The Second Street Cable Railway was the first cable car system to open in Los Angeles . Opened in 1885, it ran from Second and Spring Streets to First Street and Belmont Avenue. The completed railway was 6,940 feet long, just over a mile and a quarter, with a power house constructed in the middle, at Boylston Street. It was a single track system, with sidings where a down-hill car could coast past an up-hill car. The route included the steepest gradient on any street railway in North America, a 27.7 degree hill along Second Street between Bunker Hill Avenue and Hope Street on Bunker Hill . The line opened to Texas Street on Oct 8, 1885.
31-524: The railway was created to encourage sales of property west of downtown Los Angeles, property in the area known as Crown Hill. Henry Witmer, E.A. Hall, and Jesse Yarnell, owners of the property, organized the Los Angeles Improvement Company to subdivide the property into 1400 lots and build the cable railway to connect it to downtown. Other backers included downtown businessmen such as Isaac W. Lord and John Hollenbeck , who owned property near
62-600: A Mexican. In 1881, he and other investors organized and established the First National Bank. In 1880, Hollenbeck, with former California Governor John G. Downey , horticulturalist Ozro W. Childs and other associates, persuaded the State of California to purchase 160 acres (65 ha) in Los Angeles to foster agriculture in the southland. The property, then known as Agriculture Park, is now known as Exposition Park , home to
93-554: A farmer. With his father's permission, the young man left home to make his own way. After doing day labor for traveling funds, he returned to Ohio and apprenticed himself to learn the machinist's trade with Bell and Chamberlain in Cuyahoga Falls . He became a master of this trade in three years but declined to join his employers’ business as a partner. Instead of establishing himself in business in Ohio, young Hollenbeck decided to travel to
124-765: A general merchandise store, and won a contract with the Transit Company cutting wood for fuel for the San Juan River steamers. In the spring of 1853 he purchased the Nicaragua Hotel at Castillo Rapids, which he continued to operate under the name of the American Hotel, until it was burned during a filibuster attack on February 15, 1857. At the time of the purchase, the hotel was managed by Elizabeth Hatsfeldt, originally from Mainz, Germany , who had recently immigrated to Nicaragua from New Orleans. In January 1854, he married
155-576: A magnitude 7.0 earthquake off the central coast of Nicaragua generated a tsunami that devastated many communities along the Pacific Coast. Run-up values along the coast ranged from 2m in the north and south to up to 10m in some central locations. Run-up values in San Juan del Sur were approximately 5m. As a result of the tsunami an estimated 60% of homes in the community were destroyed, approximately 800 residents were displaced, and businesses and homes along
186-519: A position as an engineer on a steamer running up the Chagres River . He continued to work on steamers, running from Aspinwall and Chagres to Greytown, Nicaragua , and up the San Juan River. Around 1852, Hollenbeck began the first of a number of businesses ventures in Nicaragua. In Greytown, he furnished entertainment to travelers on the route from Nicaragua to California. At Castillo Rapids, he established
217-545: Is a municipality and coastal town on the Pacific Ocean , in the Rivas department in southwest Nicaragua . It is located 140 kilometres (87 mi) south of Managua . San Juan del Sur is popular among surfers and is a vacation spot for many Nicaraguan families and foreign tourists. Its population is approximately 15,553, consisting largely of families engaged in fishing, tourism or food and beverage industry and foreigners from
248-505: The California gold fields . He took passage on a sailing vessel from New Orleans to Aspinwall, now Colón , in Panama. Upon his arrival, however, the steamer upon which he had booked passage broke down, and he contracted a fever while waiting for repairs. He was too ill to continue traveling and sold his remaining ticket for California. The coastal areas of Panama and Nicaragua, and particularly
279-711: The Los Angeles Coliseum and the Los Angeles County Museums. On July 2, 1883, Hollenbeck received an American passport to travel abroad, which described him as being 5 feet 8 + 1 ⁄ 2 inches (1.74 m) tall, having blue eyes and a light complexion. He last appeared on the Los Angeles City Electors List on August 4, 1884, where his occupation was listed as farmer. His sister, Susan Abiah Wells, married James George Bell . San Juan del Sur, Rivas San Juan del Sur
310-611: The Los Angeles Common Council , the governing body of the city, on December 3, 1877, for a term ending on December 6, 1878. In 1878 Hollenbeck became a stockholder in the Commercial Bank of Los Angeles, and was elected its president. On June 18, 1880, Hollenbeck was listed in the Federal census as a capitalist, he and his wife were raising a Nicaraguan mulatto teenage ward, and they had four servants, including two Chinese and
