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Los Angeles grew from a dusty Spanish settlement into a place where entire industries were born. Film, aerospace, music, and technology all found their footing here. But long before the studios and skyscrapers, the land held communities, missions, ranches, and railroads, which are today the historical places in Los Angeles. They survive through architecture, preserved neighbourhoods, and monuments that continue to shape the rhythm of daily life. From grand buildings to lesser-known corners, these places are the city’s memory, layered, vivid, and still.
Explore 10 Historical Places In Los Angeles
These historical places in Los Angeles reveal how the city has changed across centuries. Each one offers a deeper look at the moments that shaped its identity.
1. The Bradbury Building
Photo: Visitor7 / Wikimedia Commons
Standing on South Broadway since 1893, the Bradbury Building is one of the oldest commercial buildings in central Los Angeles. The outside is simple and unassuming, but inside, it opens into a five-storey Victorian-style atrium flooded with natural light. Now it functions as a working office space, but visitors can access the ground floor atrium freely. Its location in the heart of the historic core makes it one of the most iconic historical places in Los Angeles, merging the city’s architectural ambition with a sense of timeless beauty.
Location: 304 S Broadway
Timings: 9 AM – 5 PM
Nearby Attractions: Grand Central Market, The Last Bookstore, Angels Flight Railway
2. El Pueblo De Los Ángeles Historical Monument
Photo: Visitor7 / Wikimedia Commons / Image For Representation Only
El Pueblo de Los Ángeles Historical Monument is where the city took its first breath in 1781. Located next to Union Station, this area preserves the layout and character of early Los Angeles. Its narrow passageways, tiled plazas, and adobe buildings reflect Spanish colonial design. The Avila Adobe, dating back to 1818, stands as the oldest existing home in the city. Olvera Street adds to the experience with handmade goods, traditional food, and public performances that reflect the neighbourhood’s Mexican heritage.
Timings: 9 AM – 5 PM
Nearby Attractions: Olvera Street, Avila Adobe, LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes
3. The Getty Villa
Photo: Visitor7 / Wikimedia Commons
Perched above the Pacific Coast Highway in Pacific Palisades, the Getty Villa brings the ancient world into coastal California. It was built to resemble a Roman country house, inspired directly by the Villa dei Papiri buried in Herculaneum. Opened in 1974, it houses the Getty Museum’s antiquities collection, with pieces from ancient Greece, Rome, and Etruria. The design includes peristyle gardens, reflecting pools, tiled courtyards, and mosaic-lined hallways that match the setting of classical antiquity. Inside, statues, jewellery, ceramics, and daily artefacts are displayed with detailed interpretation.
Timings: 10 AM – 5 PM (closed on Tuesdays)
Nearby Attractions: Will Rogers State Beach, Topanga Canyon, Malibu Pier
4. Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
Photo: MikeJiroch / Wikimedia Commons
Opened in 1923, the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum was built to honour American veterans of World War I. It later became the first stadium in the world to host the Olympic Games twice, in 1932 and 1984. Its arched entrance, with the Olympic cauldron rising above, has become one of the most recognised landmarks in the city. Over the decades, the Coliseum has hosted championship football games, political rallies, religious gatherings, and concerts. It was the site of John F. Kennedy’s 1960 Democratic nomination acceptance speech and a 1987 mass led by Pope John Paul II.
Timings: 10 AM – 5 PM
Nearby Attractions: California Science Center, Natural History Museum, Exposition Park Rose Garden
5. Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel
Photo: Alexander Migl / Wikimedia Commons
Located on Hollywood Boulevard, the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel has been part of Los Angeles since 1927. Just across from the Chinese Theatre, this hotel was named in honour of Theodore Roosevelt. It was built during the golden age of cinema with funding from notable figures in the film industry, including Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks. It hosted the very first Academy Awards ceremony in 1929 inside its Blossom Room. The building features Spanish Colonial Revival architecture, carved ceilings, vintage chandeliers, and a historic Tropicana Pool with murals painted by David Hockney.
