The Verdugo Hills Cemetery Landslide – The Cleanup Last week I covered the landslide that occurred in February 1978 in Tujunga. After days of relentless rains, the steep hillside that Verdugo Hills Cemetery was perched on gave way and sent mud and decaying bodies down into residential streets below. The slide had occurred in the […]
The Day Dead Bodies Surfed the Streets of Tujunga Last week I covered the beginnings of the Verdugo Hills Cemetery, including the poignant story of its first burial, a much beloved local minister, Rev. Wornum, the “Singing Parson.” In 1922, he patiently waited for “his” cemetery to be completed, and once it was, he died […]
The Most Infamous Graveyard of All – Verdugo Hills Cemetery This is the story of Verdugo Hills Cemetery, sometimes called Hills of Peace Cemetery, in Tujunga. Like many old cemeteries, it was abandoned by its owners when it could no longer turn a profit. Verdugo Hills Cemetery gained local infamy because of several ghastly crypt […]
Onondarka Ranch Becomes the Community of Oakmont Woods In my last two columns, we’ve followed the evolution of Onondarka Ranch – from a wild canyon tamed by one of the first Americans to settle here in 1875, through its “cowboy” years as a horse ranch in the 1930s and ’40s, and right up to its […]
Onondarka’s Golden Years – Horses and Rodeos Homer Baldridge, now “Colonel” Baldridge, had built himself a fine ranch in the Crescenta Valley. For a couple of decades, the teens and ’20s, the former livery stable owner oversaw his Englehardt Canyon acreage (now the Oakmont Woods neighborhood) as a gentleman farmer, cultivating vast orchards and vineyards. […]
Onondarka’s Beginnings The name “Onondarka” harks back to a relatively brief period, less than 40 years in the ’20s, ’30s and ’40s when one of the green canyons of the Verdugo Mountains sheltered a beautiful orchard and equestrian paradise called Onondarka Ranch. That ranch today has been subdivided and built upon and is today named […]
The Elusive History of the Montrose Motel A few weeks ago, I was contacted by Steve Russell, owner of Interscape Construction at 2047 Montrose Ave. His office is part of a complex of cute cottage offices and residences. He wanted to know what I could tell him about his building’s previous life as the Montrose […]
Glendale Intends to Break Promise to Fund Deukmejian Park “I’m still troubled by all the money being used up at Deukmejian. It’s just not fair.” “Right now we have another $2.5 million parked in the Deukmejian account … this is $2.5 million that can be allocated for something else if we wanted to.” “Deukmejian, I’m […]
Balloonists Crash in the San Gabriel Mountains In March 1909, the grand Hotel Maryland, one of Pasadena’s string of fancy resort hotels, held a stunt show. Exhibitions of speed and daring by equestrian groups, motorcycle riders and early automobiles were on display. The star attractions were the hot air balloons and dirigibles, including a show […]
La Cañada’s John Goddard – Professional Adventurer When I was growing up in the ’60s attending local schools, I looked forward each year to the visit of John Goddard. Goddard was a local man who had made for himself a life of constant adventure, and he would share his fascinating stories. On the day he […]