341-507: The United States , Canada and Europe . While the local economy was, for many years, based on fishing and shipping, it has shifted towards tourism in the last 20 years. In October 2002, to mark the city's 150th anniversary, it was formally designated the "Port of San Juan del Sur" and a "Tourism City of Nicaragua." San Juan del Sur, set beside a crescent-shaped bay, was a popular resting place for gold prospectors headed to California in
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#1732855092116372-650: The 1850s. Correspondingly, San Juan del Sur served as a hub for Cornelius Vanderbilt Lines . A statue of the Christ of the Mercy sits above town on the northern end of the bay. The Mirador del Cristo de la Misericordia sits on one of the highest points on the bay and is one of the tallest Jesus statues in the world. The town is near the site where Survivor: Nicaragua and Survivor: Redemption Island were filmed. Those seasons aired in 2010 and 2011, respectively. The 29th U.S. Survivor season, Survivor: San Juan del Sur (2014),
403-599: The Hollenbecks were back in New York City on October 6, 1869. About 1872, the Transit Company closed all its Nicaraguan operations and Hollenbeck, with three partners, bought all the American company's property and assets. In 1874, a wealthy man but experiencing health difficulties, Hollenbeck and his wife visited Los Angeles, California . The community was growing rapidly, and businesses were investing heavily in anticipation of
434-588: The Improvement Company had sold all but 52 of its lots. In addition, Hollenbeck had expanded his Hollenbeck Hotel at Second and Spring, Witmer and some associates had built the California Bank at the corner of Second and Fort Street (Broadway), and the city had built a new City Hall on Fort Street just south of Second Street. The system was chronically plagued with damage to its cables and pulleys due to flooding. It had to be closed down for several days in
465-544: The Malecón suffered severe damage. The climate for San Juan del Sur is a tropical savanna climate ( Aw according to the Köppen climate classification ), with constant and very warm temperatures throughout the year. The dry season lasts from December to May, with a substantial and heavy rainy season throughout the remainder of the year, with an average yearly rainfall of 1,710 millimetres or 67 inches. The Barrio Planta Project school
496-563: The Nicaraguan government in this capacity. Arriving in Los Angeles early in the spring of 1876, Hollenbeck purchased land on the east side of the Los Angeles River, and built a large residence with broad verandas and a tower on extensive grounds on Boyle Avenue. He made twenty-seven acquisitions of property by 1880; spending $ 108,875 for a total of 6,738 acres (2,727 hectares). The real estate holdings included 600 acres (240 ha) south of
527-736: The Second Street Cable Railway had the distinction of being the first cable railway in the United States to go out of business. John Edward Hollenbeck John Edward Hollenbeck (June 5, 1829 – September 2, 1885) was an American businessman and investor who was involved in the 19th-century development of Nicaragua and the city of Los Angeles, California . J. Edward Hollenbeck was born in Hudson, Ohio , and later moved with his parents to Winnebago County, Illinois . He had limited schooling and, in 1846, decided that he did not wish to be
558-458: The United States to Greytown. From there, small boats transported passengers up the San Juan River and across Lake Nicaragua . Then, mules, horses, or stagecoaches carried them over the small isthmus between the lake and San Juan del Sur, Rivas on the Pacific where they would embark on ships traveling the coast between Panama and Nicaragua and California. After recovering his health, Hollenbeck took
589-586: The city limits, much of which was planted in vineyards. In the San Gabriel Valley, he owned orchards of oranges, lemons, and grapes; and invested in 3,500 acres (1,400 ha) of Rancho La Puente — a grain and stock ranch. In 1884 he purchased and developed an urban business district, known as the Hollenbeck Block , within Los Angeles, this included the Hollenbeck Hotel . Hollenbeck was elected to
620-623: The coming of the Southern Pacific Railroad . While visiting California, Hollenbeck purchased several parcels of real estate and deposited funds in Temple and Workman Bank. Hollenbeck soon closed out his Nicaraguan businesses and made his final move to the United States. Prior to his leaving Nicaragua, the Government appointed him Minister Plenipotentiary to the United States, and on his return he visited Washington, D.C., transacting business for
651-555: The community of Greytown, Nicaragua , were growing rapidly due to the area's position as the eastern terminus of a transport operation owned by American Cornelius Vanderbilt 's Accessory Transit Company . This transportation network carried thousands of travelers each month from the Atlantic to the Pacific side of Central America on their way to the gold rush in San Francisco. Sail and steam-ships traveled from New York and New Orleans in
