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A PEEK INSIDE THE JERGINS SUBWAY
From the Long Beach Heritage Museum Newsletter, P.O.Box 14641 Long Beach, CA 90803
by Dennis Morawski
On June 14th, local
history buffs got a rare treat when the Jergins Subway was opened
for inspection for the first time in many years. The Jergins
Subway is a tunnel that was built under Ocean Boulevard in the
1920's as a safe walk through for pedestrians. A survey done
at the time showed that there were more than 2000 people per
hour crossing Ocean at Pine Avenue and more than 4000 on weekends.
The work was begun in 1927 when Ocean Boulevard was already torn
up to realign the Pacific Electric tracks, thus no tunnel was
dug which cut the costs in half. Originally it was to cost eighty
thousand dollars, with the city and Jergins each paying half,
but Jergins, wanting a fancier subway, put up a hundred thousand
dollars to get beautiful tile work and a huge skylight.
There were two entrances on the north side of Ocean and one in
front of the State Theater. The tunnel ran under Ocean Boulevard
and connected up with the Jergins Arcade. The Jergins Arcade
was also a walk through with a series of shops along the way
which opened at the far end onto the Pike. This area was sometimes
called The Village. The Jergins Subway had no shops except during
the 1930's in the depression when people were allowed to open
booths along the walls. These were taken out in 1940.
The subway has been closed off since the demolition of the Jergins
Trust Building, so this recent opening brought out most of our
local historians of note, including Author-Librarian, Claudine
Burnett, Long Beach Heritage Museum Curator, Kenneth Larkey,
Morgan Humphrey, Kenny Wooten and Robert Shin. There were also
a few local politicians there for a look. What we all saw was
that the Subway is in very good condition. The expensive tile
that Jergins ordered has held up very well. The floor tile in
a kind of mosaic that looks like carpet. There is beautiful wall
tile going up 10 feet with a decorative cap. Most of the ceiling
is also tiled though the skylight has long since been filled
in. The tunnel is very long, more than 180 feet. There is some
graffiti on the walls and evidence of a homeless camp at the
far northern end. The original steps are still there but there
is a concrete wall blocking off that north end. At the south
end where we entered, there is a good deal of damage to those
stairs and entryway tile.
All in all, the Subway is in very good condition and deserves
to be restored and re-opened. If the north end could be re-opened,
then the Subway could serve as a walk through from one hotel
to the other being built on the old Jergins site. And it is certainly
wide enough at 35 feet to also provide space for a historical
museum.
Webmaster Note: Photos submitted by e-mail which I no longer have (new computer). Advise credit and will post.
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