Griffith Park – Cursed!

When the original owner of Griffith Park, Don Antonio Feliz died of small pox in 1863, he left his extensive land holdings to Don Antonio Coronel. Subsequently, his blind, destitute 17 year old niece, Dona Petronilla, cursed the land -- great misfortune would come to whoever owned it. One by one, Coronel's family died from misfortune and disease. He left the land to his wife, who married again only to have her husband try to divorce her and get the land for himself. The next owner tried to develop it as a dairy farm, only to be wiped out by rain and debt. Finally, Griffith J. Griffith was pretty nuts and tried to shoot his wife in a Santa Monica hotel. He spent two years in San Quentin and then sold the land to the city of Los Angeles, who, as far as anyone can tell, has been bigger, more violent and full of smog ever since. Enough to make the chills run up your spine, isn't it?

Photo by nielsfrenzen via flickr