You’re now standing in front of one of the oldest and most elegant buildings in historic Los Angeles: the Vickrey-Brunswig Building. Built in 1888, when the city was just beginning to transform into a metropolis, it was among the first five-story buildings in Los Angeles. Originally, it housed shops on the ground floor and residences above, typical of downtown buildings in the late nineteenth century. Take a moment to notice its brick façade, cast-iron columns, and large decorative cornice—every detail was designed to showcase the city’s budding modernity and prosperity. Later, the building became the headquarters of the Brunswig Drug Company, one of the largest pharmaceutical firms in the western United States, led by Lucien Brunswig. For decades, it was a hub for producing and distributing medicines, pharmacy equipment, and even soda fountains, which were hugely popular at the time. After World War II, the county acquired the building, using it for administrative offices and courtrooms, before it gradually fell into disuse. Long abandoned, it was finally restored in the early twenty-first century and incorporated into LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes, a cultural center dedicated to Los Angeles’ Mexican and Mexican-American history.