Knowing the topography of an area explains why the area looks the way it does; in some cases, it explains the paths of streets.
Fairview Heights and part of the industrial neighborhood are the most geologically interesting areas of our city. Inglewood’s northern city limits and the neighborhood of Fairview Heights are part of the last southern slopes of the Baldwin Hills.

East Ellis Ave. is a surprise to most folks when they first come across it. Many people say the street doesn’t look like it belongs in Inglewood. The street is somewhat hid- den, and it is only four blocks long. However, three of those blocks form a mini-canyon.

East Ellis was built in an ancient wash. As late as the last half of the 20th century, Ellis was subject to flooding in heavy rains. The older residents used to tell of having to park on La Brea and wade home. They even told tales of water reaching right up to the front porches in El Nino years.

Beach Avenue—from Centinela to Edgewood—has a steep incline on the south side of the street. This was the natural path for Centinela Creek which flowed from the outcropping of the Centinela Springs in Edward Vincent Park. The springs are artesian wells that have existed under Inglewood since the Pleistocene Era. These springs are the reason Inglewood was founded here: it gave a natural water source in the semi- arid basin for sheep-grazing and growing crops.

Here too—as with East Ellis—the water carved the land. The creek ran west across the park and pooled in what is now the lowest point of Centinela Ave. just before it rises to meet Florence.

There is a tale of the early area before Inglewood was incorporated. It says Beach was so named because folks would boat in from the west and sit on the banks of the widest point of Centinela Creek to picnic and enjoy the day.

In the early days, when only Indians and Mexican land grant owners inhabited this area, the creek ran all the way to Ballona Creek and the wetlands. Centinela Creek’s natural meandering also accounts for the large curve in Beach on the west side of La Brea.

As time marched on and Inglewood grew, changes had to be made. The Centinela Creek bed was covered over and the creek rerouted.

By the way, the portion of the L.A. River—that concrete flood channel we see on the side of the 405 Free- way North at the La Tijera on-ramp—is part of the original path of Centinela Creek when it made its way to Ballona Creek. La Cienega. Do you know what the term means? This lovely Spanish word means “The Swamp.” The name makes perfect sense when you recall the periodic warnings we hear about northbound La Cienega (at Vesta and Industrial) and southbound La Cienega (around the 405 South on-ramp) being flooded during the rainy season.

I have not seen a map of the complete natural Centinela Creek course, but one can extrapolate that these low points on La Cienega are indeed part of the creek’s original path. It’s just east of the flood channel and roughly on a parallel with Beach Ave. where it starts at Centinela.

Streets can be straight as an arrow, like Marlborough, the entrance to the college that never was, or meander when they follow the natural terrain.