HomeMy WebLinkAboutHistorical Notes 1975 - Compiled by Connie Bauer, Edited by CITY 'OF
H NTIN T N
BEACH
CALIFORNIA
HISTORICAL NOTES
Editors Note:
The historical information in this booklet was compiled for
three other publications by the City of Huntington Beach
Information Office, the booklet "Civic Center (May 30,
1974)," the dedication program "Huntington Central Park
(June 15, 1974)," and dedication program"Huntington Beach
Library & Cultural Resource Center (April 5, 1975)."Those
publications contain a full listing of sources as well as collec—
tions of photographs. Some of the events listed in this publi—
cation now are past and some persons discussed have died
since the original publications were printed. This booklet is
presented in this form in the hope that a maximum number
of Huntington Beach residents might learn more about the
colorful history of their community.
William G. Reed
September, 1975
CITY COUNCIL
Norma Brandel Gibbs,Mayor Harriett M.Wieder,Mayor Pro Tern
Councilmen
Alvin M. Coen Henry H. Duke
Ted W. Bartlett Jerry A.Matney
Donald D.Shipley
CITY STAFF
City Administrator
David D. Rowlands
Ip Executive Assistant
Floyd G. Belsito
Jo� S Civil Defense
NJ / Wilbur J. Lage
Economic Development
William J. Back
Public Information
William G. Reed
v I !i/I iv(7 O Departments
Elected:
Attorney
Don P. Bonfa
Clerk
c�i,
c.C� Alicia Wentworth
Treasurer
Warren G. Hall
Appointive:
{ Building
G
John F. Behrens
Finance
Frank B. Arguello
= Fire
Raymond C. Picard
j --- Harbors and Beaches
\ / ` Vincent G. Moorhouse
�. Library
Walter W.Johnson
Personnel
All ALA��V�-, �- Edward H. Thompson
Planning
Richard A. Harlow
Police
Earle W. Robitaille
Public Works
H. E. Hartge
Recreation and Parks
Norman L. Worthy
U NO T I O'nam
REACH
HISTORICAL [MOTES
Compiled by Connie Bauer
Edited by William G. Reed plo975
HUNTINGTON BEACH GREW
FROM SWAMPS TO
SEND MEN TO THE MOON
IN 65 YEARS
Huntington Beach is situated on a portion This large room was used for all city offices
of the old Las Bolsas Rancho. In the early and meetings of the board of trustees at a
1880's the rancho owner, Abel Stearns, sold monthly rental rate of $12. The first jail was
the swamp lands and retained the mesa. The constructed sometime that same year. It was a
last sale of the Stearns Rancho Company was single cell open metal cage which sat high on
on the mesa to Colonel Bob Northam who a platform of a tower that held.the first fire-
raised and sold barley to surrounding ranchers. bell above. This tower was built in an alley be-
tween Main and Third Streets in the block
behind Ocean Avenue.
GRADUAL GROWTH
SHELL BEACH During the next five years there was gradu-
Known as Shell Beach until 1901, the al growth and the city progressed slowly. A
little town became Pacific City after P.A. new salt water plunge and bathhouse was
Stanton purchased 40 acres, formed a syndi- built by the Huntington Beach Company on
cate and subdivided 20 acres on each side of the beach in 1910.
Main Street. It was Stanton's dream that this Fourth of July celebrations were held each
town would become the western Atlantic year and people flocked to the beaches by the
City. thousands, The event sponsored by the city is
In 1902 Stanton sold his interest to the still held today.
Huntington Beach Company, a group of busi- The fertile lands surrounding the town were
nessmen from Los Angeles. The town name used for the farming of sugar beets and celery.
was changed again to Huntington Beach in Due to the large crops of sugar beets and
1904, in honor of Henry E. Huntington who available rail service the Holly Sugar Compa-
sponsored the extension of the Pacific Electric ny built a factory in 1911. This plant, located
Railroad and brought the first "Red Cars" to in the backlands, brought many families from
town. Colorado to work in the new facility.
Huntington Beach became a center for Starting in 1911 and continuing over the
various religious groups and in 1905 a large next six years, the Huntington Beach Compa-
auditorium was built for revivals and con- ny deeded three parcels of land to the city
ventions. Camp grounds with rows of tents specifically for park use. Circle Park and Lake
surrounded the "tabernacle" and this area of Park the first, one full city block at 17th and
town became known as "Tent City". Orange Avenue (Recreation and Parks De-
SCHOOL DISTRICT BORN partment) and a triangular parcel at 5th and
On May 18, 1905 the Huntington Beach and Main Streets and Orange Avenue (Li-
Company sold the parcel of land located be- brary and Administration).
tween 5th and 6th Streets and Orange and BUILD NEW PIER
Pecan Avenues to the Pacific City School Dis- A $70,000 bond issue for construction of
trict for a school site. This land later became a concrete pier was approved by the voters
one of the city hall sites. The school district and in June 1914 the "longest, highest and
changed its name to go along with that of the and only solid concrete municipal pleasure
city and became the Huntington Beach School pier in the United States" was dedicated.
District in September 1905. Portions of this structure were destroyed by
The town of Huntington Beach was incor- storms over the years but reconstructed from
porated as a 6th class city on February 17, time to time. The pier has been the focal
1909. The election votes that were cast point of the beaches and the U.S. Surfing
showed 94 in favor and 25 against incorpora- Championships since they were conceived in
lion. The board of trustees (city council) was 1959.
elected and consisted of five members, with According to Delbert (Bud) Higgins, city
Ed Manning selected as chairman (mayor).The first city marshal, clerk, and treasurer historian and retired fire chief, the city found
were also elected. at that time. The geo- that by 1914 there was a need for additional
office space as the present city hall was not
graphic area, 3.57 square miles,had a popula adequate.
tion of 915 people. The first city hall was The board had appointed a committee to
located in the bank building on Main Street look into various locations and costs but
and Walnut Avenue. little was done as the financial situation was
poor and citizens were either questioning or bonus lots to purchasers of a set of their
complaining about the cost of city operations.' Students Reference Encyclopedias, 6 special
The Huntington Beach Company offered to edition of some ten or twelve volumes.) The
donate the north half of Block 416 across company negotiated a deal with the Hunting
from the Orange Avenue park site as a possi- ton Beach Company and purchased seven,
ble City Hall site. A provision requested by five acre tracts located two and one half miles
the company was that the building be con- from the beach in the northwest section of
strutted on the site within five years and the the Huntington Beach Company property.
cost not be less than $15,000. The matter was It subdivided each five acre tract into sixty
discussed at length during several meetings and lots resulting in 420 lots in all. These lots
in March 1914 the deed was accepted. How- located inland, on hillsides and in ravines,
ever, the half block parcel was never recorded were for the most part worthless.
and later was returned to the company but Housing became a problem and the major
the park site was retained and the deed re- companies built dormitories or camp build-
corded in 1917. ings to help house their employees. Hotels and
CITY MANAGER HIRED rooming houses resorted to renting one room
Soon after the trustee election of 1916, a to three people, each using the bed for eight
new city manager-engineer was hired. Along hours. Standard Oil leased the Evangeline
with the new position, the city, in the process Hotel from the landowner to house some of
of setting up a gas department, was badly their men. The landlady was pleased to do
in need of additional office space. so as the hotel had only one boarder, a Holly
The board of trustees bid on one of the Sugar employee, at the time.
bungalow classrooms that the school board Each owner of an encyclopedia lot received
auctioned off next to the old school at 5th an income of $100 a month. What appeared
and Orange,but lost out to the Wornen's Club. to have been a valueless gift of land resulted
Since the school had moved to a new and in fortunes of various amounts to its recipi-
larger facility there was also the school build- ents. The bonanza continued for several years.
ing available, but the city felt that it was too. OIL RUNS CITY
large and too costly to renovate and operate. During the twenties and up until the sixties
The school district tore the building down the city was run by oil interests and it was
according to the agreement and left a large common for the city to have four out of
hole where the basement once existed. The five people on the city governing board who
land stood vacant for several years and was dealt in oil.
used later as the county fairgrounds. From the time that oil was discovered the
At the August 11 board of trustees meeting city government, trying to improve the town,
in 1916, Doctor G. A. Shank offered to con- held many elections and adopted several reso-
struct a brick building on the south side of lutions and ordinances.
5th Street in the second block from Ocean Huntington Beach Company, after receiv-
Avenue for a city hall. The 50 by 50 foot ing the ownership of blocks 405 and 505 back
structure fronting on 5th Street with a 14 by from the school district deeded the land to
20 foot building in the rear for a jail was the city for the sum of $10 in gold coin. A
built. By combining all offices, jail and fire stipulation in the deed stated that the buyer
equipment at one location, the rental cost shall maintain and keep in good condition
was only $7 per month more than they were the property as a public park and for no other
paying at the time. This building was later purpose otherwise the title granted shall re-
purchased by the city for $12,000 with vert back to the original owner.
$2,000 down and the balance due over a Early in January 1921 the board of trustees
period of seven years. passed Resolution 359 which called for an
LITTLE BOARD BUSINESS election to secure voter approval of $150,000
The board of trustees held its first meeting in bonds for acquisition, construction and
in the new city hall on November 7, 1916. completion of a public assembly and conven-
The meeting had little business with the main tion hall. The election was held May 31 and
topic being a resolution to pave Ocean Ave- the measure passed but was declared invalid.
nue from 23rd Street to First Street. TENT HOTEL COMPLEX
The next few years were slow in the Iu the meantime Ordinance 229 accepted
growth of Huntington Beach. The Huntington the gift of the Huntington Beach Company
Beach Company operated a ranch raising feed and blocks 405 and 505 officially became
city property. Part of the park property was
grains on some of the 1400 acres it owned.
In 1918 it held public land auctions to stay used as a tent hotel complex for the accom-
out of debt. The Encyclopedia Britannica modation of persons unable to find housing.
Company came looking for the cheapest On July 5, 1921 a lease contract was signed
possible land to subdivide and give away as with R.E. Wright who constructed small
beaverboard houses and rented them for $30 which awarded the contract for the installa=
and $35 a month of which $8 a year went to tion of the ornamental street lights along
the city. Bungalet Court more commonly Main Street from Mansion Avenue to the
known as "Cardboard Alley" was located ocean. The contract with Pacific Engineering
on the triangular piece of land where the and Construction Company was for the sum
Horseshoe Clubhouse was later built. That of $28,887. The posts still adorn the street
facility later was used for courts and the city along with additional ones that have more
administration building. powerful lights at main intersections for
Then December 12, 1921 the board of safety purposes.
trustees passed Resolution 370 to call for According to information given by Higgins,
another election for City Hall bonds. The the 1933 earthquake damaged the city hall
election was to be held February 24, 1922. and auditorium to the degree that the city
The measures on the ballot were.for bonds offices had to be moved out into tents Bur-
in the amount of $60,000 for construction rounding the complex until the damage was
of a city hall, $10,000 for fire apparatus and repaired. Telephone lines were installed into
equipment,, $25,000 for a public assembly the tents and business carried on as usual for
and convention hall, and $20,000 for a wharf. about a month when the city engineer de-
The election was held and all of the measures clared the building structurally safe for oc-
except the wharf proposition passed by the
two-thirds vote required. cupancy.
