Demographics (2010): 42.5% Hispanic, 28.1% White, 13.1% Asian, 12.9% Black
Population (2010): 462,257
President: 64.40% D / 34.17% R (2004), 69.49% D / 28.44% R (2008), 69.88% D / 27.55% R (2012), 70.75% D / 22.60% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $52,711
% Bachelor's: 30.6%
Long Beach started out as part of Rancho Los Cerritos, bought by New Englander Jonathan Temple, who built a lucrative cattle ranch and became the wealthiest man in Los Angeles County. Later, Temple sold the ranch to Flint, Bixby, & Company, a sheep-raising firm from Northern California. Jotham Bixby, the "Father of Long Beach", was selected to manage the rancho. Bixby sold 4,000 acres to William E. Willmore, who planned to create a farm community. He failed, and the "Long Beach Land and Water Company" bought the area, and changed the name of the area to Long Beach.
After incorporation Long Beach was mostly a seaside resort city, with the famous amusement park The Pike, which ran from 1902 to 1969. Eventually the port, oil industry, and Navy became economic staples. Aircraft manufacturing also had a significant presence in Long Beach, with Douglas Aircraft's largest plant there.
Believe it or not, Long Beach was famous for being an oil town, only in Long Beach's case it was in the 1930s. Oil was discovered in 1921 in Signal Hill, which became its own city. Then the Long Beach and Wilmington Oil Fields were developed, making oil a big part of Long Beach's economy. A powerful earthquake in 1933 damaged a lot of the city.
Before World War II many Japanese-Americans lived in Long Beach, working the fish canneries before being ordered to the internment camps. Most did not return after the war. Many Midwesterners moved to Long Beach in the 1940s and 1950s, and the city was called "Iowa by the Sea".
The RMS Queen Mary ocean liner, built by Cunard (same company that built the Carpathia) in 1936 is 200 feet longer than the RMS Titanic, and transported troops during World War II. In 1967, Long Beach purchased the ship to have permanently docked in the city and converted to a hotel and museum.
Demographics (2010): 42.3% White, 34.5% Asian, 16.1% Hispanic, 2.7% Black
Population (2010): 145,438
President: 52.85% R / 45.93% D (2004), 51.78% D / 46.13% R (2008), 52.05% D / 45.31% R (2012), 56.45% D / 37.03% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $77,061
% Bachelor's: 50.5%
Torrance, the origin of the American Youth Soccer Organization, was named after developer Jared Sidney Torrance who envisioned a residential and industrial area south of Los Angeles. Architect Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr. designed the planned community. The Del Amo Fashion Center, one of the country's largest shopping centers, was in Torrance as was the Old Towne Mall that had no anchor stores but mixed shopping with amusement and entertainment.
Demographics (2010): 70.7% Hispanic, 17.7% White, 7.0% Asian, 3.9% Black
Population (2010): 111,772
President: 54.60% D / 44.19% R (2004), 61.31% D / 36.52% R (2008), 65.51% D / 32.36% R (2012), 69.35% D / 25.16% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $60,939
% Bachelor's: 22.8%
Downey started out as a dairy town settled by many people from Ireland, including John G. Downey, the youngest ever governor of California and also the first foreign-born governor before Arnold Schwarzenegger (R). Though Downey was a Democrat, he supported Abraham Lincoln's moves to keep the Union together. Downey also built the first subdivision in the state and imported oranges, thinking that they would flourish in the region. Indeed they did, and Downey became known as "an orange grove town".
Manufacturing came to Downey during World War II, with Vultee Aircraft, which was one of the first companies to have women work in the factories and to build airplanes via assembly line. The area's aircraft facilities would later be known as the origin of the Apollo Space Program. The NASA plant continued to supply a lot of aerospace jobs, and with the cutbacks after the Cold War, Downey was hit hard.
Downey is also home to the oldest McDonald's still in operation, which was the third ever McDonald's to open; it opened in 1953.
