The Life and Reincarnation of Tujunga’s First Store

Herman paced about his small stone home at 9934 Tujunga Canyon Blvd. He had a decision to make. The next day –  Saturday, Feb. 11, 1922 – he signed the papers required to purchase the property owned by the Little Landers Cooperative Store at the southwest corner of what was then Sunset and El Centro (today’s Commerce Avenue and Valmont Street) in Tujunga.

Herman Breidt arrived in the Crescenta Valley and built the stone home in 1919. He had graduated from Chicago-Kent College and practiced law until he was elected to the Illinois State Legislature. Four years later, he became a state senator. He put his hat in the running for Chicago municipal judge in 1912 and was universally recognized in Tujunga as Judge Breidt.

At the time of Herman’s arrival, the Little Landers Colony had been in decline for several years. Despite the enthusiasm at the onset, attendance for meetings at Bolton Hall had dwindled until finally ceasing. The reasons for the colony’s collapse are not obvious. The viability of making a living off a relatively small piece of land was a daunting task and a great deal of work. Many failed. Whatever the causes, by the time Herman came to town the colony’s co-op store had become privately owned by William Garman and his wife Mary.

Two lots had been purchased. Garman & Son sat on the corner and plans began to construct next door the town’s first two-story building. By early 1923, the new structure was complete. A name plaque declaring it the Breidt Building appeared above the entrance. Shortly thereafter, Garman & Son became Gray & Gray Grocery when James and Lora Gray purchased the establishment. Desiring to expand, they soon occupied the larger lower floor of the Breidt Building and the old co-op shop was empty. 

Herman now set a goal of developing the corner lot and sought to move the 20-by-44-foot store at 7212 Valmont St. while rotating it 90 degrees. Many in town turned out to help. Slowly it was raised with jacks until two large timbers could be slid beneath it. Folks gathered at the four corners and, over time, heaved the structure more than 100 feet from its original location.

After some repairs and a new paint job, shelves were installed and it became the Tujunga Library, which opened in August 1924. For the next 30 years, it would serve the community proudly. With Tujunga’s annexation to Los Angeles in 1932, the location became part of the Los Angeles Public Library system. In 1936, it led all LAPL community library stations in annual circulation. On April 30, 1952, the Tujunga Library closed there and moved to a new location.

The building sat empty again until 1958 when it served Congregation Beth Israel as its orthodox Jewish synagogue. Construction was completed on a new Jewish temple  in 1962 at 10137 Commerce Ave., and the little building was vacated once more. For years to come, the structure most likely served as storage until about 10 years ago when the Pullman family came on the scene.

Best known as an award-winning actor, Bill Pullman also happens to be a seasoned builder and architecture buff, having restored a number of properties. In 2017, he shared his excitement about an “old-timey” building in Tujunga with his wife Tamara and with their acquisition of the property a brand-new chapter began for the Breidt Building. The old store had to come down. Its 100-year-old bones were unable to get past modern building codes. Recognizing the old store’s historical significance, the Pullmans constructed a near replica in its place that will serve as a covered parking structure. I’ve heard the family took a vote to keep the name Breidt Building. Big plans are ahead and when the time is right you’ll hear all about them.