As the city grew larger many changes and
This civic center complex consisted of
several buildings that were constructed over additions were made especially to the main
a period of years on a 3.23 acre plot of park building to accommodate the additional office
land located between Orange Avenue, Main, space needed.
Fifth and Sixth Streets After the fire department moved out and
CITY HALL BUILDING into its new facility, the chamber -of com-
The firm of Walker and Eisen was chosen merce moved in the right side of the build-
as the architects of the new city hall and audi- ing which .has since been occupied by the
torium and Clark Brothers Construction police department.
Company was awarded the general contract
on October 16, 1922.
The city hall was built on the old grammar AUDITORIUM
school site facing Orange Avenue between The Auditorium or Memorial Hall was origi-
Fifth and Sixth Streets. The main entrance nally built theater style in 1923 with the slant-
to the building, a large concrete stairway, led ed floor of seats facing the stage on the north
to the upper floor where most of the city end and the entrance on the south side.
offices were located. Historian Higgins explained that the city
The city clerk, financial offices and ad- found it had limited use and so in 1931 the
ministration were the first to move into the building was remodeled with a new floor and
main portion with the fire and police depart- the stage changed to the south end and the
ments locating later on in the lower level. entrance moved to the north end. The altera-
The gas company shared the lower level for lions made it possible for a variety of use
rental fee of $200 a month. such as dinners and special meetings.
The board of trustees held its first meeting In November 1930 the city executed a
in the new city hall on July 3, 1923. The lease with American Legion Post 133 for ex-
business was routine and mainly concerned clusive control, management and operation
the use of the auditorium. of the second floor of Memorial Hall in re-
The fire department moved into the build- turn for $5,000 in furnishings provided by the
ing in 1925 and for the first time since it was legion for the lobby or reception room. Hunt-
formed in 1909 had an adequate headquarters. tington Beach Memorial Hall was dedicated as
The department was staffed by volunteers and a monument to its men and women who
was under the supervision of the police served the United States in the armed forces
chief. Chief Tinsley was also pound master, during all of its wars.
ex-offi.cio tax and license collector until the As the years passed, the city needing more
department was reorganized. room for offices, relocated the administration
CIVIC CENTER FOR 51 YEARS and financial offices into the north end of the
This civic center .has been used for city auditorium and the council on the stage at
offices from 1923 until the present with many the south end for their meetings.
additions and alterations over the 51 years. A watchtower was installed on top of the
Many notable decisions were made by the hall during the war in order to sight.possible
board of trustees during this time, one of enemy planes off the coastline.
On Memorial Day 1949 a War Memorial was Mrs. Lylyan Mossinger was librarian at the
erected by the VFW Post 7368 at the south time. The attractive park site remains a fine
end of the hall honoring all those citizens setting for the building.
who gave their lives in all of the past wars. The new Library Information and Cultural
HORSESHOE CLUBHOUSE Resource Center designated by world famous
The Horseshoe Clubhouse was constructed architects Richard and Dion Neutra is located
in March 1931 for the sum of $3,625. Built in the Central City Park at Talbert Avenue
on the north east corner of Triangle Park, it and Goldenwest Street.
was used by several clubs for meetings until GROWING PAINS
1942. Horseshoe pits were located on the A total of 46 annexations took place from
right side of the Clubhouse. 1945 to 1972 increasing the original 3.57
During the war the American Red Cross square miles to the present 27.74 square miles.
set up headquarters in the building where they Two of the major annexations proved to be
gave first aid and volunteers rolled bandages. the turning point in residential development.
The Red Cross was asked to vacate in May The population grew from 11,000 in 1960
1950 and the Huntington Beach Recreation to well over 150,000 in 1974. Part of this
Department took over scheduling the building growth came about after the McDonnell
Zn
for use by several adult groups. Douglas plant located in Huntington Beach.
In the early sixties the clubhouse was re- During this decade Huntington Beach became
modeled and an addition was built to accom- the fastest growing city in the United States,
modate the municipal courts. growing 908 per cent. This changed the city's
Then in the late sixties the city needed image from the once lucrative oil city to a
more office space, so the city administration, struggling bedroom community.
personnel, clerk and attorney's offices were The need for more services was apparent.
relocated in the clubhouse. Citizens campaigned for more schools, parks
FIRE HOUSE and shopping areas. Newcomers got involved
The Fire Department was provided with a in community activities and demanded repre-
beautiful new station in 1939. The $20,000 sentation on City Council, commissions and
building located on the corner of Main, Pecan, boards. The residents rolled up their sleeves
and Fifth Streets was dedicated November and campaigned for the passage of bond .
15, 1939.The cost to the city was only $7,500 issues and tax over-rides for schools and parks.
for materials as the Federal Works Progress As a result, there are five school districts
Administration (WPA) constructed it. comprised of thirty-five elementary and three
The firebell which is mounted on a stand high schools at present.
in front of the building was the original bell
used in the early days of Huntington Beach.
Needing larger quarters the city bought the
old Edison Company building on Lake Street
and relocated the Fire Department and Equip-
ment there. The planning and building de-
partments were moved into the old fire house. FINE PARK SYSTEM
After a few years they needed more room Huntington Beach has one of the finest
and an annex and trailers were moved near park systems in the state. The 200 acre Hunt-
the building to house other divisions. ington Central Park is due to open this year
PUBLIC LIBRARY along with ten neighborhood parks to bring
When the current Main Street facility, the system up to 39 parks totaling nearly
consisting of 9,000 square feet, was completed 350 acres.
in 1951, it was celebrated for its size and Now the third largest city in Orange County
modern design. in both population and area the city's econo-
The Carnegie Library, 8th and Walnut mic development has grown with several new
Street, its predecessor, was half as big. The industrial plants attracted to the two industri-
1951 structure opened with 40,000 volumes al plants attracted to the two industrial zones.
supported by a budget of $4,000. This new employment means less travel time
The marble facade at the entrance was a to jobs for many local residents.
real attraction. The walls were pre-cast rein- Commercial and industrial building permits
forced concrete sections. The ceiling was have exceeded $40 million since 1968. Some
acoustical and the heating was provided by 600 new retail units have been opened during
radiant pipes embedded in the floor. The the same five-year period. All 1,800 stores in
large picture window at the north east end of the city amassed a total of $288,340,000 in
the building displayed various art work several sales of which the state returns one per cent of
times a year. all local sales back to the city.
NEW CIVIC CENTER BEGINS
With the city growing by leaps and bounds, which are integrated into one unified complex.
many of the offices were moved 'out of the A five-level administrative structure connect
existing Civic Center complex and still the to the separate two-story police/public safety
facilities were not adequate or structurally building and the single-level development
safe. In the 1960's the city conducted a series building with a common underground floor.
of studies investigating the departmental An amphitheater seating 1000 complete with
needs, site location, design criteria and finan- a lower plaza ties all four of the buildings to-
cial feasibility of the project before adopting gether. The complex is equipped with a pneu-
the program. matic tube system which provides inter-
Many locations were investigated and much communication of all departments.
controversy developed over the possible sites. COUNCIL CHAMBERS
Finally at the October 17, 1968 council City Council Chambers seats IS spectators
meeting the Main Street and Mansion Avenue in the main section, houses a lobby and meet-
location was approved. The 14.28 acre site ing rooms and related facilities in a special
directly across from the Huntington Beach structure that inter-connects with the other
High School was purchased from the Hunt- buildings by a lower level accessway. The
ington Beach Company. council chamber and adjoining assembly area.
In 1970 the Huntington Beach Public contain 10,222 square feet. The three meeting
Facilities Corporation was formed and in- rooms will seat 437 persons. The chamber also
corporated under the laws of the state as a has two projection screens and equipment for
nonprofit corporation for the purpose of use in viewing multi media presentations.
financing the construction of the new com-
plex and other public buildings for the city. ADMINISTRATION AND DEVELOPMENT
BUILDING
The five-story structure will house the pub-
lic service departments on the first floor level
CITY LEASES CENTER with management functions located on the
The facilities are to be leased to the city by upper levels so .as to leave the lower floors
the corporation and the revenues derived for easier public access.
from the lease payments will provide the The information desk, finance, treasurer,
funds for the principal and interest payments license, fire administration and public works
on the corporation's bonds. departments will be located off the main lobby
The corporation functions as an indepen- on the first floor of the development building.
dent organization and its policies are deter- The purchasing and print shop will be housed
mined by a five-member board of directors in the basement near the boiler and storage
with William D. Armstrong, chairman, and section. The computers and data processing
members, Larry L. Curran, Dr. Richard sections will share the basement of the devel-
Dudley Boyce, Robert N. Polly and Darrell opment building with the cafeteria.
E. Ward. The first floor of the administration build-
The Bank of America N.T. & S.A. has been ing is a partially open area with the main
appointed trustee. The trustee receives all of lobby and elevators connecting to the develop-
the bond proceeds and disburses bond moneys. ment building and upper floors.
The bonding company is Fireman's insur- The second floor which only covers the
ance Company of Newark, New Jersey. south end of the building houses the city
Construction cost is $6.6 million with the clerk's office and record section along with
principal amount of bonds totaling $11.1 mil- the project manager's office. In addition to
lion. Bond proceeds will also be used to reim- the elevators, an outside stairway leads to this
burse the city for a portion of the site costs. floor.
The building and community development
and planning departments occupy the third
NOTED ARCHITECT level of the building.
Kurt Meyer and Associates and Honnold, The fourth floor houses office of the City
Administrator, city attorney offices, eco-
Reibsamen and Rex, in joint venture, are the nomic and public information offices as well
architects for the Civic Center. Both firms as the personnel department.
have been recognized with many honors and The area for council offices is on the fifth
awards for many of their outstanding pro- floor.
jects. A helipad is located on the roof just below
General Contractor Zapata Diversified the top edge of the two-foot-thick walls.
