Figueroa Street
Encyclopedia
Figueroa Street is a street in Los Angeles County, California
Los Angeles County, California
Los Angeles County is a county in the U.S. state of California. As of 2010 U.S. Census, the county had a population of 9,818,605, making it the most populous county in the United States. Los Angeles County alone is more populous than 42 individual U.S. states...

 named for General José Figueroa
José Figueroa
General José Figueroa , was a General and the Mexican territorial Governor of Alta California from 1833 to 1835.Figueroa oversaw the initial secularization of the missions of upper California, which included the expulsion of the Spanish Franciscan mission officials.This also involved the issuing of...

 (1792 – 9 September 1835), governor of Alta California
Alta California
Alta California was a province and territory in the Viceroyalty of New Spain and later a territory and department in independent Mexico. The territory was created in 1769 out of the northern part of the former province of Las Californias, and consisted of the modern American states of California,...

 from 1833 to 1835, who oversaw the secularization of the missions of California
Spanish missions in California
The Spanish missions in California comprise a series of religious and military outposts established by Spanish Catholics of the Franciscan Order between 1769 and 1823 to spread the Christian faith among the local Native Americans. The missions represented the first major effort by Europeans to...

. One of the longer streets in Los Angeles, it runs in a north/south direction for more than 30 miles (48 km) between the communities of Eagle Rock
Eagle Rock, Los Angeles, California
In 1909, Hill Avenue, now Hill Drive, was one of Eagle Rock's most beautiful streets. Other streets were Royal Drive , Acacia Street , Kenilworth Avenue , Highland Avenue , and Fairmont Avenue...

 and Wilmington
Wilmington, Los Angeles, California
Wilmington is a district of Los Angeles, with industry as its primary economic activity. It lies adjacent to the Port of Los Angeles, San Pedro, and Harbor City. Wilmington is the site of Banning House and Drum Barracks, or Camp Drum, the only major American Civil War landmark in California. The...

. Termini are at Harry Bridges Boulevard in San Pedro, and just north of the Ventura Freeway
Ventura Freeway
The Ventura Freeway is a freeway in southern California running from Ventura to Pasadena. It is the principal east-west route through Ventura County and in the southern San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles County. From Ventura to its intersection with the Hollywood Freeway in the southeastern San...

 west of Pasadena
Pasadena, California
Pasadena is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Although famous for hosting the annual Rose Bowl football game and Tournament of Roses Parade, Pasadena is the home to many scientific and cultural institutions, including the California Institute of Technology , the Jet...

, with a break between San Fernando Road
San Fernando Road
San Fernando Road is a major street in the city and county of Los Angeles. It starts off in Castaic as The Old Road, passing through Santa Clarita and the Newhall Pass, whereupon its intersection with Sierra Highway near the junction of the Golden State and the Antelope Valley Freeways, it...

 in Cypress Park
Cypress Park, Los Angeles, California
Cypress Park is a neighborhood in Northeast Los Angeles. It is located at the confluence of the Los Angeles River and Arroyo Seco and is less than 2.5 miles north of Downtown Los Angeles...

 and College Street in Chinatown.

An early routing of Figueroa Street near downtown Los Angeles
Downtown Los Angeles
Downtown Los Angeles is the central business district of Los Angeles, California, United States, located close to the geographic center of the metropolitan area...

 was part of U.S. Route 66, today a part of the Arroyo Seco Parkway. The noted Figueroa Street Tunnels
Figueroa Street Tunnels
The Figueroa Street Tunnels are a set of four four-lane tunnels that carry northbound traffic on State Route 110 through Elysian Park in Los Angeles, California, United States. From south to north, the four tunnels measure 755, 461, 130 and 405 feet in length, 46.5 feet in width, and...

 were once a part of that same stretch of roadway. Figueroa resumes its course near the overcrossing of Sunset Boulevard
Sunset Boulevard
Sunset Boulevard is a street in the western part of Los Angeles County, California, that stretches from Figueroa Street in downtown Los Angeles to the Pacific Coast Highway at the Pacific Ocean in the Pacific Palisades...

 over the Pasadena Freeway
Pasadena Freeway
The Arroyo Seco Parkway, formerly known as the Pasadena Freeway, is the first freeway in California and the western United States. It connects Los Angeles with Pasadena alongside the Arroyo Seco. It is notable not only for being the first, mostly opened in 1940, but for representing the...

, just north of the "stack
Stack interchange
A stack interchange is a free-flowing grade separated junction between two roads.In countries where one drives on the right, left turns are handled by semi-directional flyover/under ramps...

