1930s Santa Catalina Island, California Real Photo Postcard – Chimes Tower Overlooking Sugarloaf Point - Avalon Bay – William Wrigley, Jr.

Catalina Island began to be developed as a vacation destination in 1887. The Santa Catalina Island Company was formed in 1891 which owned most of the island. In 1919, William Wrigley, Jr., founder of the Wrigley Chewing Gum empire and owner of the Chicago Cubs baseball team, purchased controlling interest in the company, and built a large home there. From the 1930s to the 1950s, Catalina was the training camp for Wrigley's Chicago Cubs baseball team. After William Wrigley's death in 1932, his son Phillip (P. K.) Wrigley succeeded to his father's interests on Santa Catalina. In 1975, P. K. Wrigley deeded the Wrigley shares in the Santa Catalina Island Company to the Catalina Island Conservancy, who now administers the bulk of the island.

In 1925, Wrigley and his wife constructed the Chimes Tower on the cliff overlooking Avalon Bay and Sugarloaf Point, the site of the new Casino (literally a "place of entertainment" in Italian), a fabulous twelve-story circular Art Deco structure, the largest of its kind in the world, built by Wrigley in 1928.

Chloride print (sepia-toned) glossy real photo postcards, and collected unused by a Connecticut couple on an extended touring vacation through the West in 1937 – and only recently removed from their vacation memory album where it has been for over 70 years. The photographer is identified in the lower right corner as that of Reyes, and there is a copyright mark in the lower right left corner. This postcard has an AZO stamp box imprint, and was published sometime between 1925 and 1937. However, postcards with white borders surrounding the image usually were published prior to 1931.

The image is a glossy, quality photo. Over time, there has been some slight fading along the borders, which is less noticeable in person than in these photos. This is a natural aging process for many glossy chloride print real photos. Otherwise, the card is in great condition, with no tears or folds. Some light soiling and wear around the edges from handling, but the images are not involved. Corners are only slightly blunted.

Item ID: 29-0439FF-9