Loyola Marymount University launched a new online archive featuring photos and first-hand accounts of life in Chavez Ravine before it was destroyed.
“This is a window into the life of the three neighborhoods of Palo Verde, La Loma, and Bishop from their perspective, and this was a project that was very much about community ownership in which all of the donors maintain the copyright of their photographs,” Professor Priscilla Leiva, Associate Professor, Chicana/o and Latina/o Studies, told KNX News’ Emily Valdez.
Carol Jacques, one of the co-creators of the archive, recalled what life was like during those times.
“Hundreds of families lived, shopped, and worked in Chavez Ravine,” she said. “It was quiet. I had crickets singing to me when I went to bed. I could see the sun come out. It was technicolor. All the ladies had flowers. It was beautiful. Everyone, everyone talked to each other. It was like, you know, it was almost mythical in my head, and I think a lot of other people's heads also.”
But in 1950, the city declared it was blighted and took it over by eminent domain. It was supposed to be developed for public housing, but the city pulled a switcheroo and instead built Dodger Stadium to lure the team from Brooklyn.
“And all I did for a long time was hate the Dodgers, and I was in a film where I said a bad word about them and then I found out later that the Dodgers really didn't have anything to do with the displacement,” Jacques said. “It was the city of Los Angeles.”
Former residents and their descendants started gathering at annual picnics, reuniting, sharing stories and photos.
“When I finally saw those photographs and people meet every year, I thought we need to preserve this,” Jacques said. “We need to tell these stories from the voice of the people.”
There are about 200 photos and stories in the archive currently, and it will only continue to grow
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