HIstory paints a picture of Rodia as a poor, Italian immigrant, known to be a hot head. He was married, with two sons and a daughter, and having worked as a laborer in Seattle, moved to Oakland, California around 1904, where a community of Italian immigrants was growing. Three years later, in 1907, Rodia was unhappy and took to drinking following the death of his daughter, Bel. The marriage dissolved in 1912. From there he moved around the US and returned to California with his third wife, settling into a house on a triangular lot, at the end of a dead end, at 1765 East 107th Street in Watts, CA (between Los Angeles and Long Beach).
A long time laborer and very experienced cement worker, Rodia, 42 years old in 1921, spent every free moment after work and on weekends building his structures. Although he had been in the United States for 26 years at this point, his thick Italian accent made him unable to communicate with neighbors (or others who might have been able to assist with his construction). Sadly, his wife left him, feeling neglected by him due to his unwavering focus on his project.
To visit today, you may take your own tour around the outside of the fenced in structure, or you can pay for an interior tour of the towers. Short on time, we opted out of the interior tour and walked around it after spending some time in the adjacent Art Center which houses information on Rodia and the entire history, as well as a small gallery that exhibits local artists' work.