Campo de Cahuenga
Also known as: Ca-Lan 1945h
Why it's listed
Campo de Cahuenga is a small public park on Lankershim Boulevard in North Hollywood that commemorates the signing of the Articles of Capitulation on January 13, 1847, which ended hostilities between Mexico and California. The grounds hold three main elements: the stone foundations and tile floors of an adobe built around 1795, a memorial building completed in 1950, and a courtyard-style landscape. Los Angeles architects Spencer and Landon designed the building as a Spanish Colonial Revival reconstruction, using a 1931 student excavation as their guide. The City of Los Angeles bought the lot in 1923 and dedicated the park in 1924, an early case of a city acquiring land to commemorate and preserve a historic site. Research has shown the adobe is older than long believed and was tied to Mission San Fernando. Today the building serves as a museum and meeting place, and an annual January reenactment recalls the signing.
Significance in brief: The site is where the Articles of Capitulation were signed on January 13, 1847, ending hostilities between Mexico and California. It is also an early example of municipal land purchase for commemoration and preservation. The adobe's subsurface remains have yielded, and may still yield, important historical and archaeological information.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 72001602, listed December 19, 2003. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 3919 Lankershim Blvd., Los Angeles |
|---|---|
| County | Los Angeles County |
| Listed | December 19, 2003 |
| Reference number | 72001602 |
| Resource type | District |
| Period of significance | Archeological site: 1795-1880s; Historic property: 1923-1953 |
| Architect / builder | Landon and Spencer, architects of Memorial Building |
| Architectural style | Spanish Colonial (Spanish Colonial Revival) |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Historic - Aboriginal, Historic - Non-Aboriginal, Architecture, Social History, Conservation |
| Level of significance | State |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Used as a museum, meeting place and public park; the building is described as unaltered since its 1950 dedication, and the landscape plan survives intact. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 34.13980, -118.36235 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
This is a historic district. Buildings within its boundary are either contributing (they add to the district's significance) or non-contributing. Owners of contributing income-producing buildings can claim the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit; homeowners should look at state credits. National Register districts impose no design review by themselves; a local historic district ordinance, if one exists, does (the difference explained).
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 72001602.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q5028468
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.