Soto Street
Encyclopedia
Soto Street is a major north-south thoroughfare in Los Angeles
, California
, connecting the southernmost neighborhoods of the East Side
, as well as the southeastern suburbs of Vernon
and Huntington Park
. It was first designated and paved as an arterial road
in 1927. The street has been the focus of several significant ethnic communities over the years.
. It becomes Soto after crossing Slauson Avenue
, shortly before entering Vernon, in which city it crosses over the Los Angeles River
. Soto Street then runs north through the neighborhoods of Boyle Heights
and Brooklyn Heights.
In Lincoln Heights
, Soto Street merges with Mission Road to form Huntington Drive
.
entitled El Corrido de Boyle Heights, and is the major transportation hub for the region. In 2004, a portion of the street in Northeast L.A. known as the Soto Street Bridge, where Soto Street becomes Huntington Drive North, was declared functionally obsolete and scheduled for replacement. The bridge was constructed in 1936 as joint venture between the state, city and Pacific Electric Railway
as an overpass of its Red Car system.
lines 251 and 252 run along Soto Street, in addition to Metro Rapid
line 751. The Metro Gold Line operates an underground station
at its intersection with 1st Street
in Boyle Heights.
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...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, connecting the southernmost neighborhoods of the East Side
East Los Angeles (region)
East Los Angeles is the portion of the City of Los Angeles that lies east of Downtown Los Angeles, the Los Angeles River and the unincorporated areas of Lincoln Heights, west of the San Gabriel Valley, East Los Angeles and City Terrace, south of Cypress Park, and north of Vernon, California and...
, as well as the southeastern suburbs of Vernon
Vernon, California
Vernon is a city five miles south of downtown Los Angeles, California. The population was 112 at the 2010 United States Census, the smallest of any incorporated city in the state....
and Huntington Park
Huntington Park, California
Huntington Park is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 58,114, down from 61,348 at the 2000 census.- History :...
. It was first designated and paved as an arterial road
Arterial road
An arterial road, or arterial thoroughfare, is a high-capacity urban road. The primary function of an arterial road is to deliver traffic from collector roads to freeways, and between urban centres at the highest level of service possible. As such, many arteries are limited-access roads, or feature...
in 1927. The street has been the focus of several significant ethnic communities over the years.
Geography
Soto Street begins as Miles Avenue in Huntington Park at Florence AvenueFlorence Avenue
Florence Avenue is a west-east street in Los Angeles County that starts off as Mills Road at Janine Drive in Whittier. At Telegraph Road, it changes to Florence...
. It becomes Soto after crossing Slauson Avenue
Slauson Avenue
Slauson Avenue is a major east-west thoroughfare for southern Los Angeles County, California, named for the land developer and Los Angeles Board of Education member J. S. Slauson. It passes through Culver City, Ladera Heights, View Park-Windsor Hills, Baldwin Hills, Inglewood, South Los Angeles,...
, shortly before entering Vernon, in which city it crosses over the Los Angeles River
Los Angeles River
The Los Angeles River is a river that starts in the San Fernando Valley, in the Simi Hills and Santa Susana Mountains, and flows through Los Angeles County, California, from Canoga Park in the western end of the San Fernando Valley, nearly southeast to its mouth in Long Beach...
. Soto Street then runs north through the neighborhoods of Boyle Heights
Boyle Heights, Los Angeles, California
Boyle Heights is a neighborhood east of Downtown Los Angeles on the East Side of Los Angeles. For much of the twentieth century, Boyle Heights was a gateway for new immigrants. This resulted in diverse demographics, including Jewish American, Japanese American and Mexican American populations,...
and Brooklyn Heights.
In Lincoln Heights
Lincoln Heights, Los Angeles, California
-Geography and transportation:Lincoln Heights is bounded by the Los Angeles River on the west, the San Bernardino Freeway on the south, and Indiana Street on the east; the district's Eastern border is unclear due to the area's uneven terrain...
, Soto Street merges with Mission Road to form Huntington Drive
Huntington Drive
Huntington Drive is a major east–west street in Southern California. It runs from the merge of Soto Street and Mission Road near the Lincoln Park neighborhood of Los Angeles east through the El Sereno section of Los Angeles, South Pasadena, San Marino, Alhambra, San Gabriel, Arcadia,...
.
History
In 1890 Soto Street was "a dirt road lined with pepper trees." By 1927 the city had decided to pave it as an arterial. The intersection of Soto Street and Brooklyn Avenue (now called Cesar Chavez Avenue) came to be considered the most important intersection in East Los Angeles, both when it was the center of the Los Angeles Jewish community (the largest Jewish community in the western United States) and later when it became the heart of the largest Mexican-American community in the country. It is the site of the landmark mural by East Los StreetscapersEast Los Streetscapers
East Los Streetscapers Public Art Studios is a muralist art collective and fine art studio based in East Los Angeles, California. Its members have executed over twenty murals and large-scale public artworks, primarily in the Los Angeles area.-History:...
entitled El Corrido de Boyle Heights, and is the major transportation hub for the region. In 2004, a portion of the street in Northeast L.A. known as the Soto Street Bridge, where Soto Street becomes Huntington Drive North, was declared functionally obsolete and scheduled for replacement. The bridge was constructed in 1936 as joint venture between the state, city and Pacific Electric Railway
Pacific Electric Railway
The Pacific Electric Railway , also known as the Red Car system, was a mass transit system in Southern California using streetcars, light rail, and buses...
as an overpass of its Red Car system.
Transportation
Metro LocalMetro Local
Metro Local is a bus system in Los Angeles County operated by the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority . This retronym designation was placed to differentiate it from the Metro Rapid service...
lines 251 and 252 run along Soto Street, in addition to Metro Rapid
Metro Rapid
Metro Rapid is a bus rapid transit service in Los Angeles County, California that operates in mixed traffic environments and has fewer stops than the Metro Local service. The system is mainly operated by LACMTA. Two routes are operated by Santa Monica Transit and one by Culver City Transit...
line 751. The Metro Gold Line operates an underground station
Soto (Los Angeles Metro station)
Soto Station is a light rail subway station in the Los Angeles County Metro Rail system. It is located at the intersection of First and Soto Streets in the heart of Los Angeles Boyle Heights District. The station is served by the Gold Line....
at its intersection with 1st Street
1st Street (Los Angeles)
1st Street is an east-west thoroughfare in Los Angeles and East Los Angeles, California. It serves as a postal divider between north and south and is one of a few streets to run from West Los Angeles to East Los Angeles...
in Boyle Heights.
Notable Landmarks
- Lincoln ParkLincoln Park (Los Angeles)Lincoln Park in Los Angeles, California was originally created by the City of Los Angeles in 1881, from land donated by Griffith J. Griffith. It was one of Los Angeles' first parks. It was originally called East Los Angeles Park, then Eastlake Park in 1901...
- USCUniversity of Southern CaliforniaThe 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...
Medical Center - Salesian High SchoolSalesian High School (Los Angeles, California)Bishop Mora Salesian High School is an all-male Roman Catholic high school located in the Boyle Heights community of Los Angeles, California. The school mascot is the Mustangs. It was named after Francisco Mora y Borrell, Bishop of the former Monterey-Los Angeles Diocese. Salesian is also named...
- Sears Building, Soto Street and Olympic BoulevardOlympic BoulevardOlympic Boulevard is a major arterial road in Los Angeles, California. It stretches from 4th Street on the western end of Santa Monica to East Los Angeles—farther than Wilshire Boulevard and most other streets....