Watts, Los Angeles, California
Encyclopedia
Watts is a mostly residential neighborhood in South
Los Angeles
, California
.
The area now known as Watts is located on the Rancho La Tajauta
Mexican land grant. As on all ranchos, the principal vocation was grazing and beef production.
With the influx of European American settlers into Southern California in the 1870s, La Tajauta land was sold off and subdivided for smaller farms and homes. In those days each Tajauta farm had an artesian well. The arrival of the railroad spurred the development of the area, and in 1907 Watts was incorporated as a separate city, named after the first railroad station, Watts Station
, that was built in the town. The city voted to annex itself to Los Angeles in 1926.
Along with more European Americans, Mexican
and Mexican American
railroad workers ("traquero
s") settled in the community. African-Americans came in later and many of the men were Pullman car porters and other railroad workers. Schoolroom photos from 1909 and 1911 show only two or three black faces among the 30 or so children pictured. By 1914, a black realtor, Charles C. Leake, was doing business in the area.
Watts did not become predominantly black until the 1940s, as the Second Great Migration
brought tens of thousands of migrants, mostly from Louisiana
, Mississippi
, Arkansas
and Texas
, who left segregated Southern states in search of better opportunities in California. During World War II
, the city built several large housing projects (including Nickerson Gardens, Jordan Downs, and Imperial Courts) for the thousands of new workers in war industries. By the early 1960s, these projects had become nearly 100 percent black, as whites moved on to new suburbs
outside the central city. As industrial jobs disappeared from the area, the projects housed many more poor families than they had traditionally.
Longstanding resentment by Los Angeles' working-class black community over discriminatory treatment by police and inadequate public services (especially schools and hospitals) exploded on August 11, 1965, into what were commonly known as the Watts Riots
. The event that precipitated the disturbances, the arrest of a black youth by the California Highway Patrol
on drunk-driving charges, actually occurred outside Watts. Mobs did the most property damage in Watts in the turmoil.
Watts suffered further in the 1970s, as gang
s gained strength and raised the level of violence in the neighborhood. Between 1989 and 2005, police reported more than 500 homicides in Watts, most of them gang-related and tied to wars over control of the lucrative illicit market created by illegal drugs. Four of Watts' influential gangs— Watts Cirkle City Piru Bloods
, Grape Street Watts Crips, Bounty Hunter Watts Bloods, and PJ Watts Crips—formed a Peace Treaty agreement in 1992 following just over 4 years of peace talks which were initiated in July 1988 with the support of the local community. The spokespersons for the groups taking part in the peace talks were Twilight and Daude.
Twilight and Daude photos from the 1988 Peace Talks press conference were printed on the front pages of regional and local newspapers and their interviews with TV news crews were on every news channel. In the months and years to follow Twilight would appear on National TV talk shows, radio talk shows and speak at several college and university campuses. Both Twilight and Twelve received death threats due to misinterpretation of newspaper articles by their peers, many of whom would join the peace movement in the months and years to come.
After four years of peace talks the Peace Treaty would be drafted and then agreed the day before the 1992 Los Angeles riots
. The pact supported by a community based education initiatives and private investments from prominent members of the community e.g. Jim Brown
continues to contribute to the decrease in gang related death in Watts and the greater South Los Angeles area since 1992. Key hallmarks of the pact continue to influence life in Watts to date, with colors and territory having little to do with gang-related crime.
Beginning in the 1980s, due to gentrification
, those African Americans who could leave Watts moved to other parts of South Los Angeles and suburban locations in the Antelope Valley
, the Inland Empire
, The San Gabriel Valley, Orange County
, and the San Joaquin Valley
. This process, which some call black flight
, was part of the increasing gentrification of Non-white inner-city communities implemented in the 1980s, in a journey typical of the larger American society. The black population in Watts has been replaced by successor migrants, primarily Hispanic immigrants of Mexican
and Central America
n ancestry, as well as a smaller proportion of Ethiopian
and India
n ancestry. This process of gentrification accelerated after the 1992 riots.
In addition, there has been a net migration of African Americans out of California to return to the South in a New Great Migration
. From 1995–2000, California was a net loser of African-American residents. With new jobs, Southern states have attracted the most black college graduates since 1995.
Neighborhood leaders have begun a strategy to overcome Watts' reputation as a violence-prone and impoverished area. Special promotion has been given to the museums and art galleries opened in the area surrounding Watts Towers
at 1765 East 107th St, near the Imperial Highway
and suburb of Lynwood
. This sculptural and architectural landmark has attracted many artists and professionals to the area. I Build the Tower
, a feature-length documentary film about the Watts Towers and their creator, Simon Rodia
, provides a history of Watts from the 1920s to the present and a record of the activities of the Watts Towers Arts Center.
on the east and Lynwood
on the southeast, and the unincorporated areas of Willowbrook
on the south and Florence
on the north.
