Establishing Permanence: The California Statehood and Southern California Stadiums in the Early 1920s

Abstract

Establishing Permanence: The California Statehood and Southern California Stadiums in the Early 1920s By Laura Gomez T housands of years after the demise of the Roman Empire, the Roman Colosseum survived. A testament of Roman technology, society and culture, the Colosseum perpetuates the ancient cultural accomplishments to all visitors. Modern sports stadiums attempt to evoke similar feelings. The steel and concrete stadiums, of early twentieth century America, illuminate the nation’s growing leisure culture. Private institutions, universities and professional sports built these permanent structures to satisfy the growing popularity. Contrary to the stadium filled East, California remained without a stadium until 1921. California’s delayed participation in the nationwide arena construction trend makes the beginning of stadium construction a pertinent area of study. What events led the City of Pasadena and the City of Los Angeles to construct a stadium? What does stadium construction reveal about the contemporary society and local culture? By elucidating the motivating factors leading to California’s decision to build the immense stadiums, it becomes clear that the Rose Bowl and Memorial Coliseum represent California’s global economic and cultural goals of prestige and leisure. Placing these case studies within the state’s history requires a cultural history approach. Considering that stadiums are cultural products, that serve a specific function in society, both techniques will provide the analysis necessary to reveal the socioeconomic ideals attributed to magnificent arenas. Locating each stadium within their respective local history reveals the influence of local cultural and economic institutions, in particular the organizations that incur the greatest benefits. Local newspapers, magazine publication, committee minutes, and school publications provide a wealth of the evidence used to illuminate the cultural and social ideals associated with the construction of a grandiose, local stadium. An inclusive analysis illuminates the national, statewide and local implications of stadium construction. Although sport history remains a popular topic of study, early Californian stadiums have yet to be analyzed collectively. In an attempt to begin to close this gap in the sport historiography, I will analyze the historical significance the Pasadena Rose Bowl and the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum to the development of the California state. The construction of the Central Pacific Railway of California led to the future development of the entire state. The transcontinental railroad reduced the cross-country voyage to only a week- marking California’s entrance into the national market. Californian agriculture could now be sent eastwards, facilitating an economic boom throughout the state. By the 1890s, refrigerated railroad cars allowed the Southern Californian citrus industry to surpass other economic exports. 1 The railroad perpetuated Californian industry, allowing its transfusion across the nation. No longer isolated by geographic distance, California experienced an increased amount of interaction with the nation. Without a doubt, the twentieth century held a host of local, national and global possibilities for the state. A developing state, California showcased its newly attained significance through the construction of stadiums in the southern region of the state.