Lincoln Heights Jail

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Lincoln Heights Jail
Lincoln Heights Jail.jpg
Lincoln Heights Jail, Los Angeles, 2009
Location421 North Avenue 19
Los Angeles, California, United States
Coordinates34°04′39″N 118°13′30″W / 34.077472°N 118.224875°W / 34.077472; -118.224875Coordinates: 34°04′39″N 118°13′30″W / 34.077472°N 118.224875°W / 34.077472; -118.224875
Opened1931
Closed1965

Lincoln Heights Jail is a former jail building complex in the Lincoln Heights neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, located adjacent to the Los Angeles River and situated about 0.7 miles (1.1 km) southwest of the Lincoln/Cypress station.[1] The original building built in the late 1920s is noted for its Art Deco style.[2] The jail was designated an Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument on November 30, 1993.[3]

History[]

Lincoln Heights Jail was originally built in 1927 at a cost of $5 million and opened in 1931.[2][4] The initial five-story building was constructed to accommodate 625 prisoners.[2] The jail was expanded in the early 1950s to accommodate 2,800 prisoners.[2] Notable detainees included Al Capone and individuals arrested during the Zoot Suit Riots and the Watts riots.[2] In 1951, the unprovoked beating of seven prisoners occurred in the prison on what came to be known as "Bloody Christmas".[5] The jail was decommissioned in 1965,[5] after the Los Angeles City Council and the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors agreed to consolidate inmates in a nearby county jail as a cost-efficiency measure.[2]

From 1979 until 2014, the building was the home of the Bilingual Foundation of the Arts.[6][7]

Redevelopment[]

In 2016, the City of Los Angeles issued a Request for Interest to garner development ideas to revitalize the sprawling 229,000 square feet (21,300 m2) jail complex.[8][9] In 2017, Lincoln Property Company and Fifteen Group were selected to redevelop the Lincoln Heights Jail complex into the Lincoln Heights Makers District, which will feature a commercial and manufacturing spaces, a public market, creative office space, live-work housing, an amphitheater with green space, recreation areas and a communal rooftop deck.[10] As of March 2020, the project has been delayed due to environmental issues with the site.[11]

In popular culture[]

The novel L.A. Confidential and subsequent film, part of which was filmed there, was inspired by the incident.[5] The 1984 horror movie Nightmare on Elm Street filmed the boiler room scenes here and the 1983 grindhouse women in prison film Chained Heat was also filmed at the prison.[12] Some prison scenes in American History X were shot on the roof.[13] The television series Cagney & Lacey used it as a filming location. The scene in Iron Man 2 where main antagonist Ivan Vanko breaks out of prison was also filmed at this location.[14] It is featured in the "Jailbreak" episode of the Jack Palance series Bronk.

It was used to film part of the music video "Feeling This" by Blink-182.[15] The site was also used for filming sections of Lady Gaga's hit single "Telephone"[16] and 5 Seconds of Summer's single "Good Girls".[17]

References[]

  1. ^ Gold, Matea (1997-09-10). "A Tough Cell". Los Angeles Times.
  2. ^ a b c d e f "Lincoln Heights Jail". Los Angeles Conservancy. Retrieved 2020-07-15.
  3. ^ "Historic Landmarks - Northeast Los Angeles". Los Angeles City Planning. Retrieved 2020-07-15.
  4. ^ Leslie, Mark; Parrish, Rhonda (2017-08-05). Haunted Hospitals: Eerie Tales About Hospitals, Sanatoriums, and Other Institutions. Dundurn. ISBN 978-1-4597-3787-7.
  5. ^ a b c RASMUSSEN, CECILIA (2003-07-13). "Pasadena's Gold Line Will Travel a History-Laden Route". Los Angeles Times.
  6. ^ "DOWNTOWN : Bilingual Arts Group Gets $250,000 Grant", Los Angeles Times, December 18, 1994.
  7. ^ Randal C. Archibold, "Old Country and New in a Tale of Tamales", The New York Times, December 14, 2008.
  8. ^ "Lofts? Hotel? Urban Farm? City seeks development ideas for the old Lincoln Heights jail". The Eastsider. 2016-04-25.
  9. ^ Barragan, Bianca (2016-04-25). "Creepy Old Lincoln Heights Jail to Be Revived". Curbed LA. Retrieved 2020-07-15.
  10. ^ "It's official: City Council taps Lincoln Property Co. for Lincoln Heights Jail project". The Real Deal Los Angeles. 2017-11-09. Retrieved 2020-07-15.
  11. ^ Lank, Barry (2020-02-10). "Lincoln Heights Jail project delayed". The Eastsider.
  12. ^ Directo, Danielle (September 26, 2008). "Lincoln Heights Jail's inhabitants". Scene. Retrieved 21 November 2009.
  13. ^ "American History X". Retrieved 2020-07-15.
  14. ^ Emma (2019-03-03). "Iron Man 2 Filming Locations | California and Monaco". Geeky Tourist. Retrieved 2020-09-21.
  15. ^ Moss, Corey (October 6, 2003). "Jail Cells, Whips, Sexual Energy — Yup, It's A Blink-182 Video". MTV News. Retrieved February 21, 2021.
  16. ^ Kudler, Adrian Glick (2010-03-12). "Beyoncé and Lady Gaga Tear It Up All Over Town". Curbed LA. Retrieved 2020-07-15.
  17. ^ "5 Seconds of Summer To Release "Good Girls" Music Video". Stitched Sound. 2014-09-02. Retrieved 2021-02-21.

External links[]

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