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Together, as members of the Fed family,
we stand for inclusivity, diversity, equal
opportunity, and an open exchange of
ideas and viewpoints. These values that
we uphold at the Federal Reserve are one
of the main reasons I have dedicated my
life's work to this institution.
- Roger Replogle
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco
3
1920s
The Early Days
1920s
Did someone say
traffic?
A picture of a little traffic
jam on 7th and Broadway
in the 1920s.
Images Retrieved from https://waterandpower.org/museum/museum.html.
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco
8
1920s
What else was happening in the City of Angels?
Los Angeles was a city
of 575,000 people,
residing in an area of
364 square miles.
1920
1921
The Los Angeles
Public Library opens
its doors for the first
time.
The Rose Bowl in
Pasadena opens.
1922
A young Amelia Earhart
begins flying lessons in
the Los Angeles area.
1923
The iconic Los
Angeles Memorial
Coliseum opens.
Images Retrieved from https://waterandpower.org/museum/museum.html.
1925
1926
The Los Angeles
City Hall is
completed.
1928
The Spanish-language
newspaper La Opinion is
founded with its first
publication released on
September 16.
1929
UCLA opens the first
four buildings in
Westwood.
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco
9
1930s
A new place to call home
1930s
A New Building for
Los Angeles
“Handsome edifice for Federal
Reserve Bank makes for efficiency
in serving banking needs of the
great southwest”.
1930s
The First Floor
Home to the offices of the
Managing Director, Assistant
Manager, Assistant Cashier,
Collections Dept., Discount Dept.,
and Securities Teller.
Images courtesy of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco Archives
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco
14
The Cafeteria and Lounges
The dining room is large and sunny
with a floor of red and black tile
imported from Germany, walls finished
to a height of four feet in glazed tile
Images courtesy of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco Archives
1930s
The lounges are tastefully carpeted
and comfortably furnished with
overstuffed davenports and chairs,
walnut tables, and artistic table lamps
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco
15
1930s
Office of the
Chief Guard
This is where the master clock
was located and used to control
all the clocks in the building.
Images courtesy of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco Archives
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco
16
The Vault
The vault
extends two stories
beneath street level and
is of unique rivet grip
type construction.
1930s
The structure
contains three hundred
tons of intricately laid
steel bars covered by
concrete measuring
three-feet thick.
The vault doors
are made of York
steel weighing in at
forty tons.
Images courtesy of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco Archives
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco
17
1930s
Third Floor
Home to the Transit Functions
later known as the Checks
Department
Images courtesy of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco Archives
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco
18
1930s
Meanwhile in Los Angeles…
The population in Los
Angeles increased to
1,238,048 at the start of
the decade.
1930
The Long Beach
Earthquake rocks
Southern California.
1932
The 10th Olympic
games are hosted in
Los Angeles.
1933
The Griffith Park
Observatory opens
to the public.
1934
The Original
Farmers Market
opens.
Images Retrieved from https://waterandpower.org/museum/museum.html.
1935
Union Station is
completed and
ready for the public.
1938
1939
14 inches of rain drenched Los
Angeles over a three-day period,
resulting in some of the most
devastating floods in the LA Area.
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco
19
1940s
Business is booming while
war is looming
1940s
May 1945
Personnel Dept.
Report
The 12th District was comprised of
2,462 employees. The Los Angeles
Branch accounted for 31% of the
overall total.
Images courtesy of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco Archives
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco
21
1940s
Buy War Bonds!
Hungry?
Perfection
Time Served
As the war raged in the
Pacific and Europe, the
12th District supported
our troops through
contributions in the form
of buying and selling war
bonds which were used
to procure much needed
equipment.
The cafeteria staff was
comprised of people from
different departments
within the branch. Daily,
an average of 315
employees were served
what was referred to as
“food you can’t beat!”
Ellen Frank (left), Minnie
Pearl Carney (center)
and Patricia R. Flannery
(right) IBM operators,
who were masters in
their field, touting zero
mis-sorts and clearing an
excess of 1 million checks
with very few errors.
