El Pueblo de Los Angeles was founded in 1781 by settlers from present-day Mexico of Indian, African, and European descent. Capital of Mexican California in the 1840s, the town grew with the influx of Anglo-Americans, Europeans, and Chinese later in the nineteenth century. As Los Angeles blossomed into a modern metropolis, the old pueblo fell into disrepair. It was revitalized with the opening in 1930 of the Mexican marketplace at Olvera Street. Illustrated in color throughout, the book combines engaging text with historical paintings, archival photographs, and new photography to create a vivid portrait of the pueblo, its history, and its heritage. The book surveys life in the Spanish, Mexican, and early American periods and tells the story of the Siqueiros mural
América Tropical
, a remarkable tale of art, ideology, and politics in 1930s Los Angeles. Final chapters tour the pueblo's historic buildings and discuss current initiatives to preserve its rich heritage.