EVENT:

“A Stone House in Topanga”

Speakers: Pablo Capra
When: Sunday, April 28, 2024
12:00 PM: Potluck Lunch (water, tea, & coffee provided)
1:00 PM: Presentation
Where: 1180 Old Topanga Cyn. Rd. Carpooling encouraged.

This house, possibly the oldest in Topanga, is famous for a 1968 pot raid that busted the band Buffalo Springfield, including Eric Clapton, Stephen Stills, and Neil Young. THS archivist Pablo Capra’s new book, A Stone House in Topanga (THS, 2023), describes how each owner of the house changed Topanga, going back to the 1880s. Take a rare chance to visit this privately owned landmark!

Learn more about Topanga in our Books and Archive. Support THS by becoming a Member for $20/year for Individuals or $30/year for Families.

EVENT:

“On Fire”

Speakers: Suzanne Guldimann and Scott King
When: Wednesday, December 6, 2023
7:00 PM: Potluck Dinner (water, tea, & coffee provided)
8:00 PM: Presentation
Where: Topanga Community House, 1440 N. Topanga Cyn. Blvd.

Fire has shaped our past and continues to shape our future in these hills. November marks the fifth anniversary of the Woolsey Fire, the 30th anniversary of the Old Topanga Fire, and the 85th anniversary of the 1938 Topanga Fire, and those are only three of the more than 30 significant wildfires that have impacted the local mountains over the past 100 years. Join author and Topanga New Times editor Suzanne Guldimann for a talk about our rugged, beautiful, and disaster-prone home, and local historian Scott King, a member of Arson Watch who experienced the 1993 Old Topanga Fire firsthand. We will hear how T-CEP ( Topanga Coalition for Emergency Preparedness) and Arson Watch help keep our canyon safe.

Learn more about Topanga in our Books and Archive. Support THS by becoming a Member for $20/year for Individuals or $30/year for Families.

EVENT:

“Theatricum Botanicum Picnic”

Speakers: Ellen Geer and Melora Marshall
When: Sunday, October 22, 2023
12:00 PM: Potluck Lunch (water, tea, & coffee provided)
1:00 PM: Presentation
Where: Theatricum Botanicum Garden, 1419 N. Topanga Cyn. Blvd. Park inside or on the Blvd.

Celebrating its 50th anniversary, the outdoor Theatricum Botanicum presents the beauty and trials of humanity in striking relief against the incredible backdrop of our natural Canyon. Lovers of Shakespeare, socially relevant plays, botany, California history, music, and arts education have all found community at this sanctuary for the arts since its founding in 1973 by actors Will Geer and Herta Ware. Daughters Ellen Geer and Melora Marshall will sing to us and talk about the theater’s history, current goings-on, and big plans for the future, like a museum that’s being developed with assistance from the County. Additionally, some of the actors will perform.

Learn more about Topanga in our Books and Archive. Support THS by becoming a Member for $20/year for Individuals or $30/year for Families.

FILM SCREENING

Alexander von Wetter’s
“In Hollywood’s Backyard: Topanga in the 1970s”

Speaker: Anne-Christine von Wetter
When: Wednesday, August 16, 2023
7:00 P.M.: Potluck Dinner
8:00 P.M.: Film (53 minutes, See Trailer!)
Where: The Mermaid, 20421 Callon Drive, Topanga

In Hollywood’s Backyard is a documentary film shot in 1978-79 for German television by Alexander Von Wetter. The film was lost in 1993’s Old Topanga Fire, and later the filmmaker passed away. Fortunately, a VHS copy was found, preserving interviews with many favorite Topangans like Ramblin’ Jack Elliott, Gary Farr, Lowell George, Bob Hite, Spanky McFarlane, Billy Preston, Fred Tackett, Herta Ware-Geer, and Kedric Wolfe. Anne-Christine von Wetter helped make the film, and will answer questions afterwards.

Learn more about Topanga in our Books and Archive. Support THS by becoming a Member for $20/year for Individuals or $30/year for Families.