The district's boundaries are Firestone Boulevard on the north, Alameda Street on the east, Imperial Highway
on the south, and Central Avenue
on the west. Principal thoroughfares through the district include Santa Ana Boulevard; Compton and Wilmington Avenues; and 108th Street. In addition to buses, mass transit is provided by the Blue
and Green light rail
lines of the Los Angeles Metro
system, at the 103rd Street/Kenneth Hahn
station on the Blue Line and the Imperial/Wilmington/Rosa Parks
station where the Blue and Green lines meet.
Watts is split between ZIP Code
s 90002 and 90059.
, 0.6% European American
, 0.1% Asia
n American, and 0.6% other races. The median household income stood $24,728, one of the lowest in the city of Los Angeles. Per capita income stood at $6,681; 49.7% of families and 49.1% of individuals were below the poverty line.
Los Angeles Fire Department
Station 65 (Watts) serves the community.
Los Angeles County Fire Department
Station 16 (Watts) serves the community.
Los Angeles Police Department
operates the nearby Southeast Community Police Station.
operates the South Health Center in Watts.
The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation
operates the L.A. Watts Juvenile Parole Center.
The United States Postal Service
Augustus F. Hawkins Post Office is located at 10301 Compton Avenue. On January 24, 2000 the United States House of Representatives
and the United States Senate
presented a bill to rename the Watts Finance Office as the Hawkins Post Office.
's Local District 7.
Its local secondary public school is David Starr Jordan High School, which includes a math-science magnet component. It has a student body of 76.5 percent Latinos, 23 percent African Americans and 5 percent other and, according to its website, is "located in a high crime area." Its athletic teams are known as the Bulldogs. The adjacent Simon Rodia
High School is a continuation school for students who cannot attend Jordan. has sixth- through eighth-grade students.
Youth Opportunities High School, part of the Los Angeles Conservation Corps, is also located in Watts, as is 109th Street School.
Compton Avenue Elementary located at 1515 E. 104 Pl next to Markham Middle School educates students grades Pre-K-5th.
There are 4 more elementary schools 1 on Watts ave named John Ritter Elementary Pre-K-5th, Grape St. elementary, Florence Griffith-Joyner Elementary and Weigand Ave Elementary School.
There is also a fairly new public charter school named Jack H. Skirball Middle School located in Watts. It is located at Avalon and 115th St. After only one full year of operation, this school has become the highest performing middle school in the area, based on 2007–2008 API (Academic Performance Index) scores. Currently, approximately 250 students attend the school in the sixth and seventh grades. Currently, there are no athletic teams, but the mascot of Jack H. Skirball Middle School is the Spartan. In ddition, King/Drew Magnet High School on 120th. Costing over $62 million to build, resurrected in 1999, with Golden Eagles as their mascot.
YouthBuild Charter School of California is a charter high school that operates a site in Watts for 16-24 year old students seeking a high school diploma.
operates many area Catholic schools.
San Miguel School provides a Catholic education for about 200 students from preschool through eighth grade. Most of the families come from Latin America. Many parents cannot pay on time, according to The Tidings online. Verbum Dei High School
is also located in the Watts area. Another Catholic Elementary school is St. Lawrence Brindisi which is also K Through 8
operates the Alma Reaves Woods – Watts Branch.
Watts received its first library service in 1913 when temporary space was designated in the city hall for a library. In 1914 the library moved into a newly built Carnegie library
. Los Angeles annexed Watts in 1926, so the library became the Watts Branch of the Los Angeles library system. In 1957 voters approved a library branch bond, and a 3600 square foot Watts Branch opened in 1960. In 1991 the Los Angeles City Council
approved a measure, backed by the Friends of the Watts Branch Library, the Fifteenth District Council Office, and the Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) of the City of Los Angeles, to build a new library as a part of the 1.3 acre (0.5260918 ha) Watts Civic Center. 1.3 million dollars from Proposition 1, the branch library facility bond issue of 1989, funded the construction of the new Watts library. On June 25, 1996 the city council voted to name the library after Alma Reaves Woods Watts, a woman in the community who encouraged reading and library usage. James C. Moore, AIA & Associates designed the current Watts Library, which opened on June 29, 1996.
stop-in center, has a lighted baseball diamond, lighted outdoor basketball courts, unlighted indoor basketball courts, a children's play area, a community room, a lighted American football field, lighted handball courts, an indoor gymnasium with weights, a picnic table, and a lighted soccer (football) field.
