The Evans Estate in Hollywood

Whenever I visit Hollywood, one of the places I almost always make an effort to see is the street that the Evans family lived from about 1918 to 1940.  Granted, their home is long gone (as are all of the homes of their neighbors), but they managed to leave their mark on the landscape.

The area of west Hollywood south of Sunset Blvd was mostly citrus groves in 1918, when Charlie Chaplin built his studio there, just along Le Brea Ave.  Most buyers in this quickly developing neighborhood purchased small home lots.  But the Evans family was thinking more on the scale of Chaplin, buying a parcel of land 2 blocks west that was slightly larger than the comedian's studio.

A description of the property can be found in volume 3 of The History of Los Angeles County, published in 1923, shortly after Nelson's death:

The Evans home in Hollywood is unique.  Though situated in the heart of the city, it is so secluded that those unfamiliar with its location would pass it by entirely.  A blind street leads to the gate, and a fence is built around the entire acreage.  A large orange grove extends through two streets.  The family house is a place of three stories, quaint and of great beauty.

Sometime after Nelson passed away, the east and west sides of the property were sold off, with the rest going after 1936.  At some point after Nelson's mother died in 1940, nearly, the entire street had been redeveloped and is now mostly apartment buildings.

However, the footprint of the estate can still be seen.  The 'blind street' mentioned above is Alta Vista.  At the time, it essentially served as the Evans' driveway.  Most of the streets in the neighborhood were originally wide lanes that gave access to the groves.  As the area was developed, the lanes were narrowed as they were turned into streets.  Except Alta Vista, up to the entrance to the Evans property.  Contemporary aerial photos show that there were 3 palm trees down the middle of the street, and then the street ends with a wide turn-around.  Today, the 3 palm trees are still there and the turn-around marks the spot where the street now narrows, jogs a bit to the west and then continues through what was once the estate.

Looking south down Alta Vista

Here's an aerial view of the area.  The yellow box outlines the original footprint of the estate and the red box is a rough approximation of the property in 1930.  The blue box shows the area of the Chaplin Studio.

Another studio that was close by was the Pickford-Fairbanks Studio.  Built around 1918 as the Hampton Studio, Doug and Mary took it over in 1922.  Many of Fairbanks most famous films were shot there.  Here's a photo of the studio at the time of the filming of The Thief of Bagdad; the Evans property can be seen just a block north.

The large stand of trees just to the north of the studio is the Evans estate.