Bell Gardens is a city in the U.S. state of California in the Los Angeles metropolitan area.

[8][9] In the late 18th century, when the area was associated with a large amount of land situated along the lower basin of the Rio Hondo area in Los Angeles County, Bell Gardens was once a bustling agricultural center for Californios during the Spanish Empire, 1509–1823, the Mexican government, 1823–1848, and the United States, after the Mexican-American War concluded in 1848.

The land grant was a reward for his military service during the establishment of the Franciscan Missions in California while being the attendant of colonization for the area.

One of his nine children, Vicente Lugo, married and built a two-story adobe home in 1850, located at 6360 Gage Avenue.

A granddaughter of Antonio Lugo married Wallace Woodworth, an early-day merchant and civic leader in Los Angeles.

Their eldest son, Joseph Woodworth, built a two-story colonial style house at 6820 Foster Bridge Road in 1924.

The land's original adobe dwelling was built in 1795 and named Casa de Rancho San Antonio by Lugo.

When Henry T. Gage, a lawyer who married Antonia Lugo's granddaughter Frances V. Rains, occupied the residence, he added two wings and redwood siding, installed bronze fireplaces, and imported expensive fabric wallpaper from France to serve as background for the Gage coat of arms, which enjoys a place of prominence in every room.

Area farmers sent their children to the San Antonio School, which was one of the earliest educational institutions in the County of Los Angeles.

Because of the rich soil, many Japanese immigrants are part of Bell Gardens’ early history.

With some of the richest agricultural land in the country, Bell Gardens remained a farming community until the 1930s.

Beck purchased property and begins to build affordable homes for those suffering through the depression era.

Tiny houses were sold and rented to Okies and Native Americans, forced from their homes by the Dust Bowl.

[11] Thousands of Central Americans fleeing civil wars in the 1980s also came to the region and created small businesses and worked in the same service industry jobs.

[12][13] By 2013, approximately 122,000 homeowners in the southeast were Latina/o; a region where, prior to 1965, families of color could not live due to restrictive covenants.

[12] On September 30, 2014, Bell Gardens mayor Daniel Crespo was shot dead at his home.

[14][15] The oldest remaining house in Los Angeles City is the Avila Adobe located on Olvera Street (built in 1818).

Shane Kimbler, a Bell Gardens history enthusiast, wrote that early colonist Francisco Salvador Lugo and son Antonio María Lugo began construction in 1795 on what is now known as Casa de Rancho San Antonio or the Henry Gage Mansion.

In 1880, attorney Henry Tifft Gage, a transplant from Michigan, married one of Lugo's great-granddaughters, Francis "Fanny" Rains.

When Gage acquired the mansion he worked very extensively to restore the heritage farmhouse of early Los Angeles.

Bell Gardens maintains only a small portion of the original Lugo land grant, which is located at the site of the Casa Mobile home Park at 7000 Gage Ave.

In 1991, the park's tenants, who own the land as well as Lugo's original dwelling, were successful in their efforts to have Casa de San Antonio named State Historical Monument No.

Their effort ensures that Don Antonio Maria Lugo's name and his historic home will be preserved for future generations of Bell Gardens residents and Californians.

In 1987, then Bell Gardens City Councilwoman Letha Viles began working to get the house listed on the state historical registry, making it eligible for maintenance grants.

[19] According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 2.5 square miles (6.5 km2), over 99% of it land.

According to the 2010 United States Census, Bell Gardens had a median household income of $38,170, with 27.6% of the population living below the federal poverty line.

These were the ten cities or neighborhoods in Los Angeles County with the largest percentage of Latino residents, according to the 2000 census:[45] The Bicycle Hotel & Casino is located in Bell Gardens.

[46] DEL Records, a Latin independent entertainment company, is located in Bell Gardens.

[53] The United States Postal Service Bell Gardens Post Office is located on Garfield Ave.[54] The Postal Service also operates a Network Distribution Center on Bandini Boulevard north of Bell Gardens, in the City of Commerce.