The 109th Street Recreation Center, a city facility, is located in Watts. The center, which acts as a Los Angeles Police Department stop-in center, has an auditorium, a lighted baseball diamond, lighted indoor and outdoor basketball courts, a children's play area, a lighted American football field, an indoor gymnasium with weights, an outdoor gymnasium without weights, a lighted soccer field, and lighted tennis courts. The 109th Street Pool is a seasonal outdoor unheated located in Watts. In June 2008 a group of young men attacked a manager there, forcing the city to close the pool for a short period of time. When it re-opened police were stationed there. The pool, located between the Nickerson Gardens and Jordan Downs public housing complexes, also lied between two competing gangs
in 2008.
The 27 acres (10.9 ha) Ted Watkins Memorial Park, a county park, is within Florence-Graham
in unincorporated
Los Angeles County, adjacent to Watts. The park was named after Ted Watkins, the founder of the Watts Labor Community Action Committee (WLCAC), in 1995. The park has lighted baseball/softball fields, a children's play area, a community recreation room, a computer lab, a gymnasium with a stage, picnic areas, a skateboard park, a soccer (football) field, a swimming pool, tennis courts, and toilets.
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...
Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, 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...
.
History
Rancho La Tajauta
Rancho Tajauta was a Mexican land grant in present day Los Angeles County, California given in 1843 by Governor Manuel Micheltorena to Anastasio Avila. The grant was named for the Gabrielino/Tongva place name of Tajáuta...
Mexican land grant. As on all ranchos, the principal vocation was grazing and beef production.
With the influx of European American settlers into Southern California in the 1870s, La Tajauta land was sold off and subdivided for smaller farms and homes. In those days each Tajauta farm had an artesian well. The arrival of the railroad spurred the development of the area, and in 1907 Watts was incorporated as a separate city, named after the first railroad station, Watts Station
Watts Station
Watts Station is a train station built in 1904 in Watts, Los Angeles, California. It was one of the first buildings in Watts and, for many years, it was a major stop for the Pacific Electric Railway's "Red Car" service between Los Angeles and Long Beach. It was the only structure that remained...
, that was built in the town. The city voted to annex itself to Los Angeles in 1926.
Along with more European Americans, Mexican
Mexican people
Mexican people refers to all persons from Mexico, a multiethnic country in North America, and/or who identify with the Mexican cultural and/or national identity....
and Mexican American
Mexican American
Mexican Americans are Americans of Mexican descent. As of July 2009, Mexican Americans make up 10.3% of the United States' population with over 31,689,000 Americans listed as of Mexican ancestry. Mexican Americans comprise 66% of all Hispanics and Latinos in the United States...
railroad workers ("traquero
Traquero
A traquero is a railroad track worker, especially a Mexican or Mexican American railroad track worker . The word derives from "traque", Spanglish for "track".While the U.S...
s") settled in the community. African-Americans came in later and many of the men were Pullman car porters and other railroad workers. Schoolroom photos from 1909 and 1911 show only two or three black faces among the 30 or so children pictured. By 1914, a black realtor, Charles C. Leake, was doing business in the area.
Watts did not become predominantly black until the 1940s, as the Second Great Migration
Second Great Migration (African American)
The Second Great Migration was the migration of more than 5 million African Americans from the South to the North, Midwest and West. It took place from 1941, through World War II, and lasted until 1970. It was much larger and of a different character than the first Great Migration...
brought tens of thousands of migrants, mostly from Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
, Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
, Arkansas
Arkansas
Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
and Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, who left segregated Southern states in search of better opportunities in California. During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the city built several large housing projects (including Nickerson Gardens, Jordan Downs, and Imperial Courts) for the thousands of new workers in war industries. By the early 1960s, these projects had become nearly 100 percent black, as whites moved on to new suburbs
White flight
White flight has been a term that originated in the United States, starting in the mid-20th century, and applied to the large-scale migration of whites of various European ancestries from racially mixed urban regions to more racially homogeneous suburban or exurban regions. It was first seen as...
outside the central city. As industrial jobs disappeared from the area, the projects housed many more poor families than they had traditionally.
Longstanding resentment by Los Angeles' working-class black community over discriminatory treatment by police and inadequate public services (especially schools and hospitals) exploded on August 11, 1965, into what were commonly known as the Watts Riots
Watts Riots
The Watts Riots or the Watts Rebellion was a civil disturbance in the Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles, California from August 11 to August 15, 1965. The 5-day riot resulted in 34 deaths, 1,032 injuries, and 3,438 arrests...
