Comparing Northern California to Southern is as similar as
comparing apples to oranges. Yet, when it comes to praise, Los Angeles tends to
get the short end of the stick. All people can think about is Hollywood,
celebrities, and traffic. But Los Angeles has much history, culture, ethnically
diverse people, and hidden beauty to offer. You only need patience and an open
mind to find it. Here’s my small guide for you to discover the hidden treasures
Los Angeles has to offer in its present day and glorious past.
If you enjoy flavor then go to Echo Park. Mexican food in
Los Angeles is the real deal. It cannot be argued otherwise: There is proof in
its history. Just take a look at Olvera Street, located in the heart of
historic Los Angeles. Originally known as Vine Street, it was renamed in 1877
after Augustin Olvera, who was Los Angeles’ first county judge. After the 1920s
the thriving community began to degrade. Christine Sterling, with her wealth
and vision, saved Olvera Street from its decrepit path towards doom. She
foresaw a lively market, and thus it came into being in 1930, which is still
flourishing today. When you find yourself hungry in Los Angeles, here is a tip:
Don’t be afraid to try the street food! Trust your instincts. If it smells
good, chances are it will be great. (This applies only to the non-tourist
districts.)
Women Tortilla Makers in Olvera Street, 1930
Another argument is
that there isn’t enough nature in LA. There may very well not be enough, but
there certainly are oases within the city. Why not take a hike through Griffith
Park all the way up to the Observatory while contemplating its strange history?
Previously a Spanish settlement, Griffith Park was called Rancho Los Feliz. As
landholder Don Antonio Feliz was dying he supposedly agreed to give the land
not to his family but instead to Don Antonio Coronel. As the story goes, once
Feliz’s 17 year old blind niece found this out, she put a curse on the land as
well as upon Coronel, the lawyer and the judge. Because of the curse she
immediately died. Coincidentally the judge was shot and the lawyer passed early
too. Well, the story isn’t all too true. Horace Bell fabricated the niece’s
blindness, her early death, and quite possibly the curse for a newspaper. But
misfortune has followed landholders ever since and the curse is something to
blame.
View from the Planetarium at Griffith Park, 1934
The founder of Griffith Park didn’t end up with the best of
luck either. The land was bought by Griffith J. Griffith, of Whales, in 1882. He
first opened an ostrich ranch on present-day Griffith Park to attract
fashionable people who were looking for feathers. Mainly, though, he wanted to
show off his land. On December 16, 1896, he donated 3,015 of his acres to
create the public park. Influenced by European parks, Griffith realized that to
be a great city, there needs to be a great park. (Today the park contains 4,210
acres.) Unfortunately, the story doesn’t end well for Griffith or his wife.
While vacationing he believed his wife was conspiring with the Pope to poison
him. He later shot her, though she survived. After that incident Griffith fell
from fame. But at least one great thing came out of his purchase: An amazing
piece of land can be admired today for its green and quite nestled within
bustling LA. While you’re there, check out Trails Café and get an avocado
sandwich packed with sprouts and cheese on whole wheat bread. You can’t get
more Southern California picturesque than sitting on a picnic bench beneath
enormous shady trees, with lemonade, a veggie sandwich and the 405 freeway
within reach.
Picnic Tables in Griffith Park, 1920
Another great outdoor space with copious amounts of history is
Echo Park Lake. Most people tend to overlook it as a manmade wonder. In the
1860s Echo Lake was built as a reservoir to provide drinking water. Obtained
from the Los Angeles River, water travelled down a path that crossed through Los
Feliz. Mayor Henry Hazard foresaw Alvarado Street as a popular boulevard that
would connect people from Westlake (today’s MacArthur Park) to Echo Park Lake
and Elysian Park. In 1885 Echo Park Lake and boathouse were completed.
Unfortunately a year later the Times wrote, “There has perhaps been less talk,
newspaper and other, about his park than about any other, and it does not seem,
thus far in its existence, that it were worthy of much." Throughout the
century the park’s popularity fluctuated.
During the final days of WWII Echo Park Lake became a destination for
weekend outings, picnics, and toy boat festivities. From 1944 to 1950 the
construction of the 101 freeway put a damper on the park’s momentum. It sliced
through the playground and many of the homes that were situated near the lake.
Disrupting the community lifestyle that the park provided meant less
accessibility for residents to walk to the park. Before the 101 was built, Echo
Playground had a fountain, basketball and tennis courts, croquet and sports fields,
an outdoor gymnasium and a walking path within its grassland. It flourished in
its heyday. The Pacific Electric Red Car was a main source of transportation,
running alongside the park, until 1955. Echo Park even once had a beautiful
Spanish library from 1928 that was demolished by the city in 1974. As you can
see, Los Angeles is screaming with history that would have been a treat to
witness back in the day.
Boys Launching Boats on Echo Lake for Boat Tournament, 1930
After its charming mid-century era, Echo Park sadly went
into a downward spiral. With population surplus and immigrant families landing
in Echo Park, the Lake has been a difficult place for Los Angeles to maintain.
In 1971 The Los Angeles Times printed an article titled “Which Way for Echo
Park – Inner City Oasis or Slum?” summing up that the park was at a tipping
point. Finally, by 1980 activists deemed a Historic Preservation Overlay Zone
upon the Victorian and craftsman style homes. For the park’s 100-year
anniversary in 1995, Echo Park was given serious consideration for improving
its green space. That same year the Echo Park Historical Society was created to
protect the lake and create a safer environment. By 2013 Echo Park will be
integrated back with its community and visitors will then be able to catch a
glimpse of the icon it once was, and still is today.
Yes, LA has problems. As do all cities. But that doesn’t
mean that we should withhold respect when we compare it to other cities. I once was speaking with a reputable urban
planner in San Francisco. I asked him if I should focus my concerns on Los
Angeles—the sprawl, the traffic, and the waste—instead of on a city that is
already environmentally aware. He laughed and said, “You need to get up here.” That was it. No debate or profound thoughts
about why it would be beneficial to work in a city that needs help the most. You need to be here. I understand that
being surrounded by likeminded people is always encouraging to get work done.
But I can’t let all the other problems be set off to the side because they are
harder to fix.
Living in the state of California, we are lucky to have it
all. And we really do have it all. San Diego has its laidback beach vibe.
Orange County is comfortable with breath-taking scenery. Los Angeles is a
pocket of cities within cities, which makes it fantastic for exploring. Santa
Barbara is a luscious mountain landscape painted on sand. Further up the coast
includes numerous cozy-coastal and inland farm towns that I cannot begin to
list. Driving up the 101, it if feels like the state’s growth can’t be stopped.
It goes, and goes, and keeps going past hundreds of curvy miles and straightly
paved roads through deserts, beaches, forests, farmland, suburbs, and
average-looking cities. Everything we ever could want is in at our front door. We can just as easily hop on a plane and be
transported from SF to LA in one hour. So when people decide to dislike Los
Angeles because they had a single bad experience or are not familiar with it,
next time they can look in the right places—the lesser known and undiscovered
landscapes—to see the vast wonders Los Angeles truly offers.
Words by Andrea Dumovich--Guest concierge for the California Historical Society
