Old Los Angeles

A kind person posted this photo of the Civic Center of Los Angeles on Facebook. It is a view of Hill Street near Temple Street. The photo was taken around 1926 to 1928.

The Hall of Justice is plainly visible and City Hall at this point was only framework:

Here's a shot of City Hall under construction in 1927:

Here's a similar view of the Civic Center to the one at top that was taken around 1948 when the Hollywood Freeway was being built:

L.A. County Hall of Justice Restoration

The Hall of Justice in the Los Angeles Civic Center is currently being renovated with completion scheduled for the end of this year.

Above, the dark Hall of Justice in a night shot from 2009. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

The building had been sitting idle since the January 1994 Northridge Earthquake.

The interior of the 1925 building was gutted and sitting for years in preparation of restoration work. The main snag was funding the restoration. The ornate marble walls and other fixtures were stacked on pallets and stored in the basement (which, at one time housed the L.A. County Coroner's office).

Above, the marble walls were stacked in the basement in this photo from 2009. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Back in 2008-09, I worked for a security company who was contracted to provide security for the idle building. On a few occasions, I went inside the empty building and took some photos.

The interior shots were primarily taken in the basement of the Hall of Justice. It was eerie inside. It reminded me of Dracula's castle or Carfax Abbey in the 1931 Dracula that starred Bela Lugosi. The only thing missing to complete the picture in the basement were coffins.

Above, the basement of the Hall of Justice in 2009. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Funding was finally approved in and restoration began in 2012.

Clark Construction is currently renovating the Hall of Justice and a gigantic hole was dug for the construction of a new parking structure. The exterior of the Hall of Justice has been restored and currently the building of offices inside the building is taking place.

Above, fixtures and marble slabs in the basement in 2009. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Clark Construction has a website on the project: http://www.clarkhallofjustice.com/. It has detailed information on the project and many photographs of the renovation's progress. From the photos at the website, you can see that much has been accomplished since the work started two years ago.

Hall of Justice Renovation/Restoration Project

Above, the Hall of Justice in 2008.  Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Years ago, I went inside the stripped and gutted Los Angeles County Hall of Justice.

There was nothing inside but bare concrete walls and floors. Marble tiles, that once made up the ornate walls were all stacked on pallets in the basement. The basement once housed the County Coroner's facilities. Celebrities including Marilyn Monroe, Sen. Robert F. Kennedy and George Reeves were autopsied there.

Above, the bare basement of the Hall of Justice in 2008.  The
County Coroner once occupied this area.  Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Thankfully, funding had been allocated and the project to restore the Hall of Justice is proceeding. The project is supposed to be completed next year.

Here's the website of the contractor who is handling the restoration.

Views of Los Angeles: 1951 and 2009

Quick! You'll have to check this out before the Los Angeles Times dumps it! The link below will take you to a photo story on what L.A. looked like in 1951 (when the first season of the Adventures of Superman was filmed) and comparison photos (from the same vantage point) of that L.A. looks like today. You will see the Hall of Justice then and now, among other landmarks.

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-then-now-pictures-html,0,6274618.htmlstory

Views of Los Angeles: 1951 and 2009

Superman Over Los Angeles

Superman Over Los Angeles

by Armand Vaquer

Over at The Adventures Continue website for devotees of the Adventures of Superman, starring George Reeves, Lou Koza posted a photo (above) of Superman (George) flying over Metropolis (i.e., Los Angeles) from the 1953 season in his article entitled, 2009, A Year In Review.

In the photo, there are many buildings in the background below Superman. There are three distinct buildings in the photo that are still standing.

Below is the photo Lou Koza posted. I added letters on the three buildings to point them out (click on photo to see larger):



A. This is the Los Angeles City Hall. Built in 1928, this was once the tallest building in Los Angeles. It also served as the Daily Planet Building from 1953 to 1957.

B. This is the U.S. Federal Court House. This building appeared in several episodes of the Adventures of Superman. It is still in use as a federal courthouse. However, a new federal courthouse is in the planning stages for Los Angeles.

C. This is the Los Angeles County Hall of Justice. This building was built in 1925 and appeared in many episodes of Perry Mason. This building once housed the sheriff's office, county coroner, county jail, county superior court and the district attorney. George Reeves was just one of several stars who were autopsied in this building when the coroner was located there. The County is planning to renovate the building and a feasibility study currently being undertaken.

