Slauson Avenue is a major east–west

thoroughfare A thoroughfare is a primary passage or way of transport, whether by road on dry land or, by extension, via watercraft or aircraft. Originally, the word referred to a main road or open street which was frequented thoroughly. Different terms *Roa ...

traversing the central part of

Los Angeles County, California Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles and sometimes abbreviated as LA County, is the List of United States counties and county equivalents, most populous county in the United States, with 9,663,345 residents estimated in 202 ...

. It was named for the land developer and Los Angeles Board of Education member J. S. Slauson. It passes through

Culver City Culver City is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 40,779. It is mostly surrounded by Los Angeles, but also shares a border with the unincorporated area of Ladera Heights to the ea ...

, Ladera Heights, View Park-Windsor Hills,

South Los Angeles South Los Angeles, also known as South Central Los Angeles or simply South Central, is a region in southwestern Los Angeles County, California, lying mostly within the city limits of Los Angeles, south of Downtown Los Angeles, downtown. It is de ...

Huntington Park Huntington Park is a city located in the South Central region of Los Angeles County, California, United States. The area includes the separate communities of Florence, California, Florence, Firestone Park, California, Firestone Park, Graham, ...

, Maywood,

Commerce Commerce is the organized Complex system, system of activities, functions, procedures and institutions that directly or indirectly contribute to the smooth, unhindered large-scale exchange (distribution through Financial transaction, transactiona ...

, Montebello, Pico Rivera, Whittier, and

Santa Fe Springs Santa Fe Springs (''Santa Fe'', Spanish for "Holy Faith") is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is one of the Gateway Cities of southeast Los Angeles County. The population was 19,219 at the 2020 census, up from 16,22 ...

. The street runs from McDonald Street in Culver City and to Santa Fe Springs Road, where it becomes Mulberry Drive in Whittier. Mulberry Drive ends at Scott Avenue in South Whittier.

Transit

Metro Rail

There are three major transit stations (two light rail) on Slauson Avenue. They include the Slauson Station of the Metro A Line and the Hyde Park Station on the Metro K Line.

Metro Bus and freeways

Slauson/I-110 Station of the Metro J Line is elevated in the median of Interstate 110 freeway.

Metro Local The Los Angeles Metro Bus is the transit bus service in Los Angeles County, California, operated by the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro). Metro Bus operates in the Los Angeles Basin, the San Fernando Valley, and th ...

line 108 operates on Slauson Avenue. The eastern terminus of the State Route 90, the Marina Freeway, is at Slauson Avenue. In Los Angeles, the street is south of Washington Boulevard and

Vernon Avenue Vernon may refer to: Places Australia *Vernon County, New South Wales Canada *Vernon, British Columbia, a city * Vernon, Ontario France * Vernon, Ardèche *Vernon, Eure United States * Vernon, Alabama * Vernon, Arizona * Vernon, California ...

, but north of Gage Avenue and

Florence Avenue Florence Avenue is a major east–west street in central Los Angeles County and South Los Angeles, in Southern California. 150px, Oldest McDonald's restaurant, The oldest operating McDonald's is on Florence Ave at Lakewood, in Downey, Calif ...

Landmarks

Slauson Avenue was noted for a former

Bethlehem Steel The Bethlehem Steel Corporation was an American steelmaking company headquartered in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Until its closure in 2003, it was one of the world's largest steel-producing and shipbuilding companies. At the height of its success ...

mill Mill may refer to: Science and technology * Factory * Mill (grinding) * Milling (machining) * Millwork * Paper mill * Steel mill, a factory for the manufacture of steel * Sugarcane mill * Textile mill * List of types of mill * Mill, the arithmetic ...

on the 3300 block. At one time Slauson Avenue was a center for urban

heavy industry Heavy industry is an industry that involves one or more characteristics such as large and heavy products; large and heavy equipment and facilities (such as heavy equipment, large machine tools, huge buildings and large-scale infrastructure); o ...

in Los Angeles; the

ATSF The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway , often referred to as the Santa Fe or AT&SF, was one of the largest Class 1 railroads in the United States between 1859 and 1996. The Santa Fe was a pioneer in intermodal freight transport; at variou ...

Harbor Subdivision once ran along Slauson Avenue. It is also known for the Simply Wholesome

Vegetarian Vegetarianism is the practice of abstaining from the Eating, consumption of meat (red meat, poultry, seafood, insects as food, insects, and the flesh of any other animal). It may also include abstaining from eating all by-products of animal slau ...

restaurant A restaurant is an establishment that prepares and serves food and drinks to customers. Meals are generally served and eaten on the premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and Delivery (commerce), food delivery services. Restaurants ...

and

Health food store A health food store (or health food shop) is a type of grocery store that primarily sells healthful foods, organic foods, local produce, and often nutritional supplements. Health food stores typically offer a wider or more specialized selectio ...

, as well as the

historic History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some theorists categ ...

Jet Inn motor hotel.

Revitalization project

Portions of Slauson Avenue have been revitalized with a new tree-lined barrier, new

LED A light-emitting diode (LED) is a semiconductor device that emits light when current flows through it. Electrons in the semiconductor recombine with electron holes, releasing energy in the form of photons. The color of the light (corresp ...

street and traffic lights, and Metro Local bus benches. The project was officially completed in May 2017.

In popular culture

Nipsey Hussle

Rapper and Los Angeles native

Nipsey Hussle Ermias Joseph Asghedom (born Airmiess Joseph Asghedom; August 15, 1985 – March 31, 2019), known professionally as Nipsey Hussle, was an American rapper, entrepreneur, and activist. Emerging from the West Coast hip-hop scene in the mid-20 ...

frequently referred to Slauson Avenue in his music. He owned the Marathon Clothing Store at the intersection of Slauson and Crenshaw. The intersection was named Ermias "Nipsey Hussle" Asghedom Square in April 2019 in his honor.

Dr. Dre

The music video for

Dr. Dre Andre Romell Young (born February 18, 1965), known professionally as Dr. Dre, is an American rapper, record producer, record executive, and actor. He is the founder and CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and Beats Electronics, and co-founder of ...

's 1993 song " Let Me Ride" was shot on location on Slauson Avenue. One of Dr. Dre's lyrics in the song also references the avenue: "''The sun went down when I hit Slauson, On my way to the strip, now I'm just flossin".

''The Tonight Show''

The avenue became well known to non-Angelenos around the U.S. because of

Johnny Carson John William Carson (October 23, 1925 – January 23, 2005) was an American television host, comedian, and writer best known as the host of NBC's ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'' (1962–1992). Carson is a cultural phenomenon and w ...

's running joke about the "Slauson Cutoff" during his "Tea-Time Movie" sketches on ''

The Tonight Show ''The Tonight Show'' is an American late-night talk show that has been broadcast on NBC since 1954. The program has been hosted by six comedians: Steve Allen (1954–1957), Jack Paar (1957–1962), Johnny Carson (1962–1992), Jay Leno (1992–2 ...

.''

References

{{Streets in Los Angeles Baldwin Hills (mountain range) Culver City, California Huntington Park, California Inglewood, California Maywood, California Montebello, California Pico Rivera, California Whittier, California Streets in Los Angeles County, California South Los Angeles