Angelus Rosedale

One of Historic West Adams' major landmarks is the Angelus Rosedale Cemetery. Still in operation under the direction of the Angelus Funeral Home, it was founded as Rosedale Cemetery in 1884. It has grounds of 65 acres bounded by Venice Boulevard, Washington Boulevard, Normandie Avenue, and Walton Avenue. Many of the early luminaries of Los Angeles are buried here, including a number of the city's mayors.

Rosedale was from its beginning the first cemetery in Los Angeles open to all races and creeds. Among its headstones are many prominent African Americans (such as Hattie McDaniel and Eric Dolphy), Latinos, Japanese, and Chinese (Anna Mae Wong) Angelinos. It was one of the first "lawn" cemeteries, built like a park with monumental stone art, many trees, and wide swaths of grassy meadow. Its grounds include a section of Civil War dead in rows of neat military headstones, as well as imposing tombs of famous Los Angeles families.

The West Adams Heritage Association has worked to reawaken memories of these past residents by sponsoring its annual Living History Tours. Each year in the fall a half dozen famous or interesting people buried at Angelus Rosedale are selected, their lives researched, and community members enlisted to portray them, in costume and at graveside.