{"nrhp_refnum":"92001270","name":"Southwest Museum","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"234 Museum Dr.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Los Angeles","county":"Los Angeles County","state":"CA","lat":34.10034126800005,"lon":-118.2066456568384,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2004-03-11","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Prehistoric","Conservation","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["national","state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A museum complex on a hilltop in northeast Los Angeles, overlooking the Arroyo Seco, consisting of the original 1912-1914 main building and a 1920 Mayan Revival tunnel portal, with a later library that does not contribute.","why_significant":"It is tied to Charles Fletcher Lummis, a prominent Los Angeles figure who founded the museum to preserve Native American and Hispanic heritage (Criterion B). It is also a leading example of the Spanish Colonial Revival style developed by architect Sumner Hunt (Criterion C). The tunnel portal is a rare surviving example of 1920s exotic revival design.","narrative":"Perched on a hill above the Arroyo Seco in northeast Los Angeles, this museum was built between 1912 and 1914 to house Native American and Hispanic collections. Architect Sumner Hunt designed the reinforced concrete building in the Spanish Colonial Revival style, with off-white stucco, a red tile roof, deeply recessed windows, a tall east tower and a shorter west tower. A 1920 tunnel and elevator entrance, designed by Allison and Allison with Marguerite Tew, ends in a Mayan Revival portal. A 1940-41 wing and a 1970s library were added later. The museum reflects the life work of Charles Fletcher Lummis, a collector, writer and early preservationist who founded the Landmarks Club to save California's missions and insisted on the spiral tower for his library. The building is also notable for withstanding earthquakes and for an architectural style that matches the cultures its exhibits present.","period_of_significance":"1912-28","architect_builder":"Hunt, Sumner","architectural_style":"Spanish Colonial Revival; Mayan Revival (tunnel portal)","criteria":["B","C"],"status_note":"Still in use as a museum; the tunnel entrance was reported as no longer in service due to budget cuts.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:54:29.635065-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_CA/92001270.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/92001270/2693e410f9-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/92001270/2693e410f9-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":null,"credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:SouthwestMuseum_LosAngeles.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Unknown author</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:SouthwestMuseum_LosAngeles.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/123859530","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southwest_Museum_of_the_American_Indian","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5414729"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/california/los-angeles-county/southwest-museum-92001270/"}