. The event that precipitated the disturbances, the arrest of a black youth by the California Highway Patrol
California Highway Patrol
The California Highway Patrol is a law enforcement agency of the U.S. state of California. The CHP has patrol jurisdiction over all California highways and also acts as the state police....
on drunk-driving charges, actually occurred outside Watts. Mobs did the most property damage in Watts in the turmoil.
Watts suffered further in the 1970s, as gang
Gang
A gang is a group of people who, through the organization, formation, and establishment of an assemblage, share a common identity. In current usage it typically denotes a criminal organization or else a criminal affiliation. In early usage, the word gang referred to a group of workmen...
s gained strength and raised the level of violence in the neighborhood. Between 1989 and 2005, police reported more than 500 homicides in Watts, most of them gang-related and tied to wars over control of the lucrative illicit market created by illegal drugs. Four of Watts' influential gangs— Watts Cirkle City Piru Bloods
Bloods
The Bloods are a street gang founded in Los Angeles, California. The gang is widely known for its rivalry with the Crips. They are identified by the red color worn by their members and by particular gang symbols, including distinctive hand signs...
, Grape Street Watts Crips, Bounty Hunter Watts Bloods, and PJ Watts Crips—formed a Peace Treaty agreement in 1992 following just over 4 years of peace talks which were initiated in July 1988 with the support of the local community. The spokespersons for the groups taking part in the peace talks were Twilight and Daude.
Twilight and Daude photos from the 1988 Peace Talks press conference were printed on the front pages of regional and local newspapers and their interviews with TV news crews were on every news channel. In the months and years to follow Twilight would appear on National TV talk shows, radio talk shows and speak at several college and university campuses. Both Twilight and Twelve received death threats due to misinterpretation of newspaper articles by their peers, many of whom would join the peace movement in the months and years to come.
After four years of peace talks the Peace Treaty would be drafted and then agreed the day before the 1992 Los Angeles riots
1992 Los Angeles riots
The 1992 Los Angeles Riots or South Central Riots, also known as the 1992 Los Angeles Civil Unrest were sparked on April 29, 1992, when a jury acquitted three white and one hispanic Los Angeles Police Department officers accused in the videotaped beating of black motorist Rodney King following a...
. The pact supported by a community based education initiatives and private investments from prominent members of the community e.g. Jim Brown
Jim Brown
James Nathaniel "Jim" Brown is an American former professional football player who has also made his mark as an actor. He is best known for his exceptional and record-setting nine-year career as a running back for the NFL Cleveland Browns from 1957 to 1965. In 2002, he was named by Sporting News...
continues to contribute to the decrease in gang related death in Watts and the greater South Los Angeles area since 1992. Key hallmarks of the pact continue to influence life in Watts to date, with colors and territory having little to do with gang-related crime.
Beginning in the 1980s, due to gentrification
Gentrification
Gentrification and urban gentrification refer to the changes that result when wealthier people acquire or rent property in low income and working class communities. Urban gentrification is associated with movement. Consequent to gentrification, the average income increases and average family size...
, those African Americans who could leave Watts moved to other parts of South Los Angeles and suburban locations in the Antelope Valley
Antelope Valley
The Antelope Valley in California, United States, is located in northern Los Angeles County and the southeastern portion of Kern County, California, and constitutes the western tip of the Mojave Desert...
, the Inland Empire
Inland Empire (California)
The Inland Empire is a region in Southern California. The region sits directly east of the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Inland Empire most commonly is used in reference to the U.S. Census Bureau's federally-defined Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario metropolitan area, which covers more than...
, The San Gabriel Valley, Orange County
Orange County, California
Orange County is a county in the U.S. state of California. Its county seat is Santa Ana. As of the 2010 census, its population was 3,010,232, up from 2,846,293 at the 2000 census, making it the third most populous county in California, behind Los Angeles County and San Diego County...
, and the San Joaquin Valley
San Joaquin Valley
The San Joaquin Valley is the area of the Central Valley of California that lies south of the Sacramento – San Joaquin River Delta in Stockton...
. This process, which some call black flight
Black flight
Black flight is a term applied to the out-migration of African Americans from predominantly black or mixed inner-city areas in the United States to suburbs and outlying edge cities of newer home construction...
