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Collection of Photographic Postcards of the Los Angeles Times
Building Bombing
photCL 714
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Contributing Institution:
The Huntington Library
Title: Collection of photographic postcards of the Los Angeles Times building
bombing
Identifier/Call Number: photCL 714
Physical Description:
0.5 Linear Feet
(1 box)
Date: 1910
Abstract: Thirteen photographic postcards
depicting the aftermath of the Los Angeles Times building bombing, carried out by labor
union activists on October 1, 1910.
Language of Material: Materials are in
English.
Open for use by qualified researchers and by appointment. Please contact Reader Services at
the Huntington Library for more information.
The Huntington Library does not require that researchers request permission to quote from
or publish images of this material, nor does it charge fees for such activities. The
responsibility for identifying the copyright holder, if there is one, and obtaining
necessary permissions rests with the researcher.
[Identification of item]. Collection of photographic postcards of the Los Angeles Times
building bombing, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Purchased from Vigilante Rare Documents, November 2023.
The 1910 bombing of the Los Angeles Times building by unionists was a major criminal event
in Los Angeles history, killing 21 people and injuring dozens of others. James B. and John
J. McNamara, brothers and labor activists, were convicted of the bombing, which was a
response to publisher Harrison Gray Otis' fierce opposition to labor unions. The explosion
and fire destroyed the second Los Angeles Times building at 1st and Broadway; a third
building was built in 1911 at the same location, and the fourth was completed in 1935 at 1st
and Spring streets.
A group of 13 photographic postcards documenting the destruction of the Los Angeles Times
building after it was dynamited on October 1, 1910, by labor union activists. John J.
McNamara of the International Association of Bridge and Structural Iron Workers union, and
his brother James B. McNamara were convicted of the bombing. Most of the photographs feature
different angles of the building destruction, some with firefighter wagons, fire hoses, and
smoke still visible. One photograph shows the destruction in Ink Alley, where the bomb was
set off, and another shows a printing press. An unidentified photograph appears to be of
James and John McNamara and a woman standing in front of a house, possibly theirs. One of
the photographs is captioned "Where first bodies were found ... raising debris to recover
the dead." Some postcards have correspondence and stamps on versos.
Processed by Suzanne Oatey in December 2023.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Bombings--California--Los Angeles--History--20th century
Fire departments -- California -- Los Angeles -- Photographs.
Labor unions -- California -- Los Angeles -- History -- 20th
century
Los Angeles (Calif.) -- Buildings, structures, etc.
Newspaper buildings
Photographic postcards.
Photographs
McNamara, James B. (James
Barnabas), 1882-1941
McNamara, John J.
Los Angeles Times (Firm) -- Buildings -- Photographs