[3] Bolton Hall was built in 1913 by George Harris, a self-described "nature builder",[4] rock mason, and stone sculptor.

[7]: 38  Harris urged that the 3,000-square-foot (280 m2) hall be built solely of native materials and selected a design that he said borrowed nothing from European architecture.

[10] When Bolton Hall opened in August 1913, the Los Angeles Times reported that it marked the "awakening of the Vale of Monte Vista" (the former name of Sunland): First settled nearly thirty years ago, the valley has shown more life in the past six months than in all its previous history.

Los Terrenitos, the settlement of "'little-landers," has made wonderful progress since its inception, five months ago, about 200 families having purchased land, not all of whom are yet on the ground.

"[11]The Times also reported that Bolton Hall was "built to stand for ages", and it has survived the 1971 Sylmar and 1994 Northridge earthquakes without a scratch.

[10] Over the next decade, it was used for church services, musical performances, lectures, motion picture shows, the Women's Club, dances, and pot-luck suppers.

[6][12] In 1932, Tujunga was consolidated with the City of Los Angeles, and the building was used for the next 25 years for a variety of municipal services, including the San Fernando Valley's second public library and a jail.

[5][8] When the city announced in 1959 that it intended to tear down the old building and convert the property into a neighborhood park, the Little Landers Historical Society of Sunland and Tujunga was formed to fight for the preservation of Bolton Hall.

"[10] In late 1979, Los Angeles City Councilman Bob Ronka secured $169,000 in federal funds to augment $23,800 raised by the Little Landers Historical Society.

[6] Near the front entrance of the museum, there is a tobacco-stained stone that juts out from the wall; it was used by early colonists to clean out their pipes when the building was used as a church.