Although it looks French, Le Droit Drive’s name actually comes from Washington, D.C.’s LeDroit (rhymes with “Detroit”) Park – that’s where Caroline W. Dobbins (1839-1935), who christened this street in 1920, grew up. The D.C. neighborhood was founded by Amzi Barber, who named it after his father-in-law John LeDroict Langdon but dropped the “c”. As for Caroline Dobbins, she was born Wilhelmina Caroline Emmert to German immigrant parents. She tied the knot with Richard James Dobbins (1832-1893), a builder, in 1861 and had five surviving children with him. The Dobbinses soon relocated to the Philadelphia area and were quite wealthy when they began visiting Southern California in 1888, reportedly for Richard’s health. They purchased eleven acres here in 1892 and erected a mansion on Garfield Avenue later that year; alas, Richard passed away just months later. Caroline eventually resided on Chelton Way while keeping a summer home in Laguna Beach. P.S. The Dobbinses’ daughter Florence was wedded to Thaddeus Lowe Jr., whose father is the namesake of Mount Lowe.
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