TO SEE MY HOME IN EAST PASADENA



Pendersleigh & Sons Cartography's map of East Pasadena

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EARLY HISTORY OF

THE AREA





Eaton Wash looking north toward the San Gabriel Mountains



SPANISH AND MEXICAN ERAS

AMERICAN ERA

THE RISE AND GROWTH OF PASADENA

SUNNY SLOPE





Sunny Slope Water Company

LAMANDA PARK

CHAPMAN WOODS







MICHILLINDA TRACT





MICHILLINDA PARK



A park, a playground, and a lovely window-less van







EAST PASADENA WATER COMPANY

EAST PASADENA HERALD AND OTHER EP

CLUBS AND

INSTITUTIONS









HASTINGS RANCH

By 1927, nearly bit of land up to the north-south

had been annexed by Pasadena, leaving modern day East Pasadena and one other large area,

, located to the north. The ranch’s owner,

, died in 1942 and his 1,000 acre ranch was sold in 1945 and quickly developed into an industrial, retail and residential neighborhood. It was duly annexed by Pasadena between 1946 and 1954.



HASTINGS DRIVE-IN AND EAST PASADENA’S FILM SCENE





Hastings Drive-In (image source: Jalopy Journal)

Across the street from its then-northern border on

,

Pacific Hastings Theatre in 1972, when it showed The Poseidon Adventure. Subdivided and renamed the Pacific Hastings 8, it eventually closed in 2007. This would be the part where I’d normally mention any films shot in East Pasadena or filmmakers and/or actors from there but I haven’t been able to find any so please hit me up with any additions that you may have. I suppose that I could mention that I saw a girl driving a car with a Totoro air freshner on her dashboard.

opened in 1950. It had a 1,315 car capacity. Unfortunately for drive-in fans, it was demolished in 1968 and was replaced with thein 1972, when it showed. Subdivided and renamed the, it eventually closed in 2007. This would be the part where I’d normally mention any films shot in East Pasadena or filmmakers and/or actors from there but I haven’t been able to find any so please hit me up with any additions that you may have. I suppose that I could mention that I saw a girl driving a car with aair freshner on her dashboard.

GETTING THERE AND STAYING THERE







ARCHITECTURE & APPEARANCE





Craftsman home with an Ent (left)



Flinstonian architecture from 1956







The Outrigger Apartments (1961) -- now inanely re-named "The Aparments at Huntington"

EP EATS









Elizabeth Carneceria (she's pushing the cart apparently) and Sprout's Market with Sprout street art



















MUSIC AND ART







WORSHIP



CRIME



Military relics



An orange 1980 Scout and van/pick-up with horns on the hood for sale



East Pasadena shopportunities



Peacocks in East Pasadena (one just off camera to the left was doing its business)

