Category Archives: Los Angeles County

Wigwags – Part 3

Wigwags, or properly Magnetic Flagman, are a rare sight in Southern California. Recently, I found two more located in Gardena, CA along a former Pacific Electric freight spur. Today, the Union Pacific Railroad operates this stretch to service a lumber yard
at Western Ave. Both of these wigwags are just southeast of the intersection of Western Ave and 166th St.

On Denker Ave south of 166th St.
On Denker Ave south of 166th St.
Wigwag on Hobart Blvd south of 166th St.
Wigwag on Hobart Blvd south of 166th St.

Related Links:

Photos from my trip to the US Bank Tower (SkySpaceLA) in Los Angeles

All these were taken on July 1, 2016.

Former First Interstate Building, now AON.
Former First Interstate Building, now AON.

Wilshire Corridor
Wilshire Corridor

Toward City Hall and the Los Angeles MTA building
Toward City Hall and the Los Angeles MTA building

Bank of America and Wells Fargo buildings with the 2nd / Hope subway station under construction.
Bank of America and Wells Fargo buildings with the 2nd / Hope subway station under construction.

Looking toward the harbor along the 110 Freeway.
Looking toward the harbor along the 110 Freeway.

Historic Core of Downtown Los Angeles and Pershing Square.
Historic Core of Downtown Los Angeles and Pershing Square.

Toward Echo Park and Hollywood.
Toward Echo Park and Hollywood.

US 99 in Alhambra, CA

While much of the 1934 Garvey “Superhighway”, former US 60 / US 70 / US 99, has been either built over or completely modified, a small portion remains virtually untouched. In Alhambra, CA, there is a small section of original concrete paving still intact. This section, called Garvey Ave, runs from Ramona Rd to Casuda Canyon Rd.

Looking northerly from Carlos Ave.
Looking northerly from Carlos Ave.

Last intact date stamps on this section, from July 18, 1934 by Jahn and Bressi Contractors.
Last intact date stamps on this section, from July 18, 1934 by Jahn and Bressi Contractors.

Looking southerly from Carlos Ave
Looking southerly from Carlos Ave

At Fremont Ave and Monterey Pass Rd, there are also some grade separations from 1934 that are still intact. These weren’t photographed but videos were made. When I get my video software working again, I will post those.

Website Updates

Over the past week or so, I’ve been working to add more content to the site. Not to avoid completing the existing pages either, just to fill in some gaps. Here are some of the updates:

  • New Website Feature – a new Discussion Forums feature has been added. It is an experiment, so we’ll see where it goes.
  • New SectionCivic Information – These pages give links to every incorporated city in Southern California and give a bit of information about each county as well. The links are finished, but the format is still being worked on.
  • New PageSeeking Old Highways – A while back I was working on putting up a guide to looking for old roads, bridges, and signs. It is still a work-in-progress, but has now been more given its own page in the Highways section.
  • Additional Historic Photos – Old photos of US 101 in the Los Angeles area have been added to the US 101 page.

Sand Fire Information

As the Sand Fire has grown quite substantially in the past few days, it has become more difficult to track where it is going. I’ve found a couple of good links for up-to-date information on this fire. Map below courtesy of the Los Angeles County Fire Department.