Demographics (2010): 50.6% Hispanic, 43.9% Black, 2.9% White, 1.5% Asian
Population (2010): 109,673
President: 88.43% D / 10.86% R (2004), 92.83% D / 6.00% R (2008), 93.82% D / 5.06% R (2012), 91.13% D / 5.23% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $43,394
% Bachelor's: 20.5%
After being a center for Ku Klux Klan activity in the 1920s and highly segregated, Inglewood had more blacks move into the city in the 1960s, especially the east side of the city while the west side was predominantly white. Many community meetings were highly contentious, as, at least per author Gladys Waddingham, even the black population opposed busing at similar levels to whites.
As blacks' influence grew in Inglewood, whites moved out in large numbers in the 1980s. Inglewood was also the first city in the state to declare Martin Luther King, Jr. Day a holiday.
In the 1990s Inglewood experienced the largest increase of the Hispanic population in the South Bay, largely because of its relatively affordable housing.
Demographics (2010): 70.1% Hispanic, 12.3% White, 12.0% Asian, 4.4% Black
Population (2010): 105,549
President: 61.16% D / 37.59% R (2004), 67.50% D / 30.32% R (2008), 72.53% D / 25.26% R (2012), 73.63% D / 20.99% R (2016)
MHI (2000): $60,770
% Bachelor's: 17.2%
Norwalk also started out as a dairy farming town settled by Dutch with a cheese factory and some of the largest sugar beet farms in the region. After the 1950s, the Hispanic population grew.
Demographics (2010): 65.0% Hispanic, 32.9% Black, 0.8% White, 0.3% Asian
Population (2010): 96,455
President: 90.43% D / 8.56% R (2004), 94.72% D / 4.17% R (2008), 95.53% D / 3.51% R (2012), 91.78% D / 4.33% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $42,953
% Bachelor's: 8.1%
Compton was settled by Griffith Dickenson Compton in 1867 and started out as a small-scale farming community. Japanese-Americans called Compton home in the early 20th century until they were sent to internment camps during World War II. Few blacks lived there in the early 20th century, but later in the 1950s, the city attracted black families from the South. The proximity to the established black community in Watts was a reason.
Compton was actually a desirable suburb for the black middle class, though the city declined due to the erosion of its tax base and white flight to neighboring cities. Shortly after many middle-class blacks also found other cities and unincorporated areas better, such as Inglewood and Carson. Compton incorporated in 1968, and was one of few cities where the black population was more affluent than the white population.
In 1969 Douglas Dollarhide was elected Mayor of Compton, the first black man elected mayor of any city in the state. In 1973 Doris A. Davis the first such black woman. In the early 1970s Compton was over 90% black, the highest percentage of any American city at the time. After the 1992 riots, blacks left the city in increasing numbers.
Crime rose sharply in Compton after the 1965 Watts riots. Gang violence there became nationally known with the Crips and Bloods, and declined in the 1990s. However, conflicts between the black population and the growing Hispanic population led to a rebound in violence.
Demographics (2010): 94.8% Hispanic, 3.4% White, 0.9% Black, 0.8% Asian
Population (2010): 94,396
President: 76.63% D / 22.09% R (2004), 80.52% D / 17.32% R (2008), 84.59% D / 13.52% R (2012), 85.17% D / 10.05% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $42,776
% Bachelor's: 9.3%
South Gate was named after Cudahy Ranch's South Gate Gardens. Development of the city involved the selling of plots to blue-collar workers to build their own homes. The economy's backbone was urban agriculture before shifting in the 1920s to metal-bashing and automobile manufacturing in the South Gate Assembly.
South Gate was one of the most adamantly segregationist cities in the region, with gangs of white kids who watched for blacks from neighboring Watts. In the 1970s the working-class whites moved out, and working-class Hispanics took their place. Today South Gate is one of the most heavily Hispanic cities in Los Angeles County.
Demographics (2010): 38.6% Hispanic, 25.6.% Asian, 23.8% Black, 7.7% White
Population (2010): 91,714
President: 70.93% D / 28.12% R (2004), 76.30% D / 22.39% R (2008), 80.37% D / 18.19% R (2012), 79.34% D / 16.54% R (2016)
MHI (2000): $60,457
% Bachelor's: 26.6%
Carson grew out of the Dominguez Rancho, named after the Mexican-American War battle in 1846. Mineral rights were owned partly by the Carson Estate Company. The city got its name from George Henry Carson.
