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January 27
1970 - Gov. Ronald Reagan appoints Adrian Adams as Newhall's first "second" judge [story]
Adrian Adams


Los Angeles State Historic Park sits just north of Chinatown on a stretch of land that once housed the train station where new arrivals to Los Angeles from the East first disembarked.

The park includes green spaces where families can kick around a ball, host picnics and fly kites. Visitors can enjoy running and biking paths and when California State University, Northridge history professor Jessica Kim and her students are done, learn more about the city’s history and its people.

Kim has been awarded more than $100,000 by the California Department of Parks and Recreation to research and develop historical signage and educational programs at the park, with the goal of elevating the rich, “untold” stories of the area, including those of Black, Latinx, Asian and Indigenous communities.

“Parks present a wonderful opportunity to teach people about who we are and what came before us,” said Kim, who teaches in CSUN’s College of Social and Behavioral Sciences. “This is also an opportunity to remind people that they can make change when they work together. Los Angeles State Historic Park would not be here if not for the grassroots activism of residents who worked together to demand that, instead of being developed, the land be turned into much needed greenspace. As time passes, the people responsible for the park’s creation are beginning to leave us. We need to preserve their oral histories while we can and share those stories with the pubic.”

The grant is part of the Department of Parks and Recreation’s Relevancy and History Project, which focuses on interpretive practices and outreach to underserved communities.

As part of the project, Kim and her students will be conducting research on how the land where the park now sits was used and the people who once lived in the area.

Kim noted that when the A Line adjacent to the park was being constructed, work crews uncovered remains of the original irrigation ditch that once brought water from the Los Angeles River to the Pueblo of Los Angeles during Spanish colonial times.

“It was probably constructed along the lines of Indigenous irrigation routes, so it may even predate the 18thcentury,” she said. “The rail line to Los Angeles is also contained in the park and it’s also not marked.”

The park is often referred to as the Cornfield, a nickname derived from the corn leaking from train cars on that original line that spouted along the tracks. In more recent time, the land was an abandoned brown patch surrounded by industrial warehouses and rail lines.

Kim and her students hope to find a way to tell the story of the park’s history that is inviting and inspires visitors about the lives of the people who existed on the site before them.

“Traditionally, in state parks, and lots of historic sites, there are signs that alert park goers to what they are seeing,” Kim continued. “But there are more creative ways — through educational programming, events or something we haven’t even thought of yet — to educate people about the history of the park and the city that surrounds it.”

As part of the project, Kim is creating a practicum class for spring 2024 that will focus on the Los Angeles Historic Park project, researching the park’s history, its needs and creating educational materials for the public. She will oversee the development of a public history curriculum to support workshop-style training for park staff. The project also includes four year-long paid internships for students.

Kim said she and her students will be working with the park’s staff to come up with creative ways to entice park visitors to learn more about its history than a quick glance at a sign.

“Perhaps it’s QR codes that people can scan to learn more about something or some other innovative idea,” she said. “The students and I will be working with the park’s staff to determine what we think will work best.”

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HIGHER EDUCATION LINKS
LOCAL COLLEGE HEADLINES
Monday, Jan 27, 2025
The College of the Canyons Foundation in response to the Los Angeles wildfires have created the Cougars Care Emergency Fund to help COC students who have lost everything.
Friday, Jan 24, 2025
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced the nominees for its 97th annual Academy Awards, recognizing excellence in the film industry on Thursday, Jan 23. As in years past, CalArtian-helmed films are in the running across the ceremony’s 23 categories.
Wednesday, Jan 22, 2025
California State University, Northridge professor Jeremy Yoder has been honored by his peers in three national scholarly societies on evolutionary biology for his work advancing equity and justice in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields. 
Tuesday, Jan 21, 2025
College of the Canyons has successfully completed the first year of its five-year Veterans Upward Bound grant program. This transformative initiative aims to provide comprehensive support services to eligible student veterans in the Santa Clarita Valley, Antelope Valley and parts of the San Fernando Valley.
Friday, Jan 17, 2025
The Santa Clarita Community College District Board of Trustees will hold a business meeting Wednesday, Jan. 22, beginning at 5 p.m. The board will first meet in closed session at 3 p.m.
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The MAIN and Front Row Center presents the original play by Lee Clarke, "Disconnect", Friday Feb. 21 thru Sunday, Feb. 23 at 24266 Main St, Santa Clarita, CA 91321.
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1970 - Gov. Ronald Reagan appoints Adrian Adams as Newhall's first "second" judge [story]
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