EVENT INVITATION

“The Village at the Crossroads“
Find out what was discovered under Pine Tree Circle

Speaker: Andrew York
When: Wednesday, March 8, 2023
7:00 P.M.: Potluck Dinner
8:00 P.M.: Presentation
Where: Topanga Community House, 1440 N Topanga Canyon Blvd.

Early settlers reported finding many artifacts from a Native American settlement where the two canyons meet at what is now Pine Tree Circle. The site was gradually lost to development and thought to be destroyed—until remnants of this village were recently discovered during utility installation under the highway. Archaeologist Andrew York, who headed the recent surveys and grew up within a mile of the site, will describe the resulting work that recovered thousands of artifacts.

Learn more about Topanga in our Books and Archive. Support THS by becoming a Member for $20/year for Individuals or $30/year for Families.

EVENT INVITATION

“Topanga Symphony, 40th Anniversary”

Speaker: Conductor Jerome Kessler
When: Sunday, October 9, 2022
12:00 P.M.: Potluck Lunch
1:00 P.M.: Quartet and Presentation
Where: The Mermaid, 20421 Callon Drive, Topanga

The Topanga Symphony was founded in 1982 and has since presented a regular program of free concerts. It consists mostly of unpaid amateurs and students, with some professionals musicians. Jerome Kessler has been the Music Director and Conductor of the Topanga Symphony since its inception. He is also Director of the Hollywood Chamber Orchestra and I Cellisti. A cellist and composer, he has toured nationally.

Learn more about Topanga in our Books and Archive. Support THS by becoming a Member for $20/year for Individuals or $30/year for Families.

EVENT INVITATION

“Field Trip to 69 Bravo Helistop”

Speaker: Drew Smith, LACoFD Assistant Fire Chief
When: Sunday, July 31, 2022, 10 a.m.
Where: Saddle Peak. For details, request parking by writing to info@topangahistoricalsociety.org
Admission: Only Members may attend so Join Now!
Please Bring: Sun protection, water, and a chair if you need to sit.

69 Bravo Helistop is located atop Saddle Peak with 360° views of the surrounding area. Water-dropping helicopters can quickly refill from self-replenishing tanks that hold 10,000 gallons, providing Topanga and our neighbors with the world’s top firefighting supply station. Drew Smith has spent years fighting and studying wildfires in the Santa Monica Mountains.

Learn more about Topanga in our Books and Archive. Support THS by becoming a Member for $20/year for Individuals or $30/year for Families.

EVENT INVITATION

“Paul Duboslard Postcards”

Speaker: John Brewer
When: Wednesday, May 18, 2022, 7:30 p.m.
Where: This event was broadcast on Zoom, then uploaded to our Digital Archive

In the 1940s–50s, Paul Dubosclard (artist) and Margaret Sheehan (publisher) created Silkscreened Postcards of Topanga and the surrounding towns. John Brewer, an art collector in Colorado, will speak about his recent work to catalog every image and research these forgotten characters. He learned that Paul, a French immigrant, was shot in WWI, sent to a German prison camp, and became rich as an airplane engineer for the US military. Paul and his lover Edith Feeney, a woman half his age, moved to Topanga with her sister Margaret, who sometimes gets all the credit for the postcards.

Further Reading:
“The Mystery of Artist Paul Dubosclard” by John Brewer
The Canyon Chronicle, 5/13/22

Learn more about Topanga in our Books and Archive. Support THS by becoming a Member for $20/year for Individuals or $30/year for Families.

PICNIC CELEBRATION

“Rose Wiley’s 90th Birthday”

• When: Sunday, October 24, 2021, 12:00 p.m.
• Admission: $20 for a catered outdoor luncheon.
• Members Only: Non-Members MUST join or renew their Membership.
• RSVP to Pay by Oct. 15th Oct. 17th: Email rsvp@topangahistoricalsociety.org to let us know you’re coming. If this link does not work for you, please copy and paste the email address into your email program. We will reply with the link to pay for the event, and if necessary, to renew or sign up for Membership as that is required. Also included in that email will be the address of the event. RSVP-ing is absolutely necessary. No walk-ins permitted. 
• Where: The event is at a private home. We will reply with the address.

