Landmark Hermosa: Post Office

The that has been a part of Hermosa Beach since the early 1900s frequently moved locations before finding itself on the corner of Pier Avenue and Valley Drive.

The post office first was located in a large public building on the south corner of Pier Avenue and the Strand, near the Pier entrance, according to Fern Rhein's 1933 account of history in Hermosa Beach Historical Society archives.

At the time, around 1903, mail was delivered by horse-drawn wagons after traveling from afar along the , according to the book Hermosa Beach, written by photojournalist Chris Miller and Jerry Roberts.

Then "in 1910, Miss Beane had constructed a building of her own which housed the Post Office at 26 Pier Ave., and here it remained during the period of her service as postmistress," according to Rhein's report.

The report said, due to fears of high tides damaging the building, the postmistress, Sarah Beane, found the post office its new location on Pier Avenue.

The post office was burglarized in 1914, according to the Daily Breeze, and the burglars stole $2,000 in cash, stamps and money orders. So then from the Beane building, the post office was moved to the Walker Bank Building at Pier and Hermosa avenues, according to the historical society.

Looking back at its history, the post office's journey has ended full-circle, because where it now sits on Pier Avenue was once a stop along the Santa Fe Railroad where mail was dropped off in town, according to the book Hermosa Beach.

Congratulations to Rick Koenig for correctly guessing today's Landmark Hermosa. We'll have a new trivia next week.