Oil production began in the 1920s, and brought growth and prosperity in subsequent decades. In 2000, Carson was one of few cities in which the black population had a higher median income than the white population.
Demographics (2010): 65.7% Hispanic, 28.3% White, 3.8% Asian, 1.3% Black
Population (2010): 85,331
President: 49.56% R / 49.33% D (2004), 56.02% D / 41.76% R (2008), 57.61% D / 40.01% R (2012), 60.97% D / 32.74% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $68,522
% Bachelor's: 25.6%
Whittier was named after Quaker poet John Greenleaf Whittier. German immigrant Jacob F. Gerkens bought land here under the Homestead act, and would later become the first police chief of the Los Angeles Police Department.
Whittier was settled by Quakers, who would grow citrus under the "Quaker Brand". Whittier would also become well-known for walnuts and pampas grass. The railroads brought further growth and prosperity.
The Pickering Land and Water Company contributed land to develop a college in 1887, but a land bust delayed building the school. Eventually, Whittier Academy was opened, and became Whittier College. The first Azusa Pacific University also opened, started by the Quaker community and a Methodist evangelist and first called Training School for Christian Workers.
Demographics (2010): 52.9% Hispanic, 27.7% Black, 10.3% White, 6.7% Asian
Population (2010): 84,293
President: 72.70% D / 26.24% R (2004), 79.49% D / 18.92% R (2008), 81.82% D / 16.31% R (2012), 81.66% D / 13.41% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $44,649
% Bachelor's: 21.6%
Now we come to the home of the Beach Boys, which today looks very different than it did in their heyday in the 1960s and was named after New England author Nathaniel Hawthorne. Infamously, Hawthorne was a sundown town in the 1930s.
Demographics (2010): 40.9% White, 30.1% Hispanic, 16.4% Asian, 8.7% Black
Population (2010): 80,048
President: 49.70% R / 49.05% D (2004), 54.99% D / 42.68% R (2008), 56.34% D / 41.10% R (2012), 57.73% D / 35.83% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $77,786
% Bachelor's: 29.9%
Lakewood is a master-planned community that was built after World War II, and is the nation's first "contract city" because it contracts for all its municipal services, mostly from the county but to a lesser extent from private industry.
The first Denny's opened in Lakewood in 1953 as Danny's Donuts. It was renamed in 1959.
Demographics (2010): 52.3% Hispanic, 19.5% White, 14.0% Black, 11.6% Asian
Population (2010): 76,616
President: 55.99% D / 42.43% R (2004), 64.70% D / 33.05% R (2008), 68.13% D / 29.73% R (2012), 69.45% D / 25.09% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $49,637
% Bachelor's: 17.6%
Bellflower was originally named Somerset, but the name was changed to avoid confusion with Somerset, Colorado. The city got its current name from the bellflower apples, and was originally settled by Dutch, Japanese, and Portuguese dairy farmers. Rising property values in World War II and threats of annexation by Los Angeles made most of the farmers move east to the Dairy city trio (Cerritos, La Palma, and Cypress), and many whites moved to the new houses in the 1950s and 1960s.
Demographics (2010): 86.6% Hispanic, 10.3% Black, 2.2% White, 0.7% Asian
Population (2010): 69,772
President: 83.47% D / 15.34% R (2004), 87.76% D / 10.75% R (2008), 89.69% D / 8.24% R (2012), 89.63% D / 6.01% R (2016)
MHI (2000): $35,888
% Bachelor's: 6.8%
Lynwood was named after Lynn Wood Sessions, wife of dairyman Charles Sessions. It is the hometown of parody musician "Weird Al" Yankovic.
Florence-Graham
Demographics (2010): 90.0% Hispanic, 9.3% Black, 0.7% White, 0.2% Asian
Population (2010): 63,387
President: .% D / % R (2004), .% D / .% R (2008), .% D / .% R (2012), .% D / .% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $35,543
% Bachelor's: 5.1%
Franklin D. Roosevelt Park is within Florence-Graham and is the oldest public facility in the county. It was built as part of the Works Progress Administration.
