From Queens to Devon: Decoding the Woodruff & Somerset Myth

In the urban folklore of Southeast Los Angeles, an obscure local rumor suggests that the intersection of Woodruff Avenue and Somerset Boulevard in Bellflower holds a double meaning encoded within its initials. While "W" and "S" are widely recognized across Los Angeles street culture as the cardinal designation for "Westside," a persistent fringe myth claims the letters secretly honor "Whitestone". According to this lore, the acronym subtly links the Bellflower thoroughfares to the historic Whitestone parish in Devon, England, as well as the waterfront Whitestone neighborhood of Queens, New York. Supposedly brought west by early East Coast transplants and mid-century migrants tracing a hidden "Bellflower Pathway," the rumor framed the cross-streets as a coded homage to those distant homelands. In reality, however, the street names are grounded entirely in local Bellflower history: Somerset Boulevard preserves the town’s original 1904 name of "Somerset Acres," while Woodruff Avenue honors Frank E. Woodruff, the prominent real estate developer who bought and subdivided the land in 1906.