Adams Hill is a

neighborhood A neighbourhood (Commonwealth English) or neighborhood (American English) is a geographically localized community within a larger town, city, suburb or rural area, sometimes consisting of a single street and the buildings lining it. Neigh ...

Glendale, California Glendale is a city located primarily in the Verdugo Mountains region, with a small portion in the San Fernando Valley, of Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is located about north of downtown Los Angeles. As of 2024, Glendale ha ...

. The neighborhood is known as a

bohemian Bohemian or Bohemians may refer to: *Anything of or relating to Bohemia Culture and arts * Bohemianism, an unconventional lifestyle, originally practised by 19th–20th century European and American artists and writers. * Bohemian style, a ...

one where "a queer community flourishes". The neighborhood's business district, Adams Square, is at the base of the Glendale side of the hill.

History

From 1911 until 1918, Adams Hill was part of an independent city known as Tropico. In 1918, Tropico was annexed by Glendale. Adams Hill was a predominantly

Anglo-American Anglo-American can refer to: * the Anglosphere (the Anglo-American world) * Anglo-American, something of, from, or related to Anglo-America ** the Anglo-Americans demographic group in Anglo-America * Anglo American plc Anglo American plc is a ...

neighborhood, but by the 1990s, had a rapidly growing

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian diaspora, Armenian communities around the ...

population. In 1998, the city began to move forward with plans to rehabilitate a 1936

Streamline Moderne Streamline Moderne is an international style of Art Deco architecture and design that emerged in the 1930s. Inspired by Aerodynamics, aerodynamic design, it emphasized curving forms, long horizontal lines, and sometimes nautical elements. In indu ...

filling station A filling station (also known as a gas station [] or petrol station []) is a facility that sells fuel and engine lubricants for motor vehicles. The most common fuels sold are gasoline (or petrol) and diesel fuel. Fuel dispensers are used to ...

. In 2000,

Adam Schiff Adam Bennett Schiff (born June 22, 1960) is an American lawyer, author, and politician serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, junior United States Senate, United States senator from California, a seat he has held since 2024. A m ...

, who was a

state senator A state senator is a member of a State legislature (United States), state's senate in the bicameral legislature of 49 U.S. states, or a member of the unicameral Nebraska Legislature. History There are typically fewer state senators than there ...

representing Glendale at the time, obtained $250,000 in state funds for the project. In 2016, the station was added to

Glendale Register of Historic Resources and Historic Districts The Glendale Register of Historic Resources and Historic Districts consist of buildings, structures, bridges, statues, trees, and other objects designated by the City of Glendale, California, as significant historic resources or historic district ...

and converted into a public

art gallery An art gallery is a room or a building in which visual art is displayed. In Western cultures from the mid-15th century, a gallery was any long, narrow covered passage along a wall, first used in the sense of a place for art in the 1590s. The long ...

. The station and surrounding park, dubbed the Adams Square Mini-Park, are the epicenter of the Adams Hill neighborhood.

LGBT+ community

Beginning in the 1960s, Matthew Schmidt and Albert Antunes, known as "Matthew and Buddy of Glendale," hosted

costume parties A costume party (American English) or fancy dress party (other varieties of English) is a type of party, common in contemporary Anglo culture, in which many of the guests are dressed in costume, usually depicting a fictional or stock characte ...

at their Adams Hill home for Glendale's

LGBT+ LGBTQ people are individuals who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or questioning. Many variants of the initialism are used; LGBTQIA+ people incorporates intersex, asexual, aromantic, agender, and other individuals. The group i ...

community. Established in 2017, Kafn Coffee is

coffeehouse A coffeehouse, coffee shop, or café (), is an establishment that serves various types of coffee, espresso, latte, americano and cappuccino, among other hot beverages. Many coffeehouses in West Asia offer ''shisha'' (actually called ''nargi ...

known locally as an LGBT+-friendly business. Following

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

-related issues in 2020 and 2021, glendaleOUT's annual Glendale Pride in the Park, a

family-friendly A family-friendly product or service is one that is considered to be suitable for all members of an average family. Family-friendly restaurants are ones that provide service to families that have young children. Frequently, family-friendly produc ...

picnic A picnic is a meal taken outdoors (Al fresco dining, ''al fresco'') as part of an excursion, especially in scenic surroundings, such as a park, lakeside, or other place affording an interesting view, or else in conjunction with a public event su ...

, came to fruition in June 2022. Glendale Library, Arts & Culture joined the inaugural event as part of its effort to document the history of Glendale's LGBTQ community through audio and video testimonies. The

Glendale Public Library Glendale Public Library is a name used for a group of eight library branches in Glendale, California, under the Library, Arts & Culture Department. Founded in 1907, the Glendale Library, Arts & Culture Department includes six neighborhood librar ...

's Library Connection @ Adams Square branch hosts occasional LGBT+ events. These have included a 2023

GALAS LGBTQ+ Armenian Society The Great American Lesbian Art Show (GALAS) was an art exhibition at the Woman's Building (a feminist art center) in Los Angeles, California with associated events in other locations. It ran from 3–31 May 1980. The Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Com ...

-sponsored reading of author Nancy Agabian's "The Fear of Large and Small Nations".

Arts and culture

The

's Library Connection @ Adams Square branch operates in the neighborhood. Since 2016, the neighborhood has had a public

. In 2024, the City installed colorful

crosswalks A pedestrian crossing (or crosswalk in American and Canadian English) is a place designated for pedestrians to cross a road, street or avenue. The term "pedestrian crossing" is also used in the Vienna and Geneva Conventions, both of which perta ...

and painted curb extensions as part of the City's "Creative Crosswalks"

public art Public art is art in any Media (arts), media whose form, function and meaning are created for the general public through a public process. It is a specific art genre with its own professional and critical discourse. Public art is visually and phy ...

program.

References

Neighborhoods in Glendale, California Gay villages in California LGBTQ culture in Los Angeles {{LosAngelesCountyCA-geo-stub