The Ponet Square Hotel, northwest corner of Pico Boulevard and Grand Avenue, 1924-2013

1924-2013

The Ponet Square Hotel exemplifies a sad narrative shared by a number of Los Angeles’ lost buildings, one which begins with a youthful city’s ambition, only to end with abandonment, decay, and ultimately, tragedy.

The Ponet Square Hotel owes its name to Victor Ponet, a Belgian immigrant who settled in Los Angeles in 1869 after several years in Paris, New York, and San Francisco. Though originally a cabinet-maker by trade, Ponet eventually acquired a substantial fortune through successful investments in the city’s real estate. By the turn of the century, he had emerged as one of the city’s most prominent businessmen, and had also been appointed by his home country as its Vice-Consul serving Southern California and Arizona.

Around 1906, Ponet purchased the city block bordered by Hope Street, Twelfth Street, Grand Avenue, and Pico Boulevard, then at the southwestern edge of the city’s developed core. His first order of business was the construction of a four-story apartment house at the plot’s southeast corner, designed by A. L. Haley (architect of the previously-discussed Nelson Flats). Dubbed the Ponet Square Hotel, the building featured 60 rooms, 30 bathrooms and kitchens, and a large basement ballroom, making it one of the city’s largest residential structures.

As seen in the top photograph, one of the building’s most distinctive features was its concave bend along Grand Avenue. That shape was dictated by the curve of Grand Avenue itself, the result of an imperfect alignment between the city’s Ord and Hancock street grids. A rounded corner complemented the angled facade, and the irregular volume was further accentuated by a bold cornice and a continuous row of tall storefront transom windows.

Like many of the city’s old apartment houses, the Ponet Square Hotel fell gradually into disrepair with the passing years, and it likely would have disappeared in total obscurity had it not been for a fatal disaster. On the morning of September 13, 1970, a deranged resident of the building started a fire on the ground floor, which quickly spread through the building by way of its open stairwell. The blaze resulted in the deaths of 19 residents, mostly working-class immigrants, and it was immediately claimed to have been the deadliest fire in Los Angeles’ history. As a result, the city enacted in 1971 what became known as the Ponet Square Ordinance, which applied its 1943 fire safety codes to all buildings built before that date. The hollowed-out Ponet Square Hotel was demolished soon after the blaze, and its site has remained a parking lot for four decades.

A much more detailed description of the building’s layout and structure, as well as an in-depth account of the deadly fire, can be found at LAFire.com.

A history of Los Angeles’ street grids [KCET]

Sources:
1. “Disaster: deadliest fire.” Los Angeles Times. 20 Sep. 1970. D5.
2. Lindgren, Kris. “Postscript: L.A.’s old buildings safer as result of 1970 disaster.” Los Angeles Times. 25 Feb. 1978. OC8.
3. McGroarty, John Steven. Los Angeles from the mountains to the sea, Vol 3. Chicago and New York: American Historical Society, 1921.
4. “Victor Ponet Building.” Los Angeles Times. 1 Apr. 1906. V24.
Original photo: Dick Whittington Studio. “Pacific Southwest Bank, West Pico Boulevard & South Grand Avenue, Los Angeles, CA, 1924 – DW-1924-49-64-01,” Dick Whittington Photography Collection. USC Digital Library. USC Libraries Special Collections. http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/cdm/compoundobject/collection/p15799coll170/id/68424/rec/599.

West side of Western Avenue north of Fourth Street, 1927-2013

1927-2013

Los Angeles’ suburban expansion in the 1920s is best known for creating much of the city’s characteristic, low-rise form, defined by dense collections of single-family homes and small apartment buildings. At the same time however, the city’s westward growth led to the sudden creation of neighborhood business districts along many of its arterial roads. As the primary thoroughfare between Hollywood and the Wilshire District, Western Avenue was one of the first suburban roadways to experience rapid commercial development during that decade. Each of the buildings in the top photograph was completed between 1921 and 1927. Prior to that, the present block stood nearly entirely vacant.

The pace of new construction on Western Avenue slowed to a crawl during the Great Depression, and has never quite picked up since then. As a result, many blocks of the avenue have maintained their solid street walls, largely uninterrupted by surface parking. All but one of the buildings in the original photograph remain today, albeit often with missing or altered facade details (most obvious on the former Wilshire Theatre).

