Topanga, often called Topanga Canyon, is an unincorporated community in the Santa Monica Mountains and western Los Angeles County. The community is surrounded on three sides by state parks or conservancy lands, including Topanga State Park and is north of the Pacific Ocean and Malibu. Topanga has a reputation for being a bohemian enclave and home to numerous artists, actors, and musicians.

History of Topanga

Topanga is a 180 year old community located in Topanga Canyon in the Santa Monica Mountains section of western Los Angeles County. The canyon was slowly carved by Topanga Creek and its several tributaries which begin nearly ten miles from Santa Monica Bay at Topanga Summit. The earliest settlers were the Chumash People and the Tonga People.

 

Topanga Historical Society

The Topanga Historical Society was formed in 1974 by a group of dedicated local citizens for the purpose of collecting and preserving information, documents, photos, and other valuable memorabilia relating to Topanga and the surrounding area. The organization is governed by a board of directors which publishes a quarterly schedule of its programs which are free and open to the public.

Topanga Creek

Topanga Creek is a natural creek that drains Topanga Canyon into the Santa Monica Bay or the Pacific Ocean.

 

Topanga Creek Watershed

The Topanga Creek Watershed is bounded by numerous ridge tops in Topanga State Park, and the areas above Tuna Canyon in Malibu. It ends where Topanga Creek flows into the Santa Monica Bay at Topanga State Beach.

 

Malibu Creek

Malibu Creek is a year-round stream in the Santa Monica Mountains that flows from the dam at Malibou Lake through Malibu Creek State Park to Malibu Lagoon which is part of the Santa Monica Bay and Pacific Ocean. Malibou Lake was created in 1926 after a dam was constructed at the confluence of Triunfo Creek and Lobo Creek. Water that regularly overflows the dam is the headwater of Malibu Creek. Malibou Lake is not spelled like the name of the stream and city.

 

Fritz and Alma Meier Nature Preserve

The 120 acre Fritz and Alma Meier Nature Preserve is immediately north of Red Rock Canyon Park in the Old Topanga Watershed area of the Santa Monica Mountains. The preserve includes large colored sandstone formations, lush vegetation, a year-round source of water, and lots of wildlife. A hiking trail runs through the nature preserve. Access is at the end of Zuniga Road in Topanga. The property was made available to the public through a generous gift from Fritz and Alma Meier.

 

Topanga Community Club

Topanga Community House

The Topanga Community Club (TCC), founded in 1949, is a non-profit, volunteer, membership organization that sponsors numerous community events throughout the year. The club facility is the Topanga Community House located on 12 acres in the community of Topanga. It is used by seniors, teens, the local chamber of commerce, the local historical society, the Topanga Symphony, and other local groups.

 

Summit Valley Edward D. Edelman Park

Summit Valley Edward D. Edelman Park is a 659 acre park and wildlife habitat located four miles north of the intersection of Topanga Canyon and Old Topanga Canyon Boulevard in the Santa Monica Mountains just north of Topanga and south of Woodland Hills. The park encompasses the headwaters of Topanga Creek and numerous trails available for hikers, mountain bikers, and equestrians.

 

Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum

Topanga Canyon

Theatricum Botanicum is a 299 seat privately owned open-air theater in Topanga Canyon, near Malibu and Santa Monica. The theater features Shakespeare, folk plays, poetry, and concerts. The theater is supported by the National Endowment for the Arts, the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs, and the Los Angeles County Arts Commission.

 

Top of Topanga Overlook

The Top of Topanga Overlook in Topanga can be accessed off the east side of Topanga Canyon Boulevard, just south of Woodland Hills, in Topanga. The overlook provided excellent views of the San Fernando Valley, Santa Monica Mountains, Santa Susana Mountains, and the San Gabriel Mountains. The overlook site is more than 9 acres and includes picnic areas, restroom facilities, and a parking area.

 

Tuna Canyon Park

Tuna Canyon Park is a 1,255 acre park and nature preserve in the western Santa Monica Mountains approximately two miles north of Malibu. The views from Tuna Canyon Park are fantastic and include the Santa Monica Bay east to the San Gabriel Mountains. Tuna Canyon Park links more than 18,000 acres of continuous, protected open space from Topanga State Park west to Las Flores Canyon. For access take Pacific Coast Highway, turn north on Topanga Canyon and then left on Fernwood Pacific Drive.

 

Tuna Canyon Detention Station

The Tuna Canyon Detention Station was established by the administration of Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1941 as a prison or "relocation camp" to hold mostly American citizens of Japanese ancestry after the attack on Pearl Harbor by Japan. This was done pursuant to the infamous and shameful Executive Order 9066 ordering that all American citizens of Japanese ancestry be removed from their homes and communities for forced incarceration until the end of the end of the war which was announced in 1945. In total, more than 120,000 American citizens of Japanese Ancestry were incarcerated in 38 "relocation camps." Most lost their homes, cars, and businesses.

 

Topanga Oaks

Topanga Oaks is a small rural residential community in the Santa Monica Mountains located just south of Topanga and to the west of Pacific Palisades and Topanga State Park.

Fernwood

Fernwood is a small rural residential community in the Santa Monica Mountains just south of Topanga and north of Malibu.

 

Sylvia Park

Sylvia Park is a small rural residential community in the Santa Monica Mountains located just northeast of Topanga and to the west of Pacific Palisades and Topanga State Park.

 

Rancho Topanga Malibu Sequit

Rancho Topanga Malibu Sequit was the 13,316-acre Spanish land grant given in 1804 to present day Los Angeles County that included Malibu, parts of Topanga, and a portion of the Santa Monica Mountains. Adamson House, built in 1929, is a historic site in Malibu.

 

Topanga Library

The Topanga Library is an 11,048 square foot library operated by the County of Los Angeles Public Library. It includes both a children's area and teen area.

Topanga Canyon and the Santa Monica Mountains were home to the Chumash Indians as well as the Tongva Indians for thousands of years before the area was claimed by Spain and later by Mexico.

 

The Federation of Hillside and Canyon Associations

The Federation of Hillside and Canyon Associations is a non-profit organization founded in 1952. Its purpose is to protect the property and quality of life of the residents of the Santa Monica Mountains and other hillside areas of  Los Angeles County and to promote policies and programs that will best preserve the natural topography and wildlife of the mountains and hillsides for the benefit of all the people of Los Angeles County.