Olvera Street, Los Angeles souvenirs

Olvera Street is a tourist attraction intended to emphasize the Mexican heritage of early Los Angeles. It is located in the historic El Pueblo District at the edge of today's downtown. It was not always a tourist destination. Though it was named Olvera Street in the 1870s, it was more commonly known as Wine Street as it led to the local vineyard. By the 1920s it was an unpaved alley running behind what was left of the oldest remaining buildings in Los Angeles.

The 1920s were turbulent times of real estate development in Los Angeles. To develop and build the Union Station rail depot, the old Chinese neighborhood was razed and the residents were relocated a little to the northeast in the "New Chinatown". To make way for the "New Chinatown" the old "Sonora Town" was cleared (you can probably guess who lived there). It was largely because of the efforts of Christine Sterling, who was able to convince the city council and Times owner Harry Chandler at least part of the past was worth preserving, that saved what was left of L.A.'s historic core and created the "romantic revival" of Olvera Street.

Olvera Street, "El Paseo de Los Angeles", opened as an official entity in 1930 and has been developing and thriving ever since. There are several museums, eateries, and a mural by David Siqueiros along its course. Many of the vendors are the same families that have been there since it opened. Often accused of being "fake" or "kitschy", I can assure you that it is, but there is also plenty of authentic Mexican and Mexican-American energy as well. Souvenirs, though, can be from anywhere.

Pic 1 - Puebla (Mexico) Talavera style 10" diameter plate custom made for sale at Olvera Street. Recent, backside is marked "Puebla - Lead Free".
Pic 2 - Group of dated hat and sombrero souvenirs from the 1940s. The sombrero on the left (dated 1941) is impressed "Made in Mexico" on the underside. None of the others are marked - some may have a more local origin.
Pic 3 - In the 1950s and '60s many of the souvenirs were outsourced to Japan.