The First Lady of Covina History

I continue to discover new (or rather, forgotten) stories of old Covina in my searches of online newspaper archives. This one I found especially fascinating. It tells of how Covina's first historian, on the verge of completing a book on her decade of research, was subsequently written out of the history books herself...

Published in 1964, Covina: Sunflowers, Citrus, Subdivisions by Donald H. Pflueger¹ is still regarded as the definitive scholarly treatment of the city's history. In the book's introduction, Pflueger cites long-time Covina resident Gladys Ratekin as a primary source; in so doing intimating that she was the early town's principal chronicler. I have only recently learned, however, that such was not the case. Another woman who preceded Ratekin–Harriett Russell Head–was in actuality the first to garner local recognition and praise for her years-long efforts to document Covina's past.

Harriett R. Head (1860-1936): Covina's first lady of history.
Photo courtesy Mr. Larry Head.

I became aware of Mrs. Head's work only incidentally while attempting to research Gladys Ratekin. I was curious if the latter had written any articles about early Covina for the town newspapers. I was dismayed to find none, and moreover, apparently only once during her lifetime was Miss Ratekin mentioned in the local press as having anything to do with Covina history. This is that single instance:

Covina Citizen, June 7, 1935.²

So, Gladys Ratekin had actually been someone else's understudy? And who was "Mrs. Pardon Head?" I could not recall seeing that name before. So I did another search. I was amazed to find a dozen detailed scholarly articles on Covina history, and an even greater number of news items which reported on Head's curation efforts. Perhaps understandably, this revelation came as quite a surprise.

One search result in particular attracted my attention. In this newspaper article, published in 1952 at the very beginning of his Covina project, Donald Pflueger revealed that he was indeed aware of Harriett Head...

Covina Argus-Citizen, September 26, 1952.³

...and yet nowhere in his completed book is there any mention of Mrs. Head or her extensive prior work.

How extensive? See for yourself below.

Covina Present

Because I live 700 miles away, I don't get to visit Covina very often. Last week, however, I was in L.A. for some eye appointments, and while in the area I spent an afternoon driving and walking around my old home town.

The last time I was here, Citrus Avenue had been transformed into an outdoor dining area which shall we say was not exactly conducive to sightseeing. So I was pleased to now see that the main street had returned to normal; or at least normal for Covina in this day and age.

All photos © J Scott Shannon.

Science Hall

Recently, I obtained this nice clean image of Covina Union High School in its prime. It's from the same source as the photo of Citrus Avenue in 1930 that I posted here last month, so I'm guessing both shots were taken by the same unknown photographer, and maybe even on the same day.

Covina Union High School, 1930. Click image to enlarge.

The more-or-less contemporaneous view below features Science Hall (left): an addition to the campus which was completed in May, 1925.¹ While classes in Chemistry, Physics and Biology were taught therein, so were a variety of other subjects, including English, History, Civics, Spanish and French, Music, Art, and what today we would call Home Economics. On the second floor were a lecture hall, library and museum devoted specifically to the natural sciences.¹ A new school cafeteria was also located in Science Hall.

Photo by Tucker Studio. Click image to enlarge.

In the early Twenties, when expansion of the high school was first being discussed, a second wing similar to Science Hall was proposed for the north side of the main building.² However, bond issues to fund the project were repeatedly rejected by voters, and the three-building plan was finally abandoned in 1936.^2,3

References:

¹ Covina Argus, May 8, 1925, p.1.
² Covina Argus, March 26, 1931, p.1.
³ Covina Argus, October 23, 1936, p.1.

 

Eastland in 1960

To bookend Randall Smith's post on Eastland's 3-day Grand Opening (which ended 65 years ago tonight), I present this pair of previously unknown photos that I acquired just this past week.

Eastland Shopping Center, West Covina, California, June, 1960. Click image to enlarge. Photo copyright © J Scott Shannon.

Eastland was once the showpiece gateway to the San Gabriel Valley, as this impressive view attests. Coming down off Kellogg Hill heading toward L.A., the flagship May Co. building in particular was a bold visual announcement to every commuter and traveler that they had arrived in a great American metropolis. By contrast, Eastland Center today is a pale postmodern shadow of its former self, notably lacking the grand scale and aesthetic appeal of its original incarnation.

The Paul Cummins Huddle Restaurant, West Covina, California, June, 1960. Click image to enlarge. Photo copyright © J Scott Shannon.

This photo of the Huddle Restaurant is special because, to the best of my knowledge, it's the only known view of the rear of this lost Googie treasure. (The front was previously featured here.)

Sources:

 

Eastland at 65

...by guest author Randall Smith

65 years ago today . . .
Eastland Shopping Center officially opened its doors to the public, on Thursday, October 24, 1957, with a Grand Opening gala celebration. Emceed by KTTV on-air personality, Bill Walsh, the celebratory activities occurred over a three-day period.

Original advertisement for Eastland’s grand opening. Pasadena Independent, Thursday, October 24, 1957.

Detail: Eastland's fifty-one original tenants.

Aerial photograph of Eastland Shopping Center on September 19, 1957, just three days after the May Co. grand opening. Just a few of the mall shops were open at this time, while interior build-outs were still being completed at most of the tenant storefronts. Note that the iconic “M” has yet to be installed on the sign structure on top of the May Co. building. Photo courtesy Los Angeles Public Library.

Old City Hall on Citrus

Another rare view of downtown Covina, this one from December, 1924-January, 1925. The vantage point is the roof of the Finch Building at 113 N. Citrus, looking northeast. Easy to tell it's wintertime, with new snow in the mountains. The date range can be deduced by the car license plates: about half of which are in the style of 1925 and the other half appear to be 1924, so it's probably close to the end of the year when plates would be in transition. It's also likely a weekday, as a customer can be seen exiting the First National Bank building on the northeast corner of Citrus and College, which opened in 1924.

North Citrus Avenue in Winter, 1925. Photographer unknown, but likely C. W. Tucker. Click image to enlarge.

Probably the most interesting detail in this photo is the lettering in the window of the storefront two doors up from the furniture store. It reads "COVINA CITY HALL." Check out the closeup below.

The pre-1930 Covina City Hall at 132 N. Citrus.

I'd always wondered where city hall was located before the "new" one opened in January, 1930,¹ and now I know!

Another noteworthy detail in this photo is the closeup of the Finch Brothers street clock. Apparently its original face used IIII for the 4, while the one now has IV. The rest of the old downtown landmark has remained unchanged since it was erected in 1916.²

References:

¹ Covina Argus, January 24, 1930, p.1.
² Pflueger, D. H. 1964. Covina: Sunflowers, Citrus, Subdivisions. Castle Press, Pasadena, California, 372pp.