3 ‘unique and unexpected’ museums that will help you explore LA
Behind every museum, there's a story of why it stands there.
For example, the Flight Path Museum at LAX was founded in the mid-1990s to honor aviation pioneers, recognize the importance of aviation in Southern California and showcase the field to youth. The aviation fans who founded the museum also wanted to pay tribute to pilots and other stars and create their own version of the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Sepulveda Boulevard outside of LAX — that's how the museum got its name. (Yes, so L.A.)
The aviation museum is a part of a list of 64 featured museums in . There are more than 750 museums — big and small — in L.A. County and author Todd Lerew did his due diligence to visit plenty of them.
"I've always really had an interest in unique sort of outside of the box places and stories and creative expressions," he said. "I started visiting these and realizing that almost without exception, they had something that fascinated me... just being able to have that excuse to go to a part of this vast city that I might not otherwise find myself in."
And that's what led to this project.
Lerew's day job is director of special projects for the Library Foundation of Los Angeles, which supports the Los Angeles Public Library, and that's also connected to his unexpected museum project. In his book, he profiles places like La Historia Historical Society Museum, Antelope Valley Indian Museum and the Garifuna Museum of Los Angeles.
The list gives a glimpse into the trajectory of the museums, accompanied with amazing photography by Ryan Schude. But tourists beware, Lerew said it's not a comprehensive guide and he cannot guarantee these learning centers will be open — either hours or even as establishments — when newcomers are looking to go.
The museums' stories "matter and they're worth preserving. And so I really tried to honor that and capture that and have that represented for each site," he said. "I really encourage people to visit every unique, small museum and place they can find in their area."
Here are three museums that will help you understand the region's rich history and culture. (And there are many more on Lerew's companion website where you can check out a map and sort by type.)
Compton Art and History Museum
The new-ish museum ( established in 2023 ) is the vision of couple Abigail Lopez-Byrd and Marquell Byrd. Their background as founders of Color Compton, a nonprofit centering youth through history and art exploration, propelled their work in the city and led them to build the museum. They've hosted a half dozen exhibitions to date, many centering art depicting experiences from the community and people of color. Its current exhibition is titled "Corridos from the 'Hood," which showcases Mexican corridos and how the genre intersects with Black and brown cowboys and cowgirls culture. The museum cements the legacy of Compton's residents and the art community.
If you go:
Antelope Valley Indian Museum
This learning center in the northeastern corner of L.A. County centers the Great Basin indigenous cultures. It was established as a private getaway by anthropologist Howard Arden Edwards in 1928 and later became a public museum in the 1930s and it has been a state park since then. The small museum features artifacts of native tribes; tools, clothing, art and more. The chalet-style house is also another interesting feature, and it was built over a rock formation of Piute Butte. "The layers of history there is just one of the things that kind of really grabs me, and is what makes going to these unexpected places so, so endlessly fascinating," Lerew shared.
If you go:
La Historia Historical Society Museum
This historical society aims to tell the story about the Mexican American people living in El Monte and South El Monte. You'll note histories of the street names to what families lived in what houses in this Latino enclave — it's meant to be a whole archive. The official historical society is a block away, but community members felt like they were lacking Mexican American representation. In the late 90s, folks started their own group to share their perspectives with the world. The museum's exhibits showcase life in the neighborhoods with historical photos and art — fashion, cars, lifestyles. Historical societies "as a whole come together to create a more complete, more equitable, and more interesting picture of what Los Angeles is," Lerew said.
