New Lights on Main
DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES — Main street's getting some new streetlights, but they are hardly a new design. A crew was hard at work this morning installing UM 1906 lights at the corner of 5th and Main, replacing lights of the same twin-lantern design that have stood along the street for decades.
The UM 1906 is a design that was widely installed in the 1920's, and even today plenty of poles can be found around the neighborhood that bear dates from that era.
The installation of the light actually starts with a featureless metal pole, many of which were recently installed on Main. The pieces of the historic light fixture are then slid over the base pole like sleeves. The dual-lantern piece pictured tops the pole, and is followed by the installation of the globes themselves.
For those interested in more of Los Angeles' lighting history, the city's Bureau of Street Lighting has a gallery of historic light designs on its website.
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Matt Nelson on September 29, 2009, at 04:02PM – #1
What does UM stand for?
Eric Richardson (@blogdowntown) on September 29, 2009, at 05:14PM – #2
Good question. I have no idea.
Valerie Watson on September 29, 2009, at 07:11PM – #3
Union Metal. They have a great historical archive! http://www.unionmetal.com/history/historicalarchive.asp
JM on September 30, 2009, at 10:47AM – #4
Great! I'd love to see a bit more lighting Downtown at night. I think it's one of those issues everyone can get behind. Improves safety, etc.
Alek F on October 01, 2009, at 10:25AM – #5
That's great! Every piece of traditional, architecturally-rich equipment, is always an enhancement for our Downtown. Hopefully, one day our Downtown will catch-up to the other large cities across the world.