Hancock Park, Los Angeles
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Hancock Park is a historic and affluent urban neighborhood in Los Angeles, California roughly bounded by Van Ness Avenue to the East, Melrose Avenue to the North, La Brea Avenue to the West, and Wilshire Boulevard to the South.
History
Hancock Park was developed in the 1920s, by the Hancock family, with profits earned from oil drilling in the former Rancho La Brea (much of which is now the Miracle Mile district). Hancock Park owes its name to developer-philanthropist G. Allan Hancock, who subdivided the property in the 1920s. 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.[citation needed]
Some 71 oil wells were operating at capacity on the land from 1905 to 1910. Nine years later Hancock subdivided the property into residential lots. He leased 105 acres (0.42 km2) to the Wilshire Country Club with an option to buy. The Hancock Park development was started on Rossmore Avenue and moved west to Highland Avenue in 1921.[citation needed]
Architects such as Paul Williams, A. C. Chisholm and John Austin were hired to design homes for many of the city's pioneer families. The list of families who moved into Hancock Park's first homes reads like a "Who's Who" of California: Doheny, Chandler, Huntington, Van Nuys, Crocker, Banning, Newmark, Van de Kamp and Duque, were some of the early residents.[citation needed]
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
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Hancock Park consists of R-1 single family units 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.[1]
In sharp contrast to most Los Angeles neighborhoods, houses in Hancock Park are set well back from the street, most power and telephone lines are buried, and fences are strongly discouraged. The area also surrounds the Wilshire Country Club alongside which the Academy Award winning Actress Kathy Bates (Misery, Titanic, About Schmidt) lives in her $4.5 million dollar mansion not too far from the Los Angeles Tennis Club. These characteristics, along with the area's abundance of classic Los Angeles architecture, have made it one of the most desirable areas in all of Southern California ever since its development, and the average household income of its residents consistently ranks among the highest in the United States.[citation needed] The Olson twins also reside in Hancock Park.
Emergency services
The Los Angeles Fire Department operates Station 29 (Hancock Park) and Station 61 (Fairfax),[2][3] while the Los Angeles Police Department serves the neighborhood from Wilshire Community Police Station.[4]
Education
Primary and secondary schools
- Public schools
Hancock Park is within the Los Angeles Unified School District. Third Street Elementary School in Hancock Park serves most of Hancock Park.[5][1] John Burroughs Middle School in Hancock Park serves most of Hancock Park.[6][1]
Other schools serving Hancock Park include Los Angeles High School, Fairfax High School, Bancroft Middle School, and Melrose Elementary School.
Burroughs opened in 1922.[7] 3rd Street opened in 1924.[8]
- Private schools
Private schools include Marlborough School, a private girls' school, and Yavneh Hebrew Academy, an Orthodox Jewish school Pre-School - 8;
Public libraries
Los Angeles Public Library operates the John C. Fremont Library, located outside of and adjacent to Hancock Park.[9][1] The library has elements of Italian architecture and Spanish architecture.[10] The current facility began construction on December 26, 1926 and was completed in May 1927. The library opened on June 1, 1927. The library closed in 1990 because its masonry was not reinforced and the building was not in compliance with seismic safety codes. The library operated from a temporary location until February 1996. The library re-opened in its current location on March 26, 1996. The in-compliance library gained air conditioning, a meeting room, a small parking lot, wiring for computer and internet usage, and access for disabled persons.[11]
References
- ^ a b c d "Hancock Park's Boundaries." Hancock Park Homeowners Association. Retrieved on March 23, 2010.
- ^ http://lafd.org/fs29.htm
- ^ http://lafd.org/fs61.htm
- ^ [1]
- ^ "Boundary Map." Third Street Elementary School. Retrieved on March 23, 2010.
- ^ "Contact." John Burroughs Middle School. Retrieved on March 23, 2010.
- ^ "Burroughs MS." Los Angeles Unified School District. Retrieved on March 27, 2010.
- ^ "3rd Street EL." Los Angeles Unified School District. Retrieved on March 27, 2010.
- ^ "John C. Fremont Branch Library." Los Angeles Public Library. Retrieved on March 27, 2010.
- ^ "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.
- ^ "A Brief John C. Fremont Branch Library History." Los Angeles Public Library. Retrieved on March 27, 2010.
External links
- Hancock Park Homeowner's Association
- Windsor Square, Hancock Park Historical Society
- [2] Los Angeles Times guide to the eruv including Hancock Park
34°04′34″N 118°20′01″W / 34.07619°N 118.33348°W
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