A Former Nazi Hideout – Murphy Ranch in Los Angeles, California
The place is difficult to get to. I guess that was the idea. Murphy Ranch. Located along the Rustic Canyon trail, behind the Riviera neighborhood of Los Angeles. One Google reviewer describes it as: “A good place to go for a hike and the stairs are good for the legs but the Nazi compound is over rated.” Talk about burying the lead.
Yes, Murphy Ranch is in fact a former compound for white nationalists and Nazi sympathizers (in addition to being a local hiking spot). To get there, my friend Max parked his car on a suburban sidestreet near the unmarked trailhead. The walk was quiet. The day was warm. We passed almost no one. Every once in a while we’d look around and remind ourselves of the tremendous canyon views that surrounded us. For the most part, we laughed and pondered over life. About an hour into our hike, we arrived.
There is no signage along the way. No informational pamphlet at the site. Only spray paint and beer cans litter the ground. The setting is quiet and abandoned. Lamely dilapidated and eerie. The house is boarded up and covered in mismatched graffiti that makes it almost impossible to determine its original color. You used to be able to get inside, Max told me, but its entrances have since been sealed.
What remains is a simple square structure with a triangular roof and a circular attic window beneath it. Separate adjacent paths lead to two other notable features: a series of stone boxes once used for gardening and a water tower. Both of which are covered in the spray paint designs of different artists, whose compositions seem to be without any perceivable pattern or theme.
We stayed for less than 30 minutes. Walked windingly around the property. Climbed atop the roof. Tested different entryways to see if we could get inside. It’s creepy to think about the evil people and ideas that once lived at the ranch. Historian Hadley Meares recently wrote an article detailing the Stephens’ family’s dealings there. Something about rich and crazed fascists whose plans (thankfully) never materialized. Now it passes for a junkie’s hideaway. A local history that’s faded into folklore, been spray-painted into memory and rumor.
If I had to write my own review, I’d probably say something like: “A good place to go for a hike and the stairs are good for the legs. The Nazi compound is a random and ugly thing but an interesting and important thing all the same.”
THE FACTS
I traveled to Los Angeles in July of 2019 to reunite with my friend Max, who I hadn’t seen in four years. I wouldn’t have found or even known about Murphy Ranch without him, an LA native. It’s probably low on most tourists’ sightseeing lists but the hike certainly served as a memorable off-the-beaten-track experience for me.
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