4 hours ago
1
You have a preview view of this article while we are checking your access. When we have confirmed access, the full article content will load.
Scenic and charming and tucked into the foothills, Altadena seemed like a secret just outside the reaches of Los Angeles.
Listen to this article with reporter commentary
“I felt it was like back home — peaceful and calm and a little secluded,” said Shirley Taylor, who was raised in North Carolina and arrived in 1979.
The town also offered a striking element: a flourishing community of middle-class Black families. Ms. Taylor, a manager for the Social Security Administration, knew she and her two sons would fit right in.
She purchased a three-bedroom Craftsman on Las Flores Drive for about $75,000 that offered a view of the mountains from the master bedroom.
“Oh, it was beautiful,” she said. “I called it ‘my little country home.’”
Around them, a community thrived. Everyone was an auntie or uncle or cousin. Neighborhood barbecues were lively events. Children played in the streets and hurried home when someone rang a bell at sunset. A network of artists, county employees, blue-collar workers and retirees bloomed.
English (US)