"The state my grandfather was born into in 1942 was entirely alien to today's California. The state had a total population just shy of 7 million, far short of today's 39.5 million; Los Angeles County had a population of 2.7 million, compared to 10 million today. While California had a significant foreign-born population in 1942, at a little over 13 percent, it was still a small number compared to the 28 percent of the present day."
"In 1942, the state was on economic wartime footing. While the state was experiencing a manufacturing boom, it also imposed enforced blackouts (the late-war ones were some of my grandfather's earliest memories). The conflict disrupted daily and family life; my grandfather's father was absent, serving as a naval officer in the North African, Italian, and Pacific theaters during the war. Unlike other areas of the country, California profited immensely from the growth of industry and spending of the Second World War."
Judge Robert M. Letteau was born May 17, 1942, in Los Angeles to George "Mason" Letteau and Georgann Gross. He was a third-generation Angeleno; his grandfather moved from the Midwest at the turn of the 20th century. California's population in 1942 was just under 7 million, with Los Angeles County at 2.7 million, versus roughly 39.5 million and 10 million today. The state was about 90 percent white and 6 percent Hispanic in 1942, compared with roughly 38–44 percent white and 41.7 percent Hispanic now. The state was on wartime economic footing, experiencing a manufacturing boom, enforced blackouts, and family disruptions as men served overseas; California profited from wartime industry and spending.
Read at The American Conservative
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