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Avila Adobe
The Avila Adobe house was
constructed in 1818 by Francisco Avila, rich rancher and mayor of
the pueblo of Los Angeles from 1810 to 1811; and is considered the
oldest building in the city. Found in the paseo of the well known
historical Olvera Street, it has become part of the El Pueblo de Los
Angeles Historic Monument, the city's historic state park. The
Plaza, presently called Olvera Street, was the third locale of the
original settlement El Pueblo de Nuestra Senora la Reina de Los
Angeles sobre el Rio Porcuincula, the first two locations washed out
by the Porciuncula River, now known as the Los Angeles River. This
adobe home was one of the first town houses that would share the
frontage in the new town called Pueblo de Los Angeles, and Francisco
was also the owner of the Rancho Las Cienegas by the La Brea Tar
Pits. Avila would spend most of his time during the week at the
ranch, working it, but on the weekends, holidays or special
occasions, he would come here to greet friends, conduct various
business ventures or get ready for the services at the church across
the street. The home has seven rooms, left from what had been
originally a larger building, and restoration work has tried to
replicate what it looked like back then. The biggest room, the
family room, was where the entertainment, dining and social
functions were held, and the office was where Avila conducted his
business affairs. The living room was held in reserve for weddings,
special occasions, baptisms and the like. There were sleeping
quarters for the adults or parents and one for the children, and the
kitchen was where the food would be prepared and bathing done.
Cooking was done outside, to keep the house cooler, and the bathroom
somewhere outside the house, like later outhouses. The majority of
the home's furnishings came from other countries that Avila traded
with and a huge courtyard with covered porches were for the many
outbuildings like the stables, workshops and etc. After a recent
archaeological dig, the mother ditch, or zanja Madre, was found
which brought water to the house through a brick lined pipe that
came here from the river. The walls of the adobe were two and a half
to three feet thick, constructed of baked adobe bricks and the
ceilings were 15 feet tall. These were supported by cottonwood beams
gotten from the trees lining the Los Angeles River. Today's roof is
slanted, but the original appears to have been flat and tar from the
pits was brought to the house to apply to the roof, after mixing it
with rocks and horsehair. The floor was compacted earth, almost as
hard as concrete, and swept a few times each day to keep it smooth
and free from loose dirt. This was common practice for adobes in the
early days, but later wooden planks with varnish were used. The
original house was twice as long as it exists today and was shaped
in an L, by a wing that went almost to the center of the street.
Avila had a garden and vineyard in the rear courtyard and the water
for all the place came from the mother ditch filled by the Los
Angeles River.
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