, was part of the increasing gentrification of Non-white inner-city communities implemented in the 1980s, in a journey typical of the larger American society. The black population in Watts has been replaced by successor migrants, primarily Hispanic immigrants of Mexican
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
and Central America
Central America
Central America is the central geographic region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. When considered part of the unified continental model, it is considered a subcontinent...
n ancestry, as well as a smaller proportion of Ethiopian
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
and India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n ancestry. This process of gentrification accelerated after the 1992 riots.
In addition, there has been a net migration of African Americans out of California to return to the South in a New Great Migration
New Great Migration
The New Great Migration is the term for demographic changes from 1965 to the present which are a reversal of the previous 35-year trend of black migration within the United States...
. From 1995–2000, California was a net loser of African-American residents. With new jobs, Southern states have attracted the most black college graduates since 1995.
Neighborhood leaders have begun a strategy to overcome Watts' reputation as a violence-prone and impoverished area. Special promotion has been given to the museums and art galleries opened in the area surrounding Watts Towers
Watts Towers
The Watts Towers or Towers of Simon Rodia in the Watts district of Los Angeles, California, is a collection of 17 interconnected structures, two of which reach heights of over 99 feet . The Towers were built by Italian immigrant construction worker Sabato Rodia in his spare time over a period of...
at 1765 East 107th St, near the Imperial Highway
Imperial Highway
Imperial Highway is a road in Orange and Los Angeles counties in California. It begins at the Anaheim-Orange boundary and runs through several cities until it stops at Dockweiler State Beach in Los Angeles near the Los Angeles International Airport. For much of the way, Imperial Highway is signed...
and suburb of Lynwood
Lynwood, California
Lynwood is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States of America. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 69,772, down from 69,845 at the 2000 census. Lynwood is located near South Gate and Compton in the southern portion of the Los Angeles Basin. Incorporated in...
. This sculptural and architectural landmark has attracted many artists and professionals to the area. I Build the Tower
I Build the Tower
I Build the Tower is a feature-length documentary film depicting the life of Sabato Rodia , the Italian immigrant who created the Watts Towers in South Los Angeles....
, a feature-length documentary film about the Watts Towers and their creator, Simon Rodia
Simon Rodia
Sabato "Simon" Rodia was an Italian-American architect. Rodia created the Watts Towers, one of the most famous landmarks in Los Angeles.-Biography:...
, provides a history of Watts from the 1920s to the present and a record of the activities of the Watts Towers Arts Center.
Geography and transportation
Watts is bordered by the cities of South GateSouth Gate, California
South Gate is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. The sixteenth largest city in Los Angeles County, it encompasses . South Gate is located just southeast of downtown Los Angeles It is part of the Gateway Cities region of southeastern Los Angeles County...
on the east and Lynwood
Lynwood, California
Lynwood is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States of America. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 69,772, down from 69,845 at the 2000 census. Lynwood is located near South Gate and Compton in the southern portion of the Los Angeles Basin. Incorporated in...
on the southeast, and the unincorporated areas of Willowbrook
Willowbrook, California
Willowbrook is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Los Angeles County, California. The population was 35,983 at the 2010 census, up from 34,138 at the 2000 census. The community is located near the southeast edge of, and is often considered part of, South Los Angeles...
on the south and Florence
Florence-Graham, California
Florence-Graham is a census-designated place in Los Angeles County, California, United States. The population was 63,387 at the 2010 census, up from 60,197 at the 2000 census...
on the north.
The district's boundaries are Firestone Boulevard on the north, Alameda Street on the east, Imperial Highway
Imperial Highway
Imperial Highway is a road in Orange and Los Angeles counties in California. It begins at the Anaheim-Orange boundary and runs through several cities until it stops at Dockweiler State Beach in Los Angeles near the Los Angeles International Airport. For much of the way, Imperial Highway is signed...
on the south, and Central Avenue
Central Avenue
Central Avenue is an often used road name. Major thoroughfares with this name include:Canada* Central Avenue India* Chittaranjan Avenue, in Kolkata, IndiaUnited States* Central Avenue Corridor in Phoenix, Arizona...
on the west. Principal thoroughfares through the district include Santa Ana Boulevard; Compton and Wilmington Avenues; and 108th Street. In addition to buses, mass transit is provided by the Blue
and Green light rail
Light rail
Light rail or light rail transit is a form of urban rail public transportation that generally has a lower capacity and lower speed than heavy rail and metro systems, but higher capacity and higher speed than traditional street-running tram systems...
lines of the Los Angeles Metro
Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority
The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority is the California state-chartered regional transportation planning agency and public transportation operating agency for the County of Los Angeles formed in 1993 out of a merger of the Southern California Rapid Transit District and the...
