{"nrhp_refnum":"93001017","name":"Cedar Avenue Complex","other_names":["County Government Center"],"category":"district","location":{"address":"44843 (44855), 44845 and 44851 Cedar Ave., 606 Lancaster Blvd., and Old Jail (no address)","address_restricted":false,"city":"Lancaster","county":"Los Angeles County","state":"CA","lat":34.699367335000034,"lon":-118.13969699199998,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1993-09-30","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Politics/Government"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A district of governmental buildings on Cedar Avenue and Lancaster Boulevard in Lancaster, California, formerly the Los Angeles County Government Center for the Antelope Valley. It includes a jail (1920), a health center (1930), and a Memorial Hall, Sheriff's Substation and Sheriff's Garage (1938).","why_significant":"Under Criterion A, the complex served as the county government center for the Antelope Valley from 1920 to 1943 and later decades of community use. Under Criterion C, the 1938 buildings are called PWA Moderne, designed by county architect Edward C. M. Brett, and described as the only known representative of the style in the Antelope Valley.","narrative":"Cedar Avenue Complex in Lancaster, California, is a group of county government buildings at Cedar Avenue and Lancaster Boulevard. It includes a concrete jail built in 1920, a brick health center from 1930, and three buildings completed in 1938: Memorial Hall and Office Building, a Sheriff's Substation, and a Sheriff's Garage. Los Angeles County began using the site in 1919, and Public Works Administration funding paid for the 1938 construction after a fire destroyed the earlier library and courthouse in 1937. County architect Edward C. M. Brett designed them in a Moderne style. The complex served as the Antelope Valley's center for county business, housing the sheriff, health services, a branch library, courts and offices until a new administrative center opened in 1962. Memorial Hall also hosted dances, club meetings and relief drives. The Garage has been altered enough that it no longer contributes. The city bought the complex from the county in 1987.","period_of_significance":"1920-1943","architect_builder":"Brett, Edward C., Chief Architect for the Mechanical Department of the County of Los Angeles","architectural_style":"Moderne","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Owned by the City of Lancaster since 1987. The Sheriff's Substation is used for storage, the Garage and Jail for city offices and storage; the Garage is noted as no longer contributing.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:54:27.957636-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_CA/93001017.pdf"},"photo":null,"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/123859019","wikipedia":null,"wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q141632868"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/california/los-angeles-county/cedar-avenue-complex-93001017/"}