Milliners of Los Angeles: Harriett L. Wadley

On this April morning, my research rabbit hole pulled me down into Los Angeles’ millinery world. The US National Archives hosted a monthly #ArchivesHashtagParty on Twitter and chose the theme #ArchivesTipoftheHat. In researching some of the backstories to several images in local archives, I came across Harriett L. Wadley. Millinery work was a popular and... Continue Reading →

Mom & Dad: Royalty To Me

My parents were married a few years after the Supreme Court legalized interracial marriages (Loving v. Virginia)…though fortunately it was made legal in California in 1948 (Perez v. Sharp). Mom was always open with me about the racism she encountered for marrying my Mexican American dad. I only wish my dad could’ve shared his experience... Continue Reading →

Singing Sea Chanties in San Pedro

Sea chanties have been in the media spotlight for the past few weeks, a cheery respite from the grim news cycle of January 2021. A few years ago, I had the pleasure of joining Pomona College professor Gibb Schreffler and his Maritime Music class on a sailboat as students practiced singing sea chanties while hoisting... Continue Reading →

The Amazing Quilts of Chawne Kimber

Lately I’ve been researching textiles as historical sources for women’s history. In this process, I came across the amazing quilts of mathematician Chawne Kimber. "Chawne Kimber is making some of the most powerful artworks today about race, language, women’s rights, and police brutality—all with a needle and thread," Maria Hlohowskyj (from womenarts.org).  That sentence was... Continue Reading →

Walking LA’s Original Four Corners

Through the support of Los Angeles Walks, I've been helping to organize a 4-walk series in which we're making our way around the original border of the City of Los Angeles. This past weekend, about 50 people joined the trek down the eastern border which I co-lead with the amazing urban planner James Rojas. For... Continue Reading →

Year in Review: The Places I’ve Gone

Before I fully dive into the new year, I always reflect on the last one, listing  accomplishments, milestones, challenges, disappointments, etc. While these reflections  remain private, I did want to document here some of the historic and/or notable places I moved through this year. This is definitely not an exhaustive list but just a few... Continue Reading →

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