Mystery History

Where are we? And what's happening?

The first person to guess correctly will win a fabulous prize!

I'll have the full scoop on Thursday.

Mystery History -- Solved!

Roberta wins with her 12:16 a.m. Wednesday guess "Ah, the joy of research. A crowd at J. Herbert Hall Jewelers, located on Colorado. An immense diamond is (being) placed in the store window."

In the 1910 photo above (uncropped this time), a Pasadena police officer stands guard outside the J. Herbert Hall Company as a small crowd gathers.

Here's an excerpt from The Pasadena Star, Sept. 24, 1910:

Hundreds of people gazed with awe at a big pebble in the window of the J. Herbert Hall company all day today, the awe being due to the fact that the insignificant stone is a diamond 61¾ carats in weight, worth an unknown number of thousands of dollars. All day a policeman in uniform stood beside the window to see that no one smashed the glass and made off with the costly pebble.

The big, smooth, uncut diamond rested on a mirrored placque surrounded by handsome unmounted but finished diamonds which in themselves would have made a considerable display...

...Because of the remarkable interest in the display the big uncut diamond will remain on show all day Monday.

And this is from an article published the day before:

...Mr. Hall anticipates that it will finally produce one perfect forty-two carat stone and, perhaps, some smaller ones...

...for twenty years it has been uncut in the possession of one family. It was found in a river bed in South Africa, pledged for a large loan and finally taken when the loan was unpaid. It is now to be put in finished form, one of the largest diamonds in the west...

...The value of the display is so great that a special policeman will be stationed at the window to thwart any effort at smashing the glass by some expert sneak thief who might chance to hear of the valuable stone...

On Nov. 13, 1899, Canada-born watchmaker and optometrist J. Herbert Hall founded a small optical and jewelry store at 43 E. Colorado St.

Timing is everything. Extensive diamond deposits were discovered in Africa in the late 19th century, and by the early 1900s a new trend had taken hold across America: The average betrothed young woman didn't want to wait for a simple gold wedding band to adorn her third finger, left hand; she wanted a diamond to signify her engagement.

J. Herbert Hall sold his first diamond ring for $22 and the business took off like a rocket, becoming the most popular spot in town for purchasing engagement rings, fine china ("Back then we were the place to go to register china patterns," a former employee said years later), strings of pearls and, of course, tried-and-true gold watches.

When wristwatches came into popularity in 1914, Mr. Hall stocked them to the rafters and made a killing.

A well-known businessman in Pasadena, he was a charter member of the Pasadena Rotary Club, served as president of the Pasadena Merchants Association, commander of the Pasadena Commandery of the Knights Templar (known popularly as the Masonic Temple) and president of the California Gold and Silversmiths Association. He also served on most of the committees of the Tournament of Roses Association over the years.

His philanthropy, which he planned with his wife Sarah, was renowned and much appreciated. Among his many gifts were a swimming pool for the YWCA summer camp in the mountains and monetary donations to local schools for curriculum materials.

In addition to a spacious home, the Halls owned an apartment building on what is now the Fuller Theological Seminary campus. They even commissioned that little architectural firm Greene & Greene to make some alterations in 1916. The building, at 451-453-455 Ford Place, is still in use and is a contributing property to the Ford Place Historic District, which recently was nominated for the National Register of Historic Places.




Throughout the years until his death in 1951 at age 79, he remained one of the most successful entrepreneurs in Pasadena. After his death, his brother Walter took over the company and oversaw a huge boom and expansion.

In 1973 J. Herbert Hall Jewelers was sold to Gordon Jewelers Corp. and was expanded to a 19-store chain in three states. I don't know what happened, but today there are only of couple of J. Herbert Hall Jewelers in Arizona and Texas.

Here's a really bad poem that was included in a Sept. 13, 1910, J. Herbert Hall Jewelers ad celebrating September as Sapphire Month:

September the Sapphire

Those who are born when autumn leaves
Are rustling in September's breeze.
A sapphire on their hand should bind--
It will bring Wisdom to the mind.

We have them in pins, pendants, rings and bracelets as high as $250.00 and as low as $7.50

Many thanks to our talented researchers at Pasadena Central Library, including Dan McLaughlin who helped me with this post. There's never any challenge too great or small, and believe me I've tossed some doozies their way!

