Photo: USC Libraries
LA as Subject
Hosted by the USC Libraries, L.A. as Subject is an association of more than 230 libraries, cultural institutions, official archives, and private collectors dedicated to preserving and telling the sometimes-hidden histories of the Los Angeles region. Our posts here provide a view into the archives of individuals and institutions whose collections inform the great narrative -- in all its complex facets -- of Southern California.
LA as Subject:
Long associated with Southern California's romantic mission past, the pepper tree was once the region's most iconic tree.
LA as Subject:
In its early years, scented lemon groves surrounded a crossroads destined for fame but bearing an unfamiliar name.
LA as Subject:
Remnants of the incline railway, which helped turn Avalon into a destination resort, still await adventurous explorers on Catalina's hillsides.
LA as Subject:
Until 1889, Orange and Los Angeles counties were one.
LA as Subject:
Black bears may be a surprisingly recent arrival to Southern California, but larger and more terrifying bears once roamed the Los Angeles area.
LA as Subject:
A famous family of child actors became a family of news photographers, creating an indispensable visual record of 20th-century Los Angeles.
LA as Subject:
From the 1880s through the 1920s, Southern Californians plunged into large, indoor pools just steps away from the Pacific Ocean.
LA as Subject:
How did a real estate developer transform Mt. Washington's chaparral slopes into a residential community? He built an incline railway.
LA as Subject:
Elysian Park, one of L.A.'s oldest parks, exists today because its rugged land was considered worthless.
LA as Subject:
Native to the Los Angeles area, sycamores can grow to massive proportions, inspiring romantic tales and standing as tangible connections to the region's past.
LA as Subject:
A popular outdoor retreat in the 1880s, Second Street Park became a casualty of industrial progress when L.A.'s first oil boom gripped the city in 1892. Today, not a trace of it remains.
LA as Subject:
In 1877, parts of Los Angeles' Eastside began to resemble New York's second borough -- in name, at least.
LA as Subject:
Angels Flight is a remnant of an earlier age. Incline railways once climbed hillsides and conquered steep grades across Southern California.
LA as Subject:
Located in present-day Lincoln Heights, Eastlake Park was once the crown jewel of L.A.'s public park system.
LA as Subject:
When Los Angeles created Westlake Park in 1886, the site's use as a neighborhood dump had marred the beauty of its naturally occurring lake.
LA as Subject:
Many of the city's earliest parks were created out of marshes, hills, and other lands then considered worthless.
LA as Subject:
For as long as Southern Californians could remember, Castle Rock and Arch Rock stood sentinel along the shore between Topanga Canyon and Santa Monica.
LA as Subject:
Winged rats? Until destroyed by a flood in 1914, a Los Angeles pigeon farm home to 100,000 of the birds was a big tourist draw.
LA as Subject:
Wildflowers once blanketed hillsides and plains throughout the Los Angeles area where strip malls, suburban homes, and industrial warehouses prevail today.
LA as Subject:
Spreading giants imported from Australia, Moreton Bay fig trees have become a cherished part of Southern California's arboreal heritage.
SoCal Focus is a blog about the people, places, and issues in and around Southern California.
I Am Los Angeles: Strings of Success
Sasha is content just to be living his life on his own terms, doing something he thoroughly enjoys: building and playing guitars.
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