Feb of 1949, Amos Gowan
and James Mitchell retired
after working in the Los
Angeles Branch since the
late 1920’s. Both gentlemen
served in the Navy during
WW2 from 1942 – 1945.
.
Images courtesy of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco Archives
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco
22
1940s
As Los Angeles grew, history was in the making
The population in Los
Angeles increased to
1,504,277 at the start of
the decade.
1940
1941
February 25, shortly after 2
a.m., air raid sirens sounded,
and a citywide blackout
was put into effect followed
by anti-aircraft guns
sweeping the skies only to
be a false alarm.
1942
Shipbuilding becomes the
primary business of the Port of
Los Angeles, employing 90,000
workers.
The Cleveland Rams
relocate to Los
Angeles in 1946.
1943
The Zoot Suit Riots
take the streets of
Los Angeles by
storm in early June.
Images Retrieved from https://waterandpower.org/museum/museum.html.
Peak of ridership of the
Pacific Electric Railway
(red car) streetcars, with
109 million riders on more
than 1,150 miles of track in
four counties.
1946
1948
1949
The first In-N-Out
Burger opens in
Baldwin park in 1948.
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco 24
1950s
New technology,
expansion and much,
much more!
Did someone say expansion?
1950s
Rapid expansion of the Southern California and Arizona areas served by the
Los Angeles office pushed the limit of the building, requiring an addition. The
new construction provided an additional 100,000 square feet which included
a new vault on two subterranean levels.
Images courtesy of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco Archives
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco
27
New technology
1950s
New auto-coin sorting/wrapping machines were installed and 50 IBM proof
machines were installed to handle postal money orders as well as regular
proof-machine work.
Images courtesy of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco Archives
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco
28
…Los Angeles just kept humming along
The population in Los
Angeles is 1,970,358 at
the start of the decade.
1950
1951
The first four-level interchange
connecting the Hollywood (101),
Pasadena (110 N), Harbor (110 S)
and Santa Ana (5 S) Freeways
is completed.
1953
The Los Angeles Rams win their
first NFL championship.
1954
The Dodgers defeat the
Chicago White Sox to
win their first World
Series.
The Capitol Records building in
Hollywood is completed. The
building is designed to resemble
a stack of 45-rpm disks.
1956
Los Angeles experiences the
worst smog attack, impacting
air traffic at LAX and
preventing ships from entering
the harbor.
Images Retrieved from https://waterandpower.org/museum/museum.html.
1950s
1958
1959
KTLA 5 is the first
news station to use a
news helicopter.
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco 30
1960s
th
30 Anniversary
1960s
Sending a
Message?
Technology and
Checks
Bank Examiners
in LA
38 employees who were
known as pages, were a
vital component in aiding
with the efficient
management of the bank.
They would move vital
memos and messages
throughout the bank (like
modern day email).
The Burroughs B 270
Automatic Transit
Systems for the Check
Processing Department
was acquired and
required a 10-day
training course to learn
basic system operations
and programing.
A division of Bank
Examination was
established in the LA
Branch, consisting of 8
employees who were
responsible for statechartered banks located
from Bakersfield to San
Diego and east to Las
Vegas.
Images courtesy of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco Archives
New Wheels!
The LA Branch updated
their transportation arm
with a brand-new
armored truck. The new
truck included many new
modern features, such as
air-conditioning, twoway comms system and
was fully automatic.
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco 34
1960s
Motion picture
shown at
Los Angeles
“Money on the Move” a film
produced by the Federal Reserve
System was showcased in the
assembly room of the branch.
The new film was in color and
depicted the various operations
of the System.
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco
35
1960s
The City of Angeles continued to grow and expand
Dodger Stadium opens in 1962
and go on to sweep the New
York Yankees during the
world series in 1963.
The population in Los
Angeles is 2,479,015 at
the start of the decade.
1960
1961
1962
The space-age Theme Building
opens as the centerpiece of Los
Angeles International Airport.
Images Retrieved from https://waterandpower.org/museum/museum.html.
1965
The Los Angeles Zoo opens in
Griffith Park replacing the
original zoo that was in
operation from 1912 to 1695.
