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Whitley was known as "The Father of [[Hollywood, Los Angeles|Hollywood]]."<ref>[https://www.newspapers.com/image/682582702/?terms=%22father%2Bof%2Bhollywood%22%2Bwhitley "Whitley Park Lights Aglow," ''Hollywood Daily Citizen,'' December 16, 1921, image 4]</ref><ref>[https://www.newspapers.com/image/608113081/?terms=%22father%2Bof%2Bhollywood%22 "Wilcox First Big Subdivider in L.A.," ''Los Angeles Evening Express,'' August 5, 1922, image 24]</ref><ref>[https://www.newspapers.com/image/380435908/?terms=%22father%2Bof%2Bhollywood%22 "Death Calls H.J. Whitley," ''Los Angeles Times,'' June 4, 1931, image 19]</ref><ref>[https://www.newspapers.com/image/380436823/?terms=%22father%2Bof%2Bhollywood%22 "Last Rites Conducted," ''Los Angeles Times,'' June 6, 1931, image 15]</ref><ref>[https://www.newspapers.com/image/689630703/?terms=Margaret%2BVirginia%2BWhitley "Death Claims Hollywood Founder's Widow," ''Los Angeles Daily News,'' August 22, 1951, image 3]</ref> The ''[[Hollywood Citizen-News|Hollywood Citizen]]'' said of him after his death: "He is remembered by the affectionate title which his community long ago bestowed upon him, the 'Father of Hollywood.'"<ref name=CitizenObit>"'Father of Hollywood' Dies," June 4, 1931</ref>
Whitley was known as "The Father of [[Hollywood, Los Angeles|Hollywood]]."<ref>[https://www.newspapers.com/image/682582702/?terms=%22father%2Bof%2Bhollywood%22%2Bwhitley "Whitley Park Lights Aglow," ''Hollywood Daily Citizen,'' December 16, 1921, image 4]</ref><ref>[https://www.newspapers.com/image/608113081/?terms=%22father%2Bof%2Bhollywood%22 "Wilcox First Big Subdivider in L.A.," ''Los Angeles Evening Express,'' August 5, 1922, image 24]</ref><ref>[https://www.newspapers.com/image/380435908/?terms=%22father%2Bof%2Bhollywood%22 "Death Calls H.J. Whitley," ''Los Angeles Times,'' June 4, 1931, image 19]</ref><ref>[https://www.newspapers.com/image/380436823/?terms=%22father%2Bof%2Bhollywood%22 "Last Rites Conducted," ''Los Angeles Times,'' June 6, 1931, image 15]</ref><ref>[https://www.newspapers.com/image/689630703/?terms=Margaret%2BVirginia%2BWhitley "Death Claims Hollywood Founder's Widow," ''Los Angeles Daily News,'' August 22, 1951, image 3]</ref> The ''[[Hollywood Citizen-News|Hollywood Citizen]]'' said of him after his death: "He is remembered by the affectionate title which his community long ago bestowed upon him, the 'Father of Hollywood.'"<ref name=CitizenObit>"'Father of Hollywood' Dies," June 4, 1931</ref>


Whitley came to Hollywood in 1893, which was then a rural settlement of eighteen families, and envisioned Hollywood "as a thriving suburb of Los Angeles. People laughed at him. He subdivided 400 acres of open fields and gardens into a residential section, and more families came here to live."<ref name=CitizenObit/>
Whitley came to California in 1893; the next year, 1884, heestablished a jewellery store in Los Angeles.<ref name="histofH" /> Hollywood which was then a rural settlement of eighteen families; Whitley envisioned Hollywood "as a thriving suburb of Los Angeles. He subdivided 400 acres of open fields and gardens into a residential section, and more families came here to live."<ref name=CitizenObit/>


As president and major shareholder of the Los Angeles Pacific Boulevard and Development Company, he orchestrated the opening of the Ocean View Tract and construction of a bank, which were located on the corners of Hollywood Boulevard and Highland.{{cn|date=February 2021}}
As president and major shareholder of the Los Angeles Pacific Boulevard and Development Company, he orchestrated the opening of the Ocean View Tract and construction of a bank, which were located on the corners of Hollywood Boulevard and Highland.{{cn|date=February 2021}}

