It is believed that Beverly Hills was first inhabited over ten thousand years ago. The Native American inhabitants knew the area was rich in resources, with water flowing down the canyons. In the 19th century the area as called Rancho Rodeo de las Aguas (“The Ranch of the Gathering of the Waters,”) named for the merging of the two underground streams: Coldwater Canyon and Benedict Canyon. In 1900, the Rodeo Land and Water Company developed the area into a residential community. From the beginning, it avoided a grid layout. The first streets were laid out in a curvilinear pattern that was supposedly modeled after a female torso. It was envisioned as an oasis and garden, with each street boasting a different variety of trees.