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#1732855092116682-596: The crisis. However, upon arriving in New York, they learned the two-year-old child had died of diphtheria . They returned to Greytown again, and Hollenbeck rebuilt his general merchandise business there. He also began diversifying, buying a river steamer from the now-struggling Transit Company. In the fall of 1860 Hollenbeck considered returning to the United States, and briefly established a home in Missouri. He continued to travel to Central America to manage his businesses. However,
713-774: The day before the filibuster attack on February 15, 1857, which destroyed the hamlet by fire. Walker was in turn ousted two months later by a Central American coalition. In May 1857, Hollenbeck was rewarded for his loyalty by the Costa Ricans by receiving a government contract and having the former Accessory Transit Company house given to him in replacement of the destroyed American Hotel. Walker and his followers attempted to retake Nicaragua in November 1857, when they entered Greytown harbor and camped at nearby Puntas Arenas. A squad of Costa Ricans affiliated with Walker raided Castillo Rapids, and took Hollenbeck and his wife as prisoners. The couple
744-834: The impending conflict of the American Civil War caused great economic concern. With the outbreak of war, an embargo was laid on travel and business; railroads were torn up and soldiers quartered in every town. So, he and his wife returned yet again to Greytown in 1865. Shortly after his return, he obtained commissions as an agent for the Royal Mail ships and agent for an English mining company, shipping large quantities of India rubber, Brazil wood, hides, cedar, rosewood, coffee, indigo, and other products. On June 6, 1867, he and his wife arrived in New York City from Greytown, continuing to Hamburg, Germany, from where they returned to New York City on Sept. 28, 1867. After returning to Central America,
775-418: The terminus of the line at Second and Spring Streets. A beer garden resort, called City Park, was developed at the northeast corner of First and Lakeshore in order to draw more passengers to the line. In January, 1888, James McLaughlin paid $ 130,000 for the line and the beer garden, something which turned out to be a most unfortunate decision. By the spring of 1888 demand for lots had fallen off, but by then
806-495: The way to Colegrove. But in late summer, 1889, the Cahuenga Valley Railroad was prevented from operating within the Los Angeles city limits. On October 13, McLaughlin suspended cable operations ”indefinitely”. He applied for a permit to extend the road to Alvarado, but the council denied the permit. On December 24 of that year another flood caused further damage to the line, and it was abandoned in 1890. With its demise,
837-436: The winter of 1888 because a replacement for a broken cable could not be delivered to the cable house through the muddy streets. In March, 1889, an agreement was made with McLaughlin's Cahuenga Valley Railroad (built in conjunction with Ivar Weid), which served the new Colegrove area, located just south of Hollywood. The cable railway would exchange transfers at First and Belmont so that its patrons could travel from downtown all
868-634: The world, including an illustration in the Illustrated London News . Soon after, the San Juan River changed course and the town was again seriously damaged. Greytown was rebuilt after its destruction and again began to prosper. However, in 1855, the American filibuster William Walker installed himself as President of Nicaragua and revoked the charter of the Accessory Transit Company and then assumed its assets. Hollenbeck and his wife were evacuated with other families from El Castillo
899-462: The young widow. However, the community's economic base was damaged when, on 13 July 1854, the United States Navy sloop USS Cyane bombarded and burned Greytown in retaliation for reported local actions against American citizens. The action was a culmination of a confrontation between Americans and the townspeople over tariffs and control of transit routes. The destruction was reported around
930-511: Was also filmed there, as was Season 30, Survivor: Worlds Apart , which aired in 2015. San Juan del Sur has become a hot spot for international surfing competition. San Juan del Sur is the port on the Pacific that has been focus of many historic and modern day Nicaragua Canal proposals because of its location on the narrow isthmus of Rivas between the Pacific Ocean and Lake Nicaragua . U.S. backed forces engaged in armed conflict in San Juan del Sur on March 7, 1984. On September 2, 1992,
961-545: Was held up river on the San Juan River for two weeks, and then moved to Lake Nicaragua for an additional two months. During their captivity, the family's store, house and goods in Castillo Rapids were burned. US Marines and Nicaraguan forces soon surrounded the invaders and captured Walker. Hollenbeck and his wife were freed. Finding their property destroyed, the couple set out for Illinois where their only son, John Edward Hollenbeck Jr., had been sent to his grandparents during