Over the past 96 years, downtown Riverside has seen 2 main post offices built, the first in 1912 and the second in 1939. First came the 1912 Federal Building/Post Office located on Seventh Street (Mission Inn Avenue). Sporting Italian-Renaissance architecture, the building served as the city’s main post office for nearly 30 years. Afterward, the…
We’re not certain of the exact year, but this postcard appears to be sometime during the 1950s. Based upon “Int’l Airport” being used for notating Ontario Airport, it’s likely post-1946 — the year Ontario Municipal Airport was re-named Ontario International Airport. Likewise, the lack of Lake Perris means it’s pre-1974. Note also the current-day routes…
After several years without a multiplex theater, Riverside’s Galleria at Tyler mall is once again lighting up the big screen following last weekend’s opening of the AMC Tyler 16. As part of the mall’s “North Village” expansion, the AMC theater replaces the center’s original UA Theater that was cleared to make way for a free-standing…
Since its opening as the single-level Tyler Mall in 1970 and re-christening as the two-level Galleria at Tyler in 1991, Riverside’s primary shopping center remains one of Inland Southern California’s top retail destinations. Currently undergoing its third major expansion, the Galleria at Tyler has flourished as both the city and the Inland region have grown…
Since its opening as the single-level Tyler Mall in 1970 and re-christening as the two-level Galleria at Tyler in 1991, Riverside’s primary shopping center remains one of Inland Southern California’s top retail destinations. Currently undergoing its third major expansion, the Galleria at Tyler has flourished as both the city and the Inland region have grown…
There’s been some chatter recently of moving Riverside’s “Central Library” from its current downtown site on Mission Inn Avenue to a location east of the 91 Freeway. We feel this would be a big mistake. The notion began with a seemingly innocuous letter to the editor that appeared in the June 19th edition of The…
One of the things we find fascinating are how places and/or buildings change — or don’t change — over time. Sometimes it’s a simple paint job on an old house or building while at other times an entire building — or entire block — is completely redeveloped. Sometimes the transformation takes several years, while in…
After 35 years of being seemingly frozen in time, the mid-century facade of the old Imperial Hardware Company store in downtown Riverside is no more. The city, which recently finalized the purchase of the long-shuttered building, began dismantling Imperial’s modern false front early Monday. By midday, nearly three-fourths of the aluminum covering had been removed,…
Before there was a Main Street Pedestrian Mall in downtown Riverside there was, well, an actual Main Street, with actual cars — and curbside parking. Seen here in photos approximately 50 years apart is a view of Main Street looking north toward Mission Inn Avenue (formerly Seventh Street) from near University Avenue (formerly Eighth Street)….
Palm trees, snow-covered mountains, sunny blue skies, citrus groves and mild temperatures — no where else but Southern California. But this isn’t Los Angeles nor even Orange County. In fact, it’s Inland Southern California — once simply referred to as the “Orange Empire.” For well over a century, the Orange Empire’s landscape — combined with…
