Heritage Square Museum — Attraction in Los Angeles

Get Your Ghost On In The Octagon!

Even though no one is allowed to go inside the beautiful victorian homes while we're still in the middle of a pandemic; you're able to walk around, video, and take photos via a phone flat on the window or out and about the museum grounds. I've always wanted to go to the Heritage Square Museum and we finally got our weekend up in LA. I love LA; it has the most amazing interactive museums, cemeteries with peacocks and movie nights, and just so much open history that you can walk through and touch; it's one of a kind.

The Octagon house is so so active, I wouldn't say he's bad; but, he's a handful and loves attention. I got him on video and on photos. When I asked him to open the door and say hi; he sure did; and he also moved the basket on the table. You're able to see them on my attached photos. I put the closed door and the open door together on one picture with a time and gps stamp so that you'll see it's in proper timing. I've also got his shadow floating about the wall of the next room which has no other windows than the one I was taping from.

If you're looking for a ghostly adventure; he's ready and waiting for you in the Octagon! And, if you're looking to see the beauty and talent of LA's past; you're in for an overwhelming treat with the most amazing volunteers and staff.

Thank you again, and, again; Heritage...

Dedicated volunteers, beautiful venue, beautiful houses.

UPDATE FOR COVID: Great outdoor museum representing the living history of Los Angeles. If you want to learn a little (or a lot) about the various lives of early Angelenos, awesome architecture, and just be surrounded by history, take a gander. The homes are in various states of restoration since they rely on donations, events, etc... to raise funds and people knowledgeable of historic restoration. My favorite building is the Hale house (the green/colorful one).

The staff and volunteers are friendly, knowledgeable, and the events are super fun and well run. I've been a member the past few years and with this past year in COVID it was one of the places I could be outdoors. They also allowed picnicking and have temporarily allowed dogs (and well behaved owners).

Right now they're only doing outdoor tours, but the staff said they'll likely have limited indoor tours this summer. Parking is free (and dusty, if you're in their lot). Entrance to the museum is at the end of Homer, which is right off of the 110 and Ave 43. If you're taking public transportation/Metro, exit the Southwest Musuem station, NOT Heritage Square stop. The Heritage Square stop spits you out on the back end of the museum and there's no pass through or easy...

This was a nice place to visit and I was able to do a walking tour, but I was a little disappointed by the lack of information at this “museum.” My tour guide was wonderful and very sweet, but the information on the tour was mainly about the people who lived at each of the houses. While it was certainly interesting context, it was not why I visited Heritage Square. I was expecting more details about the architecture and how the changing styles of each home reflected Los Angeles history. The architecture was barely mentioned (I had to ask for even a mention of the architectural styles of each home) which seems like such a wasted opportunity given the preserved historical architecture and how they have houses from different eras and decades that would help illustrate how styles change. The tour included a view of the interiors, but due to COVID restrictions we were rushed through the house and perhaps the rushed nature of the tour is why there wasn’t much information shared beyond the history of the home owners. However, it was breathtaking to see these historical home furnished. The tour guide mentioned that they hope to have longer and more specific tours later in the fall, so hopefully one of those tours will include more information about the...