Please join me in congratulating our lead research librarian Martha Camacho, who in November was was named one of the American Library Association's emerging leaders of 2010!

Mystery History

Where are we? And what's happening?

The first person to guess correctly will win a fabulous prize!

I'll have the full scoop on Thursday.

Mystery History -- Solved!

I stumped everyone this week. With everything coming up roses in just two days, I decided to post a coronation photo.

But it's not the Rose Queen!

In the photo above, Susan DeClercq is crowned Pasadena City College's 1960 Red and Gold Queen by Dr. Catherine Robbins, PCC president, as other members of the court look on.

The 2011 Rose Queen, Evanne Friedmann, will be showcased with her court in the Rose Parade -- just two days away!




Many thanks to PCC and Tournament of Roses.

Press Conference at the Rose Palace

This morning while floats were being decorated all around us, we conducted a press conference at the Rose Palace about safety and enforcement measures for the 2011 Rose Parade and Rose Bowl Game.

In the photos above, Fire Chief Dennis Downs addresses the media.

Here's the Rose Palace exterior. You've passed it a jillion times. It's at 835 S. Raymond Ave. and is owned by the Tournament of Roses Association for decorating floats.


Police Chief Phillip Sanchez was up next:



And then Darryl Dunn, general manager of the Rose Bowl Stadium:


After the speakers were finished, there were side interviews with reporters. Here's Chief Sanchez being interviewed by KNX Radio while Darryl Dunn is interviewed by Brian Charles of the Pasadena Star-News:


Police Sgt. Bobby Lomeli, who ordinarily works with public schools, did a Spanish-language interview with Telemundo:



How does a PIO get the media to come to a press conference? With a simple e-mail:

CITY OF PASADENA PUBLIC AFFAIRS OFFICE
PRESS CONFERENCE / PHOTO OPPORTUNITY
MEDIA CONTACT: Lisa Derderian, Fire Department, (626) 744-7276

Hundreds of thousands of people line the Rose Parade route on New Year’s Eve in anticipation of the parade the next day, and more than 90,000 football fans attend the Rose Bowl Game on Jan. 1. This Wednesday, officials will conduct a press conference to explain important safety measures for revelers along the parade route and at the Rose Bowl Stadium, and plans for responding to situations in which people break the law or are in need of medical attention.

DATE AND TIME:
Wednesday, Dec. 29
10 a.m.

PLACE:
Rose Palace
835 S. Raymond Ave. in Pasadena

MEDIA PARKING:
Limited parking is available at Rose Palace for media (on-site security will direct you in); there is additional parking across the street.

SPEAKERS
• Dennis Downs, Pasadena Fire Chief
• Phillip Sanchez, Pasadena Police Chief
• Bill Flinn, Tournament of Roses Chief Operating Officer
• Darryl Dunn, Rose Bowl General Manager
(The 2011 Tournament of Roses theme float “Building Dreams, Friendships and Memories” will serve as a backdrop.)

A LITTLE MORE INFO:
Enhanced security measures will be in effect and very evident along the parade route and at the stadium. Typical calls for response include medical issues, alcohol-related incidents and illegal burning. The Rose Palace is owned by the Tournament of Roses Association and used for the construction of floats.

# # #

Ann Erdman
Public Information Officer
City of Pasadena
Public Affairs Office
100 N. Garfield Ave., Room S228
Pasadena CA 91109
(626) 744-4755
Cell: (626) 375-2742
www.cityofpasadena.net/publicaffairs
Blog: www.pasadenapio.blogspot.com
Facebook: Pasadena PIO
Twitter: pasadenapio

Lisa Derderian, our emergency management coordinator and PIO in the Fire Department, gave me the basic info and I put the alert together quickly and sent it out. Lisa and I make a great team!

I don't know how it is that she wasn't in any of the photos I shot this morning.

So just for giggles, here once again (as if we would ever tire of it!) are the photos of Lisa in her fire PIO hat and me in my makeshift city PIO hat that was created out of sheer jealousy:




I have a newer version in my office if you ever want to come visit it! Both of my PIO hats were made by the mighty Zack Stromberg of the Public Affairs office.

On Friday I'll post some photos of the float decorating that was taking place in the cavernous building.

Mystery History

Where are we? And what's happening?

The first person to guess correctly will win a fabulous prize!

I'll have the full scoop on Thursday.

Merry Christmas, Everybody!