Rosagua “Rose” Wiley is the granddaughter of Francisco and Manuela Trujillo, who settled Old Topanga in 1886. Her mother Cornelia Gomez answered a call to help at the Trujillo Ranch in 1913, and wound up marrying the oldest son Dolores Trujillo.

“Seated at the wheel of his 1928 LaSalle touring sedan, kerchief knotted around the collar of his blue denim jacket and eyes shaded by his wide-brimmed felt hat, to many observers Dolores Trujillo was the epitome of pastoral Topanga.”
— The Topanga Story

Rose married Robert Wiley, and raised six children—Marguerite, Robert, David, John, Laura, and Jimmy—on the Trujillo homestead, where she still lives today.

Learn more about Topanga in our Books and Archive.

*

Rose Wiley, 2017. Photo by Tony Verebes, c/o The Canyon Chronicle.

EVENT INVITATION:

“Photos from the Messenger”

Speaker: Ami Kirby
When: Sunday, June 13, 2021, 3 p.m.
Where: This event was broadcast on Zoom, then uploaded to our Digital Archive

When Topanga’s longest-running newspaper, the Messenger, closed in 2016, publisher Mary Colvig donated its 40 years of accumulated photos to the Topanga Historical Society. In 2020, a dream team of volunteers—Ami Kirby, Karen Moran, Gail McDonald-Tune, and Colvig herself—dedicated themselves to organizing this vast collection, revealing its treasures with their decades-long knowledge of the Canyon.

On June 13th, Kirby will present (via Zoom) her favorite photos from the Messenger. They include artists like Kedric Wolfe, Jack Rice, and Rabyn Blake; musicians like Spanky McFarlane, Fred Tackett, and Wally High; restaurants like Pat’s Topanga Grill, the Topanga Fish Market, and the Three Dolphin Inn; and businesses like Elysium Fields nudist camp, Bridge Building Books, and the Topanga Threads clothing store.

Our events are free. See more of the Topanga Historical Society’s Photo Archive in our book The Topanga Story and on our website. Support us by becoming a Member for $20/year for individuals or $30/year for families.

Topanga Historical Society Quarterly Event Invitation

When: Sunday, October 25, 2020, at 3:00 p.m.
Where: This event was presented on Zoom.

“1918-1919 Influenza Pandemic”

Presented by Karen L. Wood Moran, Michael Heumann, and Mark Hein.

This is the story of two remarkable pioneers, Cyril “CP” and Edith Wood, whose lives were forever changed by the 1918-1919 Influenza Pandemic that swept the world. It’s a story about a quest that began in the Yukon Gold Rush of 1899 and ended up in Topanga 50 years later. Read more in The Canyon Chronicle.

Everyone is welcome.

While on our website, be sure to browse our new Digital Photo Archive. Please consider supporting this free service by becoming a Member for $20/year, or $30/year for families. You can also buy our book The Topanga Story.

Topanga Historical Society Quarterly Event Invitation

When: Wednesday, January 29, 2020
Where: Topanga Community House, 1140 N. Topanga Canyon Blvd, Topanga, CA 90290
7 P.M. Potluck: Please Bring your best dish to share. Coffee, tea, filtered water, and serving utensils will be provided.
8 P.M. Presentation: Begins promptly.

“Land Use in the Canyon”

John MacNeil has been surveying land in Topanga since 1969. He is an expert on the history of local development, and will talk about how our canyon’s uniqueness was shaped by its quaint cottages, luxurious mansions, dog-lodgings, hidden bordellos, pristine valleys, picturesque peaks, and cozy creek-side nooks.

Our spectacular book, The Topanga Story (new expanded edition), will be available for sale during the event, and we will also be raffling off one copy, so come win yours! If you live in—or simply love—this magical canyon, you NEED a copy. Also, our events are the perfect time to join the Topanga Historical Society! Memberships are $20/year for individuals or $30/year for families. The Topanga Historical Society is made greater by its remarkable members, and we’d love to have you (yes, you!) with us.

Quarterly Event Invitation:
“Fall Community Picnic & Presentation on Topanga Creek”

When: Sunday, November 3, 2019, 1:00 – 3:00 p.m.
Where: 1475 N. Topanga Cyn. Blvd., Topanga, CA 90290
Featured: Topanga environmental activist Susan Nissman will speak at the Topanga Creek property of Keith Wilbur.
Please Bring: Your best fall-time picnicky dish or something tasty to drink, and a chair if you can, since seating will be limited.

