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Civil War general and World War II homes at the post office
by Dan Bialek
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Bonnie Beckerson poses in front of the Historical Society’s new exhibits. Photo by Dan Bialek |
Every weekday from now until Dec. 23, the Manhattan Beach Historical Society will be presenting a special exhibit featuring two new photo collages displaying unique pieces of the city’s history.
From 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday though Friday, visitors to the city’s post office at 15th Street and Valley Drive will be able to view pictures and read about General William S. Rosecrans, the man for whom Rosecrans Avenue was named. A second exhibit features photographs and historical information on box houses built in 1943 for defense workers during World War II.
Bonnie Beckerson, a 15-year member of the Historical Society, is one of curators of the new displays. She recently published a book about Manhattan Beach entitled "I’ll Take Manhattan."
"It’s a pictorial history of Manhattan Beach, with an emphasis on World War II," she said.
She will be available on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays to answer questions about the society’s new displays and to sign copies of her book.
Rosecrans General
General William Starke Rosecrans, the ruddy-faced Union commander after which Rosecrans Boulevard was named, directed troops in two of the costliest battles of the Civil War before being resigning from the army service in 1867.
"General Rosecrans was a very interesting character," said Beckerson. "He was said to be a hard drinker, have a quick temper, and to stutter when he was angry or excited."
"He had a hard time accepting orders from those above and had a real problem with authority," Beckerson said. "However, he also had a deep respect and high regard for his men, who referred to him as "Old Rosy."
Although his military career ended in failure, Rosecrans won his first great battle. On Jan. 2, 1862, after three days of fighting, Rosecrans routed General Braxton Bragg’s rebel forces in the Battle of Stones River, Tennessee. Although a military success for Rosecrans, 24,645 soldiers died in the battle, marking the eighth deadliest skirmish of the entire Civil War. And more bloodshed was yet to come.
After Stones Creek, Rosecrans faced off against General Braggs in late June of 1863. This offensive, the Battle of Chickamauga, proved to be Rosecrans’ downfall.
"Rosecrans had two major problems at Chickamauga," Beckerson said. "One was tactical and the other was due to his personality."
"Because of his bad attitude, he made a lot of enemies," Beckerson said. "This led to the Army ignoring his requests for more supplies and his being outmatched at Chickamauga."
So, on Sept. 18, 1863, when Rosecrans and Braggs met again, it was Braggs’ better-supplied army that won the battle. However, it wasn’t just lack of provisions that led to his defeat.
"The other problem that Rosecrans faced was tactical," Beckerson said. "He received a wrong report that said there was a gap in one of his lines, and when he moved his forces to close up the false gap, it created a real one."
This gap led to the Confederates immediately driving one-third of the Union Army, including Rosecrans himself, from the field. On Sept. 20, after losing 16,170 men, the remainder of the Union forces retreated. The battle at Chickamauga saw the second largest number of casualties, 34,624, of any other Civil War battle.
After Chickamauga, Rosecrans went to Missouri until the end of the war. He resigned in 1867 after not receiving another commission to lead troops again.
"He waited for orders for about two years, but they never came," Beckerson said. "So he packed up and went to California."
"After the war, he moved out west and bought 14,000 acres of land that would later make up the Sausal Redondo Ranch," Beckerson said. "He spent his days farming fruit and wheat. And he would also commute from his house to the Redondo Hotel which was the ritziest place in the area to be seen at that time."
Rosecrans spent the remainder of his days in California and died in Redondo on March 11, 1898. He was buried in Los Angeles, but later his remains were moved to Washington, D.C. and interred at Arlington National Cemetery. Rosecrans Avenue was named in his honor sometime after his death.
Liberty homes
In January 1943, the F.H. Dolan Construction Company asked for the city council’s permission to construct a batch of two-bedroom rental homes. The council denied the requested, citing in part the proposed homes’ lack of garages. The contractor designed these "box houses" without garages due to scarcity of materials during wartime.
Although their plans were initially rejected by the city, the determined house builders swore that the city had not heard the last of their pleas.
A company representative was quoted as saying, "I can only add that we shall expect to bring this matter before you again," while making his case before the council in January 1943.
By mid-summer the city had rethought its position on the project, and allowed it to go forward.
"In August of 1943, the city council changed their building ordinances to accommodate the site because they realized that there was a housing shortage, and they had to make accommodations for the newly arriving workers," Beckerson said.
"The city council gave in and gave permission to build the homes, but under the strict guidelines that they only be rented to defense workers," she said. "These were the days of the dream of having a house with a little picket fence and living in it when your husband came back from the war."
"I received 18 addresses, but not all of them were still there. Some of them have been redone or torn down."
Of the dozen-and-a-half homes listed, Beckerson was able to locate eight that were still standing in much the same configuration when they were built during World War II. Beckerson said that she found them scattered on the four-hundred blocks between 29th and 36th streets.
"I haven’t been able to find out why they were built in this particular location, but it’s mystery that I hope to solve someday," she said.ER