The 75th anniversary of the Long Beach Earthquake of 1933 — when the town was known as Iowa-By-The-Sea because of its Midwestern transplants — is uniquely personalized in Tim Grobaty’s column in today’s Press-Telegram.

Grobaty reprints letters that those former Iowans wrote to their hometown newspapers back east, explaining to the family and friends they left behind what it was like to feel the earth move under their feet — and in many cases, the sky come tumbling down.

As Grobaty points out, the letters also illustrate the often-painstaking pace of communication in those days. They’re also a reminder of the central role that newspapers used to play in people’s lives.

Tags: 1933, Iowa-By-The-Sea, Long Beach Earthquake, press telegram, Tim Grobaty