The avenue’s arguably most dramatic transformation, however, is seen on the buildings’ signage. During the late 20th century, Western Avenue became one of the most visible corridors of the central city’s burgeoning immigrant communities. The present section has primarily housed a variety of small Korean-American businesses since the 1970s.

The Wilshire (Embassy) Theatre [Cinema Treasures]

Sources:
1. Insurance maps of Los Angeles, California, Volume 8. New York: Sanborn Map Company, 1921.
2. Morrison, Patt. “Western Avenue: East meets West where thoroughfare slices through Koreatown.” Los Angeles Times. 14. Jul. 1985. B1.
3. “Westward, ho, for business.” Los Angeles Times. 20 Jun. 1920. V1.
Original photo: Dick Whittington Studio. “Western Avenue from 3rd Street to 10th Street [West Olympic Boulevard], Los Angeles, CA, 1927 – DW-1927-10-22-74W~18.” Dick Whittington Photography Collection. USC Digital Library. USC Libraries Special Collections. http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/cdm/compoundobject/collection/p15799coll170/id/30819/rec/67.

Northwest corner of Wilshire Boulevard and New Hampshire Avenue, 1931-2013

1931-2013

Though hardly anyone would recognize it today as one of Wilshire Boulevard’s lost landmarks, the former manufacturing showroom at the northwest corner with New Hampshire Avenue boasted a rather impressive pedigree. Upon its completion in 1929, the Art Deco building stood out prominently among the district’s few commercial structures, largely built in French and Spanish Revival styles. Although comparable in height, the showroom had a commanding yet elegant presence thanks to its tall, expansive bays complimented by thick fluted piers. In 1930, its architects, John and Donald Parkinson, were honored for the quality of their design by the Southern California chapter of the American Institute of Architects.

As one may have figured out, however, the showroom was quickly overshadowed in the year of its opening by a more majestic sibling designed by the same architects, Bullock’s Wilshire. Geographically separated by only three blocks, the two buildings were largely conceived during the same period, and show striking similarities in their designs. Similarly clad in cut terra cotta, both structures featured tapered, fluted piers and a decorative chevron motif. The two-story showroom, in fact, bears a significant resemblance to an initial design for Bullock’s published in 1928.

Rendering for Bullock’s Wilshire in the Los Angeles Times, April 28, 1928.

Although it was occupied by several tenants in the interior furnishing business, most of the showroom’s 39,000 square feet were initially leased to the Chesterfield Furniture Company of New York, whose name is emblazoned on both facades in the top photograph. It appears, however, that the building was never publicly known by any name other than its street address, 3257 Wilshire Boulevard.

Though it remained in use for four decades, the building was eventually converted primarily into office space. During the late 1960s, the former showroom housed the city’s headquarters for two successful and historic Republican campaigns, hosting Ronald Reagan’s 1966 run for Governor of California and Richard Nixon’s presidential campaign of 1968. The building quietly met its end shortly thereafter; an 18-story office tower designed by Maxwell Starkman & Associates has stood in its place since 1973.

Bullock’s Wilshire Building [Big Orange Landmarks]

Sources:
1. “Architectural awards given.” Los Angeles Times. 19 Mar. 1930. A12.
2. Elliot, James W. “New buildings planned here.” Los Angeles Times. 13 Jan. 1929. E1.
3. “K B’s new high rise trio.” Los Angeles Times. 4 Feb 1973. L24.
4. “Nixon HQ will open here Monday.” Los Angeles Times. 30 Jun. 1968. B7.
Bullock’s rendering: “Greater service aim exemplified in buildings.” Los Angeles Times. 28 Apr. 1928. A2.
Original photograph: Dick Whittington Studio. “Street scenes, forestry division – City of Los Angeles, Southern California, 1931 – DW-1931-15-21-137~14.” Dick Whittington Photography Collection. USC Digital Library. USC Libraries Special Collections. http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/cdm/compoundobject/collection/p15799coll170/id/17739/rec/135.

The Wilcox Building, southeast corner of Second and Spring Streets, 1924-2013

1924-2013

As sad as it is to say, the one-story structure in the present view is all that remains of the Wilcox Building, once one of Downtown Los Angeles’ more prominent landmarks. Completed in 1896, the retail and office building originally boasted a central location at the heart of the city’s business district, then concentrated between First and Third Streets. Designed by the San Francisco firm of Pissis & Moore, its Classical Revival facade of grey sandstone would have appeared relatively austere next to its more flamboyant neighbors, the Bryson Block and Hollenbeck Hotel.