Demographics (2010): 91.2% Hispanic, 5.2% White, 2.6% Asian, 1.0% Black
Population (2010): 62,942
President: 71.17% D / 27.76% R (2004), 75.51% D / 22.40% R (2008), 79.53% D / 18.59% R (2012), 79.21% D / 15.51% R (2016)
MHI (2000): $41,564
% Bachelor's: 12.7%
Pico Rivera was named after Pio Pico, the last Mexican governor of Alta California and Rivera. The city was agricultural also, but became more suburban with a Ford plant named Los Angeles Assembly.
Demographics (2010): 37.7% Hispanic, 26.2% Asian, 24.4% Black, 9.3% White
Population (2010): 58,829
President: 69.83% D / 29.11% R (2004), 75.88% D / 22.47% R (2008), 80.16% D / 18.07% R (2012), 79.22% D / 16.15% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $48,251
% Bachelor's: 24.4%
Gardena also grew from the railroads being introduced, including from Japanese Americans, and some thought the city got its name from being the only "green" area in the dry season between Los Angeles and the ocean. Berries were grown here, and the city was called "Berryland". A Strawberry Day Festival and Parade occurred every May.
Demographics (2010): 97.1% Hispanic, 1.6% White, 0.8% Black, 0.7% Asian
Population (2010): 58,114
President: 79.16% D / 19.62% R (2004), 83.12% D / 15.13% R (2008), 86.83% D / 11.05% R (2012), 87.17% D / 7.80% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $36,397
% Bachelor's: 5.9%
Huntington Park is named after industrialist Henry E. Huntington and was incorporated as a Los Angeles suburb in 1906. The city was and still is industrial and working-class, though the industrial base is less than it used to be. Huntington Park also used to be overwhelmingly white with strong pro-segregation attitudes.
Later in the 20th century, with the growth of suburbs in Orange and Ventura Counties and the decline of manufacturing and aerospace led to most of the white residents leaving. Hispanics, immigrants and transplants from East Los Angeles alike, replaced them.
Demographics (2010): 77.1% Hispanic, 16.7% White, 4.0% Asian, 1.5% Black
Population (2010): 57,156
President: .% D / % R (2004), .% D / .% R (2008), .% D / .% R (2012), .% D / .% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $65,815
% Bachelor's: 14.7%
Demographics (2010): 78.6% Hispanic, 11.7% Black, 5.6% White, 3.0% Asian
Population (2010): 54,098
President: 73.15% D / 25.50% R (2004), 80.71% D / 17.29% R (2008), 83.70% D / 14.22% R (2012), 84.72% D / 11.11% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $44,934
% Bachelor's: 11.3%
Paramount also started as a dairy town.
Demographics (2010): 61.9% Asian, 16.6% White, 12.0% Hispanic, 6.9% Black
Population (2010): 49,041
President: 52.02% D / 47.17% R (2004), 55.85% D / 42.38% R (2008), 57.90% D / 40.54% R (2012), 63.38% D / 32.25% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $91,487
% Bachelor's: 52.0%
Spanish for "little hills", Cerritos started out as Dairy City, because of course the economy was based on dairies, as well as chickens. Rising land values led to the demise of the farms and growth of suburbs. In 1967 the city was renamed to Cerritos after the Spanish land grand Rancho Los Cerritos and Cerritos College.
Cerritos was the fastest-growing city in the state in the early 1970s, welcoming many immigrants from Asia. After the passage of Proposition 13 in 1978, Cerritos developed many commercial zones such as the Los Cerritos Center and Cerritos Auto Square.
Demographics (2010): 39.7% Hispanic, 38.0% White, 17.8% Asian, 2.3% Black
Population (2010): 48,527
President: 58.00% R / 40.90% D (2004), 50.21% R / 47.63% D (2008), 48.98% D / 48.81% R (2012), 52.10% D / 41.85% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $81,961
% Bachelor's: 31.0%
La Mirada, "the look" in Spanish, started out with citrus groves and an olive oil processing plant. In the early 1950s La Mirada received widespread attention as "the nation's completely planned city".
