Located on the Naval Weapons Station in Seal Beach is the U.S. Submarine Veterans W.W. II National Memorial West. The Memorial honors those that served on submarines during WW II and did not return from their final mission. There are 52 plaques representing the 52 submarines lost during the war and the names of submariners who never returned are listed on their submarine's plaque. Of the over 12,000 sailors that served on submarines during the war, 25% of sailors did not return. Although human losses were high, submarines accounted for less than 2% of the Navel Resources and submarines destroyed over 55% of all Japanese shipping during WW II.
Located outside of the Seal Beach Library is the Red Car Museum that is housed inside of a rare 1925 Pacific Electric Tower Car. Tower cars were equipped with a large center boom and were used for maintenance along the rail lines. In the 1920s, Pacific Electric Railway Company was the largest electric railway system in the world, connecting cities in Los Angeles, Orange, San Bernardino, and Riverside Counties.
There is a small building adjacent to the Red Car Museum, but there was no explanation sign explaining the building's significance. Since the Museum and building are located on the library grounds, I went into the library and inquired about the building. Much to my surprise, no one in the library had any idea what the building represented. The librarians attempted to look up the building on the web, but no success! Anyway, the picture is included in case someone knows what the building represents.
I know that Ferris Bueller lived in Chicago, but his house is located in Long Beach! Since the house is a private residence not belonging to the Bueller Family, we did not knock on the door to see if Ferris was home. However, I did see a sign on a water tower that said "Ferris Rules."
Also located in Long Beach is the "World's Skinniest House." We are not sure who decided it was the "World's Skinniest House," but records indicate the house was built in the 1930s on a 10-foot wide lot!
This April was the 45 running of the Long Beach Grand Prix in Indy-Type race cars. Since "Thunder Thursday" events were free, how could I not attend. The race is held on the downtown streets, centered around The Pike, which is where the free events were held.
The first event was a Pit Stop Challenge with several teams competing to see who could change four tires in the fastest time. I arrived late, so only saw the last team compete. Their time was a little over six seconds!
Following the Pit Stop Challenge, there was a demonstration by professional motorcycle riders. Unfortunately, there was such a large crowd it was difficult to get close enough to take pictures.
The final event consisted of four X-Games riders that performed some amazing stunts on motorcycles. They warned everyone not to try this at home!
Maybe some day I'll go back and pay the entrance fee to see the car races.
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