[Flyingwedge]

Originally Posted by GaylordWilshire

Despite its downbeat name and checkered history, its infamy among Japanese-Americans and its industrial uses--Terminal Island was once a resort rivaling Catalina, as some of your pictures show, Godzilla. Bralys and Woolwines, among others, owned summer houses on the island:

http://stjamesparklosangeles.blogspo...histories.html

Among those who vacationed on Terminal Island was the Sale family; Howard and his wife Athie of 109 S. Hill Street, who first appear there in the 1894 LA City Directory:

1900 Los Angeles City Directory @ Fold3.com


March 28, 1900 Los Angeles Times

What could that yellow and red wildflower have been, "the native flower of Terminal Island"?

The 1888 Sanborn Map shows that 109 S. First Street had not yet been built, nor did First Street really even go over Bunker Hill. West of Hill Street, First Street is "Not Suitable for Vehicles"
and has a fire alarm box and electric light mast in the middle of the right-of-way. There's a 2-story house ("30' abv street") at what will become 133 S. Hill, and a 1-story house just west of
the SW corner of Hill and First. It's marked 1 S. Hill Street, but the 1887 and 1888 LA Directories show Albert M. Stephens at 11 S. Hill Street. Since it's the only other house on the block, it's
likely the same house. On the NE corner of Olive and Second is the Argyle Hotel, and on the NW corner of Hill and First is the Highland Villa:

LAPL

We've seen the Highland Villa before:
http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...postcount=8975

Zooming in on a photo looking south on Hill Street from Court Street, c. 1886-87, with the Highland Villa at right. The front of what will be 133 S. Hill is visible just past the third story of
the Highland Villa. At far left, next to the tree, is what looks to be a church tower waiting for its clock:

USC Digital Library -- http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/cdm/co...id/907/rec/261

This photo shows 1/11 S. Hill, partially visible at upper right, with the two-story house to its south on the 1888 Sanborn Map, the future 133 S. Hill, just to the left of center:

USC Digital Library -- http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/cdm/si...d/5265/rec/730

A portion of another early photo, taken from the old City Hall on Broadway. At left is the future 133 S. Hill, then 1/11 S. Hill, a one-story home with some small palms and thin trees in front,
with the Highland Villa at right. The building in the left foreground looks like the Argyle, which is a block away at Olive and Second:

USC Digital Library -- http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/cdm/si.../17808/rec/515 (USC says c. 1888-95; I'd say no later than '93, since no Sale House or fenced tennis courts next to 133 S. Hill)

The Highland Villa and its fan-shaped sign, with 1/11 S. Hill visible over the Highland Villa's roof, taken from the Courthouse. We see what the 1894 Sanborn Map will reveal to be fenced
tennis courts next to 133 S. Hill, which were not on the 1888 map. Notice the house over the top of 1/11 S. Hill with the double witch's hats; that's 512 W. Second, which we'll come
back to later:

USC Digital Library -- http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/cdm/si.../id/1740/rec/9 (USC says c. 1900 but more likely c. 1890-1894 since no Sale House yet)

A number of photos were taken from or adjacent to 1/11 S. Hill Street, like this one looking back at the Courthouse (Is the Courthouse clock there? USC dates photo c. 1887; clock
was installed c. Aug-Oct 1891):

USC Digital Library -- http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/cdm/si...d/3446/rec/199

This one looks SE, c. 1889, apparently taken from the hill just behind 1/11 S. Hill Street, some of which we see at right:

USC Digital Library -- http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/cdm/si...d/3464/rec/192

This one was taken from in front of 1/11 S. Hill St. and looks more south, showing the tennis courts next door:

USC Digital Library -- http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/cdm/si...d/3470/rec/322

According to a July 19, 1887 LA Times article, the previous day Albert Stephens' 8-year-old son Arthur fell or jumped from a trolley and his skull was crushed by a the wheels of a brick
wagon. The Stephens family may have moved as a result, because the 1890 LA Directory lists Albert Stephens at 75 S. Hill, then from 1891 at 133 S. Hill; 75 and 133 S. Hill are very possibly
the same house (after 1890 LA discarded most 1- and 2-digit addresses).

