Mile-long monorail takes passengers on scenic ride
Alternative Title
Valley Times Photo Collection;
Creator
Goldwater, Jeff
Contributor
This project was supported in whole or in part by the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act, administered in California by the State Librarian Made accessible through a grant from the John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation and Photo Friends
The Los Angeles County Fair was first held from October 17-21, 1922 in Pomona. During World War II, from May 7 to August 24, 1942, the grounds were used as a Wartime Civilian Control Administration assembly center, which held more than 5,000 Japanese Americans prior to sending them to internment camps. There is no known historical marker at the site. There was no fair held from 1942-1947 due to the war. The fair is one of the largest county fairs in the United States. It is held in September on 543 acres of fairgrounds known as Fairplex, which includes a hotel and exposition complex, and is operated by the Los Angeles County Fair Association. Photograph caption dated September 20, 1962 reads "'Underslung' attraction electrically propels cars on continuous steel rail." The monorail, at the Los Angeles County Fair, carries 24 passengers in each of its 14 cars and cost around $600,000 to build. 40-passenger cars replaced the originals in 1990, but stresses in the system resulted in the dismantling of the monorail and the newer cars were sold to a Chinese businessman. The cars were never used again.
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