Itinerary: Eagle Rock

Eagle Rock is a thumb of Los Angeles, poking up between Glendale and Pasadena. It had a short-lived life of its own as a city: incorporated in 1911, absorbed by L.A. in 1923.

But the neighborhood of Eagle Rock still has a small-town feel. The area, once filled with orchards and dahlia fields, is now covered with tidy homes, with Hill Drive the address for some of the more interesting houses.

Thursday

Eagle Rock’s stretch of Colorado Boulevard isn’t much of a destination--unless you’re out looking for pizza.

Casa Bianca (1650 Colorado Blvd., [323] 256-9617) has been serving up pizza and other Italian dishes since 1955 and is rarely without a crowd. Some claim it makes the best pizza west of Brooklyn--especially ordered with garlic, fried eggplant and homemade sausage.

Others prefer the thin-crusted pizzas at Capri (4604 Eagle Rock Blvd., [323] 257-3225), another family-owned Italian restaurant.

Friday

Occidental College (1600 Campus Road, [323] 258-2500) started out in Boyle Heights. After a fire, it moved to Highland Park, then settled in nearby Eagle Rock in 1914.

In the east lobby of the Mary Norton Clapp Library (the largest building on campus, on the south side of the central quad), the exhibit “Occidental College Through the Years” tells the history of the school from 1887 to the present (ends June 8).

Occidental is involved in the yearlong project “Re-Envisioning the Los Angeles River” (see Saturday Freebies) and has several related exhibits on campus. In the library’s main lobby is a display of photos, handbills and brochures titled “The Ephemeral River: The Los Angeles River in Ephemeral Literature.” It ends May 18. A show of student work, “Oxy Looks at the River,” is on display in Samuelson Pavilion until Saturday.

If wandering the campus makes you hungry, head up Eagle Rock Boulevard to Merton Street, where there’s a Farmers Market each Friday from 5 to 8 p.m.

Saturday

Eagle Rock got its own library with a $7,500 grant from millionaire industrialist Andrew Carnegie--one of 1,681 free public library buildings the Carnegie Corp. paid for. The Mission Spanish Colonial Revival building, designed by W.E. Kleinpell, opened in 1915. After a new library was constructed in 1981, the building stood vacant until the mid-’90s, when it was turned into the Eagle Rock Community Cultural Center (2225 Colorado Blvd., [323] 226-1617). Currently the center is hosting the art show “Water Marks: Art Inspired by the L.A. River,” through May 6.

Sunday

Looking out at Eagle Rock from across the 134 Freeway is the natural landmark from which the neighborhood gets its name. Some see in the rock the profile of the bird’s head, but when the sun is in the right position, an outcropping creates a shadow resembling a swooping eagle. To get to the rock from Colorado Boulevard, go north on Patrician Way, then left on Eagle Rock View Drive.

Upcoming

The free Eagle Rock Arts Festival is May 6, 10 a.m.-6 p.m., at Eagle Rock and Colorado boulevards. The festival has live entertainment, a classic car show and 100 arts and informational booths. (323) 255-6822.

On May 20, the Eagle Rock Assn. will lead an Eclectic Home Tour of five houses on Hill Drive from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. $10 to $12. (323) 256-7297.