Builders started the project February 1S,
1972• GOVERNMENT BY PEOPLE
FUTURE IN MIND Architect Meyer has termed the council
Planned to serve a population of 270,000 chambers, meeting rooms, training facilities
and built with future needs in mind, the and ceremonial plaza as "government by the
Civic Center consists of four major elements people" facilities.
By the end of 1973 the department had grown their favorite swimming and fishing holes and
to 169 sworn and 70 non-sworn full time em- created games that were typical of the area
ployes, serving a population of 145,000 with- and time.
in the 27 square miles.
Designed to grow with the department's COUNTY TERRITORY
needs, consideration was also given to tech-
nological advancements which will become
available in the future. The county territory, known more com-
On April 14, 1969, Space Utilization An- monly as Gospel Swamp because of the
alyzation, a division of Dillingham Corpora- numerous artisian wells, was a refuge for
tion, completed a study which included pre- wild birds, ducks, geese, coyotes and hogs.
sent and future office space requirements for The original settlers here had. to struggle
the city. with preparing the lands for cattle and crops.
To help in the planning of what was to be- Cow trails were the only roads that could be
come a model police facility, an architectural traveled and most of the land was under water
liaison officer was appointed to research and or in swamp marsh.
gather information so that-the best features The Santa Ana River which surrounded
could be incorporated into the new building. the mesa often joined the Freeman River dur-
One of the prime concerns was to create a in the h floods tied into the
structure which permitted the best use of g heavy an emptied
available area and create the greatest integrity ocean at Los Patos in Bolsa Chica.
between the worker and work space. The Freeman River formed by a large
underground spring, flowed through the lower
section of Huntington Central Park between
Slater and Talbert Avenues.
H U N TI N GT 0 N When the farmers tried to sink fence
CENTRAL PARK: posts to keep their stock confined or fence
in their property, water would spurt up in
fountains. If willow posts with seeping sap
EARLY DAYS were used, they usually would send out
sprouts and eventually grow into trees.
The land now known as Huntington Since wild celery grew abundantly here,
Beach has experienced several development D. E. Smeltzer, formerly of Michigan, intro-
phases. The Spanish/Mexican Rancho period duced cultivated celery and it became the
spanned froml784 to 1849, Early Statehood/ finest ever grown along the coast. Everyone
Grazing and Agriculture period from 1859 to went into the celery business and the farmers
1920, Oil Boom period from 1919 to 1922 formed a marketing organization. Golden West
and the Urban Expansion period from 1945 Celery Packing House was established in the
to the present. town of Smeltzer. (Edinger Avenue between
Indians inhabited the land previous to Beach Boulevard and Golden West Street).
any historical periods as indicated by the The farm land, floundering in water, had
artifacts and burial grounds found over the to be drained and so ditches were dug and a
years. large canal constructed to carry the excess
Huntington Beach was originally a por- water out to the ocean. Cattle sometimes
tion of the old Las Bolsas Ranch owned by would yet caught in the ditches and had to be
Abel Sterns until the 1880's. Sterns sold the rescued.
swamp lands and retained the mesa which was After some of the land was drained the
eventually developed by several landowners. farmers found the soil to be quite alkali and
Except for the highlands the surrounding sugar beets seemed to be the crop that would
land was swamp area and under water most of do well. As the word spread, farmers planted
the time. Until the lowlands were drained of large crops and several sugar factories were
the water the area was quite useless. built in the county. Many sugar plant workers
The land north and west of Clay Street came from Colorado to start the sugar in-
and west of Lake Street was considered dustry on the West Coast. Unfortunately.
county territory until the 1940's. Many small the crops lasted only a few years as a disease
towns and communities sprouted up in this wiped them out.
area but only a few remain today as'fnost have The farmers then planted lima beans,
been annexed to Huntington Beach and other chili peppers, corn, potatoes and other crops.
surrounding cities. Lima beans became such a successful crop
There were schools, but no parks or that the celery warehouse in Smeltzer was
recreation for the children in the area. Aside turned into a clearing house and processing
from games and play areas on the school plant for the syndicated growers of lima beans.
grounds kids made their own fun. They had
The bean crops were picked by large that could be raised were celery, potatoes
threshing machines over a two week period. and onions.
Many farm hands were brought in to work The Slaters raised celery, sugar beets
the fields during this period. This was the and later lima beans until 1.964 when Will
main crop of the area for mane years. sold the main portion of his land.
La Bolsa 'file Company, the oldest and Ruth Slater remembers the lima bean
still existing industry in Huntington Beach harvest during the forties and fifties as a time
today, manufactured the tiles the farmers used everyone looked forward to. They had several
to line the drainage ditches. thrashing machines that would come into the
Tfiee 200-acre central park and surround- area with large crews working them.
ing area was formerly home and farmland to The beans had to be completely dry in
many pioneer families. order for the harvesters to work properly, so
the crews usually couldn't start until noon
because of the morning clew. Mrs. Slater used
SLATER, FAMILY to load up the family car with food and go
into the fields to feed the workers. Even
William Slater born in 1.883 came to the though it was a hard working process and the
area when he was nine. He lived with the crews worked late into night, it was an excit-
Dennis McGuirk family until he was 14, at ing culmination of the crop season.
which [line lie went off to make his living In November 1965, Will Slater died leav-
and then returned to [lie area while in his ing the remaining land he farmed to his family.
twenties. Young 13111 followed in his father's footsteps
It. was then that Will decided he wanted and farmed land in Huntington Beach. Al-
to have his own land and raise crops. McGuirk though most of the original Slater land has
helped him acquire his first 20 acres of land been sold, Bill leases acreage north of the
which was located north of what is now park, across from the family home, where he
Slater Avenue between Golden West and still raises crops.
Edwards Streets.
In 1908, Will married Bonnie Clay, who PRESTON FAMILY
was the first. Springdale School teacher at the
time. They lived in a ranch house located on The Preston Family arrived in Hunting
the land that Will farmed, not far from the ton Beach (Wintersburg area) by wagon from
school. Pomona in December 1904. Lewis C. Preston
The Slaters had three children, Fred, and his wife Sarah purchased their first piece
June and Homer. 'Then in 1.919, Bonnie slid- of property on Hampshire and Wintersburg
denly died. Her girlhood friend Ruth, who Avenues (Beach Boulevard and Warner Ave-
came down from Redlands in .1913 to teach nue). They raised their large family of nine
school and was very close to the family, help- children on this rar►ch.
ed Will with the children. The following year Preston purchased several parcels of land
Will and Ruth were married. in the area over the years. As -a transplanted
Oregon man, lie came to California with the
Slater built the home on the hill (Goth- reputation of being a wealthy investor and
and Street) where he and Ruth raised the people wanting to sell their water-soaked land
children and added three more to the family, holdings flocked to his side.
Alice, Bettie and Bill. The family has lived in
the same home for over 50 years. He did invest in substantial holdings of
According to Ruth Slater, now 81, her which some were leased to farmers to raise
husband acquired a good portion of the land crops and the remaining land was farmed by
within of surrounding HUntington Central Preston and his sons.
Park from .1919 and over several years. One One of the parcels, 20 acres near Slater
of the largest parcels was purchased from the Avenue and Gothard Street purchased from
Bolsa Chiea Gun Club. The 80 acres surrounds Mr. Larter was full of peat, water and tulles.
[lie westerly portion of the park. Will Slater The eldest son, William, and a younger
owned land near what is now lluntingtorr brother worked to reclaim the land so that it
Lake, part of the old Preston property (Tele- could be farmed. They dug out peat and tried
phoe Company) and most of the properly to fill the swamp area with anything, includ-
on ei nther side of Slater Avenue between Goth- ing old car bodies and scrap. The junk finally
and and Edwards Streets. sank to the bottom still leaving water and peat
In the early days the land was so swampy on most of the land.
people thought that roads could never be The family helped build the Methodist
built. Before it was drained the only crops Church on Warner Avenue and Gothard
Street. They also started Sunday School class- Morse tried to raise crops on the ranch
es there and at the Baptist Church in the area. but had a very difficult time due to excessive
The eldest girl, Gertrude, married Mr. water seepage. They found the problem was
Rutherford and they both became mission- a large peat bog that went very deep under the
aries in India. Gertrude died at the mission surface soil. The farmer worked on a water
in India in 1911. drainage system by digging ditches and cutting
Before the parents' death in the 1920's,. the peat out with hay knives.
provisions were made that some of the proper- When the peat was removed, water would
ty be given to the American Baptist Home and spurt out of the ground in the high furrows.
Foreign Mission Society to help support the That's when it was discovered that the area
work Gertrude gave her life to. was fed with underground springs and the
In 1934, the Preston Institute was es- water pressure formed the spurting fountains
tablished at Jangoon Decca, Hyderabad, India. or artisian wells.
An impressive white structure, it houses the The horses had to wear peat shoes which
classrooms that are used to educate hundreds were ten-inch-long blocks of wood to fit over
of, children who pass through every day. the hoofs. Otherwise, they would sink into
William Preston married Mary Marshall in the soggy ground.
1915 and they raised two daughters, Ena and Finally, not able to dig out all the. peat,
Eva. He farmed the land and raised crops on the farmer plowed furrows and dropped
the old family raneh in 1Vintersburg. potatoes in the ditches. The only crops that
Mary Marshall Preston, 85, is the only they were successful in raising were potatoes
one of the family who still lives in Hunting- and onions. A small onion house was built
ton Beach. She remembers the peat lands and nearby where the onions were hung until they
recalls the crops that were grown, especially cured.
the huge potatoes. "One would feed the One of the larger springs on the west side
whole family," she states. Will Preston died of what is now Golden West: Street formed a
on Christmas Eve in .1962, but left a living stream. This stream originally called New
tribute to his heirs, The Preston Institute in River, flowed through the lowlands down to
India which the family still supports today. the ocean, the river was later called Freeman
River. As there were no roads at that time the
MORSE FAMILY local families used to take rowboats down to
the Gun Club located in the Bolsa Chica
Back in 1890, a man by the name of swamp lands.
Lanfield built a ranchouse on a hill overlook- The river was very deep in spots and Lite
ing the mesa where the I-lutitington Central children would plunge poles into the water to
Park now exists. try and mind the bottom but never succeeded.
George and Rozella Morse moved to the The Morse family moved further north of
ranch house where George farmed the surround- the area where George worked on the canal
ing land. It was there that the Horses raised which finally drained the lowlands of the
not only crops, but the first of their family water. Most of the families lived in tents dt.ur-
which eventually became ten children. ing this project.
