A Very Brief History of The Arroyo Seco Region

The Northeast Los Angeles Communities of Highland Park, Eagle Rock, Mount Washington, Glassell Park, Montecito Heights, Cypress Park, Lincoln Heights, Sycamore Grove, Hermon, El Sereno, Elysian Valley, Atwater Village are often referred to as communities of the "Arroyo Seco".

Geographically, the Arroyo Seco, literally "dry creek" in Spanish, is a great, long canyon that extends from the foot of the San Gabriel mountains north of Pasadena, southward along the western edge of South Pasadena. It skirts the Garvanza district, and continues south through Highland Park until it joins the Los Angeles river not far from Elysian Park. It is a terrain with intermittent stream, permanent ponds, and fertile flood-plain that has been a sanctuary for wildlife and humans for at least 8,000 years.

The earliest residents were Native American Tongva, called  "Gabrielinos" by the Spanish missionaries.  The Tongva were a social, peaceful people, well known for their expert basket-making.  Some Tongva still lived in the Arroyo area when California joined the Union in 1850.

In in the early 1900s the lowland Arroyo became a center of artistic and intellectual activity, populated with artisans, bohemians, naturalists and other free thinkers; home to Arroyo Culture and the Arts and Crafts Movement, a rare convergence of art and nature, where a place and the works of its residents became virtually inseparable.

Revolting against industrialization, Arroyo Culture and The Arts and Crafts movement  applied the notion of “living in nature” to all aspects of existence:  Homes such as the the California bungalow, with its simple interiors, spacious patios and porches, and handcrafted environment being one of its manifestations.

As the young century progressed,  the Arroyo region evolved into a major gateway between downtown Los Angeles and regions to the northwest (the San Fernando Valley) and the east (the San Gabriel Valley).

Arroyo Seco itself  endured a century of change with its spirit intact. In 1935-1940 The Arroyo Seco was  encapsulated in concrete and transformed into a flood control channel, to control disastrous flooding - but the charm and magic of the Arroyo is still strong. 

Groups such as the Arroyo Seco Foundation  look to protect and revitalize the Arroyo.