Dante’s View is a two-acre site in Griffith Park, located due east of Mount Hollywood along the Mount Hollywood Hiking Trail. Circa 1964, Brazilian immigrant of Italian descent Dante Orgolini converted this section of the park into a folk garden. He terraced the land, added winding paths, and new plantings. Not only did he create a garden, but a scenic vista showcasing the Los Angeles basin from the skyline of downtown to the Pacific Ocean.

 

Orgolini created the garden with the help of Park Rangers and other hikers. They brought in plants to landscape the site and created low retaining walls and planters made from rock. Plant specimens included pine, palm, and pepper trees. Dante Orgolini maintained the garden as a volunteer from 1964 until his death in 1978. A plaque exists in the park commemorating Orgolini’s contribution. It reads “From the many friends of Dante Orgolini, 1905-1978, honoring the memory of the man who created this garden for you and me.” After Orgolini’s death, volunteer Charlie Turner maintained the garden until 1997.

 

The original plantings from the 1960s were lost in a 1990 fire. Another fire in 2007 subsequently burned the re-plantings. The garden includes picnic tables and benches. The Historic-Cultural Monument designation recognizes a significant cultural landscape within the park, the later period of Griffith Park’s development, and the contributions of Dante Orgolini to the park.

 

Dante’s View has been a treasured gathering place within Griffith Park for over 51 years. It is a unique example of a cultural landscape created and maintained by a private individual within a public facility. Though the original plantings of Dante’s View were lost to fire in 1990 and 2007, the original 1964 meandering paths, rock retaining walls, and rock planters remain. The garden maintains its original location, layout, and fire-resistant materials from 1964. The garden also retains its association with Dante Orgolini, having been referred to as Dante’s View for many decades.  (Source: Los Angeles Department of City Planning, CHC-2015-2101-HCM)