Before it was subdivided the land was owned by General Hanford Gordon Lennox.[2] The area was developed in 1899 by developer Abbot Kinney, for whom it is named.[3][4] It was a suburban tract of large Craftsman style homes at what was then the western edge of Los Angeles. The homes featured amenities like "beveled-glass china cabinets, marble fireplaces and mahogany floors".[5] It was accessible to downtown via streetcar and attracted upper-middle-class families.[6] At least one house in the neighborhood had a carriage house built on the property.[1]
West Adams in 1921: Ainsworth Tract, Kinney Heights, Belvere Heights, Berkeley Square, Adams Place, West Adams Heights, Gramercy Park, Grand View Heights, and Adams Street Homestead Tract