The Topanga Historical Society is excited as all get-out to announce its latest event, a pleasant afternoon picnic and presentation which will be occurring on Sunday, November 3, 2019, from 1:00 P.M. – 3:00 P.M. at the personal residence of Keith Wilbur, located at 1475 N. Topanga Canyon Blvd., next to the Theatricum Botanicum and directly across from the entrance to the Topanga Community Center.

The picnic will be a festive and relaxing afternoon of great food and drink where members of the community can come together to celebrate the fall season in the Canyon while learning some interesting local history. Please bring your best fall-time picnicky dish or something tasty to drink (we all like wine, LOL) and spend some quality time with other cool canyon dwellers. Also, please bring your folding lawn chairs if you have them. We have limited seating available so the more chairs the better.

Our featured speaker Susan Nissman is a longtime Topanga local, activist, and defender of the environment. She was the Santa Monica Mountains Watershed Management and Water Quality Lead Policy Deputy (1994-2014) for former Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky. During our picnic, Nissman will describe how she helped the County recognize that our natural, unobstructed, free-running creek was at the core of our beautiful Canyon’s ecology. We didn’t need a concrete floodway.

Interestingly enough, Keith Wilbur’s property lies directly on Topanga Creek so we’ll be AT the creek, talking ABOUT the creek. How perfect!

Quarterly Event Invitation:
“Summertime Office Mixer & Community Wine Social”

When: Sunday, July 28, 2019, 2:00 – 5:00 p.m.
Where: Topanga Historical Society, Pine Tree Circle, 122 N. Topanga Cyn. Blvd., Topanga, CA 90290
This Event Will Showcase: Historic Topanga business signs, new open office hours, tall tales from community members, and will also serve as the annual election of the Topanga Historical Society Board.
Please Bring: A bottle or a simple snack to share… nuts, crackers, chips, etc., but nothing cooked or prepared!

In lieu of a formal informational program during this event, we’d instead like to encourage conversation among the members of our wonderful community as well as the telling of tall Topanga tales by our lovely locals. Various longtime Topanga residents and local historians will be in attendance to share the colorful history of our unique community! Additionally, this event will act to boost awareness of our new open office hours on Wednesdays from 11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m., and there will be an annual election of our amazing volunteer Board Members. Come on down & join us for an awesome afternoon of wine, chit-chat, great stories, & community camaraderie. We can’t wait to see you at Pine Tree Circle!

Our spectacular book, The Topanga Story (new expanded edition), will be available for sale during the event, and we will also be raffling off one copy, so come win yours! If you live in—or simply love—this magical canyon, you NEED a copy. Also, our events are the perfect time to join the Topanga Historical Society! Memberships are $20/year for individuals or $30/year for families. The Topanga Historical Society is made greater by its remarkable members, and we’d love to have you (yes, you!) with us. 

Topanga Historical Society Quarterly Event Invitation

When: Wednesday, May 8, 2019
Where: Topanga Community Center, 1140 N. Topanga Canyon Blvd, Topanga, CA 90290
7 P.M. Potluck: Please Bring your best dish to share. Coffee, tea, and filtered lemon water, as well as serving utensils will be provided.
8 P.M. Presentation: Program begins promptly.

“Silents in the Canyon”

Travel back in time to the early days of LA’s movie-making magic and listen as THS board member Eric Dugdale tells tales from before film had sound. Featured in his discussion will be pioneering producer Thomas Ince, who filmed Westerns in our hills. Ince became known for using real Native Americans in his films, providing a school for their children and promoting them within the film industry. He was blood brothers with actor and Sioux Chief William Eagle Shirt. Come hear more about Topanga’s early days as a Western film mecca.

You will be able to join or renew your THS membership during the program ($20 for individuals or $30 for families). We deeply appreciate your support! Also, please bring some cash to donate, to help defray our expenses. Check us out at www.topangahistoricalsociety.org where you can buy our famous book The Topanga Story or pay your annual membership fee. Also, like us on Facebook! Come on down and join us for a rollicking evening of history and community. Everyone is welcome. We can’t wait to see you there!!

