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Abbot Kinney(November 16, 1850 inNew Brunswick, New Jersey– November 4, 1920 inSanta Monica, California) was an Americandeveloper,conservationist,water supply expert and tree expert. Kinney is best known for his "Venice of America"development in Los Angeles.
Abbot Kinney | |
|---|---|
 Kinney around 1900. | |
| Born | November 16, 1850 |
| Died | November 4, 1920(aged 69) |
| Occupation | Real estate development |
| Known for | FoundingVenice of America |
Early life
editKinney's family moved toWashington, D.C.,and became known in politics. His aunt's husband wasSenatorJames DixonofConnecticut.
At the age of 16, the 6-foot-2-inch (1.88 m) Kinney went toEurope,where he studied inHeidelberg,ParisandZürichand became fluent in six languages. A walking tour ofItalytook him toVeniceand theItalian Riviera.Returning to Washington in 1869 he joined theMaryland National Guardand in 1873 was able to join aU.S. Geological Surveyteam to map theSiouxreservations ofthe Dakotas.He traveled toSalt Lake CityandOregonand rejoined the survey team in theYosemite Valley.
In 1874, Kinney joined thetobaccobusiness run by his older brother, Francis S. Kinney, with offices inNew York.TheKinney Brothers Tobacco Companydid much of its purchasing in theSouthern statesand then took an interest in imported tobaccos. In 1876, Abbot traveled toEgyptand OttomanMacedonia.
Kinneloa
edit
Instead of returning home, Kinney took an extended vacation through Europe,India,Ceylon,New Guinea,AustraliaandHawaii.After his arrival inSan Franciscoin January 1880, his plans to travel east by train were delayed by snow. So Kinney, anasthmatic,improvised with a side trip to aSouthern Californiahealth resort, theSierra Madre Villa Hotel.After showing up without a reservation, he slept on a billiard table in the parlor, where he awoke in the morning free of asthma symptoms. This positive experience inspired him to purchase 550 acres (2.2 km2) of nearby property, which he named "Kinneloa".[1][2]
Conservationist
editKinney was appointed to a three-year position as chairman of theCalifornia Board of Forestry.There he developed an agency to protect the forests of theSan Gabriel Mountains,where ranchers typically set fires to clear land for livestock grazing, but then, as a result, subsequent rainfalls led to flooding in the valleys.
On his own property, he developed land management techniques for raising livestock alongside cultivated forests. Aided by his friend naturalistJohn Muir,Kinney established theSan Gabriel Timberland Reservein December 1892, forerunner to theAngeles National Forest.
In 1883, Kinney andHelen Hunt Jacksonco-wrote a report for theU.S. Department of the Interioron the condition ofCalifornia Mission Indians.[3]This report and others led to the Mission Indian Act of 1891, which created a commission to seek to establish or confirm reservations in Southern California.[4][5]
In 1887, Kinney established the nation'sfirst forestry stationinRustic Canyonon 6 acres (24,000 m2) of land donated by Santa Monica co-founderJohn P. Jones(also a U.S. Senator from Nevada), andArcadia Bandini de Stearns Baker.One of the station's projects was a study of the newly introducedeucalyptustrees.[6]
Real estate developments
editSanta Monica
editKinneloa did not suit Kinney's first wife Margaret Kinney in the summer months, and in 1886 they built a summer home inSanta Monica.Kinney formed the Santa Monica Improvement Company in 1887 and built alawn tennisclub. In 1887 Kinney purchased 247 acres (1.00 km2) of land on the bluffs north of Santa Monica Canyon to be developed as "Santa Monica Heights", but economic conditions forced Kinney to abandon the project.Collis P. Huntingtonof theSouthern Pacific Railroadbought the property in 1891 and renamed it "Huntington Palisades." Kinney shifted his attention to the coastal area south of Santa Monica.
Ocean Park
editIn 1891, Kinney and his partner, Francis Ryan, bought a controlling interest in Pacific Ocean Casino and a tract of land 1.5 miles (2.4 km) long and 1,000 feet (300 m) wide along the Santa Monica beach. Kinney and Ryan built a pier, golf course, horse-racing track, boardwalk and other resort amenities. Kinney convinced theSanta Fe Railroadto extend itsInglewoodline north to his resort.
Ryan died in 1898, and his widow's new husband, Thomas Dudley, sold their half interest to a group of men (Fraser, Gage and Merritt Jones) not to Kinney's liking. With a flip of a coin, which Kinney won, he took the marshy southern half to build his Venice of America.[7]Abbot Kinney Boulevardis named for him.
The Venice of America
editTheVenicerecreation area opened on July 4, 1905. Venice came to be known as the "Coney Island of the Pacific." By mid-January 1906, an area was built along the edge of the Grand Lagoon patterned after the amusement thoroughfares of the great 19th and 20th century expositions. It featured foreign exhibits, amusements, and freak shows. Trolley service was available from Downtown Los Angeles and nearby Santa Monica. Around the entire park, a miniature steam railroad ran on a2+1⁄2-mile (4.0 km) track. The park included a system ofcanalscomplete withgondolasandgondoliersbrought in fromVenice,Italy.
