Dana Point and its lanterns

Today's photo shows Dana Point in 1934. The newspaper clipping at right is a 1930 ad from the L.A. Times, extolling the virtues of such gems of the South Coast as San Clemente, Capistrano Beach, and Dana Point.

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I received an email from "D.F." today, asking for more background on the lanterns of Dana Point. Here's a slightly edited version of what I told her...

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In the late 1920s, real estate wheeler-dealer Sidney Woodruff set out to develop Dana Point into a beach town. Woodruff was a master of marketing gimmicks, and the street names and lanterns were a good example. Each north/south street was named for a different color lantern (e.g. "The Street of the Blue Lantern.") Then, lanterns of corresponding colors were hung along each street. I suppose the idea was that lanterns were nautical.
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Another example of a Woodruff gimmick was the enormous hillside sign he had built to advertise his "Hollywoodland" development in Los Angeles. Eventually, the "-land" part of the sign went away, but on clear days the now-famous "Hollywood" sign can still be seen from as far away as Anaheim.
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The onset of the Great Depression meant that Woodruff's plans for Dana Point were stalled in their infancy. Streets, lighting, and other infrastructure were in place, but few were buying lots. It would be decades before Dana Point would resume its growth in earnest.

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For a clearer and much more detailed telling of the story of Woodruff, the lanterns, and history of Dana Point, I recommend Doris I. Walker's book, Home Port for Romance (alternately titled, Dana Point Harbor/Capistrano Bay: Home Port for Romance.)