Revision as of 04:56, 11 February 2021

Hobart Johnstone Whitley
Born(1847-10-07)October 7, 1847[1]
Toronto, Ontario
DiedJune 3, 1931(1931-06-03) (aged 83)
Los Angeles, California
EducationToronto Business College
Known forHollywood
SpouseMargaret Virginia Whitley
Parent(s)Joseph Whitley
Eleanor Johnstone[1]

Hobart Johnstone Whitley (October 7, 1847 – June 3, 1931) was a Canadian-American real estate developer best known for helping create the Hollywood subdivision in Los Angeles.

Early life

Whitley was born in Toronto, the seventh and youngest son of Joseph Whitley and Eleanor Johnstone.[1] He grew up in Flint, Michigan, and attended Toronto Business College. Whitley became a naturalized citizen of the United States in the 1870s.[2]

In the 1887, Whitley married his second wife, Margaret Virginia Ross.[3]

Career

Whitley moved to Chicago, where he owned a hardware store and candy store. He became interested in land development, became a land agent for the Rock Island Railroad and was elected to its board of directors. He plotted and organized towns in the Cherokee Strip, and when Oklahoma became a state in 1912 he "declined the first governorship."[2][4]

It is estimated that Whitley founded more than 140 towns in his lifetime.[5]

He was identified with the founding of Home Savings Bank, the First National Bank of Hollywood, the First National Bank of Van Nuys, and the State Banks of Owensmouth (Canoga Park), Reseda, and Corcoran.[4]

Whitley donated large parcels of land and money for civic use. The donations were used to finance public schools, libraries, parks, landscaping, streets, transportation, lighting and churches.[6]

Hollywood

Original 480-acre map of H J Whitley's property developed by his company, Los Angeles Pacific Boulevard and Development Company. Highland Avenue runs through the center of the property. The square at the lower right hand corner is the Whitley estate.

Whitley was known as "The Father of Hollywood."[7][8][9][10][11] The Hollywood Citizen said of him after his death: "He is remembered by the affectionate title which his community long ago bestowed upon him, the 'Father of Hollywood.'"[4]

Whitley came to California in 1893; the next year, 1884, heestablished a jewellery store in Los Angeles.[3] Hollywood which was then a rural settlement of eighteen families; Whitley envisioned Hollywood "as a thriving suburb of Los Angeles. He subdivided 400 acres of open fields and gardens into a residential section, and more families came here to live."[4]

As president and major shareholder of the Los Angeles Pacific Boulevard and Development Company, he orchestrated the opening of the Ocean View Tract and construction of a bank, which were located on the corners of Hollywood Boulevard and Highland.[citation needed]

He built the Hollywood Hotel on the same corner.[12]

The neighborhood of Whitley Heights in the Hollywood Hills originated as a residential housing development financed by Whitley.[13]

Other property developments

In 1905, he and others began the development of 47,000 acres of land in the San Joaquin Valley and 50,000 acres in the San Fernando Valley.[4]

In 1909 the Suburban Homes Company, a syndicate, was formed and led by H. J. Whitley, general manager of the Board of Control, along with Harry Chandler, H. G. Otis, M. H. Sherman and O. F. Brandt.[14] Henry E. Huntington extended his Pacific Electric Railway (Red Cars) through the Valley to Owensmouth (now Canoga Park). The Suburban Home Company laid out plans for roads and the towns of Van Nuys, Reseda (Marian) and Canoga Park (Owensmouth). The rural areas were annexed into the city of Los Angeles in 1915.[15][16]

H. J. Whitley took the lead in building the city of Corcoran, California. He purchased 32,000 acres (130 km2) to start the development and moved a member of his real estate firm, J. W. Guiberson, to the area. Whitley named all the city streets "avenues". The main street of the community is named in his honor.[17]

Whitley's last development was never finished. He bought thousands of acres and started the town of Whitley Gardens.[citation needed] It is about ten miles (16 km) east of Paso Robles, California. Around 1924, as Los Angeles Times columnist Lee Shippey put it:

