HIDDEN STAIRS ECHO PARK + SILVERLAKE JEN AGOSTA DESMA 161 PROJECT 1

Transcription

1 HIDDEN STAIRS OF ECHO PARK + SILVERLAKE JEN AGOSTA DESMA 161 PROJECT 1

2 About 450 historic stariways sprawl through the hillside neighborhoods of Los Angeles. Built mostly around 1920, these stairways accomodated residents in transit during a time when walking, tolly s busses and trains were regularly utilized transportation.

3 A housing boom in the 1800 s sprouted Angelino Heights - the first suburb of downtown Los Angeles Boston Street, built Carroll Avenue, built 1887

4 With neighborhood fixtures and services, like GROCERY STORES Henry Reuter s grocery store / B & K Market-1166 West Edgeware Harry Smooker s Market East Edgeware, 1906 Driggs Brothers Market, 826 East Edgeware, 1911 to 1984 Bob s Market Bellevue Avenue, present

5 And FIRE STATIONS Fire Station 6 The oldest existing firestation in Los Angeles, built in 1929 at 1279 Temple Street. Moved to 609 E Edgeware Rd in 1948.

6 And transportation, like CABLECARS In 1886, a cable-run railway ran from Downtown to Los Angeles' first suburb, Angelino Heights. The cars ran along Temple Street, but problems with the line frequently arose because the street was not yet paved and the cables would prove ineffective. In 1902, the railway's new owner, Henry Huntington, had the cable line converted to an electric one...his fleet of trolleys and streetcars were called "Yellow Cars" due to their vibrantly colored painted exteriors. There were multiple routes that brought passengers through Angelino Heights...

7 Los Angeles Railway YELLOW CARS The system was purchased by railroad and real estate tycoon Henry E. Huntington in 1898 and started operation in At its height, the system contained over 20 streetcar lines and 1,250 trolleys, most running through the core of Los Angeles and serving such nearby neighborhoods as Crenshaw, West Adams, Exposition Park, Echo Park, Westlake, Hancock Park, Vernon, Boyle Heights and Lincoln Heights. Source:

8 Model - T Henry Ford produced the Model T to be an economical car for the average American. It went into production in 1908, and by 1920 Ford sold over a million cars.

9 Broadway, Downtown Los Angeles, 1909 Trolly, horse-drawn carriage, automobiles, foot traffic and bicycle

10 The construction of the I-101 freeway in the 1950s and the CA-2 Freeway cut through the area, making it more friendly for automobile traffic.

11 Los Angeles Railway YELLOW CARS 1901 to 1963 Los Angeles Railway Yellow cars sitting in a scrapyard, The system was sold in 1945 by Huntington s estate to National City Lines, a company that was purchasing transit systems across the country. National City Lines, along with its investors that included Firestone Tire, Standard Oil of California (now Chevron Corporation) and General Motors, were later convicted of conspiring to monopolize the sale of buses and related products to local transit companies controlled by National City Lines and other companies in what became known as the General Motors streetcar conspiracy. Sources:

12 But there was once a time when... Angelinos WALKED

13 through neighborhoods with steep streets Baxter Street, Echo Park, Los Angeles

14 Stairways were built into the hillsides to expedite foot traffic, allowing people to cut through neighborhoods with winding roads and climb up and down the hills with greater ease. Music Box Stairs and beyond, Silverlake Well known as the shooting location for Laurel and Hardy s 1932 short film The Music Box

15 Music Box Stairs and beyond, Silverlake Well known as the shooting location for Laurel and Hardy s 1932 short film The Music Box

16 Map of some of the stairways In Echo Park

17 Walking Traffic Out of Angelino Heights, across busy Sunset Blvd and up into Elysian Park.

18 The fronts of some homes are in the stairway alleys 798 1/2 E Kensington Rd, Los Angeles, CA 90026

19 Entrance to 798 1/2 E Kensington Rd, Los Angeles, CA 90026

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22 Entrance to /4 Sunseet Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90026

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24 What else are these largely forgotten stairways used for?

25 LIVING

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27 PRIVACY (Couple crying)

28 (Couple still crying)

29 HANGING OUT (more privacy)

30 DUMPING

31 TAGGING

32 HIDDEN MESSAGES

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34 Time and the earth have twisted some into disrepair.

35 ...also - exercising - transit - storage - street art - talking on the phone (more privacy)