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The Harbor Area Podcast
It's all about coastal living in here, folks. There is so much history and happenings all around us and we should talk about it. The Harbor Area Podcast is born out of a true fascination with the area (San Pedro, Long Beach, and Wilmington, California). Join me for a dose of research, with a dallop of fun. A new episode will publish every two weeks.
The Harbor Area Podcast
Season 2. Episode 1. The San Pedro Bay Historical Society
After a brief hiatus, we're back with a deep dive into the organization keeping San Pedro's rich history alive - the San Pedro Bay Historical Society. This episode introduces two remarkable women who serve as guardians of our harbor's heritage: Mona Dallas Reddick, the Society's president and lifelong educator, and Donna Dragich, board member and fourth-generation San Pedran.
Their story begins with loss - when urban renewal threatened historic Beacon Street in the late 1960s, concerned citizens formed the Society to ensure future generations would know what came before. Today, their mission extends far beyond preserving buildings. From beautiful painted tin trays rescued from the demolished Shanghai Red's waterfront bar to century-old ledgers showing who purchased the very first lots in town, they maintain an extraordinary collection of artifacts that connect us tangibly to our past.
The conversation reveals fascinating hidden histories - the African-American community established here before the 1920s, the Japanese-owned storefronts on Terminal Island they're fighting to preserve, and the Mexican Hollywood neighborhood recently commemorated with official signage. Through landmark plaques, educational programs, and partnerships with local schools and organizations, the Society works tirelessly to document San Pedro's uniquely diverse community before more stories are lost forever.
As development continues transforming our harbor, their work becomes increasingly urgent. "What exists today," Mona reflects, "in forty years from now is going to be somebody else's history. The work we do now is really with a nod to the future." For newcomers and multi-generational residents alike, understanding this shared heritage creates a deeper sense of community and belonging. Ready to explore your harbor's past? Visit their archives, attend an event, or consider becoming a member to help keep these essential stories alive for generations to come.
Hey everyone, before we jump into today's episode, I just want to take a moment to say I'm back. It's been a couple of months since our last episode and I appreciate your patience, while I took a little time to regroup, reset and refocus. Life happens, oh, yes, it does, but so do opportunities for growth. I've got some exciting stories lined up, amazing guests and deep dives into the history, people and culture of the Harbor area. Deep dives into the history, people and culture of the Harbor area. So, whether you're tuning in from San Pedro, wilmington or Long Beach or anywhere else, thank you so much for being a listener of the Harbor Area Podcast. Welcome back to another episode of the Harbor Area Podcast, where we explore the rich, layered history and vibrant culture of San Pedro, wilmington and Long Beach. I'm your host, joel Torres, and as usual, we're taking a step back in time, but not too far, to honor the people and places that have shaped our harbor community for generations, whether it's the iconic Port Saccol, the Korean Bal or the port itself.
Speaker 2:One organization has been working tirelessly to preserve and tell these stories While it's no other than the San Pedro Bay Historical Society. The society has become a true guardian of our local heritage, curating exhibits, preserving historic landmarks and making sure the next generation knows what came before, from the beautifully restored Moeller House Museum to walking tours and archival work that they do behind the scenes. They connect us to our past in ways both educational and emotional. But behind every museum display, community program and safe structure are dedicated people, passionate individuals who believe San Pedro's history matters, and today I'm honored to be joined by two of those individuals. And today I'm honored to be joined by two of those individuals.
Speaker 2:My guests are Mona Dallas Reddick, president of the San Pedro Bay Historical Society, a lifelong educator and tireless advocate for local history, and Donna Dragage, board member and local historian, with a deep knowledge of San Pedro's hidden gems and untold stories. We'll talk about how the society got started, why preserving local history matters more than ever and what exciting events they have on the horizon. So grab your cafecito, find a cozy spot and settle in, because today's episode is a tribute to the stories that built this harbor and the women helping keep those stories alive. Mona, donna, welcome to the Harbor Area Podcast. I'm so glad to have you both here.
Speaker 3:Hello, my name is Mona Dallas-Freddick. I'm the president of the San Pedro Bay Historical Society.
Speaker 1:And I'm Donna Dragich. I'm a board member on San Pedro Bay Historical Society.
Speaker 2:Wonderful. Could you tell me a bit about yourself and how you became involved with the San Pedro Bay Historical Society? Mona.