The 1894 LA City Directory is the first to show Howard Sale at 109 S. Hill Street, which we see on the 1894 Sanborn below, along with the tennis courts next to 133 S. Hill. The Stephens
home is gone. The text to the right of 109 S. Hill says "something something [cliff edge?] even with eaves this side," and between 109 and 133 is the note, "vertical bank 30' high." On
both sides of First Street, west of Hill, is the note "vertical bank 40' high":

LAPL

This 1895 photo from the Court House is the first I found to show the two-story Sale House at 109 S. Hill, to the right of the tennis courts. Above and to the right of 109 S. Hill, the
former Stephens home has vanished (I found this photo after my initial post; when I saw it, I realized I had mistaken the Stephens home for the Sale home, hence this late edit):

Huntington Digital Library -- http://hdl.huntington.org/cdm/single.../id/3566/rec/9

Mrs. Sale's capacity to entertain may have exceeded 109 S. Hill's capacity; I don't see how she got 400 people in there, even with two stories:

October 25, 1894 Los Angeles Times

As GW notes in a post below, in 1901 the Sales decided to convert their Hill Street home into a hotel, adding a 3-story section on to the back (west) side. The Sales moved to a new
home on the corner of Union and Ninth in the summer of 1902, and Mrs. Sale hosted a charity event there October 1, 1902:

October 2, 1902 Los Angeles Times

Then, the next day:

October 3, 1902 Los Angeles Times

Find a Grave -- http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg...&GRid=76471027

Of course, life went on around First and Hill without the Sales. By 1906, The Moore-Cliff (below, at right) had been built to the south, and further down the block near Second Street, The Locke:

LAPL -- http://jpg1.lapl.org/spnb01/00007296.jpg

Priors on the Moore-Cliff: http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...ostcount=18824

By 1910, the Hill Street Tunnel north of First Street had opened, and 133 S. Grand had apparently become the Hotel Locke's annex (or perhaps just The Annex). The Highland Villa is still there:

Historic Mapworks -- http://www.historicmapworks.com/Map/US/19472/Plate+007/

In this c. 1910 photo taken from a balloon, 109 S. Hill has gained its 3-story rear addition (see GW post below), and the Highland Villa is hanging on at the NW corner of First and Hill:

USC Digital Library -- http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/cdm/si...id/3626/rec/12

Speaking of the Highland Villa:




June 13, 1910 Los Angeles Times

Mrs. Edith Aldrich's confidence in the structural integrity of the Highland Villa clearly exceeded her engineering know-how, as the 1914 Baist Map shows. However, the map no longer shows
133 S. Hill, the Annex next to the Hotel Locke:

Historic Mapworks -- http://www.historicmapworks.com/Map/US/19097/Plate+007/

This photo is dated 1915, though it's apparently earlier; I'm pretty sure we've seen it at NLA before, but my search for it here was fruitless. I'm not sure there's actually a fire, given
the seeming nonchalance of some of the fire fighters, but they appear to be in front or just to the right of The Annex, which isn't supposed to be there in 1915:

USC Digital Library -- http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/cdm/si...d/3155/rec/242

But there definitely was a fire on the 100 block of S. Hill Street in 1914:

January 4, 1914 Los Angeles Times

In this c. 1919 photo posted by gsjansen, 109 S. Hill now has sides and a flat roof to match the building behind it, perhaps the result of a post-fire remodel (compare w/ 1910
photo above). Also, the Hotel Locke and its Annex seem to be gone: http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...postcount=2191

1921 Baist Map:

Historic Mapworks -- http://www.historicmapworks.com/Map/US/19413/Plate+007/

From Los Angeles City Hall, March 5, 1927:

USC Digital Library -- http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/cdm/si.../id/3751/rec/8

The 1906 Sanborn Map, updated to 1955:

LAPL

March 15, 1957, looking east on First Street with the four-story Hotel Gladden on the SE corner of First and Olive. Just to the right of the Gladden, we see a little of the three-story
building behind 109 S. Hill being demolished, and to the right of that, the back of the Moore-Cliff:

Huntington Digital Library -- http://hdl.huntington.org/cdm/single.../id/6257/rec/5

Remember the double-pointy house at 512 W. 2nd Street? Here it is c. 1960:

CA State Library -- http://catalog.library.ca.gov/exlibr...7FN5P5TLHJ.jpg

And here it is on June 12, 1961:

Huntington Digital Library -- http://hdl.huntington.org/cdm/single.../id/6293/rec/3