This street takes its name from Kenter Canyon, whose own namesake was likely one A.C. Kenter. According to old newspapers, this Kenter fellow came here from Minneapolis in 1876 and found work in the Santa Monica Mountains for a dollar a day. In 1877, he was in “Sepulveda Canyon” and had invented a device to heat honey knives – beekeeping being a popular vocation in these hills. By 1882, he owned 160 acres in “Varroza Canyon”, possibly today’s Kenter Canyon. And the 1884-1885 Los Angeles City Directory had beekeeper A.C. Kenter living in Santa Monica (no street address). So who was this “A.C.”? I’m looking at Azel Cook Kenter (1823-1904), a Canadian who immigrated to the Midwest in 1844, served as a wagoner in the Civil War, was registered to vote in Santa Monica in 1888, and finally died at the Milwaukee Soldiers’ Home. One can only wonder why Kenter chose to retire in chilly Wisconsin instead of our own brand new Soldiers’ Home (see Veteran Avenue).
Find it on the map:
