Hancock Park, Los Angeles

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For the park and the location of the La Brea Tar Pits, see Hancock Park.
Hancock Park
—  Neighborhood of Los Angeles  —
Palm-tree-lined Windsor Blvd., with the Hollywood sign in the background
Hancock Park, Los Angeles is located in Los Angeles
Hancock Park
Location within Central Los Angeles
Hancock Park, Los Angeles is located in Los Angeles
Hancock Park
Location within Western Los Angeles
Coordinates: 34°04′34″N 118°20′01″W / 34.07619°N 118.33348°W / 34.07619; -118.33348Coordinates: 34°04′34″N 118°20′01″W / 34.07619°N 118.33348°W / 34.07619; -118.33348
Country United States
State California
County Los Angeles
City Los Angeles
Time zone PST (UTC-8)
 • Summer (DST) PDT (UTC-7)

Hancock Park is a historic and affluent urban neighborhood in Los Angeles, California, bounded by Rossmore Avenue to the east, Melrose Avenue to the north, Highland Avenue to the west, and Wilshire Boulevard to the south. A sister neighborhood known as Windsor Square is directly adjacent to the east. It is roughly bounded by Rossmore Avenue to the west, Wilton Avenue to the east, Beverly Boulevard to the north, and Wilshire Boulevard to the south.

Contents

History [edit]

Hancock Park was developed in the 1920s by the Hancock family with profits earned from oil drilling in the former Rancho La Brea. The area owes its name to developer-philanthropist George Allan Hancock, who subdivided the property in the 1920s.[1][2] Hancock, born and raised in a home at what is now the La Brea tar pits, inherited 4,400 acres (18 km2), which his father, Major Henry Hancock had acquired from the Rancho La Brea property owned by the family of Jose Jorge Rocha.[3]

Hancock Park activists were also instrumental in the passage of a 1986 Congressional ban on tunneling through the neighborhood. The ban, sponsored by Congressman Henry Waxman, prevented the Red Line Subway from being routed along Wilshire Boulevard through the neighborhood.

Cityscape [edit]

Hancock Park is located north of Wilshire Boulevard and south of Melrose Avenue. Along its western and eastern boundaries, North Highland Avenue and North Rossmore Avenue, houses along both sides of the street are within Hancock Park.[4]

Emergency services [edit]

The Los Angeles Fire Department operates Station 29 (Hancock Park) and Station 61 (Fairfax),[5][6] while the Los Angeles Police Department serves the neighborhood from Wilshire Community Police Station.[7]

Education [edit]

Primary and secondary schools [edit]

John Burroughs Middle School
Public schools

Hancock Park is within the Los Angeles Unified School District. Third Street Elementary School,[8] Hancock Park Elementary School and John Burroughs Middle School serve Hancock Park.[9]

Other schools serving Hancock Park include Los Angeles High School, Fairfax High School, Bancroft Middle School, and Melrose Elementary School.

Burroughs opened in 1922,[10] while 3rd Street opened in 1924.[11]

Private schools

Private schools include Marlborough School, a private girls' school, Yavneh Hebrew Academy, an Orthodox Jewish school Pre-School - 8, and Page Private School.

Public libraries [edit]

John C. Fremont Library

Los Angeles Public Library operates the John C. Fremont Library, located outside of and adjacent to Hancock Park.[12] The library has elements of Italianate architecture and Spanish architecture.[13] The current facility began construction on December 26, 1926 and was completed in May 1927, opening June 1, 1927. The library closed in 1990 for earthquake retrofitting, and reopened on March 26, 1996.[14]

Residence of Consul General [edit]

Since 1957 the residence of the Los Angeles British Consuls-General has been in a home designed by the renowned architect Wallace Neff and completed in 1928. The residence is at the Hancock Park address of 450 S. June St., Los Angeles, CA 90004, and backs to the Wilshire Country Club. The residence was where the Prince William, Duke of Cambridge and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge stayed in July 2011 on their first visit to the United States after their wedding.[15]

Notable residents [edit]

References [edit]

  1. ^ "Hancock Park". Windsor Square-Hancock Park Historical Society. Retrieved 2010-06-19. "Hancock Park owes its name to developer-philanthropist G. Allan Hancock who sub-divided the property in the 1920s. Hancock, born and raised in a home at the La Brea Tar Pits, inherited the 440 acres which his father, Major Henry Hancock, had acquired from the Rancho LaBrea property owned by the family of Jose Jorge Rocha. ..." 
  2. ^ "Brief History". Hancock Park Homeowners Association. Retrieved 2010-06-19. "Hancock Park, located in the eastern portion of the original Rancho La Brea area, was purchased by Major Henry Hancock in 1863. The residential subdivision of Hancock Park was developed by Major Hancock’s son, G. Allan Hancock, in the 1920s. Outstanding architects of the era designed the palatial two-story, single family residences in various Period Revival styles (including Tudor Revival, English Revival, Spanish Colonial Revival, Mediterranean Revival, Monterey Revival, and American Colonial Revival) for influential members of Los Angeles society. The vast majority of the residences are set back 50 feet from the street, as insisted upon by G. Allan Hancock, and include side driveways generally leading though a porte cochere to a rear garage. Previous prominent Hancock Park residents have included millionaire Howard Hughes, entertainers Mae West and Nat King Cole, Broadway Department Store magnate Arthur Letts Jr., and architect William Pereira." 
  3. ^ "Rancho La Brea". LA Okay. Retrieved 2010-06-19. "On January 6, 1828 Rancho La Brea was granted to Antonio Jose Rocha and Nemisio Dominguez by Jose Antonio Carrillo, the Alcalde of Los Angeles. The grant included a stipulation that the tar pits within the rancho would be open and available to all the citizens of the pueblo for their use. The title was confirmed by Jose Echeandia, who was the Governor of Alta California at the time. Later in 1840, it was reconfirmed by Governor Juan B. Alvarado" 
  4. ^ "Neighborhood". Hancock Park Homeowners Association. Retrieved 2010-06-19. 
  5. ^ http://lafd.org/fs29.htm
  6. ^ http://lafd.org/fs61.htm
  7. ^ [1]
  8. ^ "Boundary Map." Third Street Elementary School. Retrieved on March 23, 2010.
  9. ^ "Contact." John Burroughs Middle School. Retrieved on March 23, 2010.
  10. ^ "Burroughs MS." Los Angeles Unified School District. Retrieved on March 27, 2010.
  11. ^ "3rd Street EL." Los Angeles Unified School District. Retrieved on March 27, 2010.
  12. ^ "John C. Fremont Branch Library." Los Angeles Public Library. Retrieved on March 27, 2010.
  13. ^ "HANCOCK PARK Historic Library Getting Shored Up." Los Angeles Times. April 14, 1994. Westside Part J Zones Desk Page 10. Retrieved on March 27, 2010.
  14. ^ "A Brief John C. Fremont Branch Library History." Los Angeles Public Library. Retrieved on March 27, 2010.
  15. ^ "The residence". 
  16. ^ Feirstein, Bruce (December 22, 2012). "Where Every Street Is Sunset Boulevard". The Wall Street Journal. p. A15. Retrieved December 30, 2012. 
  17. ^ Sanneh, Kelefa (August 4, 2008). "What He Knows For Sure". The New Yorker. Retrieved November 4, 2011. 

External links [edit]

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