1966
An incident at a traffic stop
involving an LAPD officer and an
African American man ignites into a
riot in the community of Watts that
lasts for six days.
1967
Super Bowl I takes
place at Los Angeles
Memorial Coliseum.
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco 36
1970s
More technology and
firsts!
1970s
Regional Check-Processing Center
With check volumes rising 7 percent annually, the total increase in volume was
projected to rise by 50 billion within a decade systemwide. To address these
concerns, in 1973, the Los Angeles Branch opened its first regional check-processing
center (RCPC). These highly computerized operations were able to achieve overnight
processing and settlement for checks.
Images courtesy of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco Archives
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco 39
1970s
Diversifying the
Board of Directors
Women Making
History
Food
Technology?
Ruth Handler, one of the
founders of Mattel toy
company, was the first
woman on the Board of
Directors of the LA Branch.
She served in this role from
1971 to 1974.
Mary Lou Houske and
Patsy Haynes were the
first women to handle the
vault opening each
morning during
operations.
A new sandwich vending
machine was installed for
employees who worked
on Saturdays. Each
Friday afternoon the
cafeteria staff made a
variety of sandwiches for
folks to enjoy Cafeteriastyle sandwiches.
Images courtesy of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco Archives
Nice view
A new patio was built to
provide nice views and
enjoyment for LA Branch
employees. It was said
that “on clear days, you
can enjoy luncheon on the
patio and a beautiful view
of the San Gabriel
Mountains.”
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco 40
1970s
New High-Speed
Machines
The Los Angeles Branch acquired it’s first
Currency Verification, Counting and Sorting
System (CVCS). The CVCS system was
developed to provide an automated, costeffective currency processing system. The
system consisted of three units: the transport
unit, a teletypewriter and CRT terminal.
Designed to increase the processing of
currency, the maximum operational speed
was clocked at 72,000 notes per hour.
Images courtesy of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco Archives
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco
41
1970s
What else was happening in Los Angeles?
The population in Los Angeles is
2,816,061 at the start of the
decade.
1970
1971
Tom Bradley becomes mayor of Los
Angeles and serve in this capacity
for the next two decades.
1973
The Los Angeles Convention
Center opened and was originally
built as a rectangular building
located between Pico Boulevard
and 11th Street.
1975
The 35-story Westin Bonaventure
Hotel opens in Downtown LA. The
building is featured in many major
motion pictures over the years.
1977
The George C. Page
Museum of La Brea
Discoveries opens to the
public.
Images Retrieved from https://waterandpower.org/museum/museum.html.
1978
The Laugh Factory opens
on the Sunset strip. Over
the years it would host
every major North
American comedian.
1979
The Agoura-Malibu firestorm
burns 25,000 acres over a
span of four days.
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco 42
1980s
A new home for
a growing Branch
1980s
The Original was
great, but it was
time to move on
As the Los Angeles Branch outgrew
its existing footprint it was only
fitting to start thinking of where a
new place to call home would be.
Lucky for us, there was space
available right next door. Work
began in 1984 for the new branch
and it was completed in the spring
of 1987.
Images courtesy of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco Archives
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco 45
1980s
Dedication of a
new building
Although the building wouldn’t
officially open until 1987, back in
October of 1986, the Checks
department were the first tenants on
the 2nd floor. Shortly after, each floor
began opening, starting with the 3rd,
the basement, the 1st and finally the
5th. It was said that in the early days
some floors were designated hard hat
floors. Once the cafeteria opened it
finally felt like home.
Images courtesy of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco Archives
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco 46
1980s
New Tool for the
Medical Dept.
New Equipment
for Checks
A spirometer was
purchased to help monitor
and analyze the
pulmonary function. On an
appointment basis, the
medical staff administered
the test and explained the
results.
After 35 years of service,
the IBM 803s were being
phased out and replaced
with the new Unisys S4000s. The new machines
were implemented in
Phases and required
extensive training.
Images courtesy of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco Archives
Olympic Fever!
On the last day of the
Olympics in Los Angeles,
a few employees in CVCS
(Currency Verification)
came dressed in Olympic
garb to commemorate
the event.
The Mighty
Purchasing Dept.