Huntington Beach resident Ella 1Iay Meanwhile, the successors of the. peat
(Morse) Elliott, who will be 87 Ili August, lands (located on the Golden West/Talber•f.
remembers very little of this particular home property), finally decided to go into the peat
as she was only six at the time. fuel business. factorv. rows of small homes
and it -boarding house N�crc built on the land.
The eldest of the children, Ella May, re- George l�'lorse. knowing more about the
calls moving to several farms in-the Winters- land than anyone else, ntovrd his family back
burg area (then known as Santa Ana, now and began wort. in the prat business. Small
Huntington Beach). electric cars wrrr Installed at the lower level
Mrs. Elliott said that her parents were to haul Ihr prat Ili) Ili(, bill to the factory
poor and never owned any of the land or where II was ground alld rontparlyd. The firm
ranches but her father was a hard working
also built gas lanl.s lu Iry and convi rt the fee
man and farmed many ranches for the owners tile, conillosiliun tutu ,;Is. I;ut. Ihr process
in the area. was not successful, as Ihr peat contained too
In 1893 the Morses moved to a ranch much soil and �%as drferioraled.
on the Bill where the libraryis bell - con- Tlic business %%,as dormant for the next
a few years until Ihr Price Peat Works came
strutted. The property was owned by Richard
Harris of Santa Ana. The Morse family lived alonrn
g and prorrrded to mine the peat and
on this land for three or four years where Ann sell it to farmers for growing crops. The mass-
Morse Fickeisen, now 81, was born. ive excavation over the years was the reason
Talbert Lake was formed.
Ella May Morse Elliott remembers this the state bought the property for fill dirt
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area as acres of willows, tullys, and black- which was used to construct the San Diego
berry patches where wild hogs ran free. Her Freeway. At that time the hill was leveled and
family found many Indian artifacts such as changed the topography of the land to a great
arrowheads and tools which were simply toss- extent.
ed away.
There being no roads, the only way to The Huff family accumulated several
travel was by horse and buggy over the sheep Indian artifacts which have been preserved
and cattle trails. In order to reach the beaches over the years.
where the people enjoyed camping and bath-
ing was to go north toward Westminster GOTHARD FAMILY
around the swamp lands and then down to the George Gothard, a native of Illinois,
beaches. Seal Beach was the closest beach be- originally owned the land along what is now
cause the water and swamps made it imposs- Gothard Street midway between Slater and
ible to reach Shell Beach (Huntington Beach). Talbert Avenues.
Children of this area attended Ocean According to Vivian Gothard Schultz,
View School in the town called Smeltzer. grand-daughter, George and his wife Ellen pur-
Most either walked or went by horseback chased the land in the early 1890's. They
when the weather perinitted. raised a familyof nine Bert Elmer, Joe,
Ella May Morse was married to Pyrl W. George, Agnus, Mary, Ethel, Betty and Edwin.
Elliott in 1.902 at the age of 15. The Elliott's The early home was located on the mesa just
moved to Smel tzer on a 40-acre parcel owned above the peat bog area. Later a two-story
by her grandfather where they farmed the home was built near-by.
land.
HUFF FAMILY Grandfather George worked along with
county officials on the task of developing
In 1.901, Dr. Samuel G. Huff purchased roads throughout the area. The family farmed
the land and ranch house previously occupied the area and when they discovered the peat,
by the Morse family from Mr. Lanfair. they mined it and sold the fertile squares.
According to Arline Huff Howard, grand- Mrs. Schultz's father George Edgar mar-
daughter, Sam was the first country doctor in ried Opal Miller and moved to Wintersburg.
the area and practiced here from 1901 to In the 1930's the senior George died
1918. tie then returned to the east, but left and wife Ellen lived on the Gothard land with
his son Ralph C. Huff to oversee the ranch son Edwin until she sold the property to
and farm the land. Rollo McClellen.
Ralph farmed this 40-acres which was THE BEGINNING OF
located on the highest hill in the area. He RECREATION AND PARKS
raised tomatoes,corn and lima beans,chickens
and produced eggs to be sold. The original recreation and park system
The land was adorned with 30 English in the city consisted of three park sites, Lake
walnut Dees, had many artisian wells and its Park, 4 acres, Circle and Farquhar Park, 3
own drinking water wells. The wells were in acres, and Orange Avenue and 17th Street
use until 1940 when the salt seeped into the site, 2 acres.
walcr and the wells had to be abandoned. In the early years. this system coupled
lialph mcl and courted Alice Galliennc with eight miles of beach frontage provided
in Ibc area. who later hccalnc his wife anal to- adequate recreation facilities for the city's
gether they raised four daughters, Edith Mary, 3.57 square miles and 5.000 or so residents.
Agnes, May and Arline. Lake Park Clubhouse ivas built on the-
Lake Park land and'dcdicalcd :\pril 9, 1938.
The children were all raised on this About the same lime. the Pavalon was built
property. Since a lot of the surrounding land on the beach and dedicated in May 1.938.
was swampy and low, they were confined to These two recreation facilities were built with
the high hill area and forbidden to go near minimal material cosh to the city, as the labor
the back section as [here was a big dropoff was provided by federal Works Progress Ad
(which eventually became the gravel pit and ministration (WPA).
later the take). The original Boy Scout Cabin also located
in Lake Park was built in 1923. This was the
Ralph Huff farmed the property until only recreation facility the scouting groups
1927 when he went to work for the high had until 1,948.
school and worked there until 1949. The The Orange Avenue and 17th Street site.
family lived in the ranchouse until 1953 when situated in the center of the oil fields. had
only a ball field and playground until 1948 and industrial, it failed to provide future park
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when a building was moved on the land. The and recreational needs for the growing com-
recreation building, originally an Army Air munity.
Corps headquarters in Santa Ana, was pur- A proposed master plan of parks and
chased by the city for $20,000 and moved to recreation was drawn up and adopted by the
the site. Planning Commission after several hearings in
Shared primarily by scmiling groups, the November 1958.
building was in need of repair and maintenance The City Council adopted the master
which the volunteer groups could not provide. plan on December 1, .1958 accepting the
And so, in 1949 a recreation commission was school-park concept and guidelines for a land
established and a full-lime recreation depart- acquisition plan. The first park and recreation
ment formed to conducl organized recreation subdivision ordinance was passed by council
programs in the cilN . January 5, 1.959. This ordinance required the
subdivider to dedicate one acre of land per
RECREATION AND PLAYGROUND 100 lots (homes) or $50 per lot of the sub-
BONDS — 1938 division to go into a special fund for ac-
An election was held April 12, 1.938 quisition of land for park and recreational
which called for the sale of $100,000 in bonds purposes only. This ordinance was not: en-
-with interest at a rate not to exceed five per forceable, as a developer later filed suit
cent per year to be paid annually for the first against the city and won the court case.
year and semi-annually thereafter, for the ac- In April 1961, the Recreation Commis-
quisition, construction and completion of a Sion was increased from five to ten members
public park and playground equipment. so that each of the school districts would have
The election passed by the required two- representation on the board. This enabled the
thirds vote and the issuance of the bonds was city to have a closer relationship with school
authorized by the City Council on June 15, districts in working out joint use,of play-
1.938. The bonds were issued in denominations grounds on school property.
of $1,000 each at the interest rate of 2/2per In 1962 a citizens advisory committee
cent. Security-First National Bank of Los for parks recreation, cultural development
Angeles was awarded the sale of the bonds on and libraries was formed. Committee members
June 7, 1.938. were Jack Feehan, chairman, and members,
The money was used to purchase 1630 Dr. Donald Shipley, Esther Funk, Dr. Leon
feet of beach front for $85,000 and the re- DuBov, Bobbie Murphy, Helen Susman,
maining $15,000 was used for labor and im Virginia Banes and Ann Menees.
provements. An existing trailer park was ex- After a year's study, committee member
panded and restrooms, parking and custodian Dr. Donald Shipley, also a member of the
cottage were added. The city was receiving an Recreation Commission, submitted the com-
income of $7,000 to $10,000 a year from the mittee report to the city council.
park at the time and it was expected that the The report covered three areas, back-
figure would be increased to $25,000 when ground, analysis and recommendations. Some
the park was expanded. Of course, the trailer of Cite recommendations were to establish a
park was later removed and the beach strip recreation and parks commission, hire a di-
used for swimming, sunbathing and picnicing. rector of parks and recreation, establish it post-
Shortly after this purchase, the city of superintendent of parks and superintend-
bought the 49-acre strip of' land across the ent of recreation and aulhorize an up-to-dale
highway from I_.ake Slrecl. to Beach Boulevard master plan of' the cil\, to include specific
from the Mills Land and Water Company for Ilocations for park and recreation areas. In-
$25,000 which came oul of the general fund. eluded in Ibe report wcrr several specific.
Later this investment turned ()ill. to be the locations Thal were recommended park site's
bargain of the century, wilh the oily owning for acquisition and developn►enl.
almost 50 acres of land in au area where. land The report was rcccived bill no action
values are listed in the millions of dollars for was taken until a few Nears later.
as little as an acre or two. `['his property is A sub co►n►nitler bcadrd b\ Dr. Shipley
currently being used for a golf course, mobile was appointed by Ilie comicil to look inlo
home park and the Sheraton Beach Inn. the feasibility of comcrling abandoned
After several annexations and the large county dump sites into parks. After stu►Iving
growth period that took place in the 1960's the projects throughout the county the con►-
the city was operating with an ineffective mitlec presenlvd the resells with a recou►-
master plan. Even though the existing plan niendation Ilia( the cite purchase the d►imp
provided guidelines for residential, commercial site located al Golden \\est Street and
Talbert Avenue (which eventually was pur- jacent to elementary schools in all areas of the
chased and became the nucleus for Huntington city, construction of two community centers,
Central Park). acquisition and development for 6 community
In February 1963, $400,000 in accumu- parks, 10 to 40 acres, adjacent to high schools,'
lated park fees were released for park ac- and a regional type central city park of 147
quisition. The city planning department de- acres.
veloped an interim park guide with priority A citizen's committee was formed to.
lists of park site acquisition. promote the bond issues and sub-committees
One of the hardest working recreation were _appointed to handle specific tasks.
commissioners, Dr. Shipley was elected to Chairman William Schweickert and council
the City Council in April 1964. A conserva- liaison Jack Green and Jerry Matncy headed
tionist and a mover in the park development the combined library and park bond efforts.
program,Shipley made several proposals which Committee members were Roger Anderson,
were eventually accomplished with the help Charlene and Ralph Bauer, Connie and Ron
of many citizens and councils of the city. Bauer, Bill Brazney, Florence Boosey, Mel
The Recreation Department and Com- Cooper, Tom Cooper, Cris Cris, Esther Funk,
mission were changed to the Recreation and Lea Hood, Lynn Hottenstein, Walter Johnson,
Parks Department and Recreation and Parks Jay Mastroianni, Lynn "Doc" May, Bobbie
Commission in July 1965 with Norman Worthy Murphy, Jere Murphy, Katherine Reynolds;
as director. Leonard Shane, Dave Wickersham, George
The purpose of the commission was to Williams and Norm Worthy.
acquire and develop park sites within the city A professional public relations firm was
and the department to conduct program and hired by the committee for advice on campaign
maintenance of the parks. strategy. The firm conducted a community
On July 17, 1965, State Assembly Bill survey to find out how many people would
1150 was signed by the governor which pro- be willing to spend 50 ^ents to $1 to support
vided the cities and counties a means to pass a library and parks. They were very en-
ordinances to require the dedication of land, couraged when the results showed that seven
or payment of fees for park or recreational out of ten people were for the bonds.
purposes as a condition to the approval of a A speakers bureau was set up, coffee
final subdivision map. klatches offered, leaflets printed and distribut-
This law enabled the city to acquire ed, endorsements solicited and information
parks within subdivisions as they were con- given out.
strutted and so the master plan of parks, open The election held November 5 had 85
space, schools and recreation became an m- per cent voter turnout and nearly 62 per cent
tegral part of the city's total master plan. voted in favor of the bonds, but it was not
The plan was officially adopted by the the 2/3 majority needed.
