Felipe de Neve Branch Library

Felipe de Neve Branch Library. . , El Pueblo de la Reina de los Angeles , On September 4, 1781, a small, mixed-race band of peasants recruited by Felipe de Neve mostly in Sonora Town founded El Pueblo de la Reina de Los Angeles. Four years earlier, de Neve had been charmed by the welcoming locale beside the gentle Rio Porciuncula, adjacent to a Tonga village called Yangna. As Spain's governor of the province of Baja and Alta California, it was his purpose to establish settlements loyal to King Carlos III of Spain. He sketched out a simple town plan with a central plaza and areas on the outskirts for farms and pastures. History remembers de Neve as the father of Los Angeles. , The one-story, brick branch library that bears his name was dedicated on September 4, 1929, the city's 148th birthday. That time was exciting for new architecture in the Wilshire District. Bullock's Wilshire and the Town House hotel also opened that year within an easy walk of Lafayette Park, then emerging as a fashionable corner of Los Angeles. On the edge of the park ong Sixth Street, architect Austin Whitlesey designed an elegantly symmetrical library that had touches of Spanish Colonial Revival and Northern Italian Renaissance inspiration. High ceilings gave the main reading room a sense of calm, even though patrons filled it from the start. To honor the memory of de Neve, presidents of two historical societies spoke at the dedication and a string orchestra performed. , In 1932 the Lovers of Shakespeare Society fashioned a garden dedicated to the bard behind the library facing Lafayette Park. Bronze tablets inscribed with lines from Shakespeare plays were installed, and the garden pond became a popular centerpiece for readings and social gatherings. In the late 1980s, the library's significance was recognized with listing on the National Register of Historic Places and designation as a Los Angeles historic-cultural monument. In 1990, however, the library had to be closed for shoring up and retrofitting to ensure its earthquake safety. Rioters inflicted damage two years later, and it wasn't until July 1998 that the branch reopened. The former Shakespeare garden and fountain remain closed off, but the library's public rooms were beautifully restored to serve a multilingual clientele. , Oldest Protestant Congregation , Soon after the library branch was built, work began on an even grander Lafayette Park landmark. The stately First Congregational Church of Los Angeles at Sixth and Commonwealth serves the city's oldest Protestant congregation, founded in 1867. Evocative of a European cathedral, the complex of buildings completed in 1932 is the church's fifth home, built on land donated by Lafayette Park benefactor Clara Shatto. Los Angeles architects James and David Allison chose a Gothic Revival style with a modern twist, erecting the church of concrete reinforced with 500 tons of embedded steel. Close examination of the exterior reveals horizontal markings left behind by the wood forms used in pouring the concrete. , At the apex is a tower that rises 157 feet, reminiscent of Oxford University's Magdalen College tower. The sanctuary takes a cruciform shape and is 198 feet long, vaulting 76 feet high at the crossing. Carved oak pews and chancel furniture are found throughout, with stained glass by the renowned Judson Studios. The reredos are based on those at Winchester Cathedral in England. Music is the church's most celebrated legacy. The Los Angeles Symphony Orchestra, organized in 1897, grew out of the First Congregational orchestra. The Los Angeles Bach Festival began at this church in 1934. And its pipe organ is the largest in any church in the world, with 20,000 pipes and 265 stops. , Though less grand, Precious Blood Catholic Church at 435 S. Occidental Boulevard is older (1926) and enjoys an admired architecture reputation. Los Angeles architect Wallace Neff oversaw partial remodeling in 1951 and commissioned a mosaic of angels by Millard Sheets, an acclaimed California artist and architect who later would run the Otis Art Institute.