“Santa Barbara, Queen of the Missions”

This week we’re celebrating Independence Day in the U.S., so I thought I’d do something a little different. This episode from the series Huell Howser Presents showcases a film produced by the California Department of Public Works in 1936. Eighty years ago there were a lot fewer paved roads and a lot less traffic! Watch for some very familiar landmarks, like the Tower Bridge in Sacramento, the still-new Oakland Bay Bridge and Golden Gate Bridge, and Lake Tahoe, just to name a few. I’m also including a couple of classic California images scanned from my 1955 Viewmaster reels. Enjoy!

“Golden Poppies, California state flower”

Huell Howser presents a 1936 film by the California Department of Highways. Huell presents the film from the Peterson Automotive Museum in Los Angeles, California.

(Click on the linked image below to see the video.)