Timings: 24*7
Nearby Attractions: TCL Chinese Theatre, Walk of Fame, Dolby Theatre
6. Watts Towers Of Simon Rodia
Photo: Levi Clancy / Wikimedia Commons
In a small corner of South Los Angeles, seventeen tall, spiralling structures rise from a residential lot. These are the Watts Towers, and every piece of them was built by Simon Rodia alone. He was a tile setter by trade, originally from Italy, and in 1921, he started working on the towers using scrap metal, wire, cement, broken glass, seashells, and discarded pottery. Without any machines or assistance, he shaped and decorated each column by hand. City officials once tried to tear them down, but locals fought to preserve them.
Cost: $7 / ₹600 for adults
Timings: 10:30 AM – 3 PM (Thursday – Saturday)
Nearby Attractions: Charles Mingus Youth Arts Center, Watts Towers Arts Center
7. Heritage Square Museum
Photo: Los Angeles / Wikimedia Commons
Heritage Square Museum brings together a group of Victorian-era buildings saved from demolition and moved to one location at the edge of Highland Park. Each structure tells a different part of Los Angeles’s 19th-century story. There’s a corner store, a doctor’s office, a railway cottage, and grand family homes, each furnished with period details. The Hale House, with its ornate gables and stained glass windows, stands out as one of the most detailed examples of Queen Anne-style architecture in the region. Visitors can only explore them on a guided tour, which makes the experience even more immersive.
Cost: $10 / ₹850 for adults & $5 / ₹450 for children
Timings: 11:30 AM – 4:30 PM (Friday-Sunday)
Nearby Attractions: Arroyo Seco Park, Lummis Home, Southwest Museum
8. Union Station, Los Angeles
Photo: Dietmar Rabich / Wikimedia Commons
Union Station has stood at the centre of Los Angeles since 1939, built during a time when train travel still shaped how cities moved. Its architecture mixes Spanish Colonial with Mission Revival and subtle Art Deco touches. The wide archways, polished wooden benches, chandeliers, and tile mosaics were designed to make arrivals feel grand. Generations have passed through its doors, soldiers in uniform, migrant workers, and families hoping to start new lives. Even now, it remains one of the busiest terminals in California.
Timings: 24*7
Nearby Attractions: El Pueblo, Little Tokyo, Los Angeles State Historic Park
9. The Queen Mary
Photo: E090 / Wikimedia Commons
Docked in Long Beach, the Queen Mary is a retired British ocean liner that now serves as a hotel and museum. It arrived in California in 1967 after decades of transatlantic voyages between Southampton and New York. During the Second World War, it was painted grey and used to carry troops, earning the nickname “The Grey Ghost.” After the war, it returned to luxury service, transporting royalty, film stars, and diplomats. Walking through its decks today feels like stepping back into the golden age of ocean travel.
Cost: $10 / ₹900
Timings: 10 AM – 6 PM
Nearby Attractions: Aquarium of the Pacific, Shoreline Village, Pike Outlets
10. Greystone Mansion And Gardens
Photo: Andrew Hitchcock / Wikimedia Commons
Greystone Mansion sits quietly above Sunset Boulevard, surrounded by 18 acres of terraced gardens, walkways, and historic landscaping. Built in 1928 by Edward Doheny for his son, the estate was part of one of the most powerful oil fortunes in the country. The mansion itself is not regularly open for tours, but the gardens remain free to the public. You’ll find stone staircases, fountains, and tree-lined paths that overlook the city. Every part of the property was designed with intention, from imported European stonework to hand-carved wooden interiors.
Timings: 10 AM – 5 PM
Nearby Attractions: Beverly Hills Hotel, Rodeo Drive, Franklin Canyon Park
Los Angeles is often seen as a city chasing the future, but its past still shapes every part of it. From the early adobe homes near Olvera Street to the towering ambition of the Coliseum, each site offers a different glimpse into how the city was built, lived in, and remembered. These historical places in Los Angeles carry traces of artistic movements, political milestones, and personal memories. Plan your visit with TripXL and discover the stories Los Angeles still tells.
Cover Photo: diosthenese / Wikimedia Commons
