Los Angeles, California

Los Angeles is a city of many distinctions: playground for the rich and famous, site of miles of splendid beaches, port of entry for billions of dollars worth of overseas imports, and entertainment capital of the world. It is also a place where such terms as road rage and smog were coined, and Los Angeles is home to millions of people who spend hours in bumper-to-bumper traffic just to get to work. A cultural and economic center, Los Angeles is one of the most congested, polluted cities on the West Coast as well as one of the most diverse and economically vibrant.

Landscape

Los Angeles is located on the coast of California, with the Pacific Ocean as the city's western and southern boundary. To the north and east are hills and mountain ranges: the Santa Monica, San Gabriel, and San Bernardino Mountains form a ring around the land boundaries of Los Angeles. The mountains and hills of Los Angeles create separate communities, with the San Fernando Valley portion of Los Angeles divided from the rest of the metropolis by the Santa Monica Mountains. Los Angeles itself measures approximately 469 square miles, but the greater metropolitan area is roughly 4,000 square miles.

Los Angeles is nearly surrounded by other smaller cities that are in reality an extension of the larger city, separated by mountain ranges. The concentration of so many smaller cities and communities has aggravated the problem of congestion in the area. There are eighty-eight cites and communities in the Los Angeles metropolis, including Malibu, Hollywood, Brentwood, Watts, Burbank, Bel Air, Beverly Hills, Inglewood, and Santa Monica.

Los Angeles enjoys moderate weather most of the year. The city's mean temperature is about 64 degrees Fahrenheit. Daytime high temperatures can reach 90 degrees, with occasional highs climbing above 100 degrees during the summer. In winter, temperatures rarely approach freezing. The average annual rainfall is 14 inches, with most rain falling in the winter months. Due to the low precipitation and scarce above-ground water sources, Los Angeles is classified as a semiarid climate zone.

Earthquakes and brush fires are hazards for Los Angeles. There have been several large earthquakes over the last thirty years that have caused loss of life and billions of dollars in property damage. Los Angeles is also vulnerable to fires striking the outskirts of the city. Brush fires, usually ignited during a thunderstorm, have destroyed hundreds of homes, and occur most often during the dry summer months. The fires can quickly get out of control due to the warm, rapid Santa Ana winds and the hillside brush common to the region.

Global warming and climate change have caused longer heat waves in Los Angeles, with more days having temperatures over 95 degrees. Hotter drier conditions put the area at a greater risk of brush fires.

People

Los Angeles, California's largest city, had an estimated population of 3,822,238 residents in 2022. Los Angeles' citizens come from just about every racial and ethnic group in the United States. The trend in population growth indicates that the Hispanic population will soon solidify its position as the majority in Los Angeles. According to the US Census Bureau, Hispanics of any race accounted for 48 percent of the population. An estimated 28.1 percent of the population was non-Hispanic White. The Asian American population accounts for 11.8 percent of the total population. The African American or Black population makes up about 8.6 percent of the city's population.

Communities in Los Angeles tend to be divided along racial lines, with economic status playing an additional role in neighborhood composition. There are large Hispanic concentrations in El Sereno and the unincorporated area East Los Angeles, but vibrant Hispanic communities may be found throughout the city. The cultural impact of the growing Hispanic population is evident in the city's businesses, restaurants, schools, and language.

White Americans became a minority in Los Angeles after 1981, when Hispanic and Asian population growth began accelerating. The White population has been moving from the city to the outlying communities and suburbs since the 1960s. The wealthiest, primarily white communities outside of the city include Malibu, Beverly Hills, and Brentwood. Middle-class, racially diverse communities are spread throughout the city but are usually found in the northern and western parts.

Due to cultural and language differences, the Asian community splits into ethnic neighborhoods, such as Chinatown and Koreatown, near the downtown part of the city. Asian Americans have often prospered as small business owners, and by becoming involved in the enormous international trade that flows through Los Angeles.

The African American population of Los Angeles has declined due in part to upward economic mobility, with more affluent Black residents moving away from the inner city areas in South Central Los Angeles, where the rates of violent crime are higher.

Economy

The early economy of Los Angeles was based on agriculture, with citrus fruits, vegetables, and other agricultural products dominating the area's farmland. As the city grew and diversified, agriculture was displaced by industry and entertainment as the economic drivers. Los Angeles' economy today is focused on international trade and logistics, manufacturing, health care, biosciences, construction, tourism, entertainment, and many other components to the vast economic activity that occurs within the metropolis.

The Port of Los Angeles is the busiest port in the United States for container shipping. Merchandise from Asia and other parts of the world passes through the port, bringing electronics, automobiles, and other consumer goods to the United States. The business activity that revolves around trade has become a large part of the Los Angeles economy, enriching the area further.

Industrial production increased significantly in Los Angeles during World War II, when aircraft factories were established in the area. The factories remained in operation after the war, making complex military and civilian aircraft and electronic components. Automobile plants were once another major industry in Los Angeles, but due to overseas competition and other factors, the major car companies no longer operate manufacturing facilities in Los Angeles.

