1949 — marriage of Phyllis Marie Beerling and George Dennis Watte

originally published in Long Beach Independent. Sept. 25, 1949 Mrs. Beerling is Mrs. Watte St. Matthew’s Catholic Church was the setting Saturday for a 9 a.m. wedding ceremony uniting Phyllis Marie Beerling, 1770 Stanley Avenue, and George Dennis Watte, son of Mr. and Mrs. Oscar Watte of Los Alamitos.  Rev. James P. Lynch was the … Read more

obit – Alice Otte Cosyns, of Los Alamitos

from the Long Beach Indpendent, Sunday, Nov. 8, 1950 — page 43-A Rosary or Mrs. Alice Otte Cosyns, 73, of Los Alamitos, who died yesterday, will be recited at 8pm in Mottell’s Chapel. A native of Belgium, Mrs. Cosyns came to Long Beach 39 years ago.  She belonged to the St. Isadore Catholic Church. Survivors … Read more

obit – Dr. Homer Eugene deSadeleer, long-time Seal Beach physician

Most histories of the Los Alamitos area frequently mention a strong heritage of Belgian immigrant farmers.  While their numbers and impact to the area are usually overstated, some certainly had an impact.  One of those was long-time Seal Beach doctor, Homer Eugene deSadeleer, whose obituary is reprinted below.  According to Frans De Man, Denderhoutem in … Read more

bio – 1984, Porfidia Franco de Lopez, 100 years old, 70-year resident of Los Alamitos

This was originally published Wednesday, October 31, 1984, News-Enterprise, Page 11, when the city was celebrating the 200th anniversary of the Rancho Los Alamitos [which was technically incorrect, since it was Ranchos Los Nietos which received a Spanish grant in 1784; Alamitos wasn’t formed until Nietos was divided in the 1830’s. But why let details … Read more

BIO: Karl V. Bennis – longtime Los Al Sugar Factory officer, Anza-Borrego Desert booster

One of the leading citizens of Los Alamitos in the first decades of this century Karl Vucassovich Bennis had a long history with the Los Alamitos Sugar Factory. Born in Maine in 1875, Bennis came to California in 1897, and settled in Orange County a few years later. Before coming to Los Alamitos he had … Read more

Huguette Clark – daughter of Los Alamitos founder, dies at 104

On May 24,  2011, Huguette Clark, one of the world’s richest women and subject of many TV reports last fall,  died at the age of 104. Worth over an estimated half billion dollars, she grew up in New York’s Gilded Age, among the Guggenheims, Astors, Rockefellers and Vanderbilts.  When she died, she hadn’t been seen … Read more

Obit: Perry Green (1895-1952), Los Alamitos realtor in 1920s, father of Lura Labourdette

This obituary is from the Long Beach Independent, May 15, 1952.  Perry Green came to Los Alamitos in the mid 1920s and became a local real estate agent.  Some Los Al histories list his name as “Rush” Green, but this obituary says Perry Green.  According to his daughter, Lura, one of the areas he promoted … Read more

OBIT: 1996 – Garland Stephens – early Rossmoor leader, attorney for Frank & Millie Vessels

This obituary below appeared in the North County Times (San Diego County), February 23, 2006.  Garland Stephens was a very involved personality in the Los Alamitos-Rossmoor area.  He apparently became more involved with the Race Track affairs after the death of Frank Vessels, Sr. in 1963.  He was very involved with the track during the … Read more