Echo Park, Los Angeles, California

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The lake in Echo Park. In the foreground are lotus plants, in the background is the skyline of downtown Los Angeles.

Echo Park is a district of Los Angeles located northwest of downtown. It is east and southeast of Silver Lake, north of Westlake/Mac Arthur Park and southwest of Elysian Park.

Echo Park was named Edendale before the construction of the park itself; the local U.S. Post Office and a public library branch are still named Edendale.

History

Echo Park was the original center of the film industry in Los Angeles, before the studios moved to Hollywood just before World War I. Mack Sennett's studio was located in Echo Park until the end of the silent era, and a large number of silent comedies were shot in the neighborhood. Some of the earliest screen performers, including Gloria Swanson, bought homes in the Angelino Heights neighborhood before also moving to Hollywood and other areas. The area has continued to be used as a location for films such as Farewell, My Lovely, Echo Park, Mi Vida Loca and "Quinceanera". The 1960s television series Gilligan's Island was shot in the area as well as scenes in Michael Jackson's 1982 music video Thriller. The Manor, a house in the television series Charmed, is also located here. The area is popular with modern filmmakers for the pre-World War II look of some districts.

Before World War II Echo Park was a middle class neighborhood, nicknamed "Red Hill" for a concentration of political radicals living there. Postwar flight to the suburbs resulted in Echo Park becoming overwhelmingly Latino; although other ethnic groups have always had a presence in the neighborhood. Many working-class Chinese immigrants have settled in Echo Park due to its proximity to Chinatown, Los Angeles, California.

A pelican and the lotus flowers at Echo Park Lake, circa 1920.

The commercial district along Sunset Boulevard suffered greatly in the 1950s from the condemnation of the residences in nearby Chavez Ravine to build Dodger Stadium. The area in the immediate vicinity of the park itself became seriously beset by problems with drugs and gangs in the 1970s and 1980s.  The hilly northern part of the district that is adjacent to Elysian Park is called "Elysian Heights" and has always maintained a genteel character. In recent years the lower areas closer to Sunset Boulevard have become popular with young musicians, artists and other entertainment industry workers.

Attractions

Local attractions include the eponymous Echo Park, with a small lake. Given its large amount of lotus leaves in the lake, the park is the site of the annual Lotus Festival, a pan-Asian celebration complete with Chinese dragon boat races. The event has been held since the late 1970s and it showcases a different Asian ethnicity (such as Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, Filipino, Bangladeshi, and so on) every year. It attracts Asian Americans as well as other local residents.

There is also a Cuban festival held on the birthday of Cuban poet and patriot José Martí, who has a statue in the park.

Bordering the park are the cathedral of the Episcopalian diocese of Los Angeles and the famous Angelus Temple, a large Foursquare Gospel church built by Canadian-born Pentacostal evangelist Aimee Semple McPherson in 1923.

Currently, Echo Park is home to many unique businesses, boutiques and art galleries.

External links

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