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Watts Towers

The city sent men to watch them fall. An engineer who was not even a fan had another idea.

Collection: Los Angeles · USA · Open in OpenStreetMap

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How the story begins

"They had forty of their department members there to watch me tear the Watts Towers down, but I didn't." That was Bud Goldstone, an aerospace engineer, remembering October 10, 1959. He had not been much taken with the towers when he first read about them. What bothered him was the engineers quoted in the paper. He thought they did not know what they were talking about. One man had built these, Simon Rodia, an Italian immigrant laborer.

The rest is in the app. Peplos plays the full story when you reach the place. You can also listen ahead of time.

Visiting

1727 East 107th Street, Watts. The campus is under construction, expected to run through spring 2028. Guided tours are the way inside the towers' enclosure: check the Watts Towers Arts Center website for the current schedule before you go.

Sources

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