Griffith Jenkins Griffith Statue
A Welsh-American industrialist
and philanthropist, Griffith Jenkins
Griffith was born on January 4,
1850. After making a fortune from a
mining syndicate in the 1880s,
Griffith donated 12 square
kilometers to the City of Los
Angeles which was then called
Griffith Park. This park is located
at 4730 Crystal Springs Drive Los
Angeles. The Griffith Jenkins
Griffith monument was erected here
in his honor. He also donated more
money to build the park’s Greek
Theater and Griffith Observatory.
Griffith shot his wife Christina
Griffith on September 3, 1903 in a
Santa Monica hotel. Fortunately, she
jerked her head to one side and was
able to survive. But the wound left
her face disfigured and she became
blind in one eye. Griffith was
sentenced to two years in San
Quentin State Prison, most probably
because his defense attorney was
Earl Rogers, noted defense lawyer.
The ex-governor of California, Henry
T. Gage, led the prosecution.
Griffith initially offered $100,000
to the city of Los Angeles in 1912
to build an observatory, but the
city rejected the donation and
replied, in part “On behalf of the
rising generation of girls and boys,
we protest against the acceptance of
this bribe ... This community is
neither so poor nor so lost to sense
of public decency that it can afford
to accept this money.” Several years
after his death however, on July 6,
1919, the city finally accepted the
donation and the Griffith
Observatory was erected.
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