Introduction

The facts presented by the El Sereno Historical Society are from the History of El Sereno, as presented by George Casen on April 18, 1994 to the El Sereno Coordinating Council (1769-1946).  The History of El Sereno is presented using the same words, illustrations, and facts contained in the historical document.  We have included other documents, maps, links, and pictures to better inform our readers about El Sereno's long and unique history.  

In 1769, when the Portola Expedition passed the area of present day El Sereno, the Native American Village of Otsungna was located on the banks of a local stream. Though little evidence exist because the area was never seriously examined nor were items preserved. Worst of all, any surviving evidence was obliterated during the development of the 710 freeway and Cal State University Los Angeles.  
 

But it is logical to consider that one of the original 36 adobes built in California was built in El Sereno because the stream known as Arroyo Rosa de Castilla runs down the the middle of El Sereno, right past where the original Spanish adobe once stood.  The adobe was most likely built very near the native village because the native Tongva people were the primary labor force behind the majority of the Mission's construction projects, including the building of the San Gabriel Mission.  It's logical to think the native Tongva people living in Otsungna helped with the building of the original adobe. The land now occupied by CSULA is the site where the original adobe once stood.  This land/area was the heart of San Gabriel Mission land-grant called Rosa de Castillo].  

Later called Arroyo Rosa de Castilla, the stream runs east of present-day Guardia and Farnsworth Avenues, as depicted in Figure 4.
[This historic and under-appreciated Arroyo was very important in the  survival and development of the Mission during the early years of the  San Gabriel Mission's relocation, founding, and construction.  It was also important in the development and growth later on, when the area became part of the land grant christened Rancho Rosa de Castilla, {for more info visit Arroyo Rosa de Castilla Collection}.]
   

The trail that passed from the village of Yangna (near where the Pueblo of Los Angeles was founded in 1781) to Otsungna and then to the village of Sibagna (near the second and final site of the Mission San Gabriel) later became Mission Road. 

[Mission Road was later changed to Alhambra Avenue, then El Monte Road, and more  recently to Valley Blvd.  The old Alhambra Ave/Mission Road still runs through El Sereno, passing right in front of the historic San Gabriel  Mission].
 

The El Sereno area, then known as the Mission Hills as depicted in Figure 5,  was part of the lands owned by the Mission San Gabriel Archangel,  founded in 1771.  Used for cattle grazing, an adobe was constructed here  in 1776 by vaqueros from the Mission.  [The original site of the San Gabriel Mission was located in the area now known as Whittier Narrows, between the cities of Rosemead and Montebello.   A severe and devastating flood in 1776, caused by the San Gabriel  River that flowed nearby, led the mission fathers to relocate the San Gabriel Mission farther north, to its present location in the city of San Gabriel.   The San Gabriel Mission's Spanish land grant came to be known as Rancho Rosa de Castillo.  Over time Castillo has been modified/changed to Castilla, either by mistake or on purpose.
 

Early photo of the historic adobe built in 1776, remodeled around 1882, that once stood on ground now occupied by Cal State L.A.  Photo was taken during the era the Batz Family resided there, on what is known as the  historic Rancho Rosa de Castilla.  Though it has been enlarged and modified, you can still see part of old adobe walls that support the new additions.] 

The adobe commissioned in 1776 by the Mission Friars was constructed near a creek that runs through the present-day community of El Sereno.  This stream was named "Arroyo Rosa de Castillo" due to the abundance of wild roses that grew alongside its banks.  The adobe is one of the original 36 adobes built in California.
 

It is believed that the adobe was built very near or next to the native Tongva village of Otsungna.  Otsunga was located alongside the same stream named "Arroyo Rosa de Castilla" by the Spanish Missionaries.  The adobe was probably built in this particular area due to the proximity of a reliable water source and because of its close proximity to native village of Otsungna.

The native Tongva people were the primary labor force behind the majority the construction projects during the Mission Period.  Many, if not all, of the early adobes and buildings constructed during this time period can be credited to their labor, including the building of the San Gabriel Mission.   It would be logical to think the Tongva people living in the village of Otsungna would also be used to help build the original adobe.  An interesting fact to note is that the name of the native village of Otsungna translates to "Place of Roses". CITATION NEEDED The Arroyo Rosa de Castilla still runs down the the middle of EL Sereno, though most of it has been buried underground.  You can still see the Arroyo flowing as you turn onto the 710 South on Valley Blvd. See LummisDay2012 PDF  and see Arroyo Rosa de Castilla maps provided above.]
 

Around 1810, a Spanish Government adobe toll house was built next to the road from the Mission to the Pueblo [of Los Angeles] (now Valley Boulevard/Alhambra Avenue), near what is now Warwick Avenue and Martin Street (just north of Alhambra Avenue).  
 

[The Planning Area was originally inhabited by the Gabrielino Indians, who lived in small villages in the area of Eagle Rock and the center city.  The only evidence of habitation by Native Americans which survives is in archeological sites.
 

The Planning Area was first visited by Europeans in 1769 when Spaniard, Gaspar de Portola camped  near what is now Elysian Park.  Two years later, when the fourth of the twenty-one Franciscan missions of Alta California was founded at San Gabriel, portions of the Planning Area were used for grazing land and  for vineyards.  A decade later, the pueblo known as Nuestra Senora Reina de Los Angeles, and now the City of Los Angeles, was founded and  incorporated some of these lands.  The areas currently known as Boyle Heights, Lincoln Heights, Echo Park, and a portion of Silver Lake all fall within this four square league parcel (36 square miles) of the original City of Los Angeles.  In 1784, three years after the pueblo was founded, Spanish Governor Pedro Fages granted all the lands between the Los Angeles River and the Arroyo Seco to Jose Maria Verdugo.  The Rancho San Rafael as it was known, covered approximately 36,000 acres.  The El Sereno area and a small fraction of the Silver Lake area are the only portions of the Planning Area which were not included in either the pueblo or Rancho San Rafael.  El Sereno was later part of the Rancho Rosa Castillo, and the western edge of Silver Lake was part of the Rancho Los Felix granted to Vincente Felix in 1802.]
 

The information presented in the paragraphs above came from the historic context statement The Northeast Los Angeles Subregional Planning Area.  The Northeast Los Angeles Subregional Planning Area of the City of Los Angeles, prepared by Historic Resource Group for The Los Angeles Conservatory can be downloaded from the Reference section.]