Altadena Woodlands: The Subdivision Beautiful

As this brochure from the AHS collection indicates, in the 1920s development real estate agency Rigali & Vaselish purchased land from the Allen family who owned Sphinx Ranch, and paid $1800 and acre.

"A Sales Achievement!" 

The sales brochures aimed at investors said: 

"The first portion of Altadena Woodlands offered for sale was sold out within five weeks, gross sales titling over four hundred and fifty thousand dollars.  The instant public approval accorded Altadena Woodlands as shown through the tremendous volume of sales in a short space of time demonstrated the high character and desirability of the homesites offered and brought out the fact that at the prices offered, the discriminating realty buyer recognized an investment opportunity.  You are invited to investigate.  Branch office Phoone colorado 2748, Main office Phone 875-633"

The development encompassed area between 
Allen and Foothill Blvd. (now called Altadena Drive), 
and was bordered by New York Avenue on the south. 

Red lines indicate developed area 
delineated by Allan (left) New York 
and Altadena Drive as it appears today. 

Michele Zack wrote:
"...A number of charming historical revival homes, mostly English and Spanish, were built before the stock market crashed, and in the 1930s some modern ranch-styles usually associated with the post WWII era began appearing here.  These are considered some of the best and earliest surviving examples of the style.…" Altadena: Between Wilderness and City  p 128

AHS 2016 Membership Drive

It’s Altadena Historical Society membership drive time again.

JOIN ONLINE

We thank you for your past support and urge you to join AHS or renew your 2016 membership now. AHS is a federally recognized not-for-profit organization and your membership and donations are tax deductible.

Dues remain $25 for individuals and families. If you’ve had an individual membership please consider upgrading to the $50 premium membership level. Not only will your extra dollars add support to our programs, you’ll also receive a hardback copy of “Altadena’s Golden Years” by Robert H. Peterson, with 100 pages and more than 250 photographs.

2016 Premium Membership Gift

Because of support from people like you, AHS has had an exceptionally successful 2015 with fascinating quarterly programs, an expanded newsletter, more volunteers to assist with research requests and the opening of the Altadena History Museum at the Altadena Community Center.

Your support makes all of this possible.  Please join AHS or renew your membership today.

An Altadena Love of Historic Proportion

In honor of Valentine's Day

Artist Charles White (1918-1979) and author/educator Frances Barrett White (1926-2000) were married in 1950.  Frances wrote Reaches of the Heart in 1994, a loving literary tribute to her husband.  

Noted painter and lithographer, Charles White was a significant part of the twentieth century social realist art scene. The book is an endearing love story, and an intimate picture of what life was like for an interracial couple in a world not ready to accept such a union. The family eventually moved to Altadena, where they were active in civil rights issues and the integration of local public schools.

New Coffee House in Old Altadena Building

Opening Soon: Cafe de Leche in the 2400 block of Lake

We've kept our eye on the rehab of this building on the west side of Lake Avenue north of Mariposa, soon opening as Cafe de Leche.

The quirky little structure was originally located at the intersection of Altadena Drive and Lake as one of more than 30 gasoline stations that serviced Altadena in the late 1920s.  

"Traffic Island, Lake Ave at Altadena Dr.,1930s"

Above: The gas station looking east, about 1930.

Red line indicates straightening of Altadena Drive 
in the 1970s. Red circle indicates original 
location of station in the 1920s.

Based on maps in the AHS collection, we believe the structure was moved when the building that now houses El Patron restaurant was constructed, probably in the 1950s.

The building was moved a few blocks south
to it's current location.

La Leche Cafe, in the 2400 block of Lake Ave, is opening soon. Open daily 7 am to 5 pm. The menu includes coffee, tea, pastries, tamales, bagels and more. Their other location is in Highland Park.  Find out more.  

HIstoric Look at Altadena's Escalon School - Yesterday and Today

The large estate at 508 Mendocino St. in Altadena has seen better days, but its future looks promising.

The house served as Escalon School beginning in 1977 when owner Luella Huggins deeded the property to the school. According to an L.A. Times article, the school enrolled students with emotional disabilities. But in June 23, 1994 after several years of scraping by on a dwindling budget, it closed.

Pasadena Star-News, June 1977:

"Banner Day - Luella A. Huggins looks on as Bill Hayford, 17, raises a flag in front of her home at 536 E. Mendocino St. in Altadena Friday. Miss Huggins was honored by neighboring Escalon School as she presented the special education school with a deed to her property. Looking on from left are Jimmy Elliot, 12; Bobby Falcone, 16, and Victor Valencia, 15. The four are students at Escalon." (photo from AHS archives)

In 1997 the Altadena Town Council voted against Head Start's attempt to expand the facility and quadruple class size in the wake of complaints from residents in surrounding historic neighborhoods. (L. A. Times, Dec. 18, 1997)

Things are looking up now.  Waldorf School purchased the facility and will open a high school campus there soon.  Stay tuned for more information as it unfolds.

Altadena Author Zane Grey Topic of Historical Society Program

SENSATIONAL LIFE OF ALTADENA AUTHOR ZANE GREY TOPIC OF PROGRAM AT ALTADENA HISTORICAL SOCIETY

Free, 7:30 p.m. Monday Jan. 25, 2016 event at Altadena Community Center

The sensational and occasionally salacious life of best-selling Western author and longtime Altadena resident Zane Grey will be presented at the Monday, Jan. 25 meeting of the Altadena Historical Society.

The illustrated program will be presented by Grey expert Steve Lund, a member of the Zane Grey West Society.  The 7:30 p.m. meeting will be free and open to the public, and held in the Altadena Community Center, 730 E. Altadena Drive.

Grey’s most famous work was the Western novel “Riders of the Purple Sage.” His numerous books and magazine stories became the basis of more than 100 Hollywood films, variously starring the actors Tom Mix, Fay Wray, Roy Rogers, John Wayne, Barbara Stanwyck, Randolph Scott, even Shirley Temple.

Grey and his wife and family lived in a mansion at the southeast corner of Mariposa and Marengo in Altadena, now on the National Register of Historic Places.  Grey also built a unique, pueblo-style house in East Altadena for one of his secretaries.

An inveterate sportsman and outdoorsman, Grey set world records with his deep-sea catches off Catalina Island, where he had a home.  He also was reputed to be another type of adventurer; a 2005 biography of Grey by Thomas H. Pauly published by University of Illinois Press is titled “Zane Grey: His Life, His Adventures, His Women.”

People can learn more about Altadena at the Historical Society’s newly redesigned website, and at the Society’s archives and new museum in the Community Center.  The society is open from 9 to 11 a.m. Mondays, Tuesdays and Fridays, and by appointment at (626) 797-8016.

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