Three-Minute Histories

The Santa Monica Conservancy in partnership with the Sant Monica History Museum presents the 3-Minute History Series. The short videos on a variety of SM history topics premiered at city council meetings in 2024. Each episode features new facts on familiar topics in Santa Monica history, told by a unique narrator active in the community.

2024-06: Philomathean Hall
Location: 1810 Broadway
Narrated by: Carolyne Edwards

The Philomathean Charity Literary and Art Club was formed in November 1921 by African American women in Santa Monica and served to buffer their community from the worst impacts of racism, and strove to elevate their circumstances through literacy, vocational training, higher education, arts, and culture. The Club reached another milestone on March 28, 1958 with a cornerstone laying ceremony for its new location, Philomathean Hall, in the Broadway neighborhood.