Ghostly and Ghastly Pueblo de Los Angeles

If you want to hear about the haunted lore of old Los Angeles, you have to start at the historic center of the city; at the Pueblo of Los Angeles, founded in 1781. We are going to be taking a unique walk through the ghostly and the ghastly early history of the dusty pueblo that would become our great city.

We are going to be visiting a few historic and ghostly sites:

● The Campo Santo at the Placita Church – the once forgotten Catholic burial site of many indigenous people and early immigrants. We will talk about the disturbed souls, unearthed during recent development. We will pay our respects to the souls of the people whose bones still rest in this empty lot near the church.

● Fort Moore Hill – we will visit the forgotten original Protestant burial site, the first non-Catholic cemeteries; which was built over without removing the bodies; becoming the home to Los Angeles High School and later the central offices for Los Angeles Unified School District, today it is the site of the Grand Performing Arts High School.

We will also briefly mention the Jewish and catholic cemeteries that got built over in the surrounding area; the Old Jewish Cemetery and Old Calvary Cemetery, created near Chavez Ravine.

● The Avila Adobe – the oldest standing residence in Los Angeles, dating back to 1818. It has been used as a home, hotel, and even a temporary home for U.S. Troops. And it's also notoriously haunted, by possibly one of the wives of Avila, who was two times a widower. We will learn about the reported haunting of Encarnacion Avila, his second wife; she is said to regularly be heard crying inside the dwelling, and often seen in aspiration form in a rocking chair on the porch of the adobe.

● Pico House – this grand hotel was built by the last Mexican governor of California. Pio Pico was a man of great means, who because of his lavish lifestyle and bad grasp of finances lost everything to foreclosure. This grand former hotel is regarded as one of the most haunted buildings in the Pueblo. Is a proud but disgruntled Pio Pico responsible for the inexplicable sounds of footsteps and doors left ajar at this building?

● The site of the Chinese Massacre of October 1871 – the site of a race riot, where a mob of around 500 white and mestizo persons entered Chinatown and attacked, robbed, and murdered Chinese residents. Their ghosts of those lynched here are said to still haunt the dark alley.

● Pelaconi House – the oldest brick building in Los Angeles county, created by Italian immigrants in 1855; today it remains as the oldest Mexican restaurant on Olvera Street, the lovely La Golondrina Restaurant. It is claimed to be haunted by La Consuela – or “The Mistress,” a ghostly apparition who has been seen seen in the front stairwell looking out over Olvera Street.

● And lastly we will visit Union Station – We will talk about one of the most gruesome cases in Los Angeles history which captivated the nation in October of 1931, the search for murderer Winnie Ruth Judd known as the “Tiger Woman”… and more aptly, the “The Trunk Murderess.” Do apparitions of Winnie and her blood-leaking steamer trunks still haunt the baggage claims of Los Angeles? You be the judge of that!

Join historian and community organizer Shmuel Gonzales the Barrio Boychik founder of Boyle Heights History Studios as we explore our shared haunted history.

We will be meeting OUTSIDE in front of the gift shop called “La Tienda,” located . Do arrive early, as we will start checking in participants at 5:45pm to start our walk promptly at 6pm.

PUBLIC TRANSIT: We recommend that people come by public transit. You can take any one of the major Metro Rail trains and MTA buses to Union Station. Our meeting spot is just two blocks away from Union Station, near the Plaza de Los Angeles State Park – Olvera Street, near the front outside entrance of the Plaza de Cultura y Artes near the outside sign for the bookstore called "La Tienda."

PARKING: Ample parking is available in public lots in the surrounding area of the Plaza. Parking rates vary. La Plaza de Cultura y Artes' parking lot is located at the lot located at Arcadia and Spring Streets at 171 Arcadia Street, entrance on Arcadia. L.A. County Parking Lot 15 is located at 527 N. Spring Street at Avenida Cesar Chavez, entrance on Spring. Main Street parking is strictly prohibited. Union Station also has all-day parking available; though it is limited.

REMINDERS: This is a special event; there are no cancellations, or refunds.

TERMS AND CONDITIONS: https://www.bhhistorytours.com/terms-and-conditions

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Host or Publisher Shmuel Gonzales, the Barrio Boychik