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This neighborhood exploration is about tiny. Despite its name, East Pasadena is an independent community and no more a part of the city ofthan areor. Historically it was a much larger community but through many annexations it has shrunk to a small area that also includes the neighborhoods of, a portion of, and several numbered tracts.South Pasadena is neighbored by Pasadena to the north and west,to the west,to the south, andto the east. Though an independent community, many of its businesses have Pasadena addresses. East Pasadena is a small but diverse As of the, the population was just 6,144 and 52%, 35%of any race (mostly), 23%(mostlyand), 3%, and 1%. Though the fastest growing population in the last ten years was Asian-American, it still has a ways to before it reaches a plurality and thus joins its neighbors in "." Whatever East Pasadenans' ancestral origins, it is heavy on the American Flags... andflags... and oneone.Present day East Pasadena is located near thevillage of(also spelled), which was located near the banks of. Eaton Creek is a small, seasonal stream, the headwaters of which are in the foothills of the. The lower, channelized version is referred to today asand flows into thefirst arrived off the coast of1542 although it wasn’t until 1771 that they built a nearby mission at which many of the Tongva were enslaved. With Mexican independence achieved in 1821, the land again changed hands. The missions were secularized in 1834 and the 54 km2(which includes modern day East Pasadena as well as all or portions of, and) was granted to, a Mexican oforigin.In 1848, after Mexico’s defeat in thebecame part of thebut therequired that the pre-existing Mexican land grants be honored by the conqueror. After that the land changed hands many times before being purchased in 1875 by. Baldwin was a stockholder in theand in 1885 the railway arrived on his ranch in then-new town of Arcadia. To the west, the rail line reached Pasadena in 1887.Pasadena was incorporated in 1886, the second town to do so in the county after. It quickly grew through annexations in all directions. South Pasadena incorporated in 1888 but Pasadena continued to annex the unincorporated lands of Altadena and East Pasadena. From 1906’sto 1971’s, nearly all of unincorporated East Pasadena was eventually annexed by Pasadena and today just 3.39 km2 remains.In the’sproperty included 2,000 acres of orange groves and vineyards comprised of 35 varieties of grapes. It employed 150 workers and produced. In 1887, Rose created thesubdivision on his property and sold his company to afirm. I'm not sure ifwas directly connected to East Pasadena’sor whether it's merely named after Rose'stract but it does date back to 1895, when it was established, and still operates today., served by the’sand the, opened in 1903 and the community further emerged as the industrial center of East Pasadena – namely aroundand(now). It was annexed by Pasadena in 1920’swas purchased in 1869 by(or Alfred, depending on the source) and. It was later subdivided and true to its name, much of it retains an actual woodsy character. Part of it was annexed by Pasadena in theof 1927 and part remains within East Pasadena.The Michillinda Tract was subdivided around 1910. According to a 1916 edition of Out West magazine:There is a little village near Pasadena called “Michillinda,” which is not a Spanish nor an Indian name, nor is it taken from an automobile tire, or a chill cure. It is simply the work of an original real estate lord who joined the names of three states – Mich., Ill,. And Ind., to appeal to prospective purchasers from these states. So on these rainy days he fuses the names of different states into on name, and dreams of opening new tracts and calling on “Minn-al-ar-ky,” for Minn., Ala., Ark., and Ky.: another “Wisgawyo,” for Wis., Ga., and Wyo.: still another “Mopanebore,” for Mo., Pa., Neb., and Ore.: and still another “Flamisskansla,” for Fla., Miss., Kans., and La.The tract, bordered byto the east,to the south,to the west, andto the north, is now known as theneighborhood.There’s a small park as old as the community in East Pasadena’s southeast corner,. On the day that I visited there was a homeless man sleeping in the shade and a playground crowed with screeching children whose parents were congregated at a nearby picnic table. One of the children quoted, crying “I’m king of the world,” although more likely referencing somecartoon rather than the source film.Extending north from the park areand Michigan Boulevard, two streets with wide medians that are home to large evergreens that look older than most of the homes alongside them. When I the park live avenues, both were being pecked and shat upon by several peafowl, probably visiting from Arcadia’sThewas established in 1930 and still operates. It grew out of(aka “Cal-Mich”), which was established in 1910 alongside the Michillinda Tract. In 1913 the company began functioning as a public water utility.From around 1930 until 1950, East Pasadena was served by its own newspaper, the. There also used to be an(c. 1949 – c.1975) and the(founded in 1951 and operated at least until 1977 and may have evolved into the, one of whose buses I saw on California as I explored). The, founded in 1963, still exists and there’s an East Pasadenabranch. A club of different sorts is thethat meets and plays at(renamed fromin 1958) was part of the famedand home to Pasadena’s, which