Hall of the Amigos del País

The Hall of the Amigos del País was created in Los Angeles in 1844 as the meeting place of the Sociedad Económica de los Amigos del País, a society of prominent local residents. Its membership included people born in the region as well as newcomers. The organization was intended to serve two related purposes: providing pensions or mutual assistance and encouraging literary reading. The Ayuntamiento granted the society a tax-free parcel measuring 100 varas square. On this site, the members erected an adobe building containing a dancing hall, a reading room, and card tables. The facility opened with a grand ball and subsequently hosted social events. It became one of the earliest organized social and cultural venues in Los Angeles and is identified as the first social hall or clubhouse built on the North American Pacific Coast. The reading room gave the institution significance beyond entertainment. During the Mexican period of Los Angeles history, it represented the city's first effort to establish a reading room and library. A portion of the hall was separated for this purpose, and members assembled a small collection of books. Because newspapers and new books arrived slowly, material that would have been considered old elsewhere remained useful to local readers. A newspaper six months old could still provide important news, while books from the preceding century remained current enough for regular reading. The society's success was undermined by the unsettled political environment of the 1840s. Political disagreements increasingly displaced the social unity that had brought the members together. The society fell into debt, membership diminished, and the building was eventually placed in a lottery. Andrés Pico won the property through the drawing. The Amigos del País disbanded during the Mexican–American War. The building continued to exist for a time after the organization disappeared, first becoming a saloon and later being associated with the name Los Dos Amigos. The site was eventually redeveloped as the location of the McDonald Block on North Main Street. The society's cultural work nevertheless had a later afterlife. In 1856 and 1859, additional Los Angeles reading rooms were furnished with donated books for members' use. These efforts helped create conditions for the later Los Angeles Library Association. The hall is consequently important as an early example of organized civic sociability, literary culture, and community-oriented institution building in Los Angeles, even though the original structure and society are defunct.

• 1859

  Further reading-room support

  [1]Hall of the Amigos del Paísen.wikipedia.org

  A further reading-room initiative extended the society's literary program and contributed to the development of the Los Angeles Library Association.

• 1856

  Additional reading room furnished

  [1]Hall of the Amigos del Paísen.wikipedia.org

  The Amigos supplied another Los Angeles reading room with donated books for members' use.

• 1844

  Hall established in Los Angeles

  [1]Hall of the Amigos del Paísen.wikipedia.org

  An adobe social hall was erected for the Sociedad Económica de los Amigos del País on a tax-free lot granted by the Ayuntamiento.

• 1844

  Opening marked by a grand ball

  [1]Hall of the Amigos del Paísen.wikipedia.org

  The new facility began its public life with a grand ball and hosted further social entertainments.

• 1844

  Early reading room and library established

  [1]Hall of the Amigos del Paísen.wikipedia.org

  A partitioned section of the building became an early Los Angeles reading room, with a small member-supported library.

An early civic and cultural institution combining social association, mutual aid, literary reading, and community gathering in Mexican-era Los Angeles.

• Civic and social venue · 1844

  Social hall

  The principal facility was an adobe gathering place with a dance floor or dancing hall, card tables, and space for social entertainments. It served leading Los Angeles residents as a clubhouse and meeting venue during the Mexican era.

• Library and literary service · 1844

  Reading room and member library

  A section of the hall was partitioned into a reading room, where members could consult a small collection of donated or collected books. The initiative was an early organized attempt to provide library and reading facilities in Los Angeles.

• Reading and educational service · 1856

  Later Amigos reading rooms

  Additional reading rooms supported in 1856 and 1859 extended the society's cultural mission beyond the original building. Their provision of books for members helped lay groundwork for the Los Angeles Library Association.

• Building transferred through a lotteryOther

  Background

  Debt, political division, and declining membership weakened the society during the 1840s.

  Action taken

  The hall was put up in a lottery, which Andrés Pico won.

  Aftermath

  The society later disbanded during the Mexican–American War, and the building subsequently became a saloon.

  Source

1. 1Hall of the Amigos del Paísen.wikipedia.org