Pasadena California Real Estate History
Its population was 137,122 at the 2010 census [20] and an estimated 141,029 in 2019, [14] making it the 41st largest city in California [13] and the ninth largest city in Los Angeles County. Pasadena was incorporated on June 19, 1886, becoming one of the first cities to be incorporated in what is now Los Angeles County, after the city of Los Angeles (April 4, 1850). [twenty-one]
Pasadena is known for hosting the annual Rose Bowl football game and the Tournament of Roses Parade. It is also home to many scientific and cultural institutions, including Caltech, Pasadena City College, Fuller Theological Seminary, ArtCenter College of Design, Pasadena Playhouse, Ambassador Auditorium, Norton Simon Museum, and the USC Pacific Asia Museum, with the Jet Propulsion Laboratory at the vicinity of La Cañada Flintridge.
History
Indigenous peoples and Spanish colonial times
The original inhabitants of Pasadena (a Chippewa word meaning “Crown of the Valley”) [22] and surrounding areas were members of the Hahamog-na Native American tribe, a branch of the Tongva nation. They spoke the Tongva language (part of the Uto-Aztecan group of languages). Native Americans had lived in the Los Angeles Basin for thousands of years. [23] Tongva dwellings lined the Arroyo Seco (Los Angeles County) in present-day Pasadena and south to where it joins the Los Angeles River and along other natural waterways in the city.
The natives lived in dome-shaped thatched-roof huts and lived on a diet of acorn flour, seeds and herbs, venison and other small animals, as well as trading fish from the ocean with the coastal Tongva. They made soapstone cooking vessels from soapstone from Catalina Island. The oldest transportation route still in existence in Pasadena is the old Tongva Pedestrian Trail, also known as the Gabrielino Trail, which follows the west side of the Rose Bowl and the Arroyo Seco past the Jet Propulsion Laboratory into the San Gabriel Mountains . The trail has been in continuous use for thousands of years. An arm of the trail is also still in use in what is now known as Salvia Canyon.
It was Rancho Mexican and it was early American
In 1821, Mexico became independent from Spain and California came under the control of the Mexican government. In 1833, the mission lands were secularized, and most California land was granted to private Mexican citizens in the form of ranchos. Present-day Pasadena was divided between Rancho San Rafael (land west of the Arroyo Seco extending from present-day Burbank in the northwest to Glassell Park in the southwest), Rancho del Rincón de San Pascual, [23] (present-day central Pasadena, Altadena and South Pasadena) and Rancho Santa Anita (present-day East Pasadena, Arcadia, and Monrovia). [25] The Rancho del Rincón de San Pascual was so named because it was ceded on Easter Sunday to Eulalia Pérez de Guillén Mariné of Mission San Gabriel Arcángel.
Prior to the annexation of California in 1848 by the United States at the end of the Mexican-American War, the last of the Mexican owners of Rancho del Rincón de San Pascual was Manuel Garfias [23], who retained title to the property after statehood in 1850. Garfias sold sections of the property to the first Anglo settlers to come to the area: Dr. Benjamin Eaton, the father of Fred Eaton; and Dr. S. Griffin. Much of the property was purchased by Benjamin Wilson, who established his Lake Vineyard estate nearby. Wilson, known as Don Benito by the local Indians, [23]he also owned Rancho Jurupa (Riverside, California) and was mayor of Los Angeles. He was the grandfather of World War II General George S. Patton, Jr. and the namesake of Mount Wilson.
Pasadena, 1876
In 1873, Wilson was visited by Dr. Daniel M. Berry of Indiana, who was looking for a place in the country that could offer a mild climate for his patients, most of whom suffered from respiratory ailments. Berry was asthmatic and claimed that he slept as well as possible three nights at Rancho San Pascual. [ citation needed ] To keep the find a secret, Berry codenamed the area “Muscat” after the grape that Wilson grew. To raise funds to bring the company of people to San Pascual, Berry formed the Orange and Citrus Growers Association of Southern California and sold shares of it. [ citation needed ]The newcomers were able to purchase much of the property along the Arroyo Seco and on January 31, 1874, they incorporated the Colony of Indiana. As a goodwill gesture, Wilson added 2,000 acres (8 km 2 ) of then-useless upland property, some of which would become Altadena. Colonel Jabez Banbury opened the first school on South Orange Grove Avenue. Banbury had twin daughters named Jennie and Jessie. The two became the first students to attend Pasadena’s first school in Orange Grove. [26]
At the time, the Indiana Colony was a narrow strip of land between Arroyo Seco and Fair Oaks Avenue. Across the street was the Wilson’s Lake Vineyard development. [27] After more than a decade of parallel development on both sides, the two settlements merged into the City of Pasadena. [27]
Pasadena as a resort town (1886-1941)
The popularity of the region attracted people from all over the country, and Pasadena eventually became a stop on the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad, causing an explosion in growth. From the real estate boom of the 1880s through the Great Depression, as large resort hotels developed in the city, Pasadena became a winter spot for wealthy Easterners, spurring the development of new neighborhoods and business districts. , and increased highway and transit connections to Los Angeles, culminating in the opening of the Arroyo Seco Parkway, California’s first freeway. By 1940, [28] Pasadena had become the eighth largest city in California and was considered a twin city with Los Angeles.