Demographics (2010): 95.7% Hispanic, 2.7% White, 0.9% Black, 0.6% Asian
Population (2010): 42,072
President: 78.12% D / 20.67% R (2004), 83.81% D / 14.29% R (2008), 87.14% D / 11.14% R (2012), 87.37% D / 8.05% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $38,170
% Bachelor's: 4.9%
Bell Gardens is named after businessman James George Bell, and the local Japanese-Americans' vegetable gardens and rice fields. It is one of only six cities in the county that allows casino gambling.
In the 1930s, the gardens gave way to homes for defense plant workers and affordable homes for those affected by the Depression. Defense plants came to the area during the world wars and brought further growth. White and Native American Dust Bowl refugees also came. Later Hispanics came, including Central Americans fleeing civil war in the 1980s, and created businesses.
Demographics (2010): 56.0% White, 29.0% Asian, 8.5% Hispanic, 2.4% Black
Population (2010): 41,643
President: 53.25% R / 45.57% D (2004), 50.38% R / 47.58% D (2008), 53.05% R / 44.82% D (2012), 52.86% D / 41.76% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $118,893
% Bachelor's: 67.6%
Demographics (2010): 63.9% Hispanic, 34.4% Black, 0.9% White, 0.3% Asian
Population (2010): 35,983
President: .% D / % R (2004), .% D / .% R (2008), .% D / .% R (2012), .% D / .% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $34,005
% Bachelor's: 6.1%
Willowbrook was named after a small brook with a lone willow tree. Many springs were present here early on. Those that moved to Willowbrook expected a suburban life. Home gardens grown by residents during the Great Depression also enhanced the area's rural appearance. Mid-century suburbanization came to Willowbrook, but not to the extent that it had elsewhere even after the Watts riots. A redevelopment plan led to Willowbrook becoming less rural since the 1990s.
Demographics (2010): 93.1% Hispanic, 4.9% White, 0.9% Black, 0.7% Asian
Population (2010): 35,477
President: 75.68% D / 22.81% R (2004), 81.60% D / 16.32% R (2008), 84.58% D / 13.03% R (2012), 85.82% D / 9.34% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $30,504
% Bachelor's: 7.2%
Like Bell Gardens, Bell was named after pioneer James George Bell and started out with farms and ranches. Population growth accelerated in the 1920s and 1930s. The local newspaper, The Industrialist, was founded in 1924. It was renamed several times, the final one being the Community News. The Community News disappeared around 1998, paving the way for the corruption that would fly under the radar for more than a decade. The situation came to a head in 2010 when city officials including city manager Robert Rizzo were indicted for giving themselves exorbitant salaries, some higher than the salary of the President of the United States.
Demographics (2010): 61.0% Hispanic, 16.2% White, 10.1% Black, 10.0% Asian
Population (2010): 32,769
President: 65.44% D / 33.57% R (2004), 70.75% D / 27.25% R (2008), 74.53% D / 22.59% R (2012), 76.12% D / 17.98% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $47,769
% Bachelor's: 17.9%
Lawndale was named after a Chicago neighborhood and became suburban after World War II with veterans moving in. Relatively low housing prices brought absentee landlords and young defense industry professionals priced out of the Beach Cities. After the defense industry's great decline in the 1990s, Lawndale has undergone urban renewal to attract more homeowners.
Demographics (2010): 51.1% Black, 46.7% Hispanic, 1.0% White, 0.4% Asian
Population (2010): 31,853
President: .% D / % R (2004), .% D / .% R (2008), .% D / .% R (2012), .% D / .% R (2016)
MHI (2000): $23,323
% Bachelor's: 8.4%
Demographics (2010): 97.4% Hispanic, 1.8% White, 0.6% Black, 0.3% Asian
Population (2010): 27,395
President: 81.73% D / 17.11% R (2004), 85.27% D / 13.22% R (2008), 87.90% D / 10.21% R (2012), 87.77% D / 7.61% R (2016)
MHI (2000): $37,114
% Bachelor's: 5.2%
Maywood is the most densely populated city in California and was named after May Wood, who developed the area's ranch in to lots.
