Happy 230th, Los Angeles!

(Pic via Meet The World in Progressland.)

It's been 230 years since El Pueblo de Nuestra Señora de la Reina de los Angeles del Rio Porciuncula was first founded on Sept. 4, 1781. Of course, for its first 100 years of existence, Los Angeles was little more than a dusty village. But the second 100 years were astounding, as L.A. grew into the country's second-largest metropolis. And the last 30 years? Well, they've been pretty eventful as well.

The Militant Angeleno takes a trip down memory lane to Los Angeles' 1981 bicentennial celebration, and how much the city has changed since then:

Much more today than 30 years ago, we are more atune into our communities, into identifying them. Back then, you were either from "LA" or "The Valley" or "Orange County" or elsewhere. Back then, there were only two area codes most people need be concerned with: 213 and 714. 714 was Orange County, of course (though it was also 213 until 1951). 213 was everything else.

If you were to enter a time machine or wormhole and visited 1981, certainly you'd be deemed mentally insane if you boasted about riding on subways or bicycles around town, eating fusion food out of food trucks that you'd follow using your mobile phone. Or the fact that you went to Downtown for a party, a gallery opening, sporting event, or - gasp - to go home.

And when those 1981ers asked you about how L.A.'s football teams were doing... you could only sigh.