Presentation Type
Poster
Presentation Type
Submission
Keywords
African American History, Japanese-American History, Women’s History, Urban History, Segregation, Placemakers, Hotels, Lodging Houses, Los Angeles, Labor History
Department
History
Major
History
Abstract
Early twentieth-century Los Angeles is often characterized as a rapidly expanding metropolis shaped by informal segregation along lines of race, class, and gender. Yet within this landscape, hotels and lodging houses sometimes functioned as unexpected sites of inclusion and community for marginalized populations. This project investigates how these spaces of hospitality served women and racial minorities between 1890 and 1950 in Los Angeles. Drawing from recent scholarship from Natalia Molina and others, we set out to examine the role of vernacular hotel architecture and the “placemakers” who operated them.
The project involved examining hundreds of handwritten census pages and original building permits in order to reconstruct demographics of occupancy, as well as information about architecture and ownership. We paired these findings with an analysis of contemporary newspaper advertisements and articles that promoted hotels as welcoming or inclusive environments. We created a catalogue, allowing us to trace patterns and narratives, combined with historical context from secondary sources, relating to the construction, experience, and disappearance of these identity-specific lodgings.
Together, these sources reveal that hotels frequently operated as flexible social spaces where marginalized individuals could secure lodging, build networks of community, and navigate the inopportunity of a segregated city. In doing so, the project contributes to broader conversations about the history of hotels in Los Angeles as spaces in the built environment that fostered empowerment and agency for marginalized groups in the early twentieth century.
Faculty Mentor
Dr. Megan Kendrick
Funding Source or Research Program
Summer Undergraduate Research Program
Location
Waves Cafeteria
Start Date
10-4-2026 1:00 PM
End Date
10-4-2026 2:00 PM
Included in
American Art and Architecture Commons, Architectural History and Criticism Commons, Black History Commons, Cultural History Commons, Labor History Commons, Social History Commons, Women's History Commons
Hotels as Placemakers in Downtown Los Angeles, 1890-1950
Waves Cafeteria
Early twentieth-century Los Angeles is often characterized as a rapidly expanding metropolis shaped by informal segregation along lines of race, class, and gender. Yet within this landscape, hotels and lodging houses sometimes functioned as unexpected sites of inclusion and community for marginalized populations. This project investigates how these spaces of hospitality served women and racial minorities between 1890 and 1950 in Los Angeles. Drawing from recent scholarship from Natalia Molina and others, we set out to examine the role of vernacular hotel architecture and the “placemakers” who operated them.
The project involved examining hundreds of handwritten census pages and original building permits in order to reconstruct demographics of occupancy, as well as information about architecture and ownership. We paired these findings with an analysis of contemporary newspaper advertisements and articles that promoted hotels as welcoming or inclusive environments. We created a catalogue, allowing us to trace patterns and narratives, combined with historical context from secondary sources, relating to the construction, experience, and disappearance of these identity-specific lodgings.
Together, these sources reveal that hotels frequently operated as flexible social spaces where marginalized individuals could secure lodging, build networks of community, and navigate the inopportunity of a segregated city. In doing so, the project contributes to broader conversations about the history of hotels in Los Angeles as spaces in the built environment that fostered empowerment and agency for marginalized groups in the early twentieth century.