A Chrysler manufacturing plant, the "Los Angeles" Plant, was located here from the 1920s to the 1970s. Willys-Overland also had a presence in Maywood, from 1929 to 1954. During World War II, the car manufacturing plants were retooled to build war equipment.
More recently, in 2009, Maywood had serious financial troubles, especially with insurance payments. In 2010, to avoid bankruptcy like Vallejo, and later Stockton and San Bernardino, the city disbanded its police force and laid off most city officials, and contracted out all city services.
Demographics (2010): 87.6% Hispanic, 9.3% White, 1.5% Asian, 1.0% Black
Population (2010): 25,540
President: .% D / % R (2004), .% D / .% R (2008), .% D / .% R (2012), .% D / .% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $60,525
% Bachelor's: 14.7%
West Whittier-Los Nietos was named after its proximity to Whittier, and "grandchildren" in Spanish. It is one of the state's oldest communities, dating to the 1860s.
Demographics (2010): 96.0% Hispanic, 2.1% White, 1.4% Black, 0.6% Asian
Population (2010): 23,805
President: 76.23% D / 22.34% R (2004), 83.13% D / 15.10% R (2008), 85.81% D / 12.49% R (2012), 87.04% D / 7.45% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $38,267
% Bachelor's: 6.9%
Cudahy was named after meat-packing baron Michael Cudahy and is notable for its lots that were about as long as a typical American city block. These large lots enabled residents to have large gardens or raise chickens or horses, which gave the city a rural feel and was a draw for Southerners and Midwesterners leaving their struggling farms back home to start a new life in the 1910s and 1920s.
Even in the 1950s residents still rode into town on horseback, as Cudahy became a white-majority blue-collar manufacturing city. The decline of local manufacturing in the 1970s led to an exodus of whites to communities elsewhere in Los Angeles County, and an increase in apartments so Cudahy became the second-densest city in the state.
Demographics (2010): 93.0% Hispanic, 3.4% Black, 1.9% White, 0.8% Asian
Population (2010): 22,753
President: .% D / % R (2004), .% D / .% R (2008), .% D / .% R (2012), .% D / .% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $37,659
% Bachelor's: 7.7%
Demographics (2010): 32.7% Hispanic, 31.0% Asian, 21.4% White, 10.7% Black
Population (2010): 21,699
President: .% D / % R (2004), .% D / .% R (2008), .% D / .% R (2012), .% D / .% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $62,100
% Bachelor's: 34.3%
Demographics (2010): 43.4% White, 32.8% Hispanic, 14.4% Asian, 5.3% Black
Population (2010): 20,256
President: 50.77% D / 48.07% R (2004), 54.41% D / 43.26% R (2008), 55.43% D / 41.67% R (2012), 55.69% D / 37.50% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $60,398
% Bachelor's: 33.9%
Meaning "little knoll" in Spanish, Lomita incorporated in 1964 to avoid annexation by other cities next to it and to not build as many high-rise apartment buildings there.
Demographics (2010): 69.1% White, 15.7% Hispanic, 8.8% Asian, 2.0% Black
Population (2010): 16,654
President: 53.23% R / 45.16% D (2004), 51.39% D / 45.96% R (2008), 49.89% D / 46.68% R (2012), 57.66% D / 34.50% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $84,341
% Bachelor's: 52.8%
Meaning "the second" in Spanish, El Segundo had the second refinery from Standard Oil of California on the West Coast, after Richmond in the Bay Area.
Douglas Aircraft had a plant in El Segundo, which was a major source of World War II aircraft. The SBD Dauntless dive bombers, many of which were made at this plant, were prominent in the Battle of Midway. The plant still exists today but Northrop Grumman runs it now.