system, at the 103rd Street/Kenneth Hahn
Kenneth Hahn
Kenneth "Kenny" Hahn was a member of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors for forty years, from 1952 to 1992. Hahn was on the Los Angeles City Council from 1947 to 1952. He was an ardent supporter of civil rights throughout the 1960s, and met Martin Luther King, Jr. in 1961.-Biography:Hahn...
station on the Blue Line and the Imperial/Wilmington/Rosa Parks
Rosa Parks
Rosa Louise McCauley Parks was an African-American civil rights activist, whom the U.S. Congress called "the first lady of civil rights", and "the mother of the freedom movement"....
station where the Blue and Green lines meet.
Watts is split between ZIP Code
ZIP Code
ZIP codes are a system of postal codes used by the United States Postal Service since 1963. The term ZIP, an acronym for Zone Improvement Plan, is properly written in capital letters and was chosen to suggest that the mail travels more efficiently, and therefore more quickly, when senders use the...
s 90002 and 90059.
Demographics
As of the 2000 census, total population in the district was 34,830. Ethnically, 60.8% of residents were Latino American, 38.0% African AmericanAfrican American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
, 0.6% European American
European American
A European American is a citizen or resident of the United States who has origins in any of the original peoples of Europe...
, 0.1% Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
n American, and 0.6% other races. The median household income stood $24,728, one of the lowest in the city of Los Angeles. Per capita income stood at $6,681; 49.7% of families and 49.1% of individuals were below the poverty line.
Local government
Watts Neighborhood Council 10221 Compton Avenue, Suite 106A, LA CA 90002 Phone: 323.564.0260Los Angeles Fire Department
Los Angeles Fire Department
The Los Angeles Fire Department is the agency that provides fire protection and emergency medical services for the city of Los Angeles....
Station 65 (Watts) serves the community.
Los Angeles County Fire Department
Los Angeles County Fire Department
The Los Angeles County Fire Department , serves unincorporated parts of Los Angeles County, as well as 58 cities and towns that choose to have the county provide fire and EMS services, including La Habra. It should not be confused with the Los Angeles City Fire Department, which serves the city of...
Station 16 (Watts) serves the community.
Los Angeles Police Department
Los Angeles Police Department
The Los Angeles Police Department is the police department of the city of Los Angeles, California. With just under 10,000 officers and more than 3,000 civilian staff, covering an area of with a population of more than 4.1 million people, it is the third largest local law enforcement agency in...
operates the nearby Southeast Community Police Station.
County, state, and federal representations
The Los Angeles County Department of Health ServicesLos 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...
operates the South Health Center in Watts.
The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation
California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation
The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation is responsible for the operation of the California state prison and parole systems. CDC&R is the second largest law enforcement or police agency in the United States behind the New York City Police Department which employs approximately...
operates the L.A. Watts Juvenile Parole Center.
The United States Postal Service
United States Postal Service
The United States Postal Service is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for providing postal service in the United States...
Augustus F. Hawkins Post Office is located at 10301 Compton Avenue. On January 24, 2000 the United States House of Representatives
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
and the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
presented a bill to rename the Watts Finance Office as the Hawkins Post Office.
Public schools
Watts is located in Los Angeles Unified School DistrictLos Angeles Unified School District
Los Angeles Unified School District is the largest public school system in California. It is the 2nd largest public school district in the United States. Only the New York City Department of Education has a larger student population...
's Local District 7.
Its local secondary public school is David Starr Jordan High School, which includes a math-science magnet component. It has a student body of 76.5 percent Latinos, 23 percent African Americans and 5 percent other and, according to its website, is "located in a high crime area." Its athletic teams are known as the Bulldogs. The adjacent Simon Rodia
Simon Rodia
Sabato "Simon" Rodia was an Italian-American architect. Rodia created the Watts Towers, one of the most famous landmarks in Los Angeles.-Biography:...
High School is a continuation school for students who cannot attend Jordan. has sixth- through eighth-grade students.
Youth Opportunities High School, part of the Los Angeles Conservation Corps, is also located in Watts, as is 109th Street School.
Compton Avenue Elementary located at 1515 E. 104 Pl next to Markham Middle School educates students grades Pre-K-5th.
There are 4 more elementary schools 1 on Watts ave named John Ritter Elementary Pre-K-5th, Grape St. elementary, Florence Griffith-Joyner Elementary and Weigand Ave Elementary School.