City Council on August 1., 1.966, calling for PEOPLE FOR PARKS
seven high, eleven medium, and two low
priority neighborhood parks of 2%z to 3 acres, In January of the following year the sup-
a community park of 30 acres and a large portive citizens decided to try again, this
city-wide park of 65 acres with a nature area. time with a different approach. A new com-
In August, Landscape Architect Richard mittee was formed and named themselves
Bigler was hired to plan four parks, Schroeder, "People for Parks".
Greer, Irby and Wardlow. Later Murdy Park After analyzing the past campaign, they
was designed by the firm. decided on a whole new strategy. Knowing
As the city was growing so fast the that the majority of citizens were really in
Recreation and Parl: Commission made several favor of more parks the group proceeded to
recommendations that would improve the flood the community with information.
park progress and open space element, but it
soon became apparent that in order to ac-, On ,June 3, 1969, the campaign plan
complish the total aims and objectives of the paid off. The special park bond election was
master plan another large source of incotlte approved by the 20 per cent voter turnout
would be required. with a 74.3 per cent }'es vote, well over the
In July. I968. the commission recottt- required 2/3 majorit.v.
mended the council place a $6.000,000 park It started as a dream and soon became a
bond on the November ballot_ The reeom- reality. 'hwo or three of the few lakes
mendation was accepted along with an addi- if) Orange County encircled by a 200-acre
tional proposal for a 53.15 million library park cotnpleie with all types of recreation
bond. The bonds would provide development was certainly considered a dream hack in the
for 32 neighborhood parks. I to 10 acres ad- sixties.
In the spring of 1968 Mayor Donald purpose. The Park and Recreation Facility
Shipley and representatives of the Audubon Fund, made up mainly of subdivision fees, or
Society, Sierra Club and Nature Conservancy the recent park bond that was approved by
made a trip out to the Golden West Street and the voters would be used for the matching
Talbert Avenue undeveloped land area to in- funds.
vestigate the possibilities of acquiring the The city received an additional letter
natural area adjacent to the city-owned future from the government in July 1969 stating
park. They felt that the spring-fed pond would that the city's outstanding open space pro-
make an excellent addition. Shipley stated jest was being used as a model by HUD in
that he; was in favor of acquiring the land for connection with budget hearings to illustrate
a park but felt it should be left in its natural to Congress that these were the type of grant
state (except for stocking it with more fish) Applications it would like to receive.
for the pleasure of the children. He suggested As a result of the approval, the city be-
that the time to purchase the surrounding land gan negotiations with the property owners.
was now, while the area was undeveloped. Transactions took place Willi seven property
The unique site was one of the few such owners for their parcels of land. The other
places in west Orange County. With its fresh four owners, not agreeing with the appraisal
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water and natural vegetation, it was an out- price went into litigation with the city.
standing habitat for wildlife, especially water The first parcel of land, a one acre plot
fowl and birdlife. was purchased from James L. Crowther and
The location had been recommended by Frank D. Rinaldi for $27,500.
the Library Board as the number one site for
a new central library. The Recreation and The five others that followed were 20
Parks Commission believed that a large city acres purchased from the State of California
park should be established in the area. for $375,066, 3.34 acres from Cresenciano
The city owned the Talbert Park site, Hernandez for $110,000, 2.5 acres from Al
the land surrounding the city water tank and Gonzales for $5.9,000, a 2.5 acre parcel of
would soon own ten acres of Lake Huntington. Ocean View Mushroom Farm's land for
Little did the pioneers who farmed the $66,085, and 1.5 acres from Giles Wallace
land and fought the water and peat problems for $51,000.
think that this would eventually become a The next two parcels of land were in-
open space preserve for their heirs to.enjoy. volved in litigation .between the city and
Although the topographyof the land has property owners. The city offered Joe Ferm
changed some since t et n of the century, $192,400 for his 14.80 acreage, but the court
the geography has not. awarded $267,000 to the land owner. The
The lakes that exist today were formed same happened with the Inon Corporation for
its 1.0 acre parcel when the city offered
over the years from the fresh water springs
that seeped up to the surface after the peat $151,000 and the courts awarded the owner
and gravel were excavated from the land. $221,630.
After passing through several landowners, The ninth piece of property acquired was
and many diversified uses over the years, the a portion of land surrounding the Standard
Oil Tank Farm. The city negotiated with;
park lands finally were acquired by the city.
Floyd G. Belsito executive assistant to Standard Oil Company for 15.13 acres with a
Y house on the properly for $320,250.
the City Administrator, submitted the first
federal grant application for land acquisition The next two were 1.2.6 acres from the
in Huntington Central Park to the llepart state for $224,91.9 and .4 acres from Ruth
meat of Housing and Urban Development Yoder, for $14,970.
(HUD) on May 5, 1969. Kusayanagi Investment Company owned
The grant application covering Phase I 14 acres which the city acquired by negotia-
of the park contained 147 acres. The city al- ling a land exchange of 3.50 acres of surplus
ready owned 58'/2 acres in Phase .1 and was re- land owned by the city in another location.
questing the grant for the purchase of the re The next five acquisitions were 9.66
maining 88'/z acres. acres purchased from Harriett Wachs for
In Phase 1 of the park project, the city $219,204, .34 acres from First Western Rank
received approval on July 14, 1969, and the for $9,750, 1.33 acres from George Kachickas
contract agreement was executed on Seplem- for $43,483, 3.67 acres from Masao Nerio for
ber 18, 1969, by the federal government. The $122,000 and 5 acres from Union Oil Compa-
city received $688,612 from the; government ny for $138,600.
of which the city was required to match the The balance of the grant money received
slim out of a special fund set aside for this from the government was used to pay 50 per
cent of all administrative, appraisal and con The l.0 acre eucalyptus tree grove facing
sultant costs. Golden West Street was purchased from
Gladys Bealo for $225,000.
PHASE II A HUNTINGTON CENTRAL PARK
The land acquisition in Phase 11 A in- Located between Edwards and Gothard
volved 40 acres. This section of Central City Streets and Slater and Talbert Avenues, this
Park has not been developed as yet but will regional-type park in the heart of the city was
eventually be part of the park. acquired and developed with park bonds, sub-
The federal grant was applied for on division fees, HUD grants and county revenue
December 7,1970,in the amount of $607,898. sharing funds. The city currently owns 270
The application was approved on July 16, acres and has developed 167 acres.
1971, and contract executed on October 1.6, Architects for the park are Eckbo, Dean,
1971. Austin and Williams (EDAI1r, Inc.) of Los
Part of the area was used as it dump site Angeles, General Contractor Valley Crest
and the other as a gravel pit operation. Landscape, Inc. of Encino, is the builder.
Bruce Brothers Gravel Pit was purchased by The site contains two lakes, Lake Hunt-
[be city for $609,000 and included 20 acres. ington east of Edwards Street and Lake Tal-
I'he other 20 acres owned by Scilly. Miller bzn
ert, east of Golden West Street and a
Company has not been purchased but will he swamp area in the nature study section. The
r►egotiated al a later date. park is also the site of the $4 million Hunt-
Bruce Brothers gravel pit. will eventually ington Beach Central Library and Cultural
be developed,but plans have not been made as Center being designed by the architectural
yet. The 20-acre parcel has many great possi- firm of Richard and Dion Neutra of Los
bilitics and the ideas range anywhere front a Angeles.
kids' creative playground to a beautiful bo- The park is designed to be primarily pas-
tanical garden. sive, but will contain 30 acres of recreational
One suggestion has kids being allowed to fishing lakes with 12 acres planned for boat
build their own forts, dig holes and create rentals. Food and bicycle rentals will also be
their own playground with old tires, chunks available at two lakeside locations. A nature
of furniture, and lumber scraps under the center with air 18-acre nature area has been
supervision of playground leaders. The city set aside for ecologists and students to study
will eventually fill in the area and later de- the native habitat A park ranger- will be on
velop the site as a more formal park. hand to conduct guided tours.
Walks and paths wind in and out of the
DEVELOPMENT GRANTS open space areas through large groves of trees,
lush vegetation and wildlife. Although the pri-
Two grants for the development of mart' intent is to be a passive park, several
Phases I and lI of Central City Park were other activities that will be compatible are
applied for by the city. picnicking camping; ball playing and large
The first was submitted on May 19, group gatherings. Observation shelters, rest
1970, for .$172,1.53. This was approved on rooms arid restaurants are interspersed
July 8, and the contract executed on January throughout the park.
20, 1971. The park concessionaire,Prentice 'Taylor,
The second was submitted on February will provide visitors with various necessities
1, 1974, for .$145,704. It was approved on and services dispensed through either of the
July 16, and the contract executed on Sept two concession buildings. Row boats for row
ember 28. ing or just fishing, sabots for sailing, bicycles
The development grants totaled 12'/z per- including tandems and sting-rays, pedal-carts
cent of the estimated acquisition costs paid +rill"r surreys; fishing tackle and gear will be
for by the Federal Government and the re- available for rental. ]'here will he fast food
maining 87%z percent was paid for by the service, with sandwiches and drinks for sale
City out ofthe Park and Recreation funds. at both Tom's Place and Huck's Hangout. A
bail stand will stock fresh bait for the fisher-
PIIASI,; 111 man at both lakes.