There were ornate Venetian-style businesses and a full-sized amusementpierwith an ocean aquarium featuring a seal and marine life. Kinney and some of the nearby residents were aghast at some of the low-class shows that Venice began to offer, but it was considered the best collection of amusement devices on the Pacific Coast, and made a significant profit.[8][9]
Eventually, Kinney gained control of city politics and had the name changed from "Ocean Park" to "Venice" in 1911. Kinney was also allowed to build a 60-foot (18 m) long breakwater to protect his facilities from storm tides.
Kinney Heights
editAround 1900 Kinney developed a suburban tract at what was then the western edge of the city of Los Angeles. NamedKinney Heights,the development attracted mostly upper-middle-class families who built largeCraftsmanhomes, many of which still stand.[10]The area is now part of the West Adams Terrace Historic Preservation Overlay Zone (HPOZ).[11]
Published works
edit- 1890:Australian Ballot System,Evening Express Co., 31 pages
- 1893:The Conquest of Death,259 pages
- 1893:Task By Twilight,B.R. Baumgardt & Co, 211 pages
- 1895:Eucalyptus,B.R. Baumgardt & Co., (Read Books,ISBN1-4086-6309-0,334 pages, 2008)
- 1900:Forest and Water,The Post Pub. Co.
Family life
editIn his travels to the California State Legislature inSacramento,Kinney met Margaret Thornton, daughter of AssociateCalifornia Supreme CourtJusticeJames D. Thornton.They were married in November 1884 and had seven children, three of whom died during childhood. After Margaret died in June 1911, Kinney married Winifred Harwell in 1914, formally adopting her two children by him.[citation needed]
Kinney died suddenly in November 1920.
Legacy
editThe Venice Pier business was carried on by Kinney's oldest son Thornton. In December 1920, however, the amusement pier was completely destroyed by fire, except for the new roller coaster and the bandstand tower. The operation was rebuilt and reopened in six months. The miniature railroad ran until 1924.
Venice became part of the city ofLos Angelesin October 1925. The Venice of America canals came under sharp scrutiny by the health department. The lack of water circulation through the system left the waters turbid and malodorous. The bulk of the canals were paved over in 1929 after a protracted three-year court battle. The remaining canal district stayed in poor condition until extensively renovated in 1992. The canals have since become an expensive residential section and many large, modern houses have been built. TheVenice Canal Historic Districtwas listed on theNational Register of Historic Placesin 1982, and as aLos Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument.
The Venice Pier's demise came in 1946 when the city did not renew the lease on the tidelands.
Abbot's adopted son, Thornton Parillo, left a government position and moved toNew Brunswick, New Jersey,where he wrote stories and books on his father's experience in Southern California. Kinney's creative spirit continued on to his children and the next generation. Though most of Abbot Kinney's work has been demolished, some of his buildings and Venetian-style arches remain, along with his breakwater.
In fiction
editIn theurban fantasy/alternate historynovel,California Bones(Tor Books,June 2014), byGreg van Eekhout,Abbot Kinney's Venetian experiment grew to encompass all ofLos Angeles,taking the place of what might otherwise have become L.A.'s metropolitan roads, becoming part of ahydraulic empireoverseen by an immortalWilliam Mulholland.
References
edit- ^The History of the Kinneloa Ranch
- ^In Kinney's Own Words
- ^Senate, United States. Congress (1885)."Report on the Condition and Needs of the Mission Indians of California...".Reports of Committees of the Senate of the United States... 1884-85 (48th Congress, 2nd session).pp. 120–150.
- ^Dale, E. E. (1949)The Indians of the Southwest(Norman: University of Oklahoma Press)
- ^Sutton, I. (1964) "Land Tenure and Occupance Change on Indian Reservations in Southern California," Ph. D. Diss. in Geography (Los Angeles: UCLA).
- ^Masters, Nathan (May 16, 2012)."Who Eucalyptized Southern California?".KCETSocal Focus.
- ^Ingersoll, Luther A. (2008).Ingersoll's Century History, Santa Monica Bay Cities.Read Books.ISBN978-1-4086-2367-1.
- ^Alexander, Carolyn Elayne (1991).Abbot Kinney's Venice-of-America.Los Angeles Westside Genealogical Society.
- ^Alexander, Carolyn Elayne (1999).Images of America: Venice.San Francisco: Arcadia.ISBN978-0-7385-2099-5.
- ^Oliver, Marilyn Tower (October 1, 1995)."In Touch with the Past: Craftsman-style homes in three neighborhoods recall gracious days of yore. Today they rate among L.A.'s best buys".Los Angeles Times.Retrieved28 July2013.
- ^"Historic West Adams Tour".PreserveLA.com.October 9, 2005.Retrieved28 July2013.
