beach’s first commercial center, I’ve discovered a number of historical buildings. You can see those photographs here and here and here!
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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!
I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!
I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!
Cool San Diego Sights! 