L.A. COUNTY HALL OF JUSTICE TO BE DEMOLISHED?

Above, the Hall of Justice sits next to the uncompleted Hollywood Freeway in the late 1940s.

L.A. COUNTY HALL OF JUSTICE TO BE DEMOLISHED?

by Armand Vaquer

The Los Angeles County Hall of Justice, an ornate building that has been sitting vacant in Downtown Los Angeles for fifteen years, is allegedly to be demolished.

The building once housed the county courts, jail, district attorney, sheriff's office and county coroner. Many celebrities were autopsied there including Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, Marilyn Monroe and George Reeves. Charles Manson and his family of killers were housed there while on trial.

Tonight, workers with the Asplund company, contractors for the L.A. Department of Water and Power, told a co-worker and I that they were cutting off electricity to the L.A. County Hall of Justice in preparation for the building to be demolished by explosives. They did not specify when this is to take place.

This is contrary to recent reports that the Board of Supervisors ordered a study on restoring the building.

No lights were on inside the building, although we can hear the buzz from a generator somewhere.

The Hall of Justice was built in 1925 and it has sat unoccupied for earthquake retrofitting since the 1994 Northridge Earthquake. The interior is completely gutted and it has been slated to become the headquarters of the Los Angeles County Sheriff.

Millions have been spent so far on the building, so it seems peculiar that it would be set for demolition after these expenditures.

According a December 1 motion by the Board of Supervisors, the building is structurally sound. It was said that current lower construction costs could also reduce the price of the restoration project by about 20% or more. Also, low financing rates and available federal funds could make the project feasible, according to a Board spokesman.

The Chief Executive Officer of L.A. County is to report back to the Board within 45 days on the cost of the project along with a cost-comparison to detail the savings of transferring departments back to the building.

Further investigation will be conducted. Someone is either misinformed or maybe a decision has already been reached by the Board.

The Hall of Justice is a great building that deserves to be restored to its original splendor.

Haunted Hall of Justice?

Tonight, I got together with a couple of my co-workers at the Los Angeles County Hall of Justice. It was not too long before the end of our shift, so we played around with our cameras to pass the time.

Above, the dark Hall of Justice. Not a single light came from the empty building. It is allegedly haunted.

Above, strange orbs floated around outside of the building. Were these orbs spirits of deceased inmates who died in the jail that used to be in the upper floors of the building?

Above, has those strange orbs taken possession of Rebeca, our on-site officer?

Above, Rebeca seems to be normal now. Or is she?

Above, Jesus, another supervisor, comes along and shows of his new cell phone.

Inside The Hall of Justice

Above, the dark catacombs of the L.A. County Hall of Justice basement.

Inside The Hall of Justice

Text and photos by Armand Vaquer

Years ago, before the Los Angeles County Coroner was relocated to its present facility on north Mission Road (hence the name of the show Chuck Harter appeared in on a George Reeves segment), the Coroner's facilities were located in the basement of the Hall of Justice in downtown Los Angeles.

Due to the 1993 Northridge Earthquake, the Hall of Justice was closed down for retrofitting. It has been a slow process and it has pretty much stopped due to funding issues. Eventually, it is said, the building (built in 1925) will house the headquarters of the Los Angeles County Sheriff. Why let a good building go to waste?

As the building's interior has been gutted, and the county doesn't seem to have the money to fund the retrofit project to completion, the company I work for has been contracted to secure the location. This week, I went down to the basement of the Hall of Justice, with camera in hand, after hearing that the autopsy tables were still inside. Unfortunately, they weren't. But it is interesting to go into the basement to see where the Coroner conducted the autopsies of such celebrities as George Reeves, Marilyn Monroe, Robert F. Kennedy and others.

The way the interior looks now, it reminded me of either Castle Dracula or Carfax Abbey in the 1931 Dracula. The only thing missing was a coffin with the Dracula Crest on the lid. The only lighting in the basement was from my flashlight and the flash of my camera. It was almost pitch black in the basement. Pretty spooky! And I've heard stories of hauntings at the building.

Above, the basement of the Hall of Justice. Could this slab be where an autopsy table was mounted?

Above, another slab. Was an autopsy table here?

Above, crates of marble slabs and bricks are sitting in the basement, waiting to be installed in the Hall of Justice when the retrofit project is completed.