Bronson Canyon - Location and History

Location and History

Bronson Canyon is located in the southwest section of Griffith Park and is thus easily accessible from Hollywood. From Franklin Avenue, go north on Canyon Drive until the road ends for vehicular traffic at the parking lot for "Camp Hollywoodland". At the right (east) side of the road is a small concrete bridge painted red. Cross the bridge and walk around the vehicle barrier, and follow the unpaved road, keeping left, for the short walk into Bronson Canyon.

In 1903, the Union Rock Company founded a quarry, originally named Brush Canyon, for excavation of crushed rock used in the construction of city streets. The quarry ceased operation in the late 1920s, leaving the caves behind. The caves became known as the Bronson Caves after a nearby street, giving the area its more popular name of Bronson Canyon (the same street indirectly provided the stage name for actor Charles Bronson, who chose the name of the Bronson Gate at Hollywood's Paramount Studios, which in turn derived its name from Bronson Street).

Scenes of the main cave entrance are normally filmed in a manner that shows the entrance at an angle. This is because the cave is actually a very short tunnel through the hill, with the rear opening easily visible in a direct shot. The most well known appearance of the tunnel entrance is likely as the entrance to the Batcave in the Batman television series of the 1960s.