The settlement was established on a dairy cattle ranch known as Rancho Santa Eulalia that was owned by W. C. B. Richardson. Richardson bought the ranch from one Samuel M. Heath in 1868. (UCLA Digital Collections) Tropico was the first
Southern Pacific railroad depot north of Los Angeles proper, located about north of the city. The
Los Angeles Times called the name Tropico "a horrible rumor...materialized into a fact." The
San Pedro and Salt Lake and/or "Glendale narrow-gauge" railroads also ran past Tropico. The townsite was laid out in 1887 and bounded by what became Lexington, Colorado, Central, and Chevy Chase Drive. The station was built on a lot donated by Richardson. By 1890, a number of market-garden farms in the area were worked by Chinese immigrants. Underground water from the
Verdugo watershed was drawn for homes and farms by wells and windmills. The electric interurban line was completed in 1904. In 1910, the
Los Angeles Times delivered a report from town boosters that, "Tropico stands at the gateway between the valley and the city. At this point are many signs of a new and substantial impetus. The Baumeister-Salyer piano factory is being built a little north of the center of town, G. H. A. Goodwin is opening a large subdivision, the Tropico Art Tile Works are being enlarged and the old Richardson ranch, where strawberries have been raised for years is about to be transformed Into a fine residence district, with cement walks and curbs, oiled streets and $4,000 to $5,000 houses and bungalows. A bank is one of the proposed features for the center of town and new business blocks will soon be erected." '' (1920) starring
Harold Lloyd Tropico was an incorporated sixth-class city of beginning on March 15, 1911. described as the "heart of the industrial district" circa 1930. In 1939, the Tropico district threatened to secede from Glendale and seek annexation by Los Angeles if requests for community improvements were not addressed. The old city hall building, located at the intersection of Brand and Los Feliz, was demolished in 1940. Tropico was known for its strawberry production. There are a number of surviving Weston photographs of Tropico. A Tropico Bridge was built across the
Los Angeles River in 1924. The Tropico branch of the
Glendale Public Library stood at 1501 S. Brand Blvd. The name also survived for a time in a plant nursery, motel, and a convalescent hospital. Tropico Avenue, an east–west thoroughfare, later became
Los Feliz Blvd. There is still a U.S. post office in Glendale called Tropico. == Additional images ==