This collection includes approximately 40,000 photographs by commercial photographer Ralph Morris, who worked in the Los Angeles area from 1939-1981. His advertising and industrial clients included department stores, restaurants, the automobile and petroleum industries as well as business executives. Also included is the Luckhaus Studio collection of architecture, fashion, the movie industry, sports and street scenes, images which Morris obtained in 1939. Lake Arrowhead is an unincorporated community and scenic mountain resort in San Bernardino County, adjacent to the Lake Arrowhead Reservoir. Known as Little Bear Valley back in the early 1800s, the land was purchased in 1891 by three Ohio businessmen as a likely spot for a reservoir to supply water to the southern lowlands. Construction of the dam for the reservoir started in 1893, and by 1912 the dam was 80% complete, although work continued for several years after that. In 1920, Little Bear Lake and the surrounding land was purchased again, this time by a Los Angeles syndicate, and the name was changed to Lake Arrowhead - in reference to the rock formation on the face of the San Bernardino Mountain which resembled an arrowhead. The dam was finally completed between 1921-1923, and a road was constructed partially around the north shore of the lake. The dam is what is known as a semi-hydraulic, fill dam, that measures 200 feet in height, 720 feet in length, is 1,100 feet thick at the base, and has a steel reinforced concrete core wall, embedded 20 feet in bedrock. In addition to this damn, the Lake Arrowhead Village was "built", which included a dance pavilion, an outdoor movie theater, restaurant, bathhouses, as well as three hotels and a 9-hole golf course. In April of 1979, all of the structures of this unofficial town center were burned to the ground by the Lake Arrowhead Fire Protection District, along with the San Bernardino County Fire Department and the Air Corps, as part of a "Burn To Learn" exercise; the dance pavilion, post office, bank and real estate office were the only original buildings preserved. A beautiful "new" village was rebuilt in much the same architecture as the "old" village and serves as the main commercial area for both locals and tourists. Today, Lake Arrowhead's economy is almost completely supported by tourism, both by casual vacationers and part-time residents. It has been a popular recreational area and one of the premier mountain resorts in Southern California for almost 100 years. View 1: Two cabins, or possibly vacation homes, can be seen nestled among a magnificent forest of pines and cedars, located in the beautiful scenic resort of Lake Arrowhead. Three automobiles are parked near each cabin.
Type
Image
Format
1 photographic print :b&w ;26 x 21 cm. Photographic prints
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