Today, the location is mostly remembered as the former home of two of the city’s oldest institutions. Its basement and top two floors were designed for the second home of the private California Club, which remained from its opening through 1904. The Wilcox Building thus became the city’s first to have two elevators: one for the public, and another for club members. Between 1915 and 1924, its upper floors housed the second location of yet another long-standing Los Angeles establishment, Southwestern Law School. The aging building avoided obsolescence in the postwar years by providing temporary space for government offices that had outgrown their existing facilities, including the Los Angeles County courts and the State Division of Highways. During the 1950s, it briefly housed a Civic Center division of the USC School of Public Policy.

Since then, however, the Wilcox Building has been largely forgotten. After extensive damage during the Sylmar Earthquake in 1971, its upper four stories were demolished, leaving only the basement and the now-unrecognizable ground floor. Two pilasters at the southern end of its Spring Street frontage appear to be the only details of the original facade that remain today.

A more complete view of the Wilcox Building, c. 1905 [USC Digital Library]

Sources:
1. “Civic Center division of SC to move Sept. 18.” Los Angeles Times. 27 Aug. 1950. 22.
2. “Our business blocks” Los Angeles Times. 1 Jan. 1896. 9.
3. Rasmussen, Cecilia. “L.A.’s premier club began over a stable.” Los Angeles Times. 8 Nov. 1998. 3.
4. “State Highway Building dedicated by officials.” Los Angeles Times. 27 Aug. 1949. A7.
5. “Time waste deplored in scattered courts.” Los Angeles Times. 3 Feb. 1949. 8.
6. Townsend, Dorothy. “Southwestern: the shirtsleeve law school.” Los Angeles Times. 23 Mar. 1972. D1.
Original photo: Dick Whittington Studio. “Pacific Southwest Bank, 2nd & Spring Branch, Los Angeles, CA, 1924.” Dick Whittington Photography Collection. USC Digital Library. USC Libraries Special Collections. http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/cdm/ref/collection/p15799coll170/id/68951.

Looking east on Wilshire Boulevard from New Hampshire Avenue, 1931-2013

1931-2013

Although it revisits a number of previous themes, the present comparison also highlights the many improvements that were made to Los Angeles’ basic street infrastructure during the 20th century. By modern design standards, each of the city’s major arteries would have appeared remarkably primitive on the eve of the Great Depression. Traffic lanes and marked crosswalks were non-existent along Wilshire Boulevard, while traffic signals had been installed at only ten intersections on the 7.5-mile stretch between Westlake Park and Santa Monica Boulevard.

In the early 1930s, Wilshire became Los Angeles’ testing ground for innovations in traffic engineering which eventually spread across the city. The first roadway markings were applied in 1930, consisting of a single center line separating opposing traffic (visible in the top photograph), and an additional line on each side to mark two traffic lanes. In the following year, the first synchronized three-light traffic signals were installed at 28 intersections, accompanied by the first painted stop lines.

Owing to Wilshire Center’s development into one of the city’s busiest commercial corridors, crosswalks and traffic signals have since been placed at the vast majority of its intersections. Also visible in the present view is the addition of curbside parking spaces, accompanied by the requisite curb striping, meters, and signage. Street trees and planters, completely absent in the original photograph, have been placed throughout most of the boulevard’s densest, walkable areas.

Sources:
1. “Step taken to make Wilshire greatest artery.” Los Angeles Times. 7 Sep. 1930. E1.
2. “Traffic check reveals improved conditions.” Los Angeles Times. 3 Apr. 1932. E2.
3. “Wilshire signals work” Los Angeles Times. 4 Oct. 1931. E1.
Original photo: Dick Whittington Studio. “Intersection of Wilshire Boulevard & South New Hampshire Avenue, Los Angeles, CA, 1931 – DW-1931-03-03-12~03.” Dick Whittington Photography Collection. USC Digital Library. USC Libraries Special Collections. http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/cdm/compoundobject/collection/p15799coll170/id/19265/rec/7.