While taking a stroll through the park
_�\pproximalcly 27% acres of land Sur- you might encounter a few mud hems, a
rounding Phases I and II of the part: has been couple of roosters, some guinea hens and
purchased by the city for future development pheasants along with the wild ducks and many
and may eventually become part of the park. species of birds.
The nature paths are designed so that the Beach a better place to live, by providing
people may casually wander through the park parks and open space for the residents.
at (heir ICISUre. You may not recognize all of The city has become the number one
the plants air(.] shrubs as most of them have city in park planning, acquisition and develop-
er own wild in the'area for many years. Some ment in Orange County and one of the top
of these are wild celery, wild radishes, sweet in the state.
clover; mustard, elderberries, burning nettles.
Of the 534 acres owned, under lease,
bull thistles and wild fennell among the weep- negotiation or joint-power agreement, the
ing willows. city now has 38 developed parks, a total of
The natural meadows on the 'Talbert 346 acres.
Lake side of the park are sprinkled with wild 'There are recreational facilities for pub-
flowers in the spring and purposely kept in its lie meetings, swimming, sports and programs
natural slate so that the fauna that have made for the; tiny tots through the senior citizens
this their home over the years may still feed including social, cultural, sports and super-
on the wild seed of the flora. vised playground activities.
The park will have benches in great Huntington Beach has a total of 60 miles
uurnbers, adequate picnic tables, 22,000 in bicycle trails planned, 60 miles of jogging
shrubs, 12,000 trees., nearly it mile of nature trails planned with 2'/z miles developed and 12
paths, three campground barbeques, nine miles of equestrain trails on the drawing
drinking fountains, three play areas, two foot boards ready for approval.
bridges and one bridge for maintenance vehi- Nine new neighborhood parks and one;
Iles and 1.8 major lighting units. community park were dedicated in April.
There will be six miles of paved paths Edison Communily Park received the State
for maintenance vehicles and planned are six Environmental Award for community park
major parking lots to accommodate park design and development from the California
patrons. Park and Recreation Society. Located across
The part: was designed for people to
from Edison High School and aeljaccnl to
visit even though it will be a home for wi!ci- Kotler Elementary= School, the 40 acre park
life. A family can spend the whole day in the was it former county dump silo and part of
park each with something to enjoy. Edison Compauy easemeul laird. A coins unily
Father and soar ,�ohmry might rent a boat cenlcr, group picnic shelters. amphitheater,
on Huntington bake and row out to their outdoor classroom, Iiglrlcd softhall fields,
favorite spot where they'll drop in fishing handball. Wilms. basketball. shuffleboard ,nrd
lines and catch a few fish. If he has forgotten vollcvball courts an, all located on the pail:
tackle and neglected to bring bait, he can al_ site.
ways stop at the fishing supply center on the DEPARTMENT OF
lake and rent or purchase his needs. RECREATION AND PARKS
Meanwhile, mother and the little one The Department of Recreation and Parks
will take it casual stroll over to the picnic was established in order to secure the bone
grounds and set up a table for lunch. On the fits accruing to the cityfrom the growth and
way they might slop at the playground arid development of land w thin the city•
give little one a swing or two. if mom brought
hot dogs or haruburgers to barbecue. she The goal and ubjective of the depart.-
might choose a table close to one of the out ment is to encourage, foster, facilitate, es-
door grills. tablish and maintann in a systemized program
Daughter Susie while bicvcliu� lhroualr of recreation on properties owned or con-
the park meets a friend and lhev�wanrt to trolled by the city or ou any other properties
With the consent o
share a coke but can't decide whether to go f the owners and authorities
to Tom's Place or Muck's Hangout. :after thereof.
lunch the whole family lakes a walk over to The director of recreation arid parks, sub-
jccl to prevailing administrative policy, its-
[lie Nature Center where they are given it stun( full responsibility for the mauao emenl
r complete tour.
and overall coordinaliou of all frurctious of it
EXISTING AND FUTURE (Ymerunrenlal agency concerned with the dc-
PARK PROGRAM vclopnicut and operation of a public recreation
and park service. The director supervises
A coordinated effort by the City Coun- divisions of city goveruinent pertaining to
elf, Recreation and Parks Department and rcri-caliou. park development and auN, olhcr-
Commission, Planning Department and Com- use the CilN- Council nurti- so direct. Ile also
mission, Design Review Board, and Environ- serves its secretary to the Recreation and Parks
mental Council have helped make Huntington Connnissiou without vole.
HUNTINGTON BEACH LIBRARY &
CULTURAL RESOURCE CENTER
_ From the beginning the Hunt-
BEGINNING ington Beach Public Library
has been an illustration of citizen concern for the community
and its future generations.
Shortly before the city was incorporated February, 1909,
the possibility of opening a library was brought to the atten-
tion of the Board of Trade by two citizens, R.W. Blodget and
Mrs. R.H. Lindgren.
Efforts of these two citizens aroused the interest of some
local organizations and the Huntington Beach Womens Club
called a mass meeting on February 15, 1909, to form a library
association.
LIBRARY ASSOCIATION
This meeting resulted in a temporary organization being
established and Mr. Blodget was asked to draw up a constitu-
tion and by-laws for the new organization. The first board of
trustees consisted of Mr. A.W. Everett, Mrs. C.D. Heartwell,
Mrs. Mary Manske, Miss Alma Wilson and Mr. A.L. Reed. Each
member of this board represented a different group or interest
in the city.
Once the Public Library Association was established,
friends in the community began giving books and other neces-
sary things and a home for the new library became a problem.
The board decided to buy an old office building which was to
be moved and Mr. Reed guaranteed payment of $50 for the
roofless building. Mr. S.E. Hearn agreed to allow the board to
move the building to a lot at the corner of Walnut Avenue and
Main Street for a nominal rent charge.
Community involvement in the new library was parti-
cularly noteworthy during this period. During the time the
citizens and the library trustees were busy readying the new
library the city was officially incorporated and a board of
trustees, the forerunner of today's city council, was elected.
COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT
On June 14, 1909, the president of the Public Library
Association, Mr. Everett, appeared before the city board and
offered to turn over the library to the city. The subsequent
agreement called for the city to set aside $300 for the im-
mediate use of the library, to assume its debts and to support I
the library with tax funds.
After Mr. Everett's appearance before the board, the city
governing body enacted Ordinance 18, which established a
public library. At this time the city's board chairman, Ed
Manning, appointed the first library board of trustees. Mem-
bers of the first board were Mr. Everett, president; Mrs. Lind-
gren, secretary; Mrs. Manske; Mrs. Blodget; and Ida Vincent.
FIRST LIBRARIAN
Shortly after the city acquired the new library, Elizabeth
Singleton and two assistant librarians from Long Beach came to
the city and cataloged the books free of charge. Their lunches
and traveling expenses were provided by the Library Board of
Trustees.
Edith Brown of Long Beach became the first city librarian
in July, 1909. At that time there were 338 volumes in the
library, 228 were gifts while 110 had been bought new. The
new library subscribed to twelve magazines and held hours of
10 a.m. to noon and 2 p.m. to 7 p.m.
In August, Mr. Hearn, owner of the property where the
library was located, notified the Library Board that the library
had to move by the end of the year. In January, 1911, the
library was moved to the intersection of Walnut Avenue and
3rd Street.
MANY IMPROVEMENTS
Miss Andrews was granted a leave of absence from her
librarian's job in March, 1911, and when she failed to return,
Bertha Proctor was permanently appointed to take her place
in May. At that time the librarian's salary was $35 per month.
During the next few months there were many improve-
ments to the library building and its surroundings but it was
becoming more apparent that the need for a permanent library
building was surfacing. The Huntington Beach Company offered
the city a site provided a $5,000 building was erected on the
property. The Library Board began looking for the means to
accomplish such an endeavor but the project was temporarily
abandoned when no funds could be located.
COUNCIL AIDS
After some discussion, the Library Board decided to pur-
chase four lots on the corner of Walnut Avenue and 8th Street
at a cost of $1900. The Library Board was able to come up with
all but $300, so the City Council provided the extra money and
by May, 1913, the city had acquired a site for the proposed
library.
Once the lots were clear and title was given to the city
the Library Board in cooperation with the City Council, the
Huntington Beach Women's Club and the Parent Teacher As-
sociation began gathering the necessary data to obtain a
Carnegie Library building.
CARNEGIE LIBRARY
In February, 1913, councilmen received notification of
the $10,000 grant and they notified the Library Board to begin
discussing plans for the new library.
In August, 1913, the Carnegie Corporation accepted the
plans and W. D. Lambert of Long Beach received the contract.
The cornerstone of the Carnegie Library was laid during a big
ceremony. The history of the city, the library, names of all
those who had served on the Library Board, city trustees,
pastors of the churches, members of the Board of Trade, names
of those who had served on the library staff, the name of each
child in the schools and a small American flag were enclosed in
the stone.
In a little over four years the number of volumes in the
library had risen from 328 volumes to 2800 volumes, 700 of
which were donated by residents of the city.
The main floor of the new Carnegie Library housed an
adult reading room, a children's department and the librarian's
office. The lecture room, a reference room and the furnace
room were located downstairs. The Chamber of Commerce was
located in the lecture room until 1921.
In order to be more responsive to community needs the
Library Board decided to establish a reading room at 205
Main Street. The reading room was open the same hours as
the main library, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. The reading room was used
for a three-year period from 1928 until August, 1931.
EARTHQUAKE DAMAGE
In March, 1933, the Carnegie Library suffered consider-
able damage in the great earthquake which struck the area.
The board authorized Catching Brothers Company to make the
necessary repairs to the Carnegie building.
1934 saw the library lose its librarian of 23 years when
Bertha Reynolds (formerly Proctor) resigned. She had seen the
library grow from the small building at Walnut Avenue and
3rd Street to the.Carnegie Building at Walnut Avenue and 8th
Street, and now the library was outgrowing that facility:
A preliminary set of plans was submitted to the Library
Board by Architects McClelland, McDonald, and Markwith of
Los Angeles, but the advent of World War 11 held up construc-
tion until 1949.
Margaret Kemp served as temporary librarian until Floyd
Jorgensen filled the job in 1937. When he left for the military,
Lylyan Mossinger took over and served until 1959.
On Friday, July 13, 1951, the Carnegie Library closed its
doors after almost 40 years of service. When the doors closed,
the library had a total of 42,000 volumes.
