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| Topanga Ranch Motel | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| General information | |||||
| Architectural style | Bungalow | ||||
| Location | 18711 Pacific Coast Highway, Malibu, California, U.S. | ||||
| Opened | 1929 | ||||
| Closed | 2025 | ||||
| Owner | William Randolph Hearst California State Parks | ||||
| |||||
Topanga Ranch Motel was a historic motel located within Topanga State Park in Los Angeles County, California. The motel was built in 1929 by William Randolph Hearst. On January 8, 2025, the motel was destroyed by the Palisades Fire.
History
The motel began in 1919 as a campground, called Cooper's Camp, run by Miller Cooper. Cabins were added in 1920 to house a summer camp for classical musicians. Cooper gave up the business in 1926 and, in 1928, it was renamed the Topanga Beach Auto Court. When a highway running through the camp was reconstructed in 1933, the motel was moved dozens of feet inland. The motel included a bungalow-style motel, built in 1929, and thirty two cabins. The 30-room bungalow-style motel originally housed construction workers employed to complete the Pacific Coast Highway.
It was built by publishing mogel William Randolph Hearst.
In the 1980s, a plan was introduced to demolish the motel and replace it with eight-hundred condominiums and apartments. The plan was defeated. California State Parks acquired the site in 2001 but the motel closed in 2004.
On January 8, 2025, the Palisades Fire destroyed the Topanga Ranch Motel, as well as other areas of the park. Prior to its destruction in the fire, it was one of the last surviving examples of an early bungalow-style motel.
References
- ^ https://topanganewtimes.com/2024/09/06/topanga-ranch-motel-gets-a-reprieve/
- ^ https://www.parks.ca.gov/NewsRelease/1346
- https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-01-08/will-rogers-ranch-house-hearst-motel-burned-down
- https://www.elledecor.com/life-culture/a63396576/california-wildfires-will-rogers-ranch-topanga-ranch-motel/
- https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2025/01/09/palisades-fire-topanga-ranch-motel-will-rogers-house/77574727007/
- Parks, California State. "Palisades Fire Destroys Historic Homes and Buildings at Will Rogers State Historic Park and Topanga State Park". California State Parks. Retrieved 2025-01-08.
- Buildings and structures destroyed by the January 2025 Southern California wildfires
- Bungalow architecture in California
- Demolished hotels in Los Angeles
- Hotels in Los Angeles County, California
- Hotel buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in California
- Motels in the United States
- Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area
- Topanga, California