Welcome to L.A. Street Names, the origin stories of street names across Los Angeles County, from the shortest cul-de-sacs to the longest boulevards. Mysteries solved, myths debunked, scandals exposed, history revealed. This is an ongoing project with more than 1,700 streets – and growing. See FAQ for more information.
Featured Major Street
Camarillo Street
Named after the town of Camarillo; it was one of several Valley streets that took their names from Ventura County locales in 1916 (see Saticoy Street). The town itself was named for the family who owned it. In 1876, Juan Camarillo (1812-1880), a native of Mexico City, bought the 9,998 acre Rancho Calleguas in southern Ventura County. He died before he could do much with it, so his widow Martina Hernandez Camarillo (1825-1898) deeded it to their sons Adolfo (1864-1958) and Juan Jr. (1867-1936) – much to the chagrin of the four Camarillo daughters, who wanted a piece of the pie and sued several times to get it. Ultimately it was Adolfo who turned the middling rancho into an agricultural goldmine, then into a town. He also owned a bit of the SFV, where the Sepulveda Basin Recreation Area is now located, but nothing near Camarillo Street – a four-mile stretch of which was renamed Riverside Drive in November 1924.