Hollywood before and after photos: From rural paradise to tourist trap

Before it was the concrete and stone mecca of disoriented tourists and chipped Walk of Fame stars, of incessant traffic and towering condos, Hollywood was a charming, tight-knit village.

In the 1880s, the village of Hollywood was born. Under the leadership of genteel, wealthy developers like Daieda Wilcox, “the mother of Hollywood,” and H.J. Whitley, “the father of Hollywood,” this rural patch of ranch land was slowly transformed into a refined, temperate, utopian village of large homes and lush gardens.

It was a short lived Camelot, quickly paved away by the march of progress, but lucky for us- photos still remain- if not much else.

Join us as we take a photo tour of the Hollywood of yesterday—and what stands in its place today.

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