North University Park Historic District
Why it's listed
North University Park is a five-block residential neighborhood southwest of downtown Los Angeles, close to the University of Southern California. Built between 1887 and 1929, it holds 66 buildings, mostly one- and two-story houses and apartment buildings, of which 58 contribute to the historic character. Queen Anne houses sit alongside Turn of the Century cottages, American Foursquare houses, English and Mediterranean Revival buildings and Craftsman homes. Several were designed by the firm Bradbeer & Ferris, and a number have been designated Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monuments. The district holds together because the buildings are similar in scale, follow a common setback and are clad in many of the same materials, including clapboard, shingles and stucco. Three smaller groupings stand out: Vista Magnolia Court, the English Revival apartments on West Adams Gardens, and the Foursquare houses on Magnolia Avenue. Mature Canary Island date palms, a large Moreton Bay fig and diamond-scored sidewalks survive as historic landscape features.
Significance in brief: The nomination presents the district as significant for architecture, with a coherent collection of late nineteenth and early twentieth century houses and apartment buildings. They share similar scale, setbacks and materials such as clapboard, shingles and stucco. Of the 66 buildings, 58 contribute to its character.
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 04000016, listed February 11, 2004. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | Roughly bounded by Hoover St., Adams Blvd, 28th St. and Magnolia Ave., Los Angeles |
|---|---|
| County | Los Angeles County |
| Listed | February 11, 2004 |
| Reference number | 04000016 |
| Resource type | District |
| Period of significance | 1887-1929 |
| Architect / builder | Various, including Bradbeer & Ferris, Thomas Preston, Edward Harlamert and E. B. Rust; others unknown |
| Architectural style | Late Victorian (Queen Anne, Eastlake); Late 19th & 20th Century Revivals (Spanish Colonial Revival, Tudor Revival); Craftsman |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Residential area still in domestic use; some individual buildings have been rehabilitated or altered, and eight buildings are noncontributing. |
| Acreage | 15.7 |
| Coordinates | 34.02611, -118.28499 (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 04000016.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q7057085
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.