Speaker 3:Well, it starts, I guess, with growing up here. And not everyone has to grow up here, but I did, and I had the benefit, the pleasure and the struggles of being a Sanpedrin from very early on. I lived in many other parts of LA and also in Illinois for much of my adult life and there was always this tug to come back home. My family remained here and when they passed on I just had to get back. So we, my husband and I, moved heaven and earth to make it happen. And once I got back, what did I want to do? I wanted to interact with the people older than I, with the people who had those older memories of an earlier time in San Pedro. That's what brought me into the historical society.
Speaker 2:That's wonderful. That's pretty much what brought me into the historical society. That's wonderful. That's pretty much what brought me into podcasting and documenting about the harbor area is that I had a fascination with the history, I wanted to learn more about it and I figured why not share it with the masses via audio technology available to us today? Donna, tell us a bit about yourself and how you became involved with the San Pedro Bay Historical Society.
Speaker 1:Well, I'm a fourth generation San Pedran, so I grew up hearing stories about San Pedro, what it used to be like the tomato fields on Western, and so as I got older I was more interested in the truth, or you know if it was a myth or legends, because you know some people when they tell stories they tend to blow them out of proportion. So and I'm a teacher, so that's also another interest about football history. So I actually went to one of their yard sales one year and they were offering tours that day, and so my mom and I went on a tour and we enjoyed it and they said come back the next day then. And one year, and they were offering tours that day, and so my mom and I went on a tour and we enjoyed it, and they said, come back the next day then. And we did. And they said, okay, here, take a booklet home and look if you want to volunteer. And we came back and so we started volunteering.
Speaker 1:That was at least 15 years ago and that was at the Mueller House. Mason, that was at the Mueller House, and then from there I got talked on to getting onto the board and I've been on the board ever since and I was vice president at one point, and so we're still here.
Speaker 2:Awesome. Well, thank you.
Speaker 3:Oh la, la, la, oh la la la, oh la la, la, la la la la. Oh la la la, la, la, la, la la la la, la la la la la la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la la la la la la la la la, la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la, la, la, la la la la la are extensive archives.
Speaker 2:What drew you to historical preservation and local history in particular?
Speaker 3:Well, let me answer that question more from the perspective of the society and how the society came about. I mean, I had this intrinsic interest in history all along. My college degrees are very history-focused. But the San Pedro Bay Historical Society, I feel, really got the impetus for it to organize and form was when the old section of San Pedro known as Beacon Street was first threatened with redevelopment. And so you're going back into the late 60s.
Speaker 3:But beginning in the early 70s, various buildings in this very colorful part of San Pedro were tagged as being the ones that would be demolished to make room for what they called urban renewal. And though there were protests to stop this, to halt it or make it be more discriminative so that you wouldn't have just all the buildings coming down, nothing prevailed. And when those buildings were lost, there was a last night on Beacon Street celebration and many of the people in the town came out for that. And I formed in 1974, and it was incorporated as a nonprofit in 1975, and with various goals in mind about preservation and education about San Pedro history.
Speaker 2:And what draws you, Donna, to historical preservation and local history?
Speaker 1:I've seen so much change just living here you know all my life but listening to my grandparents and aunts, who all came here and they're to history and meeting some of the people that were in the historical society. A lot of the members are involved in the education industry in some way teachers, librarians, nurses and so we had that commonality and so we kind of built it from there and there's a lot of social aspects. We've had a lot of events over the years, so it kind of appeals to pretty much anybody. There's different things for different people. So people that sometimes they're only involved in our annual yard sale because that's their thing, or they only like to do the wine taste, or you know 4th of July, which is great, because then there's something for everyone.
Speaker 2:Sure, yeah, I love that. And so what is your role, Mona, as president of the historical society entail?
Speaker 3:Well, you know, as president, of course there are meetings where I get to sit in the chair and say you know, let's move on, let's move on, keep the agenda moving. But it's just a lot of coordination of programs and events and then a number of board members multitask. So, in addition to representing the society to the larger public, you know some of the city officials filling out forms right for what we do. I'm a co-chair of the Archives Committee, I'm on our Landmarks Committee and I handle most of our print publications. So that's not exactly what a president does, but it's ended up being my job.
Speaker 2:So it's a very hands-on role.