is probably something most people had in mind that opened most of East Pasadena’s lodging along it. For overnight visitors to East Pasadena there currently exists, and. El Rancho Motel opened in 1950 and has a pleasantly mid-century vibe. The Hi-Way Host opened in 1956 and has a nice neon sign. I can’t vouch for their quality as guest accommodations, however, as both have an average rating of one star onIf you’d like to use public transportation to visit East Pasadena it’s served by the79264, 266, 267, and 268 bus lines as well as the superior187 line and. About 117 meters outside the community is Pasadena’s, served by the Metro’s light rail. On a related note, East Pasadena’soffice is the last one I renewed my registration at before ridding myself of my last automobile.Despite its small size, East Pasadena is home to a wide variety of architectural styles. The low-profile businesses along Colorado Boulevard with their slender bricks, iron ornaments, and fleurs-de-lis motifs are clearly products of a mid-20th century aesthetic.Much of the eastern part of the community is characterized by nondescript ranch homes situated atop thirsty lawns decorated by dusty lawn ornaments and dry fountains. The southern edge alongis more obviously oriented toward the San Gabriel Valley’s growing Asian-American population, faced by billboards in Chinese from the East San Gabriel side of the street and home to tea houses and Chinese-speaking ESL schools.The western area near Pasadena is home to private communities and stately mansions. There are beautiful Craftsman homes sprinkled here and there and a dismaying number of pebto abysmal Spanish Revival McMansions due in large part to the fact that the unincorporated county community is un-served by even a basic preservation ordinance.There are a handful of dining options within East Pasadena including......, and Yes Sushi.The most popular judging by crowd size during my visit would have to be either El Super Burrito or The Original Tops. The Original Tops began in 1952, when Greek immigrantstarted it as a diner with an uncle. The current restaurant was built in 1978 and is run by Bicos’s son, Chris.Gin Sushi used to house an all-you-can-eat sushi buffet. The building dates back to 1946 and seems to have been a winery, according to an old directory.President Thai wins points from me for almost looking like a wat as does Mama’s Brick Oven Pizza & Pasta for having a replica of the 93 meter tall Statue of Liberty in New York (or El Monte’s seven meter version).There are two bars as well:(formerly a gay club called, I think) and, which opens at noon and is by all accounts more of a neighborhood dive.Normally I would mention any bands or musicians from East Pasadena but I have thus far been unable to discover any. There is music being made, however, in a music studio on Rosemead,, and. Art is hopefully being made atFor religious sorts there are a few options. On outward appearances alone I’d have to go with, built in 1965., built in 1963, is a fairly typical church of the era. It used to be, whose story was told in’s book,. Most of its signage now is in Korean. The windowless Jehovah’s Witness Kingdom Hall looks like a military barracks.Thelooks rather like a house, albeit one with a large “om.” I’m so used to seeing those hanging on the necklaces of spiritual bros that I almost forget that it has a religious meaning. There’s also Impact Harvest Church , andI don’t normally get too into neighborhood crime statistics as I think it might make people unnecessarily afraid of exploring and personally I don’t think that any neighborhood in Southern California has struck me as dangerous enough to warrant a travel advisory. However, I will mention crime statistics here primarily out of the hope that it will challenge stereotypes. To wit, of all the communities reporting crime statistics, East Pasadena has the highest violent crime rate in the SGV (much of which, to be fair, doesn’t report crime statistics). Its crime rate is higher than that of, and many other communities that are with unfair but numbing regularity characterized as being “gang plagued,” “ghetto,” “the hood,” “sketchy,” having “gone to the dogs” &c (often coded shorthand for becoming less white).As I expected, I never once felt even remotely threatened in East Pasadena in the hours that I was there. Sure there was a dog that barked at me and I suppose the sidewalk sign-twirlers arrow could’ve gone awry and poked one of my eyes out but most of the menace occurs either behind McMansion walls or near East San Gabriel’sand San Marino’s, at least.That being said, there was a high profile crime that took place (four years ago) that rocked a community perhaps used to the occasional aggravated assaults and robberies but not murder. On 26 July, 2009, then 85-year-oldmurdered his wife of nine years,– then 55 – by striking her nineteen times in the head with a hand ax at the couple’s Rosemead Boulevard home in East Pasadena. He also attacked the victim’s son,, who escaped and called the police. Lu is currently serving a 42 year sentence.Not to end on a dour note, my experiences (excepting that with the DMV) were absolutely pleasant aside from a bit of high temperature-induced heavy sweating. I hope to come back and check out some of the restaurants and R Place in the future. And please politely contribute any additions or corrections in the comments, thank you.

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