by Hope M. Parrish
We received an email asking, “What happened to the Seven Families bronze at Carlson Park? Was it stolen?” I had thought this might be so, until I started asking around. Dani Cullens with PRCS told me, “We have it! It’s in our greenhouse, and we aren’t sure why. Possibly for protection?” I was thrilled!
Two years ago, we had a rash of stolen bronze plaques in our city, notably the Veteran’s Memorial Building, and two of the CC Historical Society’s — one in front of Vets and another marking La Ballona School as our first school.
The marker and palms were placed here by the CC Chamber of Commerce and an early version of the Historical Society. This marking is important to the many ancestors of the original Spanish settlers that settled in the La Ballona Valley. The seven original families in the La Ballona Valley were Machado, Ybarra, Talamantes, Lugo, Higuera, Rocha, and Saenz. The three palm trees were moved to this location from local ranchos.
Currently, I am working with Cultural Affairs and PRSC on a material that will be less desirable to local thieves and will begin the replacement process.
