A Neil Diamond rose at Exposition Park. Photo copyright 2019 by Anna Boudinot
“Long live the rose that grew from concrete when no one else even cared.”
― Tupac Shakur, “The Rose That Grew from Concrete”
When I set out to write about the rose garden in Exposition Park, I thought for sure it would be a fairly simple post. What’s complex about a plot of land with flowers growing out of it? I should have known that everything in Los Angeles has an elaborate history, once you start digging deep enough.
Exposition Park Rose Garden. Photo copyright 2019 by Anna Boudinot
Exposition Park is the name of a park and the neighborhood that surrounds it in south Los Angeles. It contains the campus for the Natural History Museum, the California African American Museum, the Los Angeles Coliseum, and the California Science Center. From the 1870s to the 1910s, the land was the site of “Agriculture Park.” The original intention for the park was to showcase farmers and give them an opportunity to promote their crops, but it quickly developed a more nefarious reputation. KCET reports, “A kind of perpetual State Fair of the Wild West, the park welcomed thousands of men and women of all classes looking to have a good time, and the speed freaks, bookies, prostitutes and jockeys who worked the park were happy to ensure they did.”
Pink Promise roses at Exposition Park. Photo copyright 2019 by Anna Boudinot
A racetrack was located where the rose garden now stands, and anything that could be raced was raced there: dogs, horses, motorcycles, bicycles, automobiles, even camels. Agriculture Park also boasted a brothel and the city’s longest outdoor bar. Finally, William Miller Bowen, a deacon at University Methodist Church across the street, got fed up with boys skipping his Sunday school class and headed to the park to find out why. Appalled at what was happening there, he made it his mission to clean up Agriculture Park. He became city council president in 1903 and filed a lawsuit so the city could gain control of the park. He succeeded, and the spot was christened Exposition Park in 1911. Construction began on the National Armory (now the California Science Center) and Natural History Museum.
The garden was planted in 1915 and featured flowers native to California; by 1921 over 700 different varieties were in bloom. In 1926 the garden was replanted entirely with roses, a $15,000 investment ($210,000 in today’s dollars) that yielded over 100 varieties.
The Natural History Museum as seen from the rose garden. Photo copyright 2019 by Anna Boudinot
Throughout the years, the garden has survived a rollercoaster of support and neglect. It was nearly shut down during the Great Depression but Los Angeles County provided funding to keep it open. In 1980, the Raiders proposed building a practice field there and were turned down. In 1984, the Olympics came to Los Angeles and the city poured money into revitalizing the garden, but just two years later the LA Coliseum tried to put a parking garage on the site. Despite their promise to build a garden on the roof of the garage, the plan was shot down by outraged residents. In 1991 the garden was finally added to the National Register of Historic Places and has faced little threat since.
Cinco de Mayo roses at Exposition Park. Photo copyright 2019 by Anna Boudinot
Today Exposition Park represents the microcosm that is Los Angeles. The neighborhood has a high population of immigrants and low-income households, and the University of Southern California (not exactly known for being low-income) is a stone’s throw from the rose garden. When I strolled along the garden paths recently, I saw high school students catching up on gossip at the end of their school day, families picnicking, and photographers snapping pics of the glorious flowers. I paused to read the plaques that display the sometimes-droll names of the rose varietals. Cinco de Mayo. Pink Promise. Neil Diamond.
Two things likely to preserve the popularity of the rose garden are that it’s free to all and easily accessible via public transportation: the Metro Expo line has a stop within walking distance. Should it face another phase of neglect or nefariousness in the future, however, the almost-centenarian garden has proven that it will continue to grow from the concrete even when it seems that no one cares.
While in Exposition Park, stop at the California Science Center to see the Space Shuttle Endeavour, and check out the California African American Museum.