Toluca Lake History: From Ranch Roots to Hollywood

Established in 1923, Toluca Lake today is known to be this hidden nook in Los Angeles filled with celebrities, a little bit of ritz, and charm all wrapped up in a casual tone. But very few people know that Toluca Lake actually started as a Ranch back in the 1920s. It grew mostly walnuts and peaches. It was called the Forman Toluca Ranch. Now you know where the street name Forman comes from in Toluca Lake. Actually, the US Post was first established in 1893. In 1930, developers came in with the idea of turning Toluca Lake from a ranch into a bedroom community. So in 1931, one of the first residents of Toluca Lake, Amelia Earhart, moved in and put Toluca Lake on the map like never before.

Over the years Toluca Lake has remained unknown to most people. It's very very small in size. So it's easily passed by on the freeway when traveling down the 134 freeway. Plus it can only be entered on 3 sides. The 4th is blocked by the Toluca Lake Country Club golf course. Oddly enough, even tho most people have never heard of Toluca Lake, they most likely have seen it. In the movies. Toluca Lake has been a prime location for movies and commercials for decades in Los Angeles because of its unique properties like a lake, country club and a charming casual quiet neighborhood filled with million-dollar homes. Present day, the word has gotten out about Toluca Lake. How? Well, Toluca Lake has always been filled with celebrities, but what has changed over the years is how celebrities are gossiped about. The infamous paparazzi. Combine that with the internet and Toluca Lake has gone viral. Especially since it has the highest concentration of Disney stars anywhere.

In my next post, I talked about where you may have seen Toluca Lake before and never knew it!