" or four-level interchange
Interchange (road)
In the field of road transport, an interchange is a road junction that typically uses grade separation, and one or more ramps, to permit traffic on at least one highway to pass through the junction without directly crossing any other traffic stream. It differs from a standard intersection, at which...

. The road passes through downtown Los Angeles near Bunker Hill
Bunker Hill, Los Angeles, California
Bunker Hill, in the downtown area of Los Angeles, California, is a short, developed hill with its peak located roughly around 3rd Street. It is located directly east of the Harbor Freeway...

 and South Park
South Park, Los Angeles, California
South Park is a district in central Los Angeles, California, originally located around South Park near the intersection of 51st Street and Avalon Boulevard in South Central Los Angeles. However, due to redevelopment and gentrification since 2003, the name has been co-opted and now refers to an area...

. South of the Financial District, Figueroa Street services some popular locations including Staples Center
Staples Center
Staples Center is a multi-purpose sports arena in Downtown Los Angeles. Adjacent to the L.A. Live development, it is located next to the Los Angeles Convention Center complex along Figueroa Street. Opening on October 17, 1999, it is one of the major sporting facilities in the Greater Los Angeles...

/L.A. Live, the Los Angeles Convention Center, and the University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...

. For the rest of its southbound journey, Figueroa Street runs parallel to the Harbor Freeway (Interstate 110
Interstate 110 (California)
Route 110, consisting of two segments of State Route 110 joined by Interstate 110 , is a state highway in the Los Angeles area of the U.S. state of California, mostly built to freeway standards...

) in South Los Angeles
South Los Angeles
South Los Angeles, often abbreviated as South L.A. and formerly South Central Los Angeles, is the official name for a large geographic and cultural portion lying to the southwest and southeast of downtown Los Angeles, California. The area was formerly called South Central, and is still widely known...

. The only portion of Figueroa Street that lies outside Los Angeles
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...

 city limits is in the city of Carson
Carson, California
Carson is a city in Los Angeles County, California. As of the 2010 census, Carson had a total population of 91,714. Located south of downtown Los Angeles and approximately 14 miles away from the Los Angeles International Airport, it is known as a suburb of the city....

, but it soon reenters Los Angeles near Wilmington. The street ends at Harry Bridges Boulevard north of the Los Angeles neighborhood of San Pedro.

Some of the southern termini was once part of U.S. Route 6 before its almost total decommissioning
Decommissioned highway
A decommissioned highway is a highway that has been removed from service, shut down or has had its authorization as a federal or state highway removed. Decommissioning can include the complete or partial demolition or abandonment of an old highway structure because the old roadway has lost its...

 through California in 1964; indeed, Figueroa Street at Pacific Coast Highway was the actual western terminus of that highway, although maps show that US 6 went as far east as Atlantic Avenue in Long Beach
Long Beach, California
Long Beach is a city situated in Los Angeles County in Southern California, on the Pacific coast of the United States. The city is the 36th-largest city in the nation and the seventh-largest in California. As of 2010, its population was 462,257...

.

Early maps produced by the Automobile Club of Southern California
Automobile Club of Southern California
The Automobile Club of Southern California is the Southern California affiliate of the American Automobile Association federation of motor clubs...

 measured distances to Los Angeles from the club's headquarters at the intersection of Figueroa Street with Adams Boulevard.

On April 2, 2011, a portion of the street at Jefferson Boulevard
Jefferson Boulevard
Jefferson Boulevard is a street in Los Angeles and Culver City. Its eastern terminus is at Central Avenue east of Exposition Park. At its entrance to Culver City, it splits with National Boulevard. North of Sawtelle Boulevard, it merges with Sepulveda Boulevard...

 was blocked off for the "Orange Carpet" and the grandstand for the broadcasting of the 2011 Kids' Choice Awards
2011 Kids' Choice Awards
Nickelodeon's 24th Annual Kids' Choice Awards were held on April 2, 2011 at 8 p.m. ET at the Galen Center at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles's University Park neighborhood due to renovations disallowing use of traditional venue Pauley Pavilion until at least 2013. Jack Black...

.

Transportation

The Green Line operates a station
Harbor Freeway (LACMTA station)
Harbor Freeway is a transport hub located within the Judge Harry Pregerson Interchange of Interstates I-105 and I-110 near Figueroa Street serving the Metro Green Line and the Silver Line and other bus services...

 underneath Interstate 105
Interstate 105 (California)
Interstate 105 is an Interstate Highway in southern Los Angeles County, California that runs east–west from near the Los Angeles International Airport to Norwalk...

 at Figueroa Street. Metro Local Line 81 operates on Figueroa Street between Colorado Boulevard and Interstate 105 and Torrance Transit
Torrance Transit
Torrance Transit is a transit agency serving mainly the South Bay region of Los Angeles County.-Routes:Torrance Transit is a transit agency serving mainly the South Bay region of Los Angeles County.-Routes:...

