Lost Angeles
All of a sudden, it appears in front of you: El Pueblo de Nuestro Señora la Reina de los Angeles del Río Porciúncula. To you, that's 'The Town of Our Lady the Queen of the Angels of the Porciúncula River' and, for the benefit of Ush, LA.
Way back in 1781, four Spanish missionaries, came to this part of Mexico, looking to found a new settlement near to the existing Indian village of Yangna. They were rather taken by this little bit of turf and set up camp. The feast of a saint had just begun and their little home-sweet-hell was named in her honour.
Way back in 1781, four Spanish missionaries, came to this part of Mexico, looking to found a new settlement near to the existing Indian village of Yangna. They were rather taken by this little bit of turf and set up camp. The feast of a saint had just begun and their little home-sweet-hell was named in her honour.
Yanquis
The first white Angeleno, or yanqui, to settle here, in 1818, was a pirate from Boston.
Nothing has changed much since, LA is still full of people looking to fleece you, rob you, or kill you! Back when the Easterners first discovered the paradise of this neck of the woods, during the 1840s, the population was little more than a thousand or so.
Historically, the growth in LA's population has come in little spurts, as it were. The California gold rush swelled the population to about 2300, but most of the excitement was focused upstate. Then, in 1885, the railroad came to town, linking the town to the East coast for the first time. The population expanded rapidly, increasing to around 50,000 by 1890.
By the beginning of the 20th Century, many of the European immigrants had come west to secure their fortunes. The second wave of the seekers of the American Dream had arrived and there was little here except space, so they created their own industry; they began to realise the potential of the moving picture. This part of the world would never be the same again and by 1920, the popularity of 'movies' had grown exponentially, creating all manner of opportunities for anyone and everyone. The population bloated out to a cool million.
Nothing has changed much since, LA is still full of people looking to fleece you, rob you, or kill you! Back when the Easterners first discovered the paradise of this neck of the woods, during the 1840s, the population was little more than a thousand or so.
Historically, the growth in LA's population has come in little spurts, as it were. The California gold rush swelled the population to about 2300, but most of the excitement was focused upstate. Then, in 1885, the railroad came to town, linking the town to the East coast for the first time. The population expanded rapidly, increasing to around 50,000 by 1890.
By the beginning of the 20th Century, many of the European immigrants had come west to secure their fortunes. The second wave of the seekers of the American Dream had arrived and there was little here except space, so they created their own industry; they began to realise the potential of the moving picture. This part of the world would never be the same again and by 1920, the popularity of 'movies' had grown exponentially, creating all manner of opportunities for anyone and everyone. The population bloated out to a cool million.
The Promised Land
California was indeed the land of untold riches. It seemed as though the very ground had been blessed by a benevolent God. The soil in the valleys was rich and bore a wide range of fruits, nuts and grapes for wine. Gold had been discovered in the hills to the north, as well as in Mexico, to the south. Moreover, the burgeoning film industry had turned out to be a license to print money. Then, in 1930, black gold was discovered locally; the population doubled, almost overnight. With the wars came the aircraft industry, creating jobs and wealth and the new suburbs south of the city, to house the workers.
Today, LA is the largest city in California, with a population of almost 4 million in the city proper, compared with around ¾ million in San Francisco and 1.2 million in San Diego. There are almost 10 million people in LA County alone, and within a 60 mile radius of the city centre, there are some 16 million inhabitants, or roughly half the population of California. If LA County were a country in it's own right, its gross product would rank it 19th in the world, above Sweden and Switzerland!
After what had turned out to be a six hour total journey, we neared LA. I was surprised to be able to even see the skyline, let alone take pictures of it. I had been told that the smog was really bad, that it stung your eyes, got on your chest and cloaked the city in a toxic yellow cloud of death. Well, maybe I exaggerated that last one but, it was supposed to be quite bad, these days, they say. It was OK when I was there.
Today, LA is the largest city in California, with a population of almost 4 million in the city proper, compared with around ¾ million in San Francisco and 1.2 million in San Diego. There are almost 10 million people in LA County alone, and within a 60 mile radius of the city centre, there are some 16 million inhabitants, or roughly half the population of California. If LA County were a country in it's own right, its gross product would rank it 19th in the world, above Sweden and Switzerland!
After what had turned out to be a six hour total journey, we neared LA. I was surprised to be able to even see the skyline, let alone take pictures of it. I had been told that the smog was really bad, that it stung your eyes, got on your chest and cloaked the city in a toxic yellow cloud of death. Well, maybe I exaggerated that last one but, it was supposed to be quite bad, these days, they say. It was OK when I was there.