Tournament of Roses Parade Exhibit "Altadena in the Rose Parade" Opens December 6, 2015

Featuring documents, parade programs, photographs and clippings, the inaugural show in AHS' new exhibit space celebrates our community's seven decades of participation in the internationally known event. The exhibit will run through June 30, 2016.

Altadena's 1956 entry The Rose Tattoo
inspired by the Pulitzer prize winning play
of Tennessee Williams

A free exhibit open to members and the public

Exhibit Hours:
Monday, Tuesday and Friday, 9 am to 1 pm

Special hours: 
Saturdays January 1 and 9 from 2 pm to 4 pm

Altadena Historical Society is in the Altadena Community Center, 730 E. Altadena Dr., Altadena, CA 91001

AHS Exhibit Features Mountain View Mausoleum

Mountain View Mausoleum
 was the most expensive structure in
L.A. County when it was built in 1925.

 The glorious architecture and artwork of Altadena's Mountain View Mausoleum are celebrated in an Altadena Historical Society exhibit in the back hall gallery at Webster's Community Pharmacy, 

Mezzanine stairway features windows
by L.A. Art Glass Co. and Arts and Crafts
 tile work, possibly by Grueby Faience
Co. and Catalina Pottery.

The dozen color photos in the exhibit show the exterior and interior of the 1925 landmark structure, located on Marengo north of Woodbury.

New Radiance Corridor
Designed by Jae Carmichael
Glass by renowned Judson Studio

The Main Gallery is 180 feet long

Exhibit continues through 
December 1, 2015

Where:  Webster's Community Pharmacy

2450 N. Lake Ave.

Altadena, CA 91001

Open every day but Sunday

Program about History of Mt. Wilson Observatory

MOUNT WILSON OBSERVATORY UNDER THE LENS

AT ALTADENA HISTORICAL SOCIETY PROGRAM

Monday Oct. 26, 7:30 p.m.

Altadena Community Center, 730 E. Altadena Drive

Don't miss this talk about the history of the world-famous Mount Wilson Observatory at 7:30 p.m., Monday, Oct. 26 at the Altadena Historical Society by retired aerospace engineer Christopher Purcell, from the Mount Wilson Institute.

Charles St. John, Albert Einstein and Walther Mather
Mt. Wilson Observatory 1931

Founded by astronomer George Ellery Hale in 1904 with funding by the Carnegie Institution, the celestial observatory is located on top of 5,710-foot-high Mount Wilson, above Altadena in the San Gabriel Mountains. It was at the Mount Wilson Observatory that famous astronomer Edwin Hubble was able to prove that the universe extends beyond the Milky Way Galaxy, and to the subsequent view that the universe is actually expanding.

Speaker Chris Purcell spent nearly 40 years in the aerospace industry, much of it related to spacecraft launch, trajectory analysis, and orbital control.  He has a bachelor’s degree in astrophysics from UCLA and a master’s degree in aerospace engineering from USC. He is a docent with the Mount Wilson Observatory, the non-profit organization that runs the observatory.  His talk will be accompanied by slides, and be followed by a question-and-answer session. The program is free and open to the public.

The Historical Society, with offices in the Community Center, is open from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Mondays, Tuesdays and Fridays and can be reached at (626) 797-8016.

Altadena Bicentennial Quilt on Permanent Display

It's taken 39 years, but finally, Altadena's bicentennial quilt is permanently displayed at archives. Thanks in part to a huge discount from Aarnun Gallery and Framing in Pasadena, we ordered a professional UV protected plexibox for the quilt. Last week it was installed and Mary Smeritsnig (below right)  who made a square depicting Farnsworth Park's Davies building was there for the very informal installation.  

Sara Carnahan and Mary Smeritsnigh reminisc

The Altadena Library and Friends Bicentennial Quilt is the handiwork of twenty eight women. Completed in 1976, the 6'x6' quilt features 36 blocks, each telling one part of the Altadena story.

Historic Echo Mt. Trail Sign Installed in Altadena Community Center Courtyard

Efforts by Altadena Historical Society and Los Angeles County staff have resulted in the installation of the historic Echo Mt. Trail signpost in the courtyard of Altadena Community Center - a project 12 years in the making. 

The concrete sign with an arrow pointing to the trail head was found by Altadenan Jack Stivers after the Mt. Lowe railway was discontinued and the tracks torn out in the early 1940s. Jack donated the signpost to AHS in 2003, with the wish that it be erected at the new Community Center, a Los Angeles County facility.  The sign remained in storage until AHS and the county recently renewed efforts to get the artifact installed.

Front row left to right: AHS president Jane Brackman,
Mackone Development superintendent Raymond Gonzalez, Community Center staff Lorraine Contreras and Community Center and Senior Center director Liliana Garcia 

Historian and Filmmaker Walter Dominguez to Speak in Altadena