Los Angeles herald., 1906-06-03
BOYLE HEIGHTS
IN EARLY DAYS
ANDREW BOYLE AND VI. H.
WORKMAN PIONEERS
Time Was When Acreage Was Turned
Down at $40 an Aere--Now
Worth Thousands Per

Boyle Heights comprises that pictur-
esque section Of Los Angeles whose
political division is the Ninth ward
a district that embraces many indus
trial enterprises and the beautiful
homes Of a large per cent of the pop
ulation OF the city.
Hon. w. II. Workman, present city
treasurer and Familiarity known as
'Uncle Billy" is one Of the residents
of the Ninth ward who by his per-
sonal enterprise and influence has sue
ceeded in bringing Boyle Heights to the
front as a residence district.
Andrew Boyle, for whom the Heights
were named. was the pioneer settler
east Of the river. He bought a large
tract of low land just over the river
and set out a vineyard. The highland
was thought at that time to be worth
less, except for pasture. 1t is mat
ter of record that during the eighties
at auction sales Of land in Boyle
Heights the low land along the river
sold at 500 to $500 per acre, while the
homes, sold as low as S5 per acre.
Development Period
In 1871 Mr.. Boyle died and Mr.. Work
man was left alone In the heights sec
tion as the man destined to do great
things. He had come to Los Angeles
in 1854, was married in 1867 when he
took up his residence in Boyle Heights
and has ever since been prominently
G-1 IaA
ity and the interests Of the city in gen.
eral.
In 1874 J. p. Hollenbeck and Mrs.
Hollenbeck arrived from northern Cal
ifornia and bought a large tract in
Boyle Heights. Mr.. Workman and the
Hollenbecks united in developing the
highland, donating to Los Angeles
beautiful Hollenbeck park. Mr.. Work
man donated that portion of the park
between Fourth and Sixth streets, and
Mr.. Hollenbeck the portion south of
Sixth street.
In 1879 the idea in connection with
the heights related in large part to
farming, and ditch was brought down
from reservoir, now the lake in East
lake park, the waters to be used in
irrigation. On this one enterprise Mr..
Workman expended $4,000.
Result of this was that a large tract
was set to vineyards and orange trees,
and the tract soon became famous, be-
ing one of the distinctive show places
of Southern California. Hundreds of
home prospectors visited the tract, and
seeing the possibilities of the country,
in horticultural and arboricultural
lines, were induced to remain.
Progress along these lines continued
for time until there came two fac
tors to interfere. One was the growth
of the city, leading to cutting up a
portion of the vineyard to sell lots t0
home seekers, and the other was the
Anaheim vine disease, that mysterious
scourge which swept over Southern
California years ago, wiping out entire
vineyards.
The first subdivision of heights land
was in 1876, since which time there
have been many tracts added to the
residence section.
Comparatively little was done on
the heights during the great town lot
boom of 1856, the lack of attractive
approach to the quarter at that time
interfering with it's satisfa ctory devel-
opment.
Donations of Land
BY slow stages however, in subse-
quent years, population grew, and the
liberal policy of the land owners in
making donations of land for school,
church and public charity purposes
laid the foundation for the great era
of development which has set in now.
This slow growth has made 1t pos
sible for the development of beautiful
homes IN the section without attracting
the attention which has been bestowed
on other sections of the city, and as a
consequence there are comparatively
few citizens who realize the great
beauty of many Of the homes of the
district
The majority of the residents, nat
urally, are persons of moderate
means, but there are many homes in
the district which will rival the most
pretentious in the more fashionable
districts. where greater development
has been made in recent years.
The gardens surrounding the homes
on Boyle Heights are among the most
attractive in the city, spacious grounds
and a wealth of flowers and foliage
being everywhere in evidence.
Among the most attractive grounds
of the heights are those about the
home Of Mrs Holister and of the home
for aged persons which she estab-
llshed in memory Of her husband.
Other delightful grounds are those
about the homes of Mr.. workman and
of George Chaffey, who for several
years has resided in that district, be-
ing an earnest champion of the heights.
Aside from these there are scores of
other attractive home grounds worthy
of inspection.