Lost Cemeteries of Los Angeles

Los Angeles has a terrible history of willfully forgetting the past, and this is most ghastly demonstrated in the way the dead of early Los Angeles history have been displaced in the name of progress as the city expanded.

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On this walking-tour led by local Latino-Jewish historian Shmuel Gonzales (the "Barrio Boychik"), We will be exploring the sites and stories of the four original cemeteries of Los Angeles which were in some cases relocated, in other cases just built right over.

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• The Campo Santo at the Placita Church; the once forgotten Catholic burial site of many indigenous people and early immigrants

• Fort Moore Hill; the forgotten original Protestant burial site, the first non-Catholic cemeteries

• Old Jewish Cemetery; the lost original Jewish cemetery near Chavez Ravine, near the site of Dodger Stadium

• Old Calvary Cemetery; the old Catholic cemetery, and its former chapel site that has also become important to the historic community of Little Italy

 

We will be exploring these sites with a special emphasis of the often untold multi-cultural history of early Los Angeles.

 

Have you ever wondered why so many Los Angeles schools and public buildings are rumored to be haunted? What does real history reveal about origins of these unusual stories at these spooky sites? This is the perfect tour for historical buffs and haunted history enthusiasts alike!

 

This is an entirely walking tour, the entire circuit is about 3 miles that will take us from the Los Angeles Plaza up to the old Cemetery Ravine – near Chavez Ravine, just down the hill from Dodger Stadium – and back.

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We will be meeting next to the LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes gift shop called “La Tienda,” located at 501 N. Main St, Los Angeles, CA 90012, as our first site to explore is located just steps away next to the Placita church. We will start checking in participants at 10:45am, to start our walking tour promptly at 11am.

The total walking distance is just shy of 3 miles round trip, walking at an easy pace, though we do have stairs at one point in our hike and a significant incline at another location to get near the base of Dodger Stadium. An average tour tends to go about 2.5 hours. We encourage everyone to bring refreshments and snacks; though everyone must bring water, as its important to stay hydrated.

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We will be limiting this group to a maximum of 20 participants. Once again, I expect this to sell out right away; so please sign up today!