The Big Move

The Warriner family was part of the first wave of people who decided to leave Detroit, Michigan. From Left to right:  Dad, holding baby Darwin, Patti, Susan, Tim, Lynda, Skippy, and Mom is standing behind Skippy. 

This Photo was taken at the end of the year 1952. Here is the story Mom told me:

Dad was a photographer in Detroit.  He wanted to work in the exploding aerospace industry, and much of it was located in southern California.  He had applied to a company called Rohr, which was located in Chula Vista.  After Baby Darwin was born in their trailer, they decided to make the cross country move, with 6 kids crammed in the car and all their stuff in the trailer.

When they left Michigan, they thought they had things set up for their arrival in California.  They made reservations at a trailer park just off the 5 freeway near Pacific Beach.  And dad thought he was a shoo-in at Rohr.  

After a long grueling road trip dealing with flat tires, crying kids and frayed nerves, they arrived in San Diego.  When they got to the trailer park, however, they were told that there were not any open spots.  Looking for another place to park the trailer in a strange town with no local contacts, they started driving around neighborhoods looking at houses.  They got to Old Town, the original San Diego.  This is a small area of old preserved buildings, in those days the area had a long adobe wall on the Juan Street side.  Juan Street is a long and very steep street.  Old Town is at the lower base, and at the top of the hill, Juan Street winds around into Sunset Blvd in Mission Hills.

Dad and Mom decided to see what the neighborhood at the top of the hill looked like.  When they started driving up the hill, the hitch on their trailer broke, the trailer went speeding down the hill, crashing into the old abode wall. The trailer was demolished, and lots of their belongings got broken.  China, glasses, Photographic equipment, all trashed.  

Now their trailer was a mess, their household things were a mess, they had all those kids, and still needed to find a place to live and a job.

They needed to find out where Dad was going to work, so they would know where to find a place to rent.  They started driving out to Chula Vista, and passed by the salt fields, where the strong smell of rotting seaweed made the baby stop nursing and start screaming.

When they got to Rohr, they found out that Dad didn't really have a job; he would be on call.  So back to San Diego they went, where he applied at every aerospace business he could find.  When they got to Ryan Aeronautical, they stopped on the side of the road.  

Ryan used to be located right next to Lindbergh Field, the San Diego Airport.  Back in those days, you could park right there on the street.  The kids got out of the car and started working off their pent up energy.  One of them found a chicken.  They named in Cluck Cluck and kept it. 

Dad was in the hiring office for a long time.  He applied, and they told him they weren't hiring at that time.  He couldn't take any more bad news, and he broke down crying.  When they asked him why he was so upset, he told them of their journey, their disaster, and his huge burden waiting outside.

They actually took pity on him, hired him on the spot, and had the company photographer go out and take a picture of them parked on the road, with all their stuff tied on top of the car. They published an article about the Warriner's in their company newspaper.

Here is a partial clipping.  Looks like they cut out the article and the photo, and it is gone forever, but they left the photo caption behind, proving that the story Mom told really was true. It was published in the Jan 2, 1953 Ryan Newspaper.