There is also a fairly new public charter school named Jack H. Skirball Middle School located in Watts. It is located at Avalon and 115th St. After only one full year of operation, this school has become the highest performing middle school in the area, based on 2007–2008 API (Academic Performance Index) scores. Currently, approximately 250 students attend the school in the sixth and seventh grades. Currently, there are no athletic teams, but the mascot of Jack H. Skirball Middle School is the Spartan. In ddition, King/Drew Magnet High School on 120th. Costing over $62 million to build, resurrected in 1999, with Golden Eagles as their mascot.
YouthBuild Charter School of California is a charter high school that operates a site in Watts for 16-24 year old students seeking a high school diploma.
Private schools
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los AngelesRoman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles
The Archdiocese of Los Angeles is an archdiocese of the Roman Catholic Church in the U.S. state of California. Headquartered in Los Angeles, the archdiocese comprises the California counties of Los Angeles, Santa Barbara and Ventura. The diocesan cathedral is the Cathedral of Our Lady of the...
operates many area Catholic schools.
San Miguel School provides a Catholic education for about 200 students from preschool through eighth grade. Most of the families come from Latin America. Many parents cannot pay on time, according to The Tidings online. Verbum Dei High School
Verbum Dei High School
Verbum Dei High School, colloquially referred to as "the Verb", is an all-male Catholic high school combining college-preparatory academic courses and immersion in corporate work environments. It is operated by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles with the sponsorship of the of the...
is also located in the Watts area. Another Catholic Elementary school is St. Lawrence Brindisi which is also K Through 8
Public libraries
Los Angeles Public LibraryLos Angeles Public Library
The Los Angeles Public Library system serves the residents of Los Angeles, California, United States. With over 6 million volumes, LAPL is one of the largest publicly funded library systems in the world. The system is overseen by a Board of Library Commissioners with five members appointed by the...
operates the Alma Reaves Woods – Watts Branch.
Watts received its first library service in 1913 when temporary space was designated in the city hall for a library. In 1914 the library moved into a newly built Carnegie library
Carnegie library
A Carnegie library is a library built with money donated by Scottish-American businessman and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie. 2,509 Carnegie libraries were built between 1883 and 1929, including some belonging to public and university library systems...
. Los Angeles annexed Watts in 1926, so the library became the Watts Branch of the Los Angeles library system. In 1957 voters approved a library branch bond, and a 3600 square foot Watts Branch opened in 1960. In 1991 the Los Angeles City Council
Los Angeles City Council
The Los Angeles City Council is the governing body of the City of Los Angeles.The Council is composed of fifteen members elected from single-member districts for four-year terms. The president of the council and the president pro tempore are chosen by the Council at the first regular meeting after...
approved a measure, backed by the Friends of the Watts Branch Library, the Fifteenth District Council Office, and the Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) of the City of Los Angeles, to build a new library as a part of the 1.3 acre (0.5260918 ha) Watts Civic Center. 1.3 million dollars from Proposition 1, the branch library facility bond issue of 1989, funded the construction of the new Watts library. On June 25, 1996 the city council voted to name the library after Alma Reaves Woods Watts, a woman in the community who encouraged reading and library usage. James C. Moore, AIA & Associates designed the current Watts Library, which opened on June 29, 1996.
Parks and recreation
The William Nickerson Recreation Center, operated by the City of Los Angeles, is located in Watts. The center, which acts as a Los Angeles Police DepartmentLos Angeles Police Department
The Los Angeles Police Department is the police department of the city of Los Angeles, California. With just under 10,000 officers and more than 3,000 civilian staff, covering an area of with a population of more than 4.1 million people, it is the third largest local law enforcement agency in...
stop-in center, has a lighted baseball diamond, lighted outdoor basketball courts, unlighted indoor basketball courts, a children's play area, a community room, a lighted American football field, lighted handball courts, an indoor gymnasium with weights, a picnic table, and a lighted soccer (football) field.
The 109th Street Recreation Center, a city facility, is located in Watts. The center, which acts as a Los Angeles Police Department stop-in center, has an auditorium, a lighted baseball diamond, lighted indoor and outdoor basketball courts, a children's play area, a lighted American football field, an indoor gymnasium with weights, an outdoor gymnasium without weights, a lighted soccer field, and lighted tennis courts. The 109th Street Pool is a seasonal outdoor unheated located in Watts. In June 2008 a group of young men attacked a manager there, forcing the city to close the pool for a short period of time. When it re-opened police were stationed there. The pool, located between the Nickerson Gardens and Jordan Downs public housing complexes, also lied between two competing gangs
Gangs in the United States
Street gangs in the United States date to the early 19th century. The most publicized street gangs in the U.S. are African-American; black gangs were not recognized as a social problem until after the great migration of the 1910s...
in 2008.