Speaker 3:Yeah, pretty hands-on, and I think that you would say I'm also one of the promoters for the society to help get the word out about who we are, what we do.
Speaker 2:Wonderful, wonderful, and that's exactly what we're doing today, donna.
Speaker 1:then I was in charge of the gift shop at the Muller House Museum and the Docents and I started a new program with local authors in coordination with our birthday every year, so we have local author events so we can gather everyone there.
Speaker 3:And the birthday? Do you mean the birthday of San Pedro, San Pedro's?
Speaker 1:birthday? Yeah, we celebrate every year. We've worked with some of the local schools for student volunteers and for the scholarships that we give out, so I hope we're in any of those. We have lots of committees that we're all on.
Speaker 2:And while we're on the topic, for folks who don't know, the annual anniversary date of our beautiful town what is it?
Speaker 1:March 1st 1888.
Speaker 3:Of our beautiful town. What is it? March 1st 1888. That's when San Pedro incorporated as its own town of. They call it the town of the sixth class it's a designation according to population and San Pedro remained an independent civic entity until it voted to consolidate with Los Angeles in 1909.
Speaker 2:Wonderful Well, so for listeners who might not be familiar with the mission of the Historical Society, can you please share what the mission is?
Speaker 3:Yeah, I would say we have a double-pronged approach that represents what we do in the archives and what we do at the Muller House Museum and our mission or purpose, as they call it, is written to our bylaws.
Speaker 3:And may I read that yes, please Go ahead. So in the section that describes our purpose, it says In pursuing these goals, the Society will seek to preserve the uniquely heterogeneous nature of the San Pedro Bay community, a place where people of all ages, varying ethnic and religious backgrounds and economical situations live, work and play together in a potpourri of buildings and parks featuring a wide gamut of cultural and architectural styles and purposes. So I love the broad definition of our purpose, the broad way we regard San Pedro, and as part of the bylaws too, it talks about promoting preservation of historic buildings and landmarks, which we've had a hand in doing. And we do have opportunities to help people when they come into the archives. If we have old pictures of their house that maybe they're fairly new in the community. They've bought a house. We can sometimes pull up a picture so they can see what the house once looked like or what the street looked like where the house is located.
Speaker 2:Cool. So what we'll do is I'll ask the next questions and then you can decide which one of you would like to answer them, if that works. So my next question is what are some key projects or initiatives the society is currently working on?
Speaker 3:Well, we do have what we call our landmark plaques program. We are encouraging people who have houses that are architecturally significant or significant because maybe a person important in San Pedro history lived there, maybe it's a particular site with no house whatsoever to think about sponsoring a plaque. That is, it's a cast aluminum plaque and more on the colorful side, so it stands out. You can see it if you're passing by in your car. That will draw attention to these places that are important in San Pedro history. So we have that plaque program. Donna might be telling us a little more later on, but we usually have several talks a year, a field trip to a place of historic interest and our advocacy, our advocacy is ongoing, so you might call that a project in one sense. So we try and advocate for the preservation of structures such as those two remaining Japanese-owned storefronts buildings on Tunis Street and Terminal Island. We might advocate, as we have in the past, that a particular building be acknowledged as a historic cultural monument by the City of LA's Cultural Heritage Commission. So in a sense, again, that advocacy is an ongoing project.
Speaker 3:Over there in the municipal building on the sixth floor, we have things like the documents from Roman Sepulveda, who was one of the inheritors of land under the Rancho Palos Verdes when that property was divided. We have documents relating to George Peck, one of the early developers. We have this plaque book so you can open up these now 100-year-old books and look at individual lots and handwritten in fountain pen ink is who purchased that lot. So we have those sorts of treasures. We have recently used our archives to assist the Mexican Hollywood Culture Society in documenting the history of their neighborhood and you may know that they just recently got the wonderful Mexican Hollywood square sign that the city mounted on a pole to designate that now-vanished community. So we've got those kinds of things in our archives and so we do have people find things that relate to their own personal history when they visit us and that really brings us so much pleasure.
Speaker 2:I bet. So what are some of the most unique or surprising artifacts in the collection?
