The Wonderful Towers of Watts

In third grade, we study Los Angeles History.

So on Friday my class took a field trip to the Watts Towers.

These towers of cement, steel, and recycled glass were created in the backyard of Simon Rodilla, an Italian Immigrant who lived in Watts in 1929 -1952.

He lived alone and built these towers using only simple tools--hammers, chisels, and spikes. He had no scaffolding or ladders, he simply climbed what he had already built and continued to build higher.

His neighbors had no idea what he was doing. He kept to himself and just went about his creative work.

Inside the towers, he built bird baths, altars, a gazebo, and fountains like the one seen above--this is called "The Wedding Cake." All of the glass and tiles were collected from garbage cans, deserted lots, factories and warehouses. He even paid neighbor kids pennies to bring him old bottles.

This is the bird bath. Some believe it is a baptismal font.

This is called the cactus garden. He used broken 7Up Bottles for this one.

This is our (crazy, fun but crazy) tour guide and one of my students on the outside of the tower wall. The walls were built in the shape of a ship--the Ship of Marco Polo it is called.

This is the funny tour guide leading us in a cheer--Go Simon, Go Simon...raise the roof...woot woot!