Hotel Green, 1900
The first of the grand hotels to be established in Pasadena was the Raymond (1886) atop Bacon Hill, renamed Raymond Hill after construction. Pasadena was served by the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad at the Santa Fe Depot in downtown when the Second District opened in 1887. [29] The original 200-room Mansard Victorian facility burned down on the morning of Easter 1895, was rebuilt in 1903 and razed during the Great Depression to make way for residential development. The Maryland Hotel had existed since the early 1900s and was demolished in 1934. [ citation needed ]The world famous Mount Lowe Railway and associated mountain hotels closed four years later due to fire damage. Three hotel structures have survived, the Green Hotel (a cooperative since 1926), the Vista Del Arroyo (now used as a federal courthouse), and a residential tower from the Maryland at 80 North Euclid Avenue (a cooperative since 1953). [30]
Craftsman era (1890-1930)
The American craftsman era in art and design is well represented in Pasadena. The architectural firm Greene and Greene developed the style; many of their residences still stand. Two examples of his Ultimate Bungalow are the masterpiece Gamble House, of which public tours are offered, and the Robert R. Blacker House, both designated California Landmarks and listed on the US National Register of Historic Places.
World War II and aftermath (1941-1969)
Downtown Pasadena in 1945
World War II turned out to be a boon for Pasadena, as Southern California became a major staging area for the Pacific War. High-tech manufacturing and scientific companies made the city their home, a trend that continued in the decades after the war, notably with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Tetra Tech, and Ameron International.
In the 1950s, Pasadena saw a steady influx of people from the southern United States, especially African Americans from Texas and Louisiana. Pasadena also began to host a large immigrant community, particularly from China, Japan, the Philippines, Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Italy, Armenia, and India.
Pasadena since 1970
The American Academy of Dramatic Arts, founded in 1884 in New York, opened its Pasadena campus in 1974. However, in 2001 the conservatory moved from Pasadena to Hollywood. Training actors for the stage in a two-year program, the conservatory was the first school in the United States to offer professional education in the field of acting. Point Loma Nazarene University was located in Pasadena for many years before moving to San Diego County, keeping the Pasadena University and Pasadena College names.
In 1969, the Pasadena Unified School District was desegregated, although the issue would continue to be argued in court for a decade. A year later, Highway 210 was built along a newly chosen route. The construction of the expressway was controversial, as it led to the demolition of over a thousand houses, many historic, with many claiming that the route was designed to isolate the city’s less wealthy neighborhoods.
Geography
Pasadena as seen from Mount Wilson on a cloudy day
The Pasadena metropolitan area is bounded by the Raymond Fault Line, the San Rafael Hills, and the San Gabriel Mountains. The Arroyo Seco, a major geographic feature and home of the Rose Bowl, flows from headwaters in the imposing greenbelt of Pasadena’s Angeles National Forest in the San Gabriel Mountains. [17] According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 23.1 square miles (60 km 2 ), more than 99% of which is land; 0.68% is water. [33]
Climate
Pasadena has a Mediterranean climate (Köppen Csa), with typically hotter summers and slightly cooler winters than nearby coastal areas. Its location relative to the San Gabriel Mountains allows orographic lift to add several inches more rainfall per year than nearby areas. During the first few months of the year, Pasadena experiences cool to warm high temperatures, typically in the upper 60s (16–18°C) to lower 70s (21–24°C). The coldest days are usually accompanied by heavier rains. By April, temperatures warm up even more and rainfall decreases significantly. In May and June, the rain is usually scarce, but the infamous marine layer becomes more persistent. Locals have nicknamed June “June Gloom” as it is the cloudiest month despite being the third driest month. For July, the marine layer subsidies as inland areas cool due to increased monsoon flow. Heat waves from July to October can be oppressive and prolonged. Also, it rarely rains during the summer and fall months, only when the remnants of hurricanes and tropical storms pass through. In fact, some days in July and August have never seen rain.[3. 4]It is not impossible to go 6 months without measurable precipitation. The highest average temperature recorded each year is around 106 °F (41 °C). The hottest heat waves of the year usually occur in mid to late September. At the end of October, temperatures drop. By November, Pacific storms return to Pasadena, bringing increasingly heavy rain and cooler weather. Joining them, however, are the Santa Ana winds. Santa Ana winds can produce heat, high winds, power outages, tree damage, and an increased threat of wildfires each time they hit. In December, the lows typically drop into the 40s (4-9°C) with an occasional reading in the 30s (-1 to 4°C). Highs remain around 68°F (20°C) with heat waves pushing temperatures into the mid-80s°F (28-31°C). A high temperature of at least 85 °F (29 °C) has been recorded 365 days a year, with temperatures above 100 °F (38 °C) possible from April to early November.