Whitley became a Paso Robles enthusiast, after the waters had given him new strength. He bought 48,000 acres of ranch lands there and dreams of putting through one more great development project. He can't understand how fine fertile land with water on it, on a state highway and within reach of ocean winds can still be bought for around $50 an acre.[18]

It was said that Whitley had amassed "a private fortune running into the millions" but "most of this wealth dwindled in [this] one unfortunate investment at Paso Robles."[4]

Namesakes

[citation needed]

  • Hobart Blvd
  • Whitley Heights - a residential neighborhood, historic preservation overlay zone in the Hollywood Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles, CA.
  • Whitley Avenue - a north/south street, begins on Hollywood Blvd. in Hollywood to Whitley Terrace in Whitley Heights.
  • Whitley Terrace - an east/west street, in Whitley Heights, Hollywood.
  • Whitley Terrace Steps - goes from Milner Road to Emmet Terrace.
  • Whitley Gardens - City 10 miles east of Paso Robles, CA.
  • Whitley Avenue - main street in Corcoran, CA.
  • Grace Avenue - H J Whitley's daughter Grace Virginia Whitley, Hollywood, CA.
  • Emmet Terrace -H J Whitley's son Ross Emmet Whitley, Hollywood, CA.
  • Milner Road - H J Whitley's private secretary Roy Milner, Hollywood, CA.

Death

Whitley died on June 3, 1931 at the Whitley Park Country Club near Hollywood.[19][20] He was buried in the Hollywood Memorial Park Cemetery, today named Hollywood Forever Cemetery. On his crypt is inscribed "The Father of Hollywood".[citation needed]

He was survived by his wife, a son and a daughter.[4]

References

  1. ^ a b c Hunt, Rockwell Dennis. California and Californians. Lewis publishing Company.
  2. ^ a b Tony Luke Scott, The Stars of Hollywood Forever, T. Scott Publications, 2001
  3. ^ a b Palmer, Edwin Obadiah. History of Hollywood. A. H. Cawston.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g "'Father of Hollywood' Dies," June 4, 1931
  5. ^ D.H, Discover Hollywood Magazine, spring 2010
  6. ^ California Historian, Volume 54, Number 4, Conference of California Historical Societies (2008)
  7. ^ "Whitley Park Lights Aglow," Hollywood Daily Citizen, December 16, 1921, image 4
  8. ^ "Wilcox First Big Subdivider in L.A.," Los Angeles Evening Express, August 5, 1922, image 24
  9. ^ "Death Calls H.J. Whitley," Los Angeles Times, June 4, 1931, image 19
  10. ^ "Last Rites Conducted," Los Angeles Times, June 6, 1931, image 15
  11. ^ "Death Claims Hollywood Founder's Widow," Los Angeles Daily News, August 22, 1951, image 3
  12. ^ "HJ Whitley and the Original Hollywood & Highland, 'The Hollywood Hotel,' October 22, 2012
  13. ^ Patricia Bennett, "'The Hill, Hollywood's Mediterranean Village," Los Angeles Times, July 12, 1992, image 203
  14. ^ Mulholland, Catherine. The Owensmouth Baby - The Making of the San Fernando Valley Santa Susana Press, California, 1987; p. 18-20.
  15. ^ George L. Henderson (1 February 2003). California and the Fictions of Capital. Temple University Press. p. 199. ISBN 978-1-59213-198-3. Retrieved 8 August 2012.
  16. ^ Judith R. Raftery (1992). Land of Fair Promise: Politics and Reform in Los Angeles Schools 1885 – 1941. Stanford University Press. p. 112. ISBN 978-0-8047-1930-8. Retrieved 7 May 2013.
  17. ^ City of Corcoran, California [1]
  18. ^ "The Lee Side oO'L.A.; Whitley's New Dream," Los Angeles Times, September 9, 1930, image 22
  19. ^ "Death Calls H.J. Whitley. Real Estate Man Known as "Father of Hollywood". Pioneer in many Southland Developments" (PDF). Los Angeles Times. June 4, 1931. Retrieved 2008-07-17.
  20. ^ "Whitley Dead at 83". New York Times. June 5, 1931. H. J. Whitley, California real estate man known as the "Father of Hollywood ...

Further reading

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=H._J._Whitley&oldid=1006122839"