The 27 acres (10.9 ha) Ted Watkins Memorial Park, a county park, is within Florence-Graham
Florence-Graham, California
Florence-Graham is a census-designated place in Los Angeles County, California, United States. The population was 63,387 at the 2010 census, up from 60,197 at the 2000 census...
in unincorporated
Unincorporated area
In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...
Los Angeles County, adjacent to Watts. The park was named after Ted Watkins, the founder of the Watts Labor Community Action Committee (WLCAC), in 1995. The park has lighted baseball/softball fields, a children's play area, a community recreation room, a computer lab, a gymnasium with a stage, picnic areas, a skateboard park, a soccer (football) field, a swimming pool, tennis courts, and toilets.
Notable residents
- Olympic track and field gold medalist Florence Griffith-JoynerFlorence Griffith-JoynerFlorence Griffith-Joyner , also known as Flo-Jo was an American track and field athlete. She is considered the "fastest woman of all time" based on the fact that she still holds the world record for both the 100 metres and 200 metres, both set in 1988 and never seriously challenged...
(1959–1998) was raised in the Watts projects. - Community organizer "Sweet Alice" Harris"Sweet Alice" HarrisAlice Harris, also known as "Sweet Alice", is a community organizer based in the neighborhood of Watts, Los Angeles, California. She is the founder and executive director of Parents of Watts, a local youth outreach group....
(born 1934) and her activist group Parents of Watts are based in Watts. - R&B singer Tyrese Gibson (born 1978) was raised in Watts. In 2000, he chartered a foundation to build a community center in Watts.
- Darden Restaurants Chairman and CEO Clarence Otis, Jr.Clarence Otis, Jr.Clarence Otis, Jr. is an American businessman and CEO of Darden Restaurants. Otis was named the 11th most powerful person in Central Florida by the Orlando Sentinel in 2010.- Early life :...
was raised in Watts - Rapper Jay RockJay RockJohnny Reed McKinzie Jr. , better known by his stage name Jay Rock, is an American rapper. He was named one of the top 13 most street artists by XXL. His voice has been called a cross between Immortal Technique and Rick Ross. He is a part of the rap group Black Hippy which also features Kendrick...
was born and raised in Watts, California in the city's Nickerson Gardens Projects. - American jazz musician, composer, bandleader, and civil rights activist Charles MingusCharles MingusCharles Mingus Jr. was an American jazz musician, composer, bandleader, and civil rights activist.Mingus's compositions retained the hot and soulful feel of hard bop and drew heavily from black gospel music while sometimes drawing on elements of Third stream, free jazz, and classical music...
was raised largely in the Watts area. - Nobel laureate Glenn T. SeaborgGlenn T. SeaborgGlenn Theodore Seaborg was an American scientist who won the 1951 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for "discoveries in the chemistry of the transuranium elements", contributed to the discovery and isolation of ten elements, and developed the actinide concept, which led to the current arrangement of the...
. - On TVOne's series "Unsung," it was revealed that the group The SylversThe SylversThe Sylvers were a popular R&B/soul and disco family group during the 1970s. Originally from Memphis, Tennessee, the family would later relocate to Watts, California.- Beginnings :...
grew up in Nickerson Gardens in Watts.
See also
- 1965 Watts Riot
- 1992 Los Angeles riots1992 Los Angeles riotsThe 1992 Los Angeles Riots or South Central Riots, also known as the 1992 Los Angeles Civil Unrest were sparked on April 29, 1992, when a jury acquitted three white and one hispanic Los Angeles Police Department officers accused in the videotaped beating of black motorist Rodney King following a...
- Watts TowersWatts TowersThe Watts Towers or Towers of Simon Rodia in the Watts district of Los Angeles, California, is a collection of 17 interconnected structures, two of which reach heights of over 99 feet . The Towers were built by Italian immigrant construction worker Sabato Rodia in his spare time over a period of...
- I Build the TowerI Build the TowerI Build the Tower is a feature-length documentary film depicting the life of Sabato Rodia , the Italian immigrant who created the Watts Towers in South Los Angeles....
- Watts StationWatts StationWatts Station is a train station built in 1904 in Watts, Los Angeles, California. It was one of the first buildings in Watts and, for many years, it was a major stop for the Pacific Electric Railway's "Red Car" service between Los Angeles and Long Beach. It was the only structure that remained...
- Los AngelesLos ÁngelesLos Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
- South Central Los Angeles