SIGHTSEEING PARKS & RECREATION

GENERAL INFORMATION:

Los Angeles Recreation and Parks Department, Pacific Region

310-548-7598

Banning Recreation Center

1331 Eubank Ave., Wilmington

310-548-7776

BANNING’S LANDING COMMUNITY

CENTER

100 E. Water Street, Wilmington

Phineas Banning was a visionary with tremendous energy and love for Southern California, whose imprint on the community of Wilmington is still visible today. It could be said that the remarkable growth of this region literally started at Banning’s Landing over 150 years ago.

Banning Residence Museum

401 East “M” Street (at Pacific Coast Highway and Avalon Blvd.), Wilmington

Nestled near the Banning/Wrigley continued on page 14

Historic Preservation Zone in Wilmington and just a few miles from the Port of Los Angeles, the beautiful Banning Museum is one of California’s historic gems.

Built in 1864 by General Phineas Banning, the “Father of the Los Angeles Harbor,” the Banning residence is widely considered one of the finest examples of Greek Revival architecture in Southern California.

2014 marked the 150th Anniversary of the Banning Mansion. In 2013, the residence underwent major restoration efforts to repair and paint the grand ‘ole place in time for its milestone anniversary of 150 years. Today, the Banning is completely restored and stands sturdy and tall once again to welcome all who visit to share in the history and splendor of a time gone by.

Experience life as it was 100 years ago through the eyes of one of the founders of Los Angeles. For information, call 310.548.7777; $5 donation per person, $1 for children under 12.

After School Club – pick-ups at Wilmington Park and Elementary School and Harry Bridges Span School; homework assistance, arts & crafts, sports, baking and more! League athletics (sports offered dependent upon the season– call for info); summer drop-in activities.

East Wilmington Greenbelt Community Center

918 N. Sanford Ave., Wilmington

310-522-2064

After School Club – pick-ups at Wilmington Park Elementary School; homework assistance, arts & crafts, sports, baking and more! League athletics (sports offered dependent upon the season – call for info); summer drop-in activities.

Wilmington Recreation Center

325 N. Neptune Ave, Wilmington

310-548-7645

Harbor Park Golf Course

1235 Figueroa Place, Wilmington

310-549-4953 www.laparks.org

Designed by William F. Bell, ASGCA, the Harbor Park Golf Course opened in 1957. The 9-hole course features 3,200 yards of golf from the longest tees for a par of 37.

Harbor Pool

1221 Figueroa Place, Wilmington 310-835-6590

Banning Pool

1450 N. Avalon Blvd., Wilmington 310-548-7420

Harbor Sports Complex

1221 N. Figueroa Place, Wilmington

Wilmington Athletic Complex

1650 N. Figueroa Street, Wilmington

DRUM BARRACKS CIVIL WAR MUSEUM

1052 Banning Blvd. (south of East “M” Street), Wilmington

The historic Drum Barracks is the only Civil War-era U.S. Army building still standing in Southern California. The 16-room structure once stood among 19 similar buildings on 60 acres of land donated to the U.S. Army by General Phineas Banning and B.D. Wilson.

Named after Adjutant-General Richard C. Drum, commander of the post, the Drum Barracks served as the main training, staging and supply depot for military operations in Arizona, Southern California and New Mexico. The museum features many items from this era, including an operable Gatling Gun.

Located in the original junior officers’ quarters, the museum displays historical artifacts and is operated by the City of Los Angeles. For information, call 310.548.7509; $5 donation per person, $1 for children under 12.

DRUM BARRACKS POWDER MAGAZINE

1001 Eubank Avenue, Wilmington

Part of the 30-acre Camp Drum (a Civil War-era Union Army facility), the powder magazine housed weapons and gun powder for the soldiers. Located just a few blocks from the Drum Barracks Civil War Museum, it was constructed in 1862 with three-foot thick stone block walls. During the 1920s, a wood frame house was built around the stone building and it was hidden for about 60 years. The structure was moved in the 1980s revealing this historic relic from the Civil War days. Today it sits on a fenced-in vacant lot.

ST.

JOHN’S

Episcopal Church

1547 Neptune Avenue, Wilmington

Mary Hollister Banning (Phineas Banning’s second wife) began holding Episcopal services in the basement of the Banning Mansion in 1876 and subsequently championed the building of a stave-type church. Construction began in 1882 and St. John’s Episcopal Church was finished in 1883. Originally located at 422 N. Avalon Boulevard, the church was moved to its present site in 1943 and still holds Sunday services.

The Banning family donated the altar and the bell, which came from one of Phineas Banning’s channel boats, the S.S. Amelia. In 1926, the church received the altar cross and altar rail as gifts from a US Navy chaplain. The cross and rail were made in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii from brass taken from a World War I German submarine.

Wilmington Cemetery

605 East “O” Street, Wilmington

Phineas Banning donated land for the site and constructed the cemetery in 1857 upon the death of his infant child. Banning was originally buried in the cemetery but was later moved to Rosdale Cemetery in Los Angeles. Also interred at the cemetery are Banning’s first wife, Rebbeca Sanford Banning, as well as various family members and numerous Civil War veterans and Drum Barracks soldiers.

Banning Wrigley Historic District

The Banning Park Historic Preservation Overlay Zone (HPOZ) can be found directly south of the historic Banning Residence and Banning Park, including both sides of Lame Avenue, Banning Boulevard and Cary Ave. from M Street to L Street to the south. The Banning Wrigley neighborhood was mainly built in 1927, with a few houses constructed as late as the 1950s. General Banning, a native of Wilmington, Delaware, came to Southern California in 1851 where he quickly established himself as a respected businessman in the fledgling transportation industry growing around the Los Angeles Harbor. General Banning owned interests in several ocean-going vessels, railroads, and stagecoaches in the area.