Pico House, Los Angeles
Pico House, constructed in 1870 by Pio Pico, a prosperous businessman who served as the final Mexican Governor of Alta California, was a lavish hotel. It boasted modern amenities like indoor plumbing, gas-lit chandeliers, an impressive double staircase, delicate lace curtains, and even featured a French restaurant. This Italianate-style hotel had three stories and offered 33 rooms, making it the most opulent lodging establishment in Southern California at the time. Its grand opening was celebrated with great enthusiasm.
However, its prominence was short-lived. By 1876, the Southern Pacific Railroad had connected the city to the rest of the country, attracting an influx of new residents and businessmen. Pio Pico's financial difficulties led to him losing ownership of the hotel to the San Francisco Savings and Loan Company. The city's business center gradually shifted southward, and by 1900, Pico House had fallen into disrepair, serving as a simple lodging house.
Eventually, the El Pueblo de Los Ángeles Historical Monument acquired the building and undertook a comprehensive renovation and restoration project to return it to its former splendor. Today, Pico House stands as a magnificent landmark in El Pueblo, recognized as a California Historical Landmark. It continues to host special exhibits, events, and commercial activities, ensuring its legacy endures.
However, its prominence was short-lived. By 1876, the Southern Pacific Railroad had connected the city to the rest of the country, attracting an influx of new residents and businessmen. Pio Pico's financial difficulties led to him losing ownership of the hotel to the San Francisco Savings and Loan Company. The city's business center gradually shifted southward, and by 1900, Pico House had fallen into disrepair, serving as a simple lodging house.
Eventually, the El Pueblo de Los Ángeles Historical Monument acquired the building and undertook a comprehensive renovation and restoration project to return it to its former splendor. Today, Pico House stands as a magnificent landmark in El Pueblo, recognized as a California Historical Landmark. It continues to host special exhibits, events, and commercial activities, ensuring its legacy endures.
Want to visit this sight? Check out these Self-Guided Walking Tours in Los Angeles. Alternatively, you can download the mobile app "51: Walks in 1K+ Cities" from Apple App Store or Google Play Store. The app turns your mobile device to a personal tour guide and it works offline, so no data plan is needed when traveling abroad.
Pico House on Map
Sight Name: Pico House
Sight Location: Los Angeles, USA (See walking tours in Los Angeles)
Sight Type: Attraction/Landmark
Guide(s) Containing This Sight:
Sight Location: Los Angeles, USA (See walking tours in Los Angeles)
Sight Type: Attraction/Landmark
Guide(s) Containing This Sight:
Walking Tours in Los Angeles, California
Create Your Own Walk in Los Angeles
Creating your own self-guided walk in Los Angeles is easy and fun. Choose the city attractions that you want to see and a walk route map will be created just for you. You can even set your hotel as the start point of the walk.
Chinatown Walking Tour
Unlike other cities where Chinese immigrant neighborhoods were formed organically, the Los Angeles Chinatown is the only planned Chinatown in the US. A blend of Chinese and American architecture, it was developed in downtown LA, as a tourist attraction, in the 1930s.
Designed by Hollywood artists as a "Chinese" movie prop to create an exotic atmosphere, LA's Chinatown gives out... view more
Tour Duration: 1 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 1.7 Km or 1.1 Miles
Designed by Hollywood artists as a "Chinese" movie prop to create an exotic atmosphere, LA's Chinatown gives out... view more
Tour Duration: 1 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 1.7 Km or 1.1 Miles
Los Angeles Downtown Walking Tour
The history of Los Angeles – "a bright and guilty place," as Orson Welles described it – began on September 4, 1781, when a group of 44 Spanish settlers established a hamlet on the territory of present-day Downtown LA which they called “The Town of Our Lady the Queen of the Angels” (El Pueblo de Nuestra Señora la Reina de los Ángeles).
The land became part of Mexico in 1821,... view more
Tour Duration: 2 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 3.5 Km or 2.2 Miles
The land became part of Mexico in 1821,... view more
Tour Duration: 2 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 3.5 Km or 2.2 Miles
Arts District Walking Tour
The Arts District is one of the hottest neighborhoods in downtown LA, located between Little Tokyo at Alameda to the west and the railroad yards and Los Angeles River to the east. Formerly an industrial area of warehouses and factories, it has been home to art studios and galleries since the 1970s. Having undergone another downturn in the 1990s, the area was officially renamed the “Arts... view more
Tour Duration: 2 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 2.8 Km or 1.7 Miles
Tour Duration: 2 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 2.8 Km or 1.7 Miles
Movie Studios Tour
The film studios of Los Angeles, collectively known as the “dream factory”, are indeed factories. Here, countless iconic films and television shows have been produced over the years, creating stars and attracting great movie-makers from around the globe. Let's take a brief look at some of these vital hubs in the entertainment industry.
Raleigh Studios is one of the oldest continuously... view more
Tour Duration: 2 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 3.9 Km or 2.4 Miles
Raleigh Studios is one of the oldest continuously... view more
Tour Duration: 2 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 3.9 Km or 2.4 Miles
El Pueblo and Little Tokyo Walk
El Pueblo and Little Tokyo are two culturally rich and historically significant neighborhoods in Los Angeles.
The former is the oldest district in the city. Also known as the birthplace of Los Angeles, El Pueblo is centered around the Los Angeles Plaza. Throughout most of the 19th century, it was the city's administrative and commercial center: first under the Spanish (from 1781 to 1821),... view more
Tour Duration: 2 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 2.2 Km or 1.4 Miles
The former is the oldest district in the city. Also known as the birthplace of Los Angeles, El Pueblo is centered around the Los Angeles Plaza. Throughout most of the 19th century, it was the city's administrative and commercial center: first under the Spanish (from 1781 to 1821),... view more
Tour Duration: 2 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 2.2 Km or 1.4 Miles
Beverly Hills Walking Tour
Undeniably one of the most famous places in the world, Beverly Hills is widely known as the most fashionable destination in Los Angeles county to shop and have fun at. Originally a Mexican ranch where lima beans were once grown, this place has long been a home to many Hollywood stars and other celebrities, luxurious hotels, and high-end boutiques.
Beverly Hills started to gain prominence in the... view more
Tour Duration: 2 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 2.7 Km or 1.7 Miles
Beverly Hills started to gain prominence in the... view more
Tour Duration: 2 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 2.7 Km or 1.7 Miles
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