Topanga Historical Society Quarterly Event Invitation

When: Wednesday, February 13, 2019
Where: 1140 N. Topanga Canyon Blvd, Topanga, CA 90290
7 P.M. Potluck: A now famous tradition. Bring your best dish to share. Organic coffee, tea, lemon water, paper plates, cups, cutlery will be provided.
8 P.M. Presentation: Program begins promptly.

“Native Americans of Topanga Beach”

What was Topanga like 1,000 years ago? Local historian Pablo Capra and archaeologist Chester King share new research recently published in the Messenger Mountain News about a forgotten Native American burial mound that was discovered at Topanga Beach in 1910 and paved over by PCH in 1923. A mysterious world emerges of men with horns, dwarfs, giants, Aztec invasions, and smoking mountains. There are also fascinating stories about the burial mound’s original discoverers: a class of Stanford students, a Wisconsin artifact collector, a Civil War colonel, and a family of squirrels.

You will be able to join or renew your THS membership during the program ($20 for individuals or $30 for families). We deeply appreciate your support! Also, please bring some cash to donate, to help defray our expenses. Come on down and join us for a rollicking evening of history and community. Everyone is welcome. We can’t wait to see you there!!

Topanga Canyon Historical Society Quarterly Potluck Event:

We will turn a Station 69 hook and ladder firetruck into a time machine as we take an historical look at fire use and fighting from the Native Americans to recent history. The Topanga Historical Society welcomes L.A. County Fire Captain, Ret., Dave Boucher to the upcoming quarterly meeting Wednesday, July 20 at the Topanga Community House. Boucher is also the department’s official historian, a position created for him after the publication of this book, Ride the Devil Wind in 1991.

Boucher began his career as a volunteer fire-fighter in 1954, served in Korea, and on his return became a professional when he joined the Pasadena Fire Department. Eight years later he found his way to the LA County Fire Department where he served until he retired in 1995.

Throughout the decades, fires have challenged and taught firefighter’s effective ways to protect our canyons. Boucher is struck by the uniqueness of Topanga. Most canyons burn up both sides, but because of our topography, our fires seem to occupy just one side of the canyon – a relief to firefighters. As an historian, he will present a time-line of major fires since the 1960’s in the county and innovations in equipment and strategy for fighting them. Did you know that LA County first developed the drop-tank helicopter now used nationwide?

Bucher stays active as the official historian by giving talks and writing for two newsletters each month.

But before we hear from Boucher, our own board member, Eric Dugdale, will talk about the very early days. 6,000 years before the Egyptians built the Pyramids, First Americans related to the Chumash were living in our Canyon, and dealing with fire. Controlled burns let them grow the grasses they liked, and protected the Oaks, an important source of food. Fire heated their sweat lodges, steam bent the planks when building their canoes. Smoke signals communicated across hilltops at Solstice. Burning handfuls of sage is still important in ceremonies of purification.

Pease join us at the Topanga Community House,1440 N. Topanga Canyon Blvd., for the Topanga Historical Society quarterly program, Wednesday, July 20 for this informative talk. The program is open to all (adults & kids) and free of charge. Bring your best dish to share with our now famous pot-luck at 7 PM.  There will be organic decaf coffee, tea, & lemon water.  The THS will provide dinnerware and serving utensils for your dish. The program starts at 8 PM. At the end a collection will be taken to help defray the fee for parking and clean up personal The updated Topanga Story will be available for purchase and participants will have an opportunity to become, if not already, Topanga Historical Society members for $20 individual or $30 for a family.

A big shout out to our  Social Media Task Force!

Thanks to members Joe Sloan, Laurie Slavin, Teresa Hames, Todd Kliewer and President Buz Tarlow, Topanga Historical Society has entered a new online phase. Beginning December 14th, 2015, THS will be posting bi-weekly updates from our archives on Facebook.

Check back often to see what interesting items pop up!

Like the THS page on Facebook to have the updates automatically appear in your newsfeed.

The Topanga Historical Society Digital Archive is running in closed beta test.  To participate as a volunteer, please register.