West side of Main Street south of Second Street, 1952-2013

1952-2013

Like many other of Charles Cushman’s Los Angeles photographs, the top view shows a beleaguered block of Main Street on the verge of its demise. Completed in 1894, the white building at 227 South Main Street was the longtime home of the Peniel Mission, one of the city’s most prominent Christian rescue missions at the turn of the century. According to Sanborn insurance atlases, the two buildings to the left were completed shortly before Peniel Hall, while the French Revival building on the right dates from the early 20th century.

Like most areas south of the Civic Center, the present block was largely dominated by low-end businesses by mid-century. Cushman’s picture shows a number of ground-floor shops which include a shooting range, music store, cafeteria, and three pawn shops. The two buildings on the left were gone by 1953, while Peniel Hall was torn down in 1957 when the mission moved closer to Skid Row. The building on the right was likely demolished at the same time, leaving a “ghost building” in the irregular window patterns on the Higgins Building. Much of the destroyed block was consolidated into a single parking lot, which operates to this day.

West side of Main Street north of Second Street, 1952-2011 [Urban Diachrony]

Sources:
1. “At the churches.” Los Angeles Times. 22 Oct. 1894. 4.
2. “Old Downtown building razed.” Los Angeles Times. 20 Oct 1957. F8.
3. Insurance maps of Los Angeles, California; Volume 1. New York: Sanborn-Perris Map Company, 1894.
4. Insurance maps of Los Angeles, California: Volume 2. New York: Sanborn Map Company, 1953.
Original photo: Cushman, Charles. “200 block of South Main St. Los Angeles on Sunday – P05734.” 1952. Charles W. Cushman Photograph Collection. Indiana University Archives. http://purl.dlib.indiana.edu/iudl/archives/cushman/P05734.

Northeast corner of Wilshire Boulevard and New Hampshire Avenue, 1930-2013

1930-2013

As Wilshire Boulevard cemented its status as Los Angeles’ premier highway during the 1920s, it also emerged as the locus of high-end commercial development for the city’s affluent and growing west side. This dual identity was exemplified by the California Petroleum Corporation’s flagship service station, shown in the top photograph at the boulevard’s northeast corner with New Hampshire Avenue. Although the demolished depot has now been largely forgotten, it surely ranks among the most distinctive lost buildings of Wilshire Boulevard.

Upon its completion in 1927, the facility was touted by Calpet as “California’s finest super service,” and not without good reason. The central filling station occupied an eye-catching Moorish Revival building, elegantly ornamented with mosaic tile trimmings and decorative grilles. A separate structure at the rear of the lot housed an automatic washing and polishing unit, tire and battery service areas, an accessory shop, and a small cafe. As a final touch, the station’s paved areas were buffered from the sidewalk by lamp posts and small landscape planters.

The depot was given such importance by Calpet that it received a two-day opening ceremony as well as a full-page advertisement in the Los Angeles Times. In true Hollywood fashion, Calpet orchestrated the opening-day appearance of a number of film stars, including Norma and Constance Talmadge, Owen Moore, Ralph Graves, Lawrence Gray, Belle Bennett, Buster Keaton, and Katherine Perry. Each of them of course, arrived by car. By the time its second day closed out with a colorful light show, the service station had sold nearly 20,000 gallons of gasoline.

Although Calpet was acquired by the Texas Company in 1928, the station continued to operate under the Texaco brand until its demolition in the mid-1950s. In 1956, the site was replaced by a Modernist office building and adjacent parking lot, built for the Pioneer Savings and Loan Association. The relatively unremarkable six-story building remained occupied by bank tenants through the late 1980s. Since then, it has served as the Consulate General of the Republic of Korea in Los Angeles.

Sources:
1. California Petroleum Corporation. Advertisement. “Famous stars will attend formal opening of California’s finest super service.” Los Angeles Times. 21 Jan. 1927. 8.
2. “Calpet station is opened with big ceremonies.” Los Angeles Times. 23 Jan. 1927. G8.
3. “Ground broken for new office.” Los Angeles Times. 26 Feb. 1956. E18.
4. Newman, Morris. “Korean investors view Wilshire as ‘Main Street’.” Los Angeles Times. 1 Apr. 1990. 1.
Original photo: Dick Whittington Studio. “DW-1930-04-02-10~03 – Service station at Wilshire Boulevard and South New Hampshire Avenue, Los Angeles, CA, 1930.” Dick Whittington Photography Collection. USC Digital Library. USC Libraries Special Collections. http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/cdm/ref/collection/p15799coll170/id/16521.