On Sunday, September 30, 1951, the new library building
at 525 Main Street was dedicated by Mayor Vernon Langen-
beck. The library was built at a cost of $140,000. Members of
the Library Board at the time of dedication were Pearl M.
Jones, president, Berta Tovatt, J. K. McDonald, Edith Vavra,
and G. H. Hasson.
The new Huntington Beach Library started its existence
in 1967 when the Librarian Walter Johnson created a program
citing the library needs for a growing community and the library
board selected the Talbert Avenue site. The City Council then
decided to place the library program on the ballot.
The issue failed on the election held on November 5, 1968.
With approximately 62 percent of the vote in favor of the
library, however, the council decided to fund the project
through the creation of a Public Facilities Corporation and
created a five-man corporation for this purpose.
The same body represented the city for the new Civic
Center. Members are Dr. Dudley Boyce, Darrell Ward, Robert
Polly, William Armstrong and Larry Curran.
HIRE NEUTRA
Library Board members, wanting a first hand view,
toured libraries in California that had recently been constructed
and were of similar size. The board developed a list of some 35
architects that they were interested in considering and eventu-
ally narrowed it down to 17 whom they invited in for interviews.
Of the 17, the firm of Richard & Dion Neutra was asked
to design the library. Shortly before the actual signing of the
agreement, Richard Neutra passed away while on tour and his
son, Dion,was retained to design the project.
The site had.been selected because of its centralized loca-
tion, both geographically and by population, and because of the
natural beauty surrounding it. A ten-acre plot of land was pur-
chased for the site, including part of Talbert Lake, and the
ground breaking ceremony took place on October 28, 1972.
SETTINGS The new library complex of
Huntington Beach is located
in the midst of a glorious 200-acre Central Park. We have, by all
technical means at our disposal, allowed the park to penetrate
and flow through the new library structure with the greatest
possible contact with nature.
Quite contrary to the limitations imposed by most urban
surroundings, this library site was originally chosen with a
conviction that views, both near and far, should dictate the
conceptual approach, and this was the challenge to be met by
the new design.
BOLD GLAZED PAVILION
In response to this challenge, I conceived a simple bold
glazed pavilion placed at a high point in the park, basically only
two stories in height, sheathed in reflective glass so as to mirror
the surrounding park landscape, as well as exclude undesirable
sun rays.
The idea was to place all readers in the outer portion of
the floor area and concentrate the bulk of the book collection
in a multi-tiered central core brilliantly illuminated and open
on all sides to the spacious interior, housing planting, water-
play, and a light, airy infusion of natural daylight, by sky-
lighting.
Concern for the welfare of users and inhabitants of the
designed environment has characterized the writings and works
of Richard and Dion Neutra over the past half-century. During
this long period of practice, it has been increasingly apparent
to us that for greatest comfort,man needs a dynamic and chang-
ing environment to enhance vitality, rather than only a purely
static, well-lighted air-conditioned space.
By collecting the book storage at the center of the build-
ing, a very compact arrangement has been achieved, saving
approximately 30 percent in the required floor area to be con-
sumed. The main entrance is located at the upper of two major
levels with a circular ramp leading to the lower floor and access
provided to all principal levels by means of ramps or an elevator.
The middle level of the stacks coincides with the main
level of the library, and other stack levels are only eight-feet
removed. Storage for about 70,000 volumes is provided on each
of the stack levels.
PLAN EXPANSION
Bearing in mind that some users of the ultimate "Cultural
Resource Complex" may initially have to be housed here, as
well as the advancing "state of the art" in the role of the library
in the community, we have planned for possible expansions in
several directions, anticipating as yet unforeseen developments
in library science. These additions have been planned to be
made according to a master plan in a logical and consistent
manner without detracting from the over-all simple, direct, im-
pressive basic structure.
The building is especially memorable at night, when the
stack area with its lighting forms the major source of illumina-
tion of the glazed pavilion sitting on the hill and reflected in
the foreground waters as seen from the west. The waters of
Talbert Lake are drawn closer to the complex by the use of
informal ponds, streams and water-filled roofs which infuse
the entire park area with the magic reflective qualities of
nature's horizontal mirrors.
READER SERVICES Library Huntingto offers Beach
ca
number of special services, both information services and equip-
ment services. Several information services stem from the co-
operative efforts of all of the libraries in Orange County. Two
cooperative units, the Santiago Library System (SLS) and Li-
braries of Orange County Network (LOCNET) enable the library
to provide expanded book borrowing privileges.
COOPERATIVE SERVICES
Through these two units, the Huntington Beach Library
card is honored in almost every library in Orange County and
the Reference Department has access to a state-funded reference
center, the Southern California Answering Network (SCAN).
These cooperatives also provide quick and easy access to
books not owned by Huntington Beach but available through-
out the county or even the state by using a Western Union TAX
communication system to speed the inter-library loan borrowing.
The library also has a number of its own special services.
The Orange County Genealogical Society collection is housed
in the Huntington Beach Library. A Community Resource file
contains the names of local specialists who can and do aid the
library in searching for information in their special fields.
A paperback exchange operates in all the branches of the
library. Plans are being made for a community referral service
to aid people in contacting the agencies and finding the services
they need to help with personal or family problems.
In addition to special information services, the library also
has special equipment it makes available to the public. Four
different types of micro-print readers are available: one for both
16mm and 35mm micro-film; and three for various reductions
of micro-fiche, one of which may be taken home. An Optiscope,
a machine which magnifies normal print for people with vision
problems, is available at the Central Library. Xerox machines
and electric typewriters are also available.
DOZENS OF SOURCES
Dozens of pleasure and information sources are available
through the Huntington Beach Public Library and Cultural
Resource Center.
Books — Fiction or non-fiction collection compares with
other libraries - college or city. Periodicals — over 750 titles,
some dating back to the 19th century. Government Documents.
Foreign Language Books — French, German, Spanish. News-
papers — among them the New York Times since 1851, the
Huntington Beach News since 1905.
A pamphlet file containing drawers of information on the
city of Huntington Beach and the County of Orange.
Phone Books — nationwide. College Catalogs. Library of
American Civilization —an Encyclopedia Britannica micro-fiche
collection of important writings and sources of America n.history.
Play-scripts— royalty-free.A Job Board— containing jobs offer-
ed on local, county, and state levels. Large Print Books — for the
visually impaired.
REFERENCE DEPARTMENT
The Reference Department,consisting of four professional
librarians, the information service center of the library, seeks to
provide information to all the citizens of Huntington Beach
whenever they need it.
CHILDREN'S SERVICESresourceThe 's
'Icdenter
provides a warm, pleasant and stimulating atmosphere of varied
materials which encourage the child to expand his knowledge
of the world around him.
Many avenues of exploration will be open to him, including
reading, educational toys, multi-media items, and special learn-
ing materials normally not found in a public library. In the re-
source center children will be free to read, explore, and take
home any of the stimulating learning and recreational materials
provided, such as microscopes.
The natural curiosity of a child and his freedom of ex-
pression are encouraged through non-restrictive loan policies.
The center's early childhood education area contains over
3,000 picture books and many easy readers to delight young
children, parents and pre-school teachers.
A conversation pit in the area will be used for stories told
to groups on tour of the library such as Campfire Girls or Boy
Scout troops.
STORY HOURS
Weekly elementary and pre-school story sessions will be
held in the Balboa Room, which overlooks the library's unique
fountain and planter ramp. The Balboa Room which contains a
motorized screen will also be used for library orientation of
school classes and may also be reserved for public meetings.
Among the items available for loan from the children's re-
source center are books, cassettes, records, filmstrips, encyclo-
pedias, toys and games, flannel board stories, picture stories,
pamphlets and magazines.
Reading and personal enrichment for children through 6th
► grade are encouraged through the center's special programs.
Everyone is invited to the weekly pre-school and elementary
level story hours, summer reading and film programs, and special
events such as the annual Winnie-the-Pooh and Laura Ingalls
Wilder parties.
PARENTS COLLECTION
A special collection designed especially for parents is avail-
able in the children's resource center. They will find books in
the "How To Parent" collection to assist them with child rear-
ing, adoption, sibling rivalry, explaining the facts. of life and
other things.
Young adults will find the Youth Activities Room a place
of fun and recreation during a study break. Pool tables, ping
pong, records, games and paperbacks will invite them into the
new library. Once there, they will also find many fiction books
labeled "YP" in the adult collection appropriate to their in-
terests.
of
MEDIA SERVICES the e Hundtingt nnter Bea h
Public Library has grown in the past few years as the demand
for audio-visual materials has increased.
Included within the center's current collection are 16mm,
8mm and super 8mm films, film loops, film strips, slides, cas-
settes and records. Projectors and cassette units are available on
a loan basis to city residents for a minimum fee.
As a member of two film circuits, the Media Center is able
to maintain freshness in the 16mm film collection. Each month
the center receives about 35 films from the Public Library
Film Circuit and another 40 through the Santiago Library
System which stay in the center for two months.
In keeping with the center's policy of providing the fullest
amount of patron service, a number of new media facilities
have been provided at the new library.
FILM AND TV VIEWING
Motorized screens are located in many areas of the new
library. These areas can be scheduled for group showings of the
center's audio-visual materials. A preview room is also available
for pre-screening any of the films from the center's vast collec-
tion.
FM stereo listening posts are located on all reading levels of
the new library. The listening posts are located in carrels which
are identified by a switch box on top. Quality headsets may be
checked out at the Media Center desk.
The entire library has been wired for video reception.
Television monitors and cassette units are located near the
Media Center. Pre-recorded video programs may be checked
out at the center's desk.
FILM COOPERATIVE
The Media Center is also a member of a film cooperative
which includes Huntington Beach Union High School District,
Westminster School District and Ocean View School District.
The collection includes over 2,000 16mm films which are de-
livered to 54 schools daily and are also available for check out
from the center. The wide variety of subjects covered by the
films adds to their versatility. Film catalogs of this collection
may be purchased for a small fee.
FRIENDS Friends of the Huntington Beach Public
Library was organized in July 1971 after
considerable organizing effort by Mrs. Charlene Bauer and
Mrs. Rhoda Martyn as co-chairmen.
SUPPORT LIBRARY
Its primary purpose is to support and cooperate with the
library in developing library services and facilities. The Friends
have enriched library resources through membership fees and
other fund-raising activities.
The initial advisory board consisted of Jan Mason, mem-
bership; Marie Sheets, projects; Connie Johnson, publicity;and
Margaret Force, bulletin.
First set of officers were Olga Wrobel, president; Rhoda
Martyn, vice president; Marie Bottoms, secretary; and Jean
Warden, treasurer.
