The Central Manufacturing District was established on what had once been the pre-statehood Rancho San Antonio land grant.

[8] Beginning in September 1925, the Stock Yards and the Central Manufacturing District generally were served by the Los Angeles Junction Railway[5] which permitted joint use of the tracks by Southern Pacific, Union Pacific and Santa Fe trains.

[11] Santa Fe Railroad bought out the Stock Yards Company in 1928 and eventually expanded the "Central Manufacturing District" into a 3,500 acre irregularly shaped industrial tract.

[15] Beginning during World War II, stockmen began selling their animals directly to packers, and the industry shifted more generally to using trucks, rather than rail, for transport.

The stockyard business declined but the value of centrally located Los Angeles real estate continued to increase.