Atwater Village is a Los Angeles community that lies between the Los Angeles River to the west and the City of Glendale to the north and east. In addition, the neighborhood shares borders with the neighborhoods of Silver Lake to the south, Elysian Valley to the southeast, Glassell Park to the northeast, and Los Feliz and Griffith Park across the river to the west.

Much of Atwater lies in the old river floodplain, which resulted in deep, fertile soil that local gardeners enjoy today. Principal thoroughfares include Fletcher Drive, and Los Feliz and Glendale Boulevards. The Golden State and Glendale Freeways run along the district’s western and southeastern borders, respectively.

What is now Atwater Village began originally as a part of Rancho San Rafael, which covered much of what is now Glendale and northeastern Los Angeles. In 1868, W.C.B. Richardson purchased a portion of the Rancho and renamed it Rancho Santa Eulalia. In 1902 this land was eventually subdivided and with some subdivisions offered for sale to prospective home builders. The subdivision that stretched from the Southern Pacific tracks to the Los Angeles River was eventually named Atwater Tract for its proximity to the river – “at-water”. The area would later be known as “Atwater” with the word “Village” added in 1986.