LA History

How LA's Streetlights Serve As Beacons To The City's Past

Los Angeles has the most diversity in street light design of any American city.

Black and white photo of a large circular fountain in a park, surrounded by vintage street lights with white, round orb lamps that sit atop graceful slim poles with some intricate designs toward the top. There is a row of tall palm trees in the distance.

Nancy Valverde, LA’s Butch Lesbian Trailblazer, Has Died At 92

Valverde’s death comes after the city of L.A. honored her last year with a dedicated square.

A black and white image of a woman with a medium-light skin tone stting on the ground inside a group gifts and a TV. She has short dark hair and is a wearing pants and an oversized dark button down.

What Makes Pasadena’s ‘Bungalow Courts’ So Special? A Fan Of Historic Places Explains

The How to LA team visits Gartz Court with Etan Rosenbloom, an Angeleno who documents historic places on social media.

A single cement walkway on a lawn splits into two in the center courtyard section of a multi-family housing complex. It's made up of six identical single story homes. They have brown sloped roofs, white outer walls with decorative dark brown criss-crossed beams, two white columns flanking the porch steps, and chimneys covered in river rocks in various shades of grey.

The tangled history of residential hotels in DTLA

As Los Angeles boomed in the 20th century, more and more workers needed places to stay. Residential hotels sprung up — often offering bare bone rooms which still exist today.

A old black-and-white photo of a "flop house" offering beds and food.

Fact Or Fiction? Hollywood’s Madams In The Golden Age

Sex and the studios were once a dangerous pair.

A black and white photo shows a man, left, and a woman, right, standing together and conversing.

A Brief History Of How Los Angeles Became A Land Of Billboard Lawyers

The latest entrant to this crowded, crowded field is Anh Phoong, hailing from Sacramento. You may have seen her blue and yellow billboards around town.

A billboard in blue and yellow advertising for a personal injury lawyer named Anh Phoong.

Marilyn Monroe's Former Home Is One Step Closer To Getting Preserved

The city's Cultural Heritage Commission unanimously voted to move forward with declaring the Brentwood home a historic cultural monument. The move allows the commission to delay demolition for 180 days.