McGroarty Art Center Friends

Longtime Verdugo Hills resident John Steven McGroarty was a playwright, columnist, lawyer, congressman, and poet of California. He lived for many years at Rancho Chupa Rosa, a small hacienda near Tujunga that the City of Los Angeles bought in 1953 and now uses to host culture and craft classes. At the turn of the twentieth century, McGroarty crusaded for the restoration of California's early landmarks, especially the missions that once distinguished the state's landscape. In 1911, with the publication of The Mission Play, a drama about Father Junipero Serra and the rise and fall of the California missions, McGroarty became a popular playwright. The play opened in San Gabriel on 29 April 1912. In addition to other plays, including La Golondrina, Osceola, and Babylon, McGroarty wrote poems, novels, historical works, and the Los Angeles Times column "From the Green Verdugo Hills. "The McGroarty Art Center's collection contains the library and memorabilia of John Steven McGroarty, and the center's archival holdings include plays, books, and Los Angeles Times articles written by McGroarty.