Los Angeles herald., 1907-02-17
METHODS HAVE
BROUGHT SUCCESS
CHAMBER OF COMMERCE THE
IMPORTANT FACTOR
Object Is to Interest the Homeseeker
First, and the Effort Is Never
Relaxed - Other Things
Follow In His Wake

correspondence of the ST. Louis Globe
Democrat
r OS ANGELES, Cal, Feb. 5.-"Los
Angeles is the best advertised
- town in America" said repre-
sentative of one Of the great eastern
railroad systems to a local reporter
few days ago. MY business as
travelling passenger agent calls me to
all parts of nine different states pc
tween the Mississippi and Atlantlc
coast, and I think l know something
about what the public is talking about.
1t is absolutely truthful to say that
fully five out of every six persons OF
means and of middle age, in the sec
tions where I travel, have more or less
degrees of plans for some day coming
out to see Los Angeles and this re-
gion."
There is nothing particularly new In
this statement 1t Is merely the most
recent utterance Of fact we'll known
to every man who has had occasion to
investigate the subject. 1t is of inter-
est Just now because every progress
sive town in the country is beginning to
recognize the value of advertising In
the promotion of municipal growth and
prosperity, and to form more or less
extensive plans to make known their
respective attractions to the world.
Granted, therefore, that Los Angeles
is the best advertised town in the world
1t is worth while to inquire how 1t be-
came SO.
BY way of introduction to such an in
quiry 1t is pertinent to consider what
advertising has done for Los Angeles.
In 1880 Los Angeles was sleepy half
Mexican town Of 11,000 inhabitants. By
1890 1t had increased it's population to
1000, due mainly to the unhealthy and
disastrous real estate boom of 1885-87.
The census of 1900 returned popula-
ton Of 102, 900, which has grown In the
past five years to 23S,000-the popula-
tion for the present time being conser-
vatively estimated from the city direc-
tory and school census for 1906. This
school census showed, by the way, that
almost exactly so per cent OF the popu-
lation of school age came from the
central and eastern states, Illinois con-
tributing more than any other state,
Missouri coming next, and Kansas,
New York. Texas, Colorado, Iowa, Ohio
and Pennsylvania following In the order
named.
The building permits in Los Angeles
have increased in number from 4430 in
1902 to 9509 in 1906, and in value from
$8, 593 in 1902 to $18,272,318 in 1906.
The postoff1ce receipts have grown from
$245, 900 in 1900 to $S26,000 in 1906. When
the Los Angeles clearing house was es-
tablished in 1888 its first years clear
ings amounted to $36,000.000. In 1908 the
clearings aggregated $345,000,000, and
in 1906 they had increased to $565, ,000, 900.
In 1896 there were thirteen banks in the
city with a total capital and surplus
of s4,716,000, and total deposits of SILL
100000 At present there are thirty
nine banks, with capital and surplus OF
SIC, ,000, 900 and deposits OF $90.000,000 in
round numbers. In the past two years
the number Of manufacturing estab-
lishments has grown from S14 to 1897 1t
hardly worth while to analyze these fig
ures. They speak for themselves.
Did advertising do this? 1t Is the
general belief Of the intelligent people
of Los Angeles that advertising in all
of it's many forms, including personal
letters and the vocal eulogies of "loV-
ing friends" is mainly responsible for
this marvellous growth, and they offer
In evidence the fact that so great a
proportion Of the city's population is
drawn directly and recently from the
far away states OF the Mississippi val
Many factors have contributed to this
successful labor Of promotion, but by
common consent the chief credit Is
given to the Los Angeles chamber of
commerce. The newspapers. the rail-
roads, the people themselves, have done
much, but these agencies would have
accomplished comparatively little with
out the initiative and the never ceasing
ardor of this remarkable organization.
Los Angeles Boom
If the chamber OF commerce has been
the principal factor in the upbuilding
Of Los Angeles, one may hen truth
fully say that the city owes its present