Speaker 3:I'm not sure you'd find it exactly surprising, but people have heard of Shanghai Reds, the famous waterfront bar in San Pedro. That's no more. Of course it was done away with in urban renewal. But we have these beautiful painted tin trays that hung in Shanghai Ritz and we have those up in our archives. I don't know if it would be considered a surprise, but people are always stunned when they see this. I think it's about a six-foot-long painting that was produced for George Peck's real estate office, probably in about 1913. And it was his grand vision for San Pedro. It's a painting that never. It shows things that were never realized in San Pedro, but many, many wharfs sprouting off the breakwater, which was very impractical. And that painting is quite stunning because of its size and this almost fantasy vision he had for the town. So people love seeing that and I guess you would say it's something of a surprise when they do.
Speaker 2:I can't wait to get my eyes on them. Can you speak to any partnerships that the society might have with local schools, other museums, community organizations?
Speaker 3:Okay, well, over the years we have collaborated with a number of organizations, like the Point Furman Lighthouse that would be the friends of the Point Furman Lighthouse the Dominguez Rancho and, in 2013, we collaborated with businesses in downtown San Pedro in a rather large undertaking called Windows into the Past, and we used the storefronts of all the businesses many of the businesses who participated to put on display, almost like these dioramas featuring aspects of San Pedro history. So we had a window in what is now the Port Town Brewing. What is it.
Speaker 1:Port Town.
Speaker 2:Brewery.
Speaker 3:Brewery. That's it. Brewery featuring something we called it A Trillion Tons of Fish, you know, recalling the old tuna industry. We had other windows devoted to particular ethnicities, to old stores like Williams Bookstore, special displays for the library and people. It was like a walking tour. You could walk all over downtown and find these windows and learn something about San Pedro history, and Donna was one of the people who participated in creating those windows.
Speaker 2:Anything you'd like to add, Donna, about the.
Speaker 1:I know it's a shame that so much of it has already been lost. We collaborate with the chamber and the city council a lot because they donate buses to us for field trips out to local historical societies, Even a little further away. We've gone lots of places in Southern California and other chambers and other historical societies will come and do talks for us. We collaborate with schools. A high school, one of their former teachers, who was a former president of our society, donated a bit of money when he passed away for the establishment of a scholarship, so that lasted over 10 years and then now we've kind of created the scholarship for all of the schools. There's a lot of schools in town were like why can't we apply that? Because he was the teacher at San Pedro High. It was specified in his donation that it was just for the San Pedro High students. So yeah, so we work with a lot of the schools for volunteers when they need to earn their volunteer hours.
Speaker 3:And we're open to other partnerships. You know, if people think about us, we've had Rotary, we've helped them with some of their fundraising by offering tours at the Muller House Museum and that's been fun. So yeah, you know, I think if we can invite people to look us up and find out what we're able to do with them, you know we'd appreciate that want to get thrown away.
Speaker 1:When they were revitalizing the downtown LA public library and threw away a table, someone from the society had heard about it and acquired it, and we have it at the Muller House. Someone was digging in their yard and found a plaque that was mounted at one point that was in honor of the first San Pedro boy who died in World War I. So they didn't know why it was there, where it came from, and they said do you want it? We're like, of course we. Usually we don't turn down donations of any sort Yearbooks. A lot of times when people's parents, grandparents pass away, they don't want their old yearbook, we keep them in the archives and then eventually, if we have numerous copies, we offer them for sale. So there are some people that are so thrilled to get a yearbook with their father or grandfather or uncle in it so that they're not being wasted or just thrown in a dump somewhere.
Speaker 2:That brings me to my next question how can community members get involved and support the work of the historical society?
Speaker 3:Well, usually a first step is people attend a program, a talk or an event. They actually come up to the archives because they want to investigate something that pertains to their own family history, for instance, and they end up speaking with docents or volunteers, learn a little more. And then we find that they say how can I volunteer with you? They can also, if people are interested, they can email us and all of our information is on our website. So you would need to just do an internet search for San Pedro Bay Historical Society and that'll turn up our website and go from there, because the information is listed.
Speaker 2:Awesome. What is your favorite story or artifact that you've come across in your time with the Historical Society?
Speaker 3:Okay. So, donna, why don't you go first?
Speaker 1:Okay, and it kind of ties in with what we were just saying.
Speaker 1:I enjoy, have enjoyed the most.
