History of the Square
George L. Crenshaw was a banker and real estate developer who had the foresight to capitalize on Los Angeles’ population boom at the beginning of the Twentieth century. Over the course of about 10 years, Crenshaw oversaw the establishment of ten different residential developments, with Lafayette Square being the final one in 1913.


The first home built in Lafayette Square, 1675 Buckingham Road, was what we would now call a “model home.” Designed to show off its high quality materials and workmanship, the exquisite craftsman home featured ornate built-ins, a Batchelder fireplace, and a third floor ballroom, all details that are still intact today. Swayed by the beauty of this model home as well as newspaper adverts extolling Lafayette Square as a “residential park…[that] is more than a mere group of ordinary blocks,” other residents quickly followed suit.
Not surprisingly, over the course of the last 100+ years, Lafayette Square has had many notable residents and has been featured in iconic films and TV shows (this is Hollywood, after all). Early residents of Lafayette Square included George Pepperdine, the founder of Pepperdine University, actors Fatty Arbuckle and W.C. Fields, art collector Norton Simon, boxer Joe Louis, and the musician Little Richard. In addition, Robert F. Kennedy spent his last night at 1821 Victoria, the home of oil heir Charles McGinley. One of Lafayette Square’s most prominent residents was architect Paul R. Williams, who designed several residences in Lafayette Square, and whose own Mid-century modern home is just inside the entrance to the neighborhood.


Prior to 1947, Lafayette Square was a predominantly caucasian neighborhood, as restrictive racial covenants barring Black citizens from purchasing homes were still in effect. Once the covenants were lifted in 1948, many minority families moved into the Square, and today the neighborhood is racially diverse and includes a large number of families who have passed their homes down through multiple generations.
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