Real Estate and General Information

About Lawndale

On December 28, 1959, the residents of Lawndale voted to incorporate as a City within the county of Los Angeles. The main reason was stated in the Lawndale Report of October 1959, as "to incorporate in order to forestall being gobbled up by surrounding communities through annexation." Desired conditions for this community included "that there should be a "retention of a low tax level through use of existing county services."

Lawndale was one of the last cities to incorporate within Los Angeles County; however, it's history as a residential community dates back to the period of Spanish Land grants. The area was inhabited prior to that time by tribes of coastal Indians.

• Lawndale Homefinder and Daily Listing Updates
• Lawndale School District
• Lawndale Recently Sold Homes
• Median Home Prices for Lawndal
• Lawndale Foreclosures
• Lawndale Open Houses
  

Free Targeted Lawndale Home Search

We are experts in the South Bay and can help you with your search for homes. Our targeted home search will automatically notify you whenever a new home comes onto the market that meets your search criteria. We are continually viewing houses and keeping current on the market, and can email you when a new listing becomes available that you might be interested in. Simply fill out the form below with as much detail as possible and we will contact you with the current homes for sale in the price range and cities you are interested in.

Specific Neighborhoods, Areas,
Requests, Questions, Comments,
or other information regarding
 your home

Phone  Email  

Prehistory

Beginning in 1822 through 1846, Antonio Ignacio Avila was granted land in three separate parcels in an area called Rancho Sausal-Redondo. The area in question was originally regarded to encompass 40,000 acres; but when a United States Land Commission confirmed title, the area was reduced to 22,000 acres.

Rancho Sausal-Redondo covered the present communities of Lawndale, Inglewood, Hawthorne, Redondo Beach, Manhattan Beach, and Hermosa Beach; and was initially an unfenced grazing pasture for cattle. The land was fertile, but extensive agricultural development had to await the coming of later settlers.

Early incursions by the English based on the voyage of Sir Francis Drake and the Settlement of Alta California by the Spanish preceded the final acquisition of most of the Southwest by the United States. This expansion to include all of California occurred with the treaty of Gaudalupe Hidalgo in 1848.

Lawndale Acres

Following the real estate boom in the Inglewood area, similar development began in the southern portion of the old Rancho, where the present City of Lawndale is located. This activity was the direct result of the opening of a seaport at Redondo in 1890, and the railroad service developing between Port Redondo and Los Angeles. Steam trains were soon replaced by electric trolley cars. Boundaries officially appeared on maps. In a few years the name became permanent. Three developers expressed the opinion that ocean should be the western boundary for then emerging Lawndale.

The year 1902 marked the Los Angeles and Redondo railways arrival in Lawndale along what is now Hawthorn Boulevard; the line extended south from Inglewood along what was then called Railroad Avenue. "The big red Cars" were an Olive green when they first served Lawndale. The color change in 1911 when the parent company, Pacific Electric, absorbed the Los Angeles and Redondo.

The early reliance on the Pacific Electric both stimulate growth throughout Southern California and was the result of H.E. Huntington's master real estate plan. Huntington and his partners also acquired and transported inexpensive water into the area to fully support the growing population and continued backyard poultry farming. The die was cast for the Community that was to become Lawndale with the water and trail transit that stimulated growth in the Centinela Valley. In 1910 a second subdivision called "Lawndale Acres" appeared on real estate maps, and the merging of the two subdivision covered that portion of the present city between Manhattan Beach Boulevard and Rosecrans Avenue. The remainder of the City's southern area filled in between 1922 and 1924.

The Commuter Farmers

Agriculture continued to predominate in Lawndale, with crops, sheep, and poultry being raised. The farms were small, and their products composed a secondary income for their owners. Lawndale's first school opened in 1906 in the Congregational Church with 16 pupils. The Church has continued to be a significant part of Lawndale through numerous remodeling while retaining it's historic architecture.

The Lawndale community fair originated in 1914, and eventually moved to Pomona to become the Los Angeles County Fair. As an unincorporated area, Lawndale still possessed community identification and a cohesiveness that foretold the future establishments for the City of Lawndale.

Oil Boom - Bust and Depression

Oil discoveries in the 1920's created major commercial activity and temporarily changed the face of the community. The boom lasted from 1927 to 1929, and the influx of the oil workers and typical boom real estate speculation rapidly declined as the drilling subsided. For that three-year period, Lawndale was easily recognizable by the landscape of oil derrick construction. Lawndale settled into the 1930's with three schools in the community, and weathered, as did all America, the Great Depression.

The population of Lawndale did not increase as rapidly during the war years of 1941 through 1945 as did adjoining communities. The major influx of people occurred in the decade following the conclusion of World War II, as Lawndale slowly lost it's rural atmosphere. Post war veteran housing and the construction of the Harbor Freeway caused major growth. The advent of the personal automobile assisted in the gradual dismantling of the Pacific Electric and all rail transportation in the area. Lawndale's residential community transformation from a rural community highlighted a rapid increase of daily auto traffic through the community.

Civic Association and Community Identification

Although major growth occurred after the conclusion of World War II; the Civic Association , which was responsible for many community improvements, was originally established in February of 1939. This is considered to be one of major steps in the consolidation of this community. Further evidence of civic identification was both the establishment of a weekly newspaper in 1941, the Lawndale Tribune, and the formation of the Lawndale Symphony, which performed for a number of years.

The Civic Association functioned much as a Municipal Advisor Committee does in the present county structure, as a group to develop municipal services. With the increasing population, the Civic Association's tasks multiplied, and on April 6, 1945 August Reiss formed the Businessman's Group within the Association for the purpose of advertising the residential, commercial and industrial advantages of Lawndale. Also created to formulate zoning policies for the area, was a Special Zoning Committee of eight longtime residents and local business proprietors.

Lawndale was still struggling with having a rural setting amidst the rapid commercial growth and urbanization of the Centinela Valley. Agriculture gradually declined until zoning restriction official abolished it in January of 1958. Although Lawndale still remained an unincorporated area, the Legal Notices of this period did in fact refer to the "City of Lawndale". Incorporation was a continued topic of discussion among the various civic leaders. Formation of a city met with less than popular support at first, because a new level of government was not viewed as necessary. Fears of additional taxes motivated many of the residents on this particular issue.

Community leadership remained in the hands of the Civic

Association; and on March 3, 1948, the Businessman's Corp. incorporated as the Lawndale Chamber of Commerce. The original Chamber group consisted of eleven charter members. The Chamber, from it's earliest years, has been a mainstay in community affairs at all levels.

The incorporation of Lawndale marked the end of a year and a half struggle with neighboring communities as to acquisition of the businesses along Hawthorne Boulevard, or the need to round out their boundaries. The concern of one neighboring council man went so far as to champion legislation aimed at preventing this and other incorporation's as fiscally unsound. Although this threat went as far as Sacramento, the question was finally resolved when the electorate voted three to one to form the City of Lawndale as a general law city following the Lakewood Plan. This plan provides contracting essential through established county agencies when economically sound.

Today Lawndale still utilizes County Fire, Sheriff, and Library services for the community and has maintained their independence in other areas of control. The Charter promise of 1959 of no City taxes has never been altered due to this continuing process of responsible financial policy.

The above excerpt is from the City Hall Website for the City of Lawndale: