Playa del Rey, Then and Now - Part 2 (1913 - 1924)

A visual tour through the early days of Playa del Rey. From 1913 and the ghost town days of Playa del Rey during World War I to the onset of the real estate boom in 1921 with Dickenson & Gillespie. Concluding with the tragic fire at The Hope Development School in 1924. Featuring numerous "still to motion" transition shots. Historical footnotes: *Hotel del Rey was shuttered in 1917 because of prostitution. Prostitution was also an issue at The Del Rey Tavern inside Hotel Playa. Both are the site of police raids. *After Hotel del Rey shut down it became a place to house working women who couldn’t afford higher rents elsewhere. *The fire at the Hope Development school was started when one of the girls who lived there lit a match in the basement and set fire to a burlap sack. She did not understand what the consequences of her actions would lead to. The head matron and her adult son also lost their lives in the fire. *The Palisades del Rey housing development on the bluffs advertised ‘racial restrictions’ on its flyers. Racial segregation was not uncommon during this time period in American history. *Culver Blvd., an 18 mile speedway to LA was graded in 1903. It was originally called Mesmer Blvd and then Del Rey Blvd. before finally becoming Culver Blvd.