In the early 1900’s an unremarkable Chicago writer by the name of Edgar Rice Burroughs published “Tarzan of the Apes,” an instant success that spawned many sequels.  A lot of the money Burroughs made went toward the purchase of a large property in the southwestern part of the San Fernando Valley that he dubbed “Tarzana Ranch.”  The citizens of the community that sprang up around it voted to adopt the name “Tarzana” when their town was incorporated in 1928.  The community was later annexed by the city of Los Angeles.

The area’s amenities are easily accessed via the Ventura Freeway as well as Ventura Boulevard, which cuts the eight square miles of Tarzana in two.  The division is most pronounced in terms of real estate:  A home south of the Boulevard sells for significantly more than a comparable one north of it.  This is partly because the hills that divide the Valley from the rest of city are here and can provide for better views.  Also, there is a notion that if a house is south of this “line,” it is part of an imaginary community that includes the even more expensive L.A. properties on the other side of the hill.

Also, due to the sloping topography, the majority of the housing are single-family homes; condominiums are generally found north of the Boulevard and Freeway.  Tarzana has a population of approximately 28,500, according to the 2000 San Fernando Valley Almanac.

Many residents have their own swimming pools, which is nothing special in the Valley.

Few of them know, however, that the Valley’s first pool was dug in Tarzana. Perhaps Burroughs dived in for a refresher between chapters?  We may never know.