Why Doesn't L.A. Have a Little Italy? (Los Angeles, San Diego: house, neighborhoods)

[James T]

Most large cities have a "Little Italy", so why is there none in L.A.? We have a Koreatown, a Chinatown, a Litle India, and god knows what else is festering out there, but no Little Italy. Why the hell not? Would you rather interact with the culture of a Western European G8 nation, or those that have very little to do with Europe and Western Civilization?

[EscapeCalifornia]

Hmm, maybe LA's proximity to Asia has something to do with having a Koreatown, Chinatown, Little India, Little Tokyo, Little Saigon, etc. Little Italys exist on the east coast because that's where Italian immigrants settled 100 years ago. By they time they migrated to the west coast, they had assimilated into American culture and didn't need to all live in one little section of town anymore.

[VillageLife]

I love Indian food, which restaurant would you recommend Little India,I personally have never been there.

[Cattknap]

Little Italy in Boston is the greatest - Philly too.

[Desertho]

LA USED to have a Little Italy. Like in San Francisco, it is now called Chinatown.

[Desertho]

Also, don't forget that unlike other Little Italy's, L.A. went on and created an entire neighborhood that resembled an Italian city. Care to guess where it is? It rhymes with "penis".

[TonyT]

James T:

Actually there was a Little Italy in Los Angeles at one point. It covered much of the area where Olvera Street is now and also bordered what became the new location of Chinatown. That's why Little Joe's Restaurant is, or was, at that particular location. The first Italians arrived in Los Angeles in 1823. Olvera Street was originally known as Calle de la Vignas, or Vine Street, until 1877, because of the number of Italian owned wineries located there. If you visit Olvera Street you will see a building with a sign saying Italian Hall. This was built in 1907 to house an Italian benevolence society and provide a community center for the Italian population.

In 1926, a socialite by the name of Christine Sterling visited the old Plaza and the Olvera Street area and was rather surprised to see how rundown the oldest section of Los Angeles had become. She began a campaign to save the area and turn it into a showcase for mainly the city's Mexican heritage. This started the process of erasing the evidence of the Italian presence there.

During the Second World War, non resident Italians were subjected to the same types of restrictions and discrimination that the Japanese received, including in some instances, being placed in internment camps. This caused the closure of many Italian businesses. Also, this contributed to the slow migration of Italians from the city center to other areas, such as Watts and the San Fernando Valley.

So with the Italians spread out over a wider area, the area that made up Little Italy in Los Angeles, slowly died out until, with the exception of a building or business here and there, it ceased to exist.

And that's why there is no Little Italy in Los Angeles.

[James T]

Interesting information. Well, we should bring it back. San Francisco and San Diego have Little Italy sections. I've been to the one in SF and it was very nice. Much nicer than most areas of Los Angeles. And as I recall, Italian neighborhoods, like Polish and Irish neighborhoods in the U.S, have very low levels of crime, unlike many others I can think of.

[Winston Smith]

Maybe Italians skipped LA and went to Santa Barbara instead. SB is supposed to have a strong Italian background, families dating back three, four generations, or so I'm told. The Santa Barbara News Press was owned by the New York Times at one point in history. Hints of an Italian connection, perhaps?

[abstrak_tokatl]

what the **** do we need a "little itally" for? we got all those other ones because they actually contributed to the city. But when has italy ever done something for L.A. other then being hairy?