Abandoned Oil Fields Are Unhealthy For Children And Other Living Things

January 16, 1947
Banning Homes, San Pedro

After a lengthy search, the body of 4-year-old Bert F. Long was discovered yesterday in eight feet of water in an open sump hole in the oil field just half a mile east of the housing project where he lived with his parents and five-year-old brother.

It appears that Bert wandered out of his yard while his mother Ola May was at a dentist’s appointment, and his grandmother was tending to brother Johnny, who was sick in bed. Local drugstore operator T. R. McQuigg reported seeing a child who matched Bert’s description around 4pm Monday, but that was the last anyone saw of the child until two juvenile officers discovered the tiny floating corpse in the hole that had recently been drilled, but left uncovered, by oil line repairmen.

Kim Cooper

Kim Cooper is the creator of 1947project, the crime-a-day time travel blog that spawned Esotouric’s popular crime bus tours, including The Real Black Dahlia. She is the author of The Kept Girl, the acclaimed historical mystery starring the young Raymond Chandler and the real-life Philip Marlowe, and of The Raymond Chandler Map of Los Angeles. With husband Richard Schave, Kim curates the Salons and forensic science seminars of LAVA- The Los Angeles Visionaries Association. When the third generation Angeleno isn’t combing old newspapers for forgotten scandals, she is a passionate advocate for historic preservation of signage, vernacular architecture and writer’s homes. Kim was for many years the editrix of Scram, a journal of unpopular culture. Her books include Fall in Love For Life, Bubblegum Music is the Naked Truth, Lost in the Grooves and an oral history of Neutral Milk Hotel.

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Kim Cooper

Kim Cooper is the creator of 1947project, the crime-a-day time travel blog that spawned Esotouric’s popular crime bus tours, including The Real Black Dahlia. She is the author of The Kept Girl, the acclaimed historical mystery starring the young Raymond Chandler and the real-life Philip Marlowe, and of The Raymond Chandler Map of Los Angeles. With husband Richard Schave, Kim curates the Salons and forensic science seminars of LAVA- The Los Angeles Visionaries Association. When the third generation Angeleno isn’t combing old newspapers for forgotten scandals, she is a passionate advocate for historic preservation of signage, vernacular architecture and writer’s homes. Kim was for many years the editrix of Scram, a journal of unpopular culture. Her books include Fall in Love For Life, Bubblegum Music is the Naked Truth, Lost in the Grooves and an oral history of Neutral Milk Hotel.

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  1. MRS. ROOSERVELT’S AUTO
    DRIVER LICENSE REVOKED

    ALBANY (N.Y.) Jan. 15 (U.P.)—Revocation of Mrs. Eleanor Roosevelt’s driver’s license was confirmed tonight “as a routine matterâ€Â by New York State Deputy Motor Vehicle Commissioner Howard Miles.

    Miles said he mailed the confirmation out with others “as a routine caseâ€Â following a hearing in White Plains at which witnesses testified that Mrs. Roosevelt said she had dozed at the wheel. Her automobile collided with two cars last August on the Sawmill River parkway near the New York City-Westchester County line. Mrs. Roosevelt was shaken up and four other persons were injured.

    Loss of an operator’s license is the usual penalty for falling asleep at the wheel, Miles explained. He said the late president’s widow may apply for a new license in 30 days.

    + + +

    I never cease to be amazed at the placement of this story on Page 1 of The Times. While the major competing newspapers—the Examiner, Herald-Express and Daily News—are leading with the Jan. 15 murder of Elizabeth Short, The Times plays the story inside, proving once again that it considered itself the city’s family paper.

    Bonus factoids: American Airlines is $9, unchanged; American Telephone and Telegraph is $170 7/8, down 1/8; General Motors is 53 ½, down ½; IBM is $212, unchanged; Phillips Petroleum is $54, up $1; Studebaker is $19 5/8, down 1/2.

    Quote of the day: “The muffin man is out of date,
    For him you’ve no more need,
    For Joy Makes perfect muffins
    With the utmost ease and speed.â€Â
    Joy Muffin Mix, corn or early American. Try Joy Popover Mix as a delightful change from bread and rolls.

    https://www.lmharnisch.com

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