Demographics (2010): 37.1% Asian, 35.8% Hispanic, 21.3% White, 3.6% Black
Population (2010): 16,522
President: 51.40% D / 47.33% R (2004), 60.85% D / 36.86% R (2008), 63.99% D / 34.52% R (2012), 66.87% D / 27.79% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $59,845
% Bachelor's: 29.6%
Named after the many artesian wells, Artesia was the childhood home of former First Lady Pat Nixon, though her actual home is actually in Cerritos today. In the early 20th century, Dutch and Portuguese farmers brought Artesia into prominence as a major dairy city in the region. Mid-20th century development pushed dairy operations into San Bernardino County and the Central Valley.
Demographics (2010): 81.0% Hispanic, 11.6% White, 4.2% Asian, 2.3% Black
Population (2010): 16,223
President: 62.53% D / 36.10% R (2004), 68.71% D / 28.84% R (2008), 71.48% D / 26.43% R (2012), 71.73% D / 22.52% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $54,081
% Bachelor's: 17.0%
Santa Fe Springs was named after "holy faith" in Spanish, and local mineral springs. Oil development came to the area when the Union Oil Company began operations in the "Four Corners", near the intersection of Norwalk Blvd. and Telegraph Road. The Shelby Cobra was built in Santa Fe Springs, when Carroll Shelby developed a lightweight British sports car with the power of an American hot rod.
Demographics (2010): 97.4% Hispanic, 1.7% White, 0.6% Asian, 0.4% Black
Population (2010): 15,966
President: .% D / % R (2004), .% D / .% R (2008), .% D / .% R (2012), .% D / .% R (2016)
MHI (2000): $35,837
% Bachelor's: 7.4%
Demographics (2010): 82.0% Hispanic, 15.9% Black, 1.1% White, 0.2% Asian
Population (2010): 15,135
President: .% D / % R (2004), .% D / .% R (2008), .% D / .% R (2012), .% D / .% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $44,727
% Bachelor's: 3.3%
East Rancho Dominguez was also known as East Compton that has successfully resisted annexation by the City of Compton.
Demographics (2010): 77.2% Hispanic, 10.6% Asian, 7.3% White, 3.8% Black
Population (2010): 14,254
President: 66.17% D / 32.35% R (2004), 69.55% D / 27.94% R (2008), 75.16% D / 22.72% R (2012), 78.53% D / 15.79% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $42,017
% Bachelor's: 11.0%
Hawaiian Gardens got its name from a fruit and refreshment stand in the 1920s that was decorated with palm fronds and bamboo. This stand was a prominent local landmark. It is one of seven cities in Los Angeles County that allows gambling.
Demographics (2010): 73.4% White, 17.3% Asian, 4.7% Hispanic, 1.2% Black
Population (2010): 13,438
President: 60.67% R / 38.40% D (2004), 55.30% R / 43.15% D (2008), 61.69% R / 36.82% D (2012), 49.59% D / 44.10% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $171,328
% Bachelor's: 75.8%
Palos Verdes Estates started out as one of the country's earliest master-planned communities. The city is mostly residential with some parts of the coast free from development.
Demographics (2010): 94.5% Hispanic, 3.1% White, 1.1% Asian, 0.7% Black
Population (2010): 12,823
President: 78.84% D / 19.87% R (2004), 79.86% D / 17.78% R (2008), 84.43% D / 13.75% R (2012), 83.09% D / 11.77% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $48,729
% Bachelor's: 11.8%
The City of Commerce had a lot of manufacturing in its economy, that stayed strong even as cities such as South Gate and Newark were hit hard, because the City of Commerce converted former industrial land to other commercial uses such as the Citadel Outlet Mall. A nearby railroad has also made the City of Commerce a beneficiary from the growth of international trade from the Los Angeles and Long Beach ports.
Demographics (2010): 31.5% Hispanic, 30.3% White, 20.4% Asian, 13.6% Black
Population (2010): 11,016
President: 63.63% D / 34.89% R (2004), 69.11% D / 28.72% R (2008), 70.45% D / 27.44% R (2012), 70.57% D / 22.82% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $70,442
% Bachelor's: 40.5%
Signal Hill was originally called "Los Cerritos", or "little hills", but the name was changed when it was a signal point for the Coast Survey. The Tongva people also used the hill for signal fires.
