100 Years Of Long Beach History Documented In Online Photo Bank
CARSON (CBSLA.com) — Long Beach residents now have the city's history at their fingertips now that thousands of photos from the Long Beach Fireman's Historical Museum have been published online.
The photos go back to the early 20th century, capturing the city's skyline, the 1933 earthquake aftermath, city parades and news events and documenting residential and commercial properties.
So far, half of the images have been preserved thanks to the archive efforts of California State University Dominguez Hills.
"We got this donated to us by the Long Beach Fire Department Museum about four or five years ago. We've cataloged it, and it's taken about four years to catalog it, the 5,000 images individually online," CSUDH Archives Director Greg Williams said. "People are welcome to go to our website and take a look at them."
"It's amazing how much has changed and how much has stayed the same. You can see photos from the 1933 earthquake that really taught Long Beach and the rest of southern California a few lessons on earthquakes, how not to build buildings, because they crumble," Williams said.
The Fireman's Historical Museum approached CSUDH because many of the photos were deteriorating. Now the collection is not only preserved for future generations but more easily accessible to the community and for research.
To see the photos visit the CSUDH Digital Archives.
