Fire Scorches Venice
Just the way we have the Santa Monica Pier today, around the turn of the century the coastline used to be lined with piers . People packed the beaches, and when the lights went down, people stayed to play at the piers. There was dancing, live music, amusement park rides and restaurants, much like today, but on a grander scale. In the thirties and forties, many of these piers fell into disrepair. Some were dismantled, others were just left to fall apart. This is the story of one that burned.This is a quote pulled from a UCLA site about a pier in Venice called "Lick's Pier."
"Pacific Ocean Park went bankrupt in 1967. The rides and attractions were auctioned off in 1968. Except for a few restaurants along Ocean Front Walk, and the old Aragon Ballroom which was converted in 1967 into the Cheetah Club, the park was shuttered and its empty buildings were off limits.
The first of many arson fires was on December 29, 1969. The seaward end of the pier burned while two dozen firemen fought the blaze. Then six months later on May 27, 1970 a midnight fire destroyed the Aragon Ballroom and the Lick Pier while thousands watched. At one point on-shore winds bore leaping embers 1000 feet on nearby Venice buildings. Young transients, as many as 12-20 who were living in several of the pier's structures and under the pier were suspected of arson. Some were missing and police thought that several bodies were in the ruins. But because the fire burned so hot, traces of their bodies were never found."
posted by kuaptic. @ 1:13 PM
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