Speaker 1:We had a display for people getting married and people sent in, emailed or even dropped off photographs of various family members that got married in San Pedro, and, like we got a picture of the last couple that got married at St Peter's Church that now is at Green Hills within our old churchyard, and so it's interesting. And we have a armed services tee, and so people will bring photographs of their family members that served in the armed services usually in the San Pedro area, but not necessarily. So it's nice to see all these photographs, see all the history. We got a wonderful donation of a wedding dress from a prominent family in the area, like full wedding dress, I think there was a maid of honor dress as well and a suit, and it went beautifully with our exhibit that we had, and so a lot of people heard about that. And then we were able to get more donations of photographs that we then scan and then keep at the archives. We never get rid of it because you never know when someone's going to need it at some point.
Speaker 2:What's next for the historical society?
Speaker 3:Oh, you know, because our work is historical, there's no end in sight. There's always going to be something more to discover or something more to preserve, and what exists today in 40 years from now is going to be somebody else's history. So the work we do now is really with a nod to the future. People are going to be wanting to know what was going on now, 40 years from now, and at the archives. We hope to have the entire collection in the archives digitally cataloged. See, by doing it digitally, then you can easily look up the things by name, by subject, and it's a project that's been going on for more than six years. All the new donations to the archives that come in are digitally acquisitions, so we do have that ongoing. Those are some of the things that come to mind.
Speaker 2:Donna, anything to add there?
Speaker 1:We really have been trying to make a concerted effort to get younger members to join and get interested in the history because, unfortunately, we are losing so many of our older historical society members. Our membership list has decreased by quite a bit in the last 10 years and we're losing that history with them, so we need to find some younger people that are interested in history to help us preserve it, to continue the legacy of the archives, as well as the Muller House and any other things that we may get in the future.
Speaker 2:So if you could preserve one more historical site or story in San Pedro that is at risk of being forgotten, what would it be? Is at risk of being forgotten, what would it be?
Speaker 3:I don't want to say it would be at risk of being forgotten, but it's maybe a story that's not been fully told yet, and for me, I would like to make sure that the story of the African-American community here in San Pedro is better documented, and in the last several years there has been a little done on that, but it's necessarily been piecemeal rather than comprehensive, and so I hope that in some way we can get to that.
Speaker 3:You know, San Pedro has had a community that's been here since probably before the 1920s, but people don't realize that, and so we'd like to get that story told. And on Terminal Island, I've already mentioned the two buildings there. We do have a lot documented on Terminal Island in our own archives, but we're hoping to see that those two buildings used maybe for an educational or cultural purpose. So in terms of a site for preservation, that's what I would be thinking about.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I don't feel like they've been represented, and there's also a lot of dark history regarding Native American people in town that most people don't know about and should be told as well, so that they'll be in the full picture, at least for me. My father was a fisherman and every time he would leave port we would go down to Pass Warehouse 1 to watch the boat as it went out the breakwater and they're talking about a lot of redevelopment for it, and I would like to see it preserved in some way and the history of it shown, even if they have housing or retail. It would be fantastic if we could get a physical location of a museum for all of San Pedro history so that, like you said in the past, that you can go to one place and it's not piecemealed all over town in different locations, so that people from the area you know the cruise terminals that come in and they come down to visit Alta Sea or some of those areas that could be one of their stops and go to the historical museum. I love that idea.
Speaker 2:Any final thoughts you'd like to share with our Harbor Area Podcast audience about the San Pedro Bay Historical Society?
Speaker 3:I would like to encourage those born or raised here, as well as all the new residents, to learn about San Pedro history. I feel that understanding San Pedro's history creates a sense of community and we want to maintain that and enrich that. So I would say, get involved with caring for San Pedro's historic places. Our town is not just a cool place to live with a lively art scene, but it's a long-enduring community and you can add to its story by helping to preserve its history story by helping to preserve its history.
Speaker 2:Mona and Donna, thank you so much for coming on today and being guests on the podcast. Really appreciate your time and all of the historical information and knowledge you shared with us.
Speaker 3:This has been a great opportunity for us. We love talking about what we do here and invite everybody to come see us.
Speaker 2:For more information about the San Pedro Bay Historical Society, visit wwwsanpedrobayhistoricalsocietycom or you can call 310-548-3208. Hey, folks, thanks for listening to the Harbor Area Podcast. If you enjoyed today's episode, don't forget to subscribe, leave a review and share it with your friends. And hey, if there's a hidden gem you want me to uncover next, shoot me a message. Until next time, keep exploring and keep the stories alive.