 Line 1 between Interstate 105 and the Artesia Transit Center
Artesia Transit Center
Artesia Transit Center is a Metro Silver Line station and large bus station at southern end of the Harbor Transitway located in the southwest corner of Interstate 110 and State Route 91 in Los Angeles...

. The Lincoln/Cypress Station
Lincoln/Cypress (LACMTA Station)
Lincoln/Cypress Station is an elevated light rail station in the Los Angeles County Metro Rail system. It is located at the intersection of Lacy Street and Avenue 26, in the Cypress Park and Lincoln Heights neighborhoods of Los Angeles, California. The station is served by the Gold Line...

 for the Gold Line on Avenue 26 at its intersection with Lacy Street is about a 5 minute walk from Figueroa Street.

Notable Landmarks

  • Automobile Club of Southern California
    Automobile Club of Southern California
    The Automobile Club of Southern California is the Southern California affiliate of the American Automobile Association federation of motor clubs...

  • Bob Hope Patriotic Hall
    Bob Hope Patriotic Hall
    Bob Hope Patriotic Hall is a 10 story building that was dedicated as Patriotic Hall by the Los Angeles Board of Supervisors in 1925 and was built to serve veterans of Indian Wars, Spanish American War, World War I and to support the Grand Army of the Republic...

  • Bonaventure Hotel
  • Exposition Park
    Exposition Park (Los Angeles)
    Exposition Park is located in University Park, Los Angeles, California, across the street from the University of Southern California. Exposition Park houses the following:* Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum* Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena...

  • Galen Center
    Galen Center
    The Galen Center is a multipurpose indoor arena and athletic facility owned and operated by the University of Southern California. Located at the southeast corner of Jefferson Boulevard and Figueroa Street in the Exposition Park area of Los Angeles, it is right across the street from the campus and...

  • The Grammy Museum
    The Grammy Museum
    The GRAMMY Museum, is an interactive, educational museum devoted to the history and winners of the Grammy Awards. The Museum strives to inspires its visitors to learn about musical genres and history through interactive touch-screens, videos, and recording booths...

  • Jonathan Club
    Jonathan Club
    The Jonathan Club is a private social club in Los Angeles, California, U.S. It maintains two clubhouses, one in downtown Los Angeles at 545 South Figueroa Street and one on the beach in Santa Monica. The Los Angeles headquarters has dining and residential facilities, ballrooms, a health club, a...

  • LA Live
  • Los Angeles Convention Center
    Los Angeles Convention Center
    The Los Angeles Convention Center is a convention center in the southwest portion of downtown Los Angeles. The LACC hosts annual events such as the Greater Los Angeles Auto Show and Anime Expo, and is best known to video games fans as host to E3...

  • Los Angeles County Health Department
    Los Angeles County Department of Health Services
    Health services to over 10 million residents in the Los Angeles County are provided by the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services and the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. Mental health services are provided by the County Department of Mental Health...

  • Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
    Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
    The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum is a large outdoor sports stadium in the University Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, at Exposition Park, that is home to the Pacific-12 Conference's University of Southern California Trojans football team...

  • Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena
    Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena
    The Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena is a multi-purpose arena, in the University Park neighborhood, of Los Angeles, California, at Exposition Park. It is located next to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, just south of the campus of the University of Southern California.-History:The Los Angeles...

  • Original Pantry Cafe
    Original Pantry Cafe
    The Original Pantry Cafe is an iconic coffee shop and restaurant in Los Angeles, California. Located at the corner of 9th and Figueroa in Downtown L.A.'s South Park district, The Pantry claims to never have closed or been without a customer since it opened in 1924, including when it changed...

  • Staples Center
    Staples Center
    Staples Center is a multi-purpose sports arena in Downtown Los Angeles. Adjacent to the L.A. Live development, it is located next to the Los Angeles Convention Center complex along Figueroa Street. Opening on October 17, 1999, it is one of the major sporting facilities in the Greater Los Angeles...

  • Stimson House
    Stimson House
    Stimson House is a Richardsonian Romanesque mansion in Los Angeles, California on Figueroa Street north of West Adams. Built in 1891, it was the home of lumber and banking millionaire, Thomas Douglas Stimson. During Stimson’s lifetime, the house survived a dynamite attack by a blackmailer in 1896...

  • Variety Arts Center Building
    Friday Morning Club
    Friday Morning Club is a historic building on South Figueroa Street in Downtown Los Angeles that was built in 1923 and was the home for many years of a women's club of the same name. The architects were Allison & Allison....

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