in 1818 in Alta California. Throughout the years, the Avila home has kept the styles similarly as to when it was originally built, even after withstanding wars and restoration. The town in which the home was built was called El Pueblo de la Reina de Los Angeles, which is now known as the city of Los Angeles. Before the construction of the Avila home, the land was colonized by Spanish people from Sinaloa, Mexico. In the early 1800s, the town was home to ranchero families who dominated the town. Francisco Avila was a wealthy cattle rancher who was a native of Sinaloa. Francisco grazed cattle which eventually led him to begin a ranching business that grew his wealth significantly. Over time, the home was rented to different people, and in the next century the Avila home took many other forms of use. The home was used as a hotel, housing, lodging, and as a temporary home for U.S. troops. There was a period during its first century where the Avila Adobe was left vacant and unattended. During the years of the late 1920s, the home was neglected and unwatched. The city attempted to demolish the home as it had no use. The home was then saved by Christine Sterling, who saw the home as a historical site. Sterling did not want the authenticity of the home to be destroyed, since it was one of the first homes built in Los Angeles. Sterling was able to stop the city from demolishing the home and eventually transformed it into a museum for others to learn about the history of the home. Sterling named the street in which the Avila home was built Olvera Street, after Agustin Olvera, and influenced the creation of the Mexican marketplace called "Placita Olvera". Today, the home is often visited by many tourists and locals. Olvera Street continues to provide a Mexican cultural environment that is influenced by the history of the Avila Adobe home. Francisco Avila Francisco Avila, a Californio and wealthy cattle rancher, was the grantee of Rancho Las Cienegas west of the pueblo (present day mid-Wilshire district). Avila spent his working time at the rancho where he resided during the week. On weekends, special feast days, or holidays, he came to the Pueblo where he could conduct trade business, entertain friends, families, or patrons; or prepare for services at the Nuestra Señora Reina de los