Sixty Years in Southern California, 1853-1913: Containing the Reminiscences of Harris NewmarkNewmark, Harris
History
Sixty Years in Southern California, 1853-1913: Containing the Reminiscences of Harris Newmark
Newmark, Harris
California, Southern; Los Angeles (Calif.)
This later advertisement, with the line in parenthesis, continued to
be printed, week after week, without change, _for at least twelve
months_.
The following year, Keller, in flaring headlines, offered for sale the
front of his Los Angeles vineyard, facing on Aliso Street, in building
lots of twenty by one hundred feet, saying, in his prospectus:
Great improvements are on the _tapis_ in this quarter.
Governor Downey and the intrepid Beaudry propose to open a
street to let the light of day shine in upon their dark
domains. On the Equerry side of Aliso Street, "what fine
legs your master has," must run to give way for more
permanent fixtures. Further on, the Prior estates are about
to be improved by the astute and far-seeing Templito; and
Keller sells lots on the sunny side of Aliso Street. The
map is on view at my office; come in and make your
selections,--first come, first served! Terms will be made
handy!
M. KELLER.
Nathaniel Pryor--sometimes known as Don Miguel N. Pryor or Prior--is
the pioneer referred to by Keller. At the age of thirty, it is said,
in 1828, he came here, and fifteen or twenty years later, about the
time that he was a _Regidor_ or Councilman, was one of eight or ten
Easterners who had farms within the pueblo district. His property, in
part a vineyard, included what is now Commercial to First streets and
possibly from Los Angeles Street to the river; on it was an adobe
which is still standing on Jackson Street, and is the only mud-brick
structure in that section. For a while, and probably because he had
loaned Pryor some money, F. P. F. Temple had an interest in the
estate. Pryor was twice married, having a son, Charles, by his first
wife, and a son, Nathaniel, Jr., by his second. Pablo Pryor of San
Juan was another son. The first Mrs. Pryor died about 1840, and is one
of the few--with the mother of Pio Pico--buried inside of the old
church at the Plaza. The second Mrs. Pryor, who inherited the
property, died about 1857. A granddaughter, Mrs. Lottie Pryor, is a
surviving member of this family.
During the administration of Padre Blas Raho, a genial, broad-minded
Italian, several attempts were made, beginning with 1857 or 1858, to
improve the old church at the Plaza; and in 1861, the historic
edifice, so long unchanged, was practically rebuilt. The front adobe
wall, which had become damaged by rains, was taken down and
reconstructed of brick; some alterations were made in the tower; and
the interesting old tiled roof was replaced--to the intense regret of
later and more appreciative generations--with modern, less durable
shingles. A fence was provided, and trees, bushes and plants were set
out. The church was also frescoed, inside and out, by Henri Penelon,
the French pioneer artist and photographer, who painted upon the wall
the following inscription:
_Los Fieles de Esta Parroquia á la Reina de los Angeles, 1861._[23]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account