The Studio for Southern California History Jan. 27 announced the recognition of Dr. Amarjit Singh Marwah for his contributions to Los Angeles history, and specifically the Sikh community of Southern California, by Los Angeles Councilmember David Ryu.

Studio director Sharon Sekhon worked with the South Asian American Digital Alliance, the Sikh Temple and Councilman Ryu to recognize Marwah, a news release said.

Specifically, Marwah will be honored with street signage at the corner of Vermont Avenue and Finley Avenue, the location of the Hollywood Sikh Temple at 1966 N. Vermont Avenue, the release said.

Marwah came to the U.S. on a Fulbright scholarship under the Guggenheim Foundation to study pediatric dentistry in New York in 1953. Later, the Indian American enrolled at the University of Illinois at Chicago where he received a master’s degree.

From there, he attended Howard University in Washington, D.C., where he received a doctorate in dentistry, allowing him to practice in the United States, according to his bio.

He taught at the University of Illinois at Chicago and, through the U.S. Public Health Service in 1959, was sent to teach at Bombay University.

Marwah arrived in Los Angeles in 1962 and joined the faculty in the School of Dentistry at the University of Southern California and opened his private practice.

He was the first person of color to desegregate Los Angeles’ medical professional building and lived in nearby Baldwin Hills, noted the bio. Marwah worked as a dentist for 50 years completely on referral, with some of his clients including Hollywood royalty like Elizabeth Taylor, as well as impoverished people whom he treated at USC’s Dental Clinic, a news release said.

Marwah has worked with different Los Angeles leaders but most closely with Mayor Tom Bradley. In 1974 Bradley appointed Marwah as commissioner to chair the Cultural Heritage and Hollywood Art Commission for the City of Los Angeles where he served for 18 years.

He established as historic cultural monuments the 1888 Chinese shrine at Evergreen Cemetery, Barnsdall Park, the Hollywood Walk of Fame, Grauman’s Chinese Theater, Union Station and many others, his bio added.