NEIGHBORHOODS / SIERRA MADRE

LOTS OF towns like to compare themselves with the fictional Mayberry, but few can justify the claim as well as Sierra Madre. Sandwiched between Arcadia and Pasadena at the base of the San Gabriel Mountains, this hamlet of about 11,000 takes great pride in its time-warp atmosphere, which has made it a popular filming location. Its quaint downtown area boasts a community playhouse as well as numerous mom-and-pop shops and sidewalk cafes, but almost no chain stores and not a single traffic light. Dozens of its structures, mostly homes built in the early 1900s, are registered historic landmarks.

Town founder and developer Nathaniel C. Carter purchased the land from Arcadia’s founder, mining magnate E.J. “Lucky” Baldwin, in 1875 and began marketing it as “Nature’s Sanitarium,” purporting the dry air would cure tuberculosis. Thanks to Sierra Madre’s balmy weather and proximity to Mt. Wilson, it soon became a vacation mecca, its canyon thickly populated with resort cabins, many of which still stand.

The town, which covers 3 square miles, was a 2007 winner of the National Civic League’s All-America Cities Award, but its biggest claim to fame is its beloved 114-year-old wisteria vine, widely acknowledged as the largest flowering plant on the planet. There are other treasures to be found here, as you’ll see below.

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STAR POWER

Founded in 1904, the Mount Wilson Observatory ( www.mtwilson.edu) is home to the 100-inch Hooker Telescope and the world’s most powerful optical telescope array. Tours are available to visitors from April to November.

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WHERE’S WALDO?

Sierra Madre’s oldest operating business and last working ranch, E. Waldo Ward & Son (273 E. Highland Ave., [626] 355-1218) specializes in jams, jellies and preserves. Visitors can arrange to tour the factory Saturdays between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m.

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TEA TIME

The elegant Four Seasons Tea Room, below (75 N. Baldwin Ave.; [626] 355-0045) is located inside an antique-filled cottage with a latticed patio. Afternoon tea includes sandwiches and freshly baked scones served with cream and raspberry jam.

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CAFE SOCIETY

A local institution since 1922, Mary’s Market and Cafe (561 Woodland Drive, [626] 355-4534) is where residents and visitors of Sierra Madre Canyon stock up on food, sundries and gossip. “Taco Tuesdays,” featuring live music, are especially popular.

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FLORA & FAUNA

Nature Friends International, a hiking and nature study organization founded in Vienna in 1885, established a Sierra Madre chapter in 1920. Its three-story Bavarian-style clubhouse and garden (423 Yucca Trail, [626] 355-0117) serves as a wildlife sanctuary, retreat center and community resource.

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-- Pauline.OConnor@latimes.com

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ON THE WEB

For more about Sierra Madre and other neighborhoods throughout Southern California, go to theguide.latimes.com/neighborhoods.