This amazing group of
employees were located
outside of the Los Angeles
office at 424 W. 11th Street.
Their remote location housed
850 different inventory items.
From furniture to forms and
any other equipment needed
for day-to-day operations.
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco
47
1980s
More people, special guests and memorable sporting events.
The population in Los Angeles is
2,966,850 at the start of the
decade.
1980
1982
The XXIII Olympiad summer
games are held in Los Angeles.
1984
The Oakland Raiders move to
Los Angeles.
1986
Pope John Paul II visits Los
Angeles. Nearly 6,000 officers
provided security during the
pontiffs visit.
1987
The first City of Los Angeles
Marathon takes place. It is the
largest first-time marathon, at
nearly 11,000 people.
Images Retrieved from https://waterandpower.org/museum/museum.html.
1988
The 73-story First Interstate
Tower is completed in
downtown Los Angeles,
becoming the tallest building
west of the Mississippi River.
1989
Dodgers' outfielder Kirk Gibson hits his
legendary World Series home run,
widely considered the greatest sports
moment in L.A. history.
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco 48
1990s
Testing Resiliency and
Adopting Cutting Edge
Technology
1990s
Baby Born in Lobby
Supporting the community is
always at the forefront but in this
case, support came by way of
delivering a baby in the branch
lobby. Guards Evelyn Johnson and
John Murphy along with Corporal
Clyde Pooser helped in the delivery
prior to paramedics arriving.
LA Check Sorter
Operators Best in the
System
Checks day and night sorter
operators were some of the best in
the system when it came to quick
stop rates. A quick stop is the number
of times the operator must shut down
an IBM 3890 during a run. The
national average in 1992 was 18,000
items. This team raised the bar to
30,000 items.
Images courtesy of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco Archives
Weathering Civil
Unrest and Learning
from it
In April of 1992, the city erupted into
violence and chaos due to civil
unrest, but the LA Branch covered
their responsibilities with ensuring
checks, cash and ACH remained
uninterrupted.
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco
52
1990s
Automating Cash with
CAS
Cash Automation System (CAS)
was considered a big step into the
future of automation and was a
solution for eliminating paperwork
while at the same time providing an
automated planning and control
system with better statistical
reporting.
Northridge Earthquake
and Support
The 6.7 quake did a lot of damage
all throughout LA County, but the
building remained intact with the
greatest damage to the cafeteria
where dishes and ceiling tiles had
fallen. It was noted that 34
employees lost property as a result
of the earthquake. Many
employees volunteered to aid
those who were affected.
Images courtesy of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco Archives
New Tech for Check
Processing
The LA Branch received the Unisys
NDP 1825 in addition to the six IBM
3890. The NDP 1825 was an image
enabled high-speed sorter and
could provide additional sorting
capacity, capture the MICR line,
and transfer data to the host for
processing.
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco
53
1990s
As Los Angeles grew, the city experienced many life changing events.
The population in Los Angeles is
3,485,398 at the start of the
decade.
1990
1992
The Los Angeles Rams football
team leaves Anaheim for St.
Louis. The Raiders also leave Los
Angeles to return to Oakland.
Universal City opens
City Walk.
1993
Los Angeles erupts with five days
of civil unrest (4/29 – 5/5), a result
of the acquittals of the LAPD
officers involved in the Rodney
King incident.
1994
1995
Los Angeles experiences the 6.7
Richter Scale Northridge
Earthquake at 4:31 a.m. (Jan 17),
resulting in 61 deaths and damage
estimates of up to $20 billion.
Images Retrieved from https://waterandpower.org/museum/museum.html.
1997
STAPLES Center opens, the
new home for pro basketball
and hockey teams and the
beginning of a renaissance in
Downtown Los Angeles.
1999
El Nino storms hit Southern California from
January 1997 to March 1998. The seasonal
rain fall during this time period was reported
at 31 inches of rain, 210% above normal.
