Whether you’ve lived in L.A. for your entire life, or are visiting for the first time, Becoming Los Angeles is full of artifacts and stories that will surprise you. Meet the diverse groups of people who made this city their home—drawn to the fertile soil, mountains, beaches, and endless sunshine—and then, over many generations, helped it become Los Angeles.
Content is provided in English and Spanish. Contenido está disponible en inglés y español.
Entrance to Becoming Los Angeles.
Visitors watch one of the exhibition's videos—this one is about how cow poop changed Los Angeles!
Souvenir from opening of L.A. Aqueduct in 1913.
View halfway through Becoming Los Angeles.
A taxidermied cow, symbol of Southern California's ranchos era.
Model of Downtown Los Angeles from the 1930s.
Artist Ofelia Esparza (left) with her altar to Los Angeles.
Leave a message about Los Angeles in this recording booth!
From the collections of the William S. Hart Museum.
1 of 1
ALONG THE WAY, YOU'LL:
- Learn about a city with far too little, and occasionally far too much, water.
- Meet the first Angelenos and witness the arrival of the many diverse peoples who made L.A. home.
- Count each of the neighborhoods that make up our altar, an ofrenda to Los Angeles.
- Record your answer to the question “What does Los Angeles means to you”, and listen to other people's responses.