Home of the week

May 1, 1938

 

Above, here we are in 1938 in Leimert Park. Below, a current street view, courtesy of Google.

Why am I showing a home from Leimert Park? Because this neighborhood is in what is all too often described as "gang-infested South L.A." I was unfamiliar with the area until I began looking into the Black Dahlia murder (the body of Elizabeth Short was found several blocks from this duplex).

The homes in Leimert Park have a great deal of charm and wonderful architectural details like stained-glass windows and tile roofs. This neighborhood is, according to propertyshark.com, 78.5% African American, 14.3% Hispanic, 8% Asian American, 6.1% white, 0.5% Native American or Alaskan and 0.1% Native Islander (the figures add up to more than 100% because some people choose more than one ethnic category--welcome to L.A.). The duplex sold in 2004 for $600,000, according to propertyshark.

Note: If you can't see the current map, you are probably using some version of Internet Explorer and need to install Adobe Flash Player. You can either do that or switch to Firefox, which works fine. 

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Comments

[enhager]

I don't often hear Leimert Park described as "gang infested." I have heard it called the "Black Greenwich Village" by filmmaker John Singleton, and as I like to call it, "the Soul of Los Angeles."

Jonahtan Gold in Rolling Stone in a 1993 cover story: Leimert Park is the intellectual center of African American life in Los Angeles -- jazz clubs, coffeehouses, bookstores, art galleries, a theater in a fine old movie palace, the restaurants that draw people from all over town.

I believe you didn't mean too but by saying - "this neighborhood is in what is all too often described as 'gang-infested South L.A' " you've just described the neighborhood that way once again.

[Teresa]

I love things like this.

My Great Aunt lived in the same home in Society Hill, Philadelphia, for about 60 years. The house itself was built in the early to mid-1800's.

The City of Philadelphia is digitizing the millions of photographs taken in the city by public workers since the 19th century, and putting them online. You can search by neighborhood or address.

Thanks to this project, I have a photo of my Aunt's home taken by the city in 1905...to contrast with one I took literally a century later, in 2005.

I wish other cities were doing this. I live in a house built in about 1912, and I would love to see a photo of it from back then.

[Sunny]

Obviously you know nothing about Leimert Park. I grew up there. It's a lovely middle class neighborhood (primarily black). Just as many parts of Los Angeles, nice neighborhoods are often only one block from the not so nice areas. Leimert is often ground zero for a lot of cultural activities. Don't post ignorant items please. Investigate first. http://www.leimertparkvillage.org/