Terminal Island facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Terminal Island
Isla Raza de Buena Gente
Rattlesnake Island
|
|
|---|---|
Terminal Island. Former Gerald Desmond Bridge is visible in the right-center background.
|
|
 Terminal Island
Location in Southern Los Angeles
|
|
| Country | United States |
| State | California |
| County | Los Angeles |
| Cities | Los Angeles (Wilmington) and Long Beach |
| ZIP Code |
90731
|
Terminal Island is a special island in Los Angeles County, California. It is mostly man-made. The island sits between the areas of Wilmington and San Pedro in Los Angeles, and the city of Long Beach.
The island is divided between the Port of Los Angeles and the Port of Long Beach. Most of the land is used for factories and port activities. There is also a federal prison called Federal Correctional Institution, Terminal Island. Long ago, the island was known as Isla Raza de Buena Gente.
Island History: How Terminal Island Grew
Terminal Island was first called Isla Raza de Buena Gente. Later, it was known as Rattlesnake Island. In 1891, its name was changed to Terminal Island.
Early Development and Expansion
In 1909, a company called Southern California Edison decided to build a new power plant. This plant would provide extra power for the whole Edison system. They chose a muddy area called Rattlesnake Island for the new plant. Building of the plant began in 1910.
The island's size has grown a lot over time. In 1909, the city of Los Angeles took over the city of Wilmington. A person named Phineas Banning, known as the "Father of the Harbor," owned some land on Rattlesnake Island. He helped start big changes in the San Pedro Bay. After Los Angeles took over, the expansion continued.
In the late 1920s, an island called Deadman's Island was removed. The rocks and dirt from it were used to add more land to Terminal Island. This added about 62 acres to the island's southern tip.
In 1930, the Ford Motor Company built a factory on the island. This factory was called Long Beach Assembly. It stayed there until 1958, when the company moved its operations.
A civilian airfield, Allen Field, opened on Terminal Island in 1927. The Naval Reserve later took control of it. They renamed it Naval Air Base San Pedro. In 1941, the Long Beach Naval Station was built next to the airfield.
The Naval Air Base was closed in 1947. However, the nearby Long Beach Naval Station used the airfield until the late 1990s. Today, a large industrial area covers where the Naval Air Station used to be.
Japanese American Fishing Village
Starting in 1906, a lively Japanese American fishing community grew on Terminal Island. This area was known as East San Pedro or Fish Island. Because the island was somewhat isolated, the people there developed their own unique culture. They even had their own way of speaking, a mix of English and a Japanese dialect.
Before World War II, about 3,500 Japanese Americans lived on the island. After the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, things changed. On February 9, 1942, the FBI arrested all the adult Japanese men on Terminal Island.
Then, on February 19, 1942, the remaining residents were told to leave their homes within 48 hours. They were sent to internment camps. The entire village was then torn down. The Japanese community on Terminal Island was the first to be moved and held in camps.
After World War II, the people from Terminal Island settled in other places. In 1971, they created the Terminal Islanders Club. In 2002, the surviving members built a memorial on Terminal Island to honor their parents.
World War II and Beyond
During World War II, Terminal Island was very important for defense. Many ships were built there. The first California Shipbuilding Corporation shipyard opened in 1941. This was also a place where African Americans worked to join defense jobs on the West Coast.
The Bethlehem Steel shipyard in San Pedro was also on the island. They built 26 destroyers for the war. This shipyard was one of the largest on the West Coast.
In 1946, Howard Hughes moved his huge airplane, the Spruce Goose, to Terminal Island. He was getting it ready for its test flight. On November 2, 1947, it took off from the island for its only flight.
_with_destroyers_at_Terminal_Island_c1962.jpg)
A place for drag racing called Brotherhood Raceway Park opened in 1974. It was on land that used to belong to the U.S. Navy. It closed in 1995 and was replaced by a facility for handling coal.
In 2012, some old buildings on the island were listed as endangered historic places. In 2013, a plan was approved to protect them.
Terminal Island Today
The western part of Terminal Island is part of San Pedro, Los Angeles. The rest is part of Long Beach. The island covers about 4.46 square miles (11.56 square kilometers). In 2000, about 1,467 people lived there.
The Port of Los Angeles and the Port of Long Beach own most of the land. They rent it out for large shipping terminals. The island also has places that can food, shipyards, and United States Coast Guard facilities.
The Federal Correctional Institution, Terminal Island started in 1938. It holds over 900 federal prisoners.
The Long Beach Naval Shipyard was closed in 1997. It used to take up about half of the island. A company called Sea Launch uses docking facilities there.
An aerospace company called SpaceX is renting land on the island. They plan to fix up buildings and build a large tent-like structure. This will be for research, design, and making parts for their Starship rockets. These rockets are too big to move by land. They will be shipped by sea to launch areas in Florida or Texas.
Connecting Bridges
Terminal Island is connected to the mainland by four bridges.
- To the west, the green Vincent Thomas Bridge connects it to San Pedro. This is the fourth-longest suspension bridge in California.
- The Long Beach International Gateway connects the island to downtown Long Beach to the east. It is the longest cable-stayed bridge in California.
- The Commodore Schuyler F. Heim Bridge connects Terminal Island to Wilmington to the north.
- Next to the Heim Bridge is a rail bridge called the Henry Ford Bridge, also known as the Badger Avenue Bridge.
Terminal Island in Pop Culture
Terminal Island has appeared in several movies and TV shows:
- It is the setting at the start and end of The Terror: Infamy, a TV series.
- The first truck heist scene in the movie The Fast and the Furious takes place here.
- The Tri-Union Cannery on Terminal Island was shown in an episode of Visiting... with Huell Howser.
- A scene in the science fiction novel Snow Crash (1992) by Neal Stephenson happens on Terminal Island.
- In the video game Need for Speed, the "South Port" area is based on Terminal Island.
See also
In Spanish: Isla Terminal para niños
