Lynwood, California, a city of just under 70,000 people, is perhaps one of the most overlooked cities in Los Angeles County. The hometown of “Sugar” Shane Mosley, “Weird Al” Yankovic, Big Van Vader and the incomparable Williams Sisters is just ten miles from Downtown L.A., and is bordered by Compton to the south, Watts to the East, South Gate to the North and Downey to the East.

In some ways, Lynwood reminds me of areas like Langley Park here in the D.C.-metro area: majority Hispanic, just a few miles from the center of a major metropolis, and teeming with small businesses. Grassroots civic organization “The Lynwood Union” is working hard online and offline to promote all Lynwood’s history, from the headliners to the hidden gems (like video of a house party from 1993).

Below is a gallery of photos taken along Atlantic Avenue, one of the busiest streets in the city.