After many years as an agricultural community, oil was discovered here in 1921 and the hill became part of the Long Beach Oil Field, one of the most productive in the world. The oil derricks looked like the quills of a porcupine from a distance, and the city was nicknamed "Porcupine Hill". Even though oil is not as prominent as it once was, a productive oil field still remains. Signal Hill incorporated in 1924 to avoid annexation by Long Beach with its oil tax. Jessie Nelson, California's first female mayor, was elected in Signal Hill.
Demographics (2010): 47.2% Hispanic, 34.6% White, 9.2% Asian, 4.6% Black
Population (2010): 10,001
President: .% D / % R (2004), .% D / .% R (2008), .% D / .% R (2012), .% D / .% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $80,833
% Bachelor's: 41.3%
Demographics (2010): 50.3% Hispanic, 41.5% White, 4.7% Asian, 1.8% Black
Population (2010): 9,757
President: .% D / % R (2004), .% D / .% R (2008), .% D / .% R (2012), .% D / .% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $68,110
% Bachelor's: 18.7%
Demographics (2010): 52.4% Black, 44.0% Hispanic, 1.3% White, 1.3% Asian
Population (2010): 8,729
President: .% D / % R (2004), .% D / .% R (2008), .% D / .% R (2012), .% D / .% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $46,391
% Bachelor's: 13.3%
Demographics (2010): 50.1% Hispanic, 21.8% White, 16.2% Asian, 9.4% Black
Population (2010): 8,592
President: .% D / % R (2004), .% D / .% R (2008), .% D / .% R (2012), .% D / .% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $54,484
% Bachelor's: 27.9%
Demographics (2010): 63.6% White, 24.9% Asian, 6.2% Hispanic, 1.4% Black
Population (2010): 8,067
President: 59.80% R / 39.13% D (2004), 55.39% R / 42.73% D (2008), 58.84% R / 38.85% D (2012), 49.17% D / 44.38% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $143,958
% Bachelor's: 67.8%
Rolling Hills Estates has many horse paths. In recent decades many Korean-Americans moved there.
Demographics (2010): 52.5% Black, 44.6% Hispanic, 1.3% White, 0.8% Asian
Population (2010): 5,669
President: .% D / % R (2004), .% D / .% R (2008), .% D / .% R (2012), .% D / .% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $45,373
% Bachelor's: 9.9%
West Rancho Dominguez was also known as West Compton and has one of the highest percentage of black residents in Los Angeles County.
Demographics (2010): 57.2% White, 23.5% Hispanic, 15.8% Asian, 0.9% Black
Population (2010): 5,325
President: 67.52% R / 31.00% D (2004), 61.37% R / 36.44% D (2008), 64.53% R / 32.95% D (2012), 55.72% R / 38.88% D (2016)
MHI (2010): $118,871
% Bachelor's: 51.4%
La Habra Heights is a rural community with almost no commercial activity.
Demographics (2010): 55.8% Hispanic, 41.1% White, 1.3% Asian, 0.5% Black
Population (2010): 3,728
President: 48.41% D / 50.24% R (2004), 53.80% D / 42.70% R (2008), 56.42% D / 40.89% R (2012), 52.24% D / 40.61% R (2016)
MHI (2010): $65,433
% Bachelor's: Unknown
Avalon, which got its name from the island from Arthurian legend, is a resort city and the only incorporated city on the Channel Islands. About a million visitors come each year, including on cruises.
Demographics (2010): 74.1% White, 16.3% Asian, 5.5% Hispanic, 1.6% Black
Population (2010): 1,860
President: 70.28% R / 28.46% D (2004), 64.71% R / 33.60% D (2008), 71.69% R / 26.60% D (2012), 58.83% R / 35.23% D (2016)
MHI (2000): >$200,000
% Bachelor's: Unknown
Rolling Hills is a gated community that has a rural, equestrian feel with no traffic lights. Residents are required to maintain horse property. The community has the third-highest median house value in the country and no commercial activity.