Sunset Junction, Los Angeles facts for kids
Sunset Junction is a well-known part of the Silver Lake area in Los Angeles, California. It's famous for being the place where the fun Sunset Junction Street Fair used to happen every year from 1980 to 2010. You can find it in the southwestern part of Silver Lake, right along Sunset Boulevard.
The name "Sunset Junction" comes from where Sunset Boulevard and Santa Monica Boulevard meet. These are two really big streets in Los Angeles! They both travel all the way from Sunset Junction to the Pacific Ocean. For most of their journey, these streets run side-by-side, but they finally connect here, where they also cross Sanborn Avenue. Santa Monica Boulevard actually ends right at this spot.
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History of Sunset Junction
Early Train Lines and Names
A long time ago, this area was a busy spot for trains. It was known as Sanborn or Hollywood Junction. Back in 1895, a company called the Pasadena and Pacific Railway built a train line that went from downtown Los Angeles all the way to Santa Monica. This line followed Sunset Boulevard until Sanborn Avenue, then turned west along what is now Santa Monica Boulevard.
Later, in 1905, another train company built a new shortcut. This new line went northwest along Sunset Boulevard from Sanborn Avenue. This created the "junction" or meeting point of the train tracks, which is still seen in how the streets are laid out today. These train companies eventually joined together in 1911 to form the Pacific Electric Railway. The trains stopped running on these lines in the 1950s.
A Stand for Fairness
Sunset Junction was also the site of an important event for fairness and equal treatment. On February 11, 1967, a protest began at a place called the Black Cat Tavern, located on Sunset Boulevard. This happened almost two and a half years before a more famous protest in New York City.
The protest was organized because people felt unfairly treated by the police during an incident at the Black Cat Tavern on New Year's Eve 1966. Many people were hurt. The community decided to stand up for their rights. Over 200 people marched peacefully, and there was no violence. The protest continued for several days, showing how important it was for people to be treated with respect.
A Growing Community and the Street Fair
For many years, the Silver Lake neighborhood was home to a quiet and diverse group of people. In the 1970s, more people started moving to the area because homes were affordable and it had a relaxed, artistic vibe. This made the community even more vibrant and varied.
In 1979, a special bookstore called A Different Light opened on Santa Monica Boulevard. It became a central meeting place for many people in the community. Famous writers, like Christopher Isherwood and Allen Ginsberg, would even come to read their books there. Other branches of the store opened in places like West Hollywood and San Francisco, but the original Silver Lake store closed in 1992.
As the community grew and changed, there were sometimes disagreements between different groups of people living in Silver Lake. To help bring everyone together and celebrate the neighborhood's diversity, a group called the Sunset Junction Neighborhood Alliance decided to organize the very first Sunset Junction Street Fair in 1980. This fair became a beloved annual event, known for its music, food, and community spirit.
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Sunset Junction
