Street names, neighborhood names, city names–they all started out as an idea, a project, a dream. We use them every day as directions, addresses, places to go, but we don’t really think about how they came about. First there were the ranchos. Their names are still part of the landscape. San Vicente Boulevard harks back to the Rancho San Vicente y Santa Monica, the ranch granted to the Franciscdo Sepulveda in 1839. Rancho Buenos Ayres became Bel Air; a play on developer Alophonzo Bell’s name as well as a bow to the original rancho. Bell traveled extensively in Italy and gave the streets in his new community the names of his favorite Italian towns. The alphabet streets in Pacific Palisades were transformed from letters to the names of Methodist ministers. The streets of the Palisades area of Santa Monica are named for the daughters of the developers. There’s a story behind each name and many of the stories are in my books. If you are interested in the history of your community these books are a good place to start.
Images of America-Brentwood
Images of America-Pacific Palisades
Westside Chronicles
Author: Westside Chronicles
An interest in old photography started my interest in the development of West Los Angeles. The photos were part of the business records of the Santa Monica Land & Water Company (SMLWCO) incorporated in 1897. Over its almost 100 year history, the company sub divided Brentwood, Bel Air, Santa Monica, and Pacific Palisades. The images document how the streets were laid out, what the original houses looked like, and how these areas became the suburban communities they are today.
I earned a degree in fine art at Scripps College in Claremont, California and I have spent over 30 years in the business of information management. I have worked in both print and electronic publishing--magazines, newsletters, newspapers, and numerous information web sites.
When the SML&WCo Archives came into being, I trained as an archivist in order to manage and preserve the company records and photos. I have written a number of articles based on the archives and there are currently three books based on this material--Images of America-Brentwood; Images of America-Pacific Palisades; and Westside Chronicles.
I use this blog to publish the stories I find in the archives or from my other research about West Los Angeles.
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