OFFER SERVICES
The new Library, Information and Cultural Resources
Center will provide a room where Friends will offer best sellers
and art reproductions for a small rental fee. Proceeds from these
rentals will be used to diversify the range of operation of this
facility.
In recent years Friends has sponsored museum tours, book
sales, book-related speakers and holiday wassail parties where
many local authors were guests.
j
Brief History of the
Huntington Beach Oil Fields
Compiled by Herbert A. Day
former Oil Field Superintendent
DISCOVERY WELL AND 3455 feet, producing 1300 barrels of 21
GOLDENWEST GARFIELD AREA gravity oil per day. "Ashton" No. 1 was
The Huntington Beach Oil Field is located located approximately one-half mile northeast
in Orange County approximately 15 miles of "Bolsa Chica" No. 1.
southeast of the City of Long Beach along the A flurry of drilling followed, which exten-
Pacific Coast Highway. It is the fourth largest ded into the Goldenwest and Garfield area.
California field in cumulative production hav This was the first of the closely spaced wells
ing produced 792,713,294 barrels of oil as of in the Huntington Beach Field. After the
December 31, 1967. In the year 1967 the pro- drilling of 100 wells by various companies,
duction totaled 20,713,294 barrels of oil. and a total production of 119,000 barrels per
A brief history encompassing the time of day, drilling activity declined in this area by
the discovery well through the latest important
December 1923.
discovery within the field follows shortly BARLEY FIELD AREA
hereafter.
Gratitude is in order to the State of Califor- The next area of drilling activity, known
nia, Division of Oil and Gas, and to local then as the Barley Field area and lying
operators and their employees who took part northwest of 23rd Street (Goldenwest Street)
in the development of the Huntington Beach between Pacific Coast Highway and Clay
Oil Field,for their invaluable information. Street, was developed slowly by the Standard
A series of discoveries, often in widely Oil Company of California between 1922 and
separated areas, led to the present day 1926.
Huntington Beach Oil Field. Each discovery
has been followed by a flurry in drilling TOWNLOT AREA
activity, most of which, had little or no con-
trols. According to George Hazenbush and In April 1926, drilling restrictions were
Dennis AlleW oil was first discovered on May lifted in the Townlot area between 17th Street
24, 1920, when Standard Oil Company of and 23rd Street(Goldenwest Street)which led
California completed well"Huntington A" No. to the discovery in July 1926, of the Jones
1 at a depth of 2199 feet, producing 45 barrels sand by the Superior Oil Company when they
per day of 14 gravity oil. completed "Jones" No. 1 at 3063 feet flowing
This same well was subsequently deepened at the rate of 472 barrels of 17 gravity oil per
to 2,381 feet and produced 70 barrels of oil day. "Jones" No. 1 is located at the corner of
per day after deepening. However, and actor- 22nd Street and Pacific Coast Highway. Accor-
ding to the same authors, it caused little ding to Hazenbush and Allen2 this interval was
excitement because of the low rate of pro- probably the Stray sand, which is actually
duction. about 350 feet above what is now commonly
In November of the same year, Standard Oil called the Jones sand.
Company of California drilled what is generally
considered the Huntington Beach discovery TOWNLOT AREA—LOWER OR MAIN ZONE
well. This "Bolsa Chica" No. 1 located near In September 1926, Wilshire Oil Company
Reservoir Hill, was completed at a depth of discovered what was called the Lower or Main
zone in the Townlot area, when they deepened agreements between the State Lands Commis-
"H.B." No. 1 at the corner of 22nd Street and sion and the operators producing from the
Walnut Avenue to a depth of 4074 feet, State tidelands.
flowing 700 barrels per day of 24.6 gravity oil. In March 1938, the Legislature passed the
Intensive drilling activity followed, which led State Lands Act and a new and far more
to some of the closest well spacing in California orderly stage of offshore development fol-
history. Many wells were drilled on 25 x 117%z lowed. The first successful bidder on a tide-
foot lots with production reaching a maximum land parcel offered by the newly created State
of 63,400 barrels of oil per day from 78 wells Lands Commission was Southwest Exploration
in the area. Company, now Signal Companies, Inc.
Their lease lies between the southerly
TOWNLOT AREA—TAR(BOLSA) ZONE prolongation of 23rd Street (Goldenwest) on
the Southeast to a parallel line about one and
During the development of the Lower or one-quarter miles to the northwest and ex-
Main zone in the Townlot area, shallow oil tends oceanward for one mile beyond the i
sands were noticed while drilling some of the ordinary highwater mark.Orderly development
wells. In November 1926, McKeon Drilling began in 1938 with from 6 to 50 wells being
Company, Inc. completed "Dubois" No. 1 at drilled each year.
1952 feet, producing 200 barrels of 14 gravity
oil per day. This completion led to another
mild flurry of activity and a drilling campaign
to develop the Tar (Bolsa) sands in the Town
There was an average of 452 producing
lot area. wells in 1967 averaging approximately 60
TIDELANDS barrels of oil per day for each well. The Main
zone is the principal producing interval, pro-
The offshore pools were discovered in May ducing nearly three times as much oil as the
1930, when the Superior Oil Company Jones sand from slightly over twice the number
redrilled "Babbit" No. I from the Townlot of producing wells.5
area to an interval of between 3838 and 4313
feet producing 345 barrels of 26 gravity oil FIVE POINTS AREA
per day. The reported production had in- Development of the Five Points area began
creased to 1450 barrels per day in August of in April 1936, when Twentieth Century Oil
the same year. Although this was considered Company completed "Schaaf-Bruce" No. 1
unusual production from the Townlot area, it on the south side of Ellis Avenue, east of
wasn't determined until later that the well was Beach Boulevard. Completed in the upper
bottomed in what was to be known later as
Ashton zone, low production rates and a thin
the Tideland pool.
This well, located on 21st Street between zone kept activity in this area to a minimum
Walnut Avenue and Pacific Coast Highway,is and a major book failed to materialize.
generally considered to be the discovery well SIGNAL—BOLSA LEASE
of the offshore pool.3This fact, however, was
not generally known until Wilshire Oil Com- The year 1940 saw Signal Companies, Inc.
pany completed ` H.B." No. 15, on Pacific developing the Signal-Bolsa lease which was an
Coast Highway between 18th and 19th Streets, offset to the Standard-Bolsa lease. Although a
in July 1933, flowing at the daily rate of productive area, its development was orderly
approximately 4800 barrels of 26 gravity oil. and uneventful from a historical standpoint.
The horizontal drift for this well as eventually
determined to be in excess of 1400 feet off- TOWNLOT AREA—UPPER TAR(Middle Bolsa)
shore from the Pacific Coast Highway.4
In 1946 and 1947 interest was renewed in
Other operators, including McVicar and
Rood, developers of the "whipstock" (a tool the Tar zone (Bolsa of the Townlot area. O.L.
used for directional drilling), soon began Bolton drilled "Mize" No. 1, at the corner of
directing wells offshore and completing them 20th Street and Orange Avenue, in April,
in the tideland pool. 1947. Completed in the upper Tar (middle
This led to a temporary injunction being Bolsa) zone, this well initially produced 60
filed in September 1933, by the State of barrels of 13.5 gravity oil per day. This
California against one operator which carried produced another flurry of drilling, resulting
an order that a directional survey be made of in 136 new Tar zone wells 1949. Initial
the well. This survey proved beyond question production of these wells varied between 10
that the well was bottomed under State tide- and 100 barrels of 12.5 to 14 gravity oil per
lands and brought about sliding scale royalty day.
SOUTHEASTERLY EXTENSION OF Jack Crawford, et at, next drilled and com-
TOWNLOT AREA pleted the first Jones sand producer in this
area. The well, `Huntington" No. 5 was
Jack Crawford is generally credited with the drilled in the vicinity of First and Olive Streets
discovery of the Southwesterly extension of and started flowing January 1, 1955, at an
the Townlot area, however, A. L. Hunter, W. initial rate of 736 barrels per day of 20.8
C. Bradford and D. R. Allen state that it was gravity oil. Now the boom was on in earnest!
Clark C. Peterson's redrilling of the abandoned In rapid succession, 216 wells were drilled,
well `'Brower" No. 1 in August 1953, near the of which only 6 were non-productive. How-
corner of Huntington Avenue and Chicago ever, because of the close spacing and rapid
Street, which initiated the latest drilling flurry withdrawal of the oil and gas, production per
in the Huntinon Beach Field. well declined from approximately 500 barrels
This wellht
owed at an initial rate of 500 per day to 15 barrels per day in less than a
barrels of gravity oil per day for 3 days, but year.
production declined rapidly leading to the
eventual abandonment of the well. The activity (1) Hazenbush and Allen, "Huntington Beach
following completion of this well resulted in Oil Field, History, California Oil Fields," Vol.
Jack Crawford, et at, drilling "Huntington" 44, No. 1 (1958)
No. 1 at the northeast corner of Atlanta Street (2) Ibid
and Huntington Avenue. "Huntington" No. 1 (3) Murray-Aaron, Eugene "Tideland Pools of
was completed on March 8, 1954 with an Huntington Beach" Division of Oil and Gas
initial production of 200 barrels of 25.8 "Summary of Operations — California Oil
gravity crude per day. Fields," Vol. 33, No. 1 (1947)
The latest flurry within the Huntington (4) Ibid
Beach Field was beginning'. Encouraged by (5) Frame, Ralph G., "California Offshore
this success, Huntington Syndicate drilled and Petroleum Development,California Oil Fields,"
completed wells "Huntington Syndicate" No. Vol. 46, No. 2 (1960)
2 and No.3 to the west in the same Main Zone, (6) A.L. Hunter, W.C. Bradford and D.R.
each producing at the rate of 150 barrels of Allen—"Huntington Beach Oil Field,Southeast
26 gravity oil per day. Extension of Townlot Area California Oil
Fields," Vol. 41, No. 1 (1955)
A Publication Of The City Of Huntington Beach
Executive Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . William G. Reed
Research Assistant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Connie Bauer
Assistant To The Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Louise Woodruff
Chief Photographer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tim Flanagan
Historical Consultant • . . . . . • . . . • . . • • . Delbert G. Higgins
RESEARCH ASSISTANCE
Arline Huff Howard Mary Preston
Ruth Slater Eva Preston Reamer
Ella May Elliott Vivian Gothard Schultz
Dr.Donald Shipley Marie Graser
Norman Worthy Tom Bushard
Floyd G.Belsito
Reference: My 60 Years in California
By T.B.Talbert
I