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco 54
2000s
The New Millennium
Expanding on Cash
Vault Automation
2000s
Prompted by seismic safety concerns
stemming from the Northridge
Earthquake in 1994, it was an
opportunity to enhance and build upon
the automation capabilities of the LA
Cash Vault. The efforts resulted in
allowing for 1412 spaces for container
storage. From planning to
implementation, It took approximately
four years to bring the system to fully
operational and remains in place today.
Images courtesy of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco Archives
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco
57
2000s
Phoenix Processing
Center becomes a
reality
The formal groundbreaking took
place in May 2004 and it was noted
that this facility was the first of its
kind in the System, since it was
constructed specifically for cash
processing.
Standard Cash
Automation (SCA)
Looking to leverage newer
technology the LA Branch adopted
the new Standard Cash Automation
system to provide more automation
from the previous 1990s version. SCA
was in place until 2017 when it was
replaced by FedCash Central.
Images courtesy of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco Archives
The Cash Product
Office (CPO) in LA
In 2001, the LA Branch houses the
national Cash Product Office with a
team of 12. This team was stood up to
work closely with the Treasury, Secret
Service, the Board of Governors, and
the Current Technology Office (CTO).
The CPO has evolved to becoming a
part of the Federal Reserve Financial
Services enterprise.
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco 58
2000s
FedLine for Windows
New Security Measures
Spearhead Change
Protection Department
Becomes Police Services
The 12th District was among the first
in the system to introduce the new
software, which was a part of
providing effective access to Fed
financial services. The new
software replaced a nearly 20year-old DOSS-based system.
As DTLA evolved to enhance
security, the LA Branch saw that as
an opportunity as well. District
Facilities Management embarked
on a project to redo the lobby and
construct “permanent,
aesthetically-pleasing barriers” in
front of the Grand Ave entrance
and would eventually expand to
the Olive side of the building.
The legislative response to 9/11 and
the passing of the USA Patriot Act
of 2001, resulted in transitioning the
Protection Department into a
Federal Law Enforcement Agency.
A total of 19 officers were formally
sworn in December 2002 and were
the first Federal Reserve Police
officers to serve in Los Angeles.
Images courtesy of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco Archives
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco 59
2000s
Into the New Millennium and much, much more!
The population in Los Angeles is
3,694,820 at the start of the
decade.
2000
2001
The 11-story Cathedral of Our Lady of
the Angels opens in the heart of
Downtown, replacing St. Vibiana's as
the main center of worship for the
archdiocese.
2002
Kodak Theater and Hollywood
& Highland outdoor mall opens.
2003
Antonio Villaraigosa becomes mayor of
Los Angeles, the city’s first mayor of
Hispanic descent since 1872.
2005
Walt Disney Concert Hall
opens and is the home of the
LA Philharmonic.
2008
LA Live opens in
Downtown LA.
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco 60
2010s
The present and future
2010s
Final Check
November 5th, 2010, marked an end
of an era where checks dominated the
branch with many employees running
check sorters, handling settlements
and so many more tasks that were
crucial to the operation.
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco 63
2010s
More people, special guests and memorable sporting events.
The population in Los Angeles is
3,792,261 at the start of the decade.
2010
2012
Eric Garcetti becomes L.A.'s first
elected Jewish mayor and its youngest
in more than a century.
2013
The Space Shuttle Endeavour
goes on public display at the
California Science Center.
Images Retrieved from https://waterandpower.org/museum/museum.html.
2016
The Los Angeles City Council
unanimously approves the motion to
rename 3.5 miles of Rodeo Road as
Obama Boulevard.
2017
The Rams return to Los Angeles
after a 22-year hiatus and go on
to win the super bowl at home 6
years later.
2018
Banc of California Stadium,
home of the Los Angeles
Football Club, opens at
Exposition Park.
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco 64
2010s
The Impacts of COVID-19 in Los Angeles
March 2020 - Current
3.42M
33,217
Cases
Deaths
Source: The New York Times
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco 65
2010s
Honoring First Responders and all Essential Staff
The Branch lit up blue at night in honor
of our brave first responders on the
frontlines of the pandemic.
Images courtesy of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco Archives
Vivian, Ruben, and Phuong organized
Easter basket treats for all of our onsite colleagues, including Sodexo and
Metro.
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco 66
@FedFRASER