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Baldwin Hills Park History

Additional information regarding the history of the parks within the Baldwin Hills may be found in the Baldwin Hills History Discussion Forum. Additional information about the history of the communities within the Baldwin Hills may be found at the History page of the Baldwin Hills Community website.

Creation of the Baldwin Hills State Recreation Area

The land for Kenneth Hahn State Park was reclaimed from use as oil drilling site. There is still active oil drilling on sites adjacent to the Park, and within the area that is planned for the expanded Baldwin Hills park. Kenneth Hahn State Park was named for Los Angeles County Supervisor Kenneth Hahn, who was instrumental in the establishment of the park.

The Baldwin Hills Conservancy was established in 2000 to acquire and direct the management of public lands within the Baldwin Hills area of Los Angeles County. The concervancy created a plan for One Big Park that would ecompass the Kenneth Hahn State park, as well as additional lands, and to connect them for the benefit of the residents of Los Angeles County. Among other projects, the conservancy established the Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook, on the northwest corner of the Baldwin Hills, and has acquired and developed a strip of land along Stocker Bouldevard, providing a connection to the park from the Crenshaw area. Other projects have been undertaken, and the park continues to expand.w

The Baldwin Hills Dam Collapse

Part of Kenneth Hahn State park is built above the ground that once was part of the Baldwin Hills Dam. The Baldwin Hills dam was built in 1951 to provide water storage for Western Los Angeles. The dam collapsed on December 14th, 1963, destroying 65 homes and killing five people. Instead of rebuilding the dam, the dam was filled as part of the creation of the Kenneth Hahn recreation area, the core park within the planned Baldwin Hills State Park. More information on the dam collapse can be found at the Baldwin Hills Dam page of the Baldwin Hills commiunity information website.

    About this site:

    On this web site you will find information about the Baldwin Hills Park plan, geology, plants, and wildlife within the planned park, neigboring communities, and activities at the parks that already exist within the boundaries of the planned Baldwin Hills Park. This is not an official site of the park, and I ask for help from anyone that can correct any information I might post, or who has additional links or resources to suggest.
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