Entertainment in all its forms has been a major economic benefit for Los Angeles, with dozens of major companies headquartered in the city. The motion picture industry moved to Los Angeles during the early part of the twentieth century, and the major Hollywood studios generated vast wealth and prestige for the city. Over the years, other forms of entertainment such as television, radio, and music have been based in Los Angeles.

Tourism is another important segment of Los Angeles' economy. In 2022, more than 46 million visitors came to Los Angeles for sightseeing, vacations, museums, musical events, theme parks, parades, and sporting events. Billions of dollars are spent in the Los Angeles area on hotels, food, and visits to the local attractions each year.

The transportation system in Los Angeles is critical to the city's operation, but it is also one of the most unpleasant aspects of living in the area. The growth of the city has surpassed the freeway system, and the traffic congestion can make traveling around the city a frustrating endeavor. Despite repeated expansion of public transportation in Los Angeles, almost everyone continues to rely on the crowded freeways.

Los Angeles also has many railways running through the city, transporting goods to and from the harbor and other businesses. LAX, or Los Angeles International Airport, is one of the busiest airports in the world, serving as a major starting and stopping point for travel across the country, as well as across the Pacific Ocean.

Landmarks

The Los Angeles metropolitan area is home to dozens of cultural points of interest and natural attractions. The city boasts numerous historic places to visit, such as Olvera Street, where Mexican shops sell food, clothing, jewelry, and many other items. Several historic Spanish missions, including San Gabriel and San Fernando, have also been preserved in Los Angeles.

Los Angeles amusement parks are world famous, with Disneyland (Anaheim), Knots Berry Farm (Buena Park), and Universal Studios (Hollywood) leading the list. Each park competes with the others in creating new attractions and shows to draw new and repeat customers.

Griffith Park, measuring six square miles, is one of the largest city parks in the world, and includes the eighty-acre Los Angeles Zoo within its boundaries. Nearby Hancock Park is the home of the famous La Brea Tar Pits, where many fossils have been found dating to the Ice Age. William Denton discovered the first saber-toothed tiger fossil at La Brea in 1895.

Opera productions, theater companies, and symphony orchestras abound in Los Angeles. Each year, the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra plays a full schedule at the Chandler Pavilion. Plays, musical comedies, and operas are performed at the Ahmanson Theater, and the relatively new Los Angeles Opera opened in 1985.

Los Angeles has more than three hundred museums preserving the city's art and history, including the Simon Wiesenthal Center and the Pace Museum in the La Brea Tar pits park. Art of all kinds may be viewed and admired in the city's many public and private art museums.

History

Los Angeles began as El Pueblo del la Reina de los Angeles, or "The Town of the Queen of the Angels," on September 4, 1781. Spain still claimed to rule California at that time, but there were so few Spanish settlers in the area that the claim was tenuous at best. A small group of eleven families was brought to the site of Los Angeles by Colonel Felipe De Neve to try to assert Spain's control.

Spanish rule was overthrown in 1821 by Mexico, which then claimed California but had little luck in attracting settlers. During the Mexican-American War, US forces occupied Los Angeles but were driven out, eventually returning to control the town after the brief Battle of the San Gabriel River in 1847.

The town of Los Angeles was incorporated on April 4, 1850, with a population of about 1,600 people. Los Angeles benefited from the gold rush in the San Francisco area by selling cattle to the miners, who used the animals for food. When the gold rush ended, many unemployed miners came to Los Angeles, and many businesses failed due to the gold running out.

The railroad reached the city from San Francisco in 1869, and the new "orange" gold was cultivated. Large sections of Los Angeles were devoted to groves of citrus oranges, and by 1889 about thirteen thousand trees had been planted. By 1881, the first direct rail connection was made between Los Angeles and the East Coast, and the city no longer had to rely on San Francisco for trade.

Originally, Los Angeles did not have a natural harbor, and city leaders worked to create one. They were successful in expanding the initial port at San Pedro into a harbor by 1912, two years before the Panama Canal opened. With the development of San Pedro harbor, shipping costs to Los Angeles became much more reasonable, and the city's economy began to grow quickly with the arrival of new residents from the East Coast. The entertainment industry sprang up in Los Angeles during the 1920s, and Hollywood became the center of the motion picture industry.

Oil was discovered in Los Angeles during the late nineteenth century, and more discoveries were made during the 1930s. The promise of oil wealth drew more people and businesses to the city. The economy received another boost after World War I, when many aircraft manufacturers began setting up facilities in Los Angeles. Automobile manufacturers also set up shop in the area, and Los Angeles' population swelled to over two million during the 1940s.

Racial tension has been a factor in Los Angeles for many years. Some 37,000 Los Angeles County residents of Japanese descent were rounded up and sent to remote internment camps in 1942. The Mexican "zoot suit" riots during 1943, the Watts riot during 1965, and the riots that followed the acquittal of city police officers after the beating of black motorist Rodney King in 1992 are examples of disturbing incidents of civil unrest.

During the 1980s, Los Angeles suffered from gang violence when crack cocaine became prevalent among drug users. Rival gangs fought over territory, and gun battles were common. Areas of South Central and East Los Angeles were terrorized by the violence.

Despite the turmoil in the inner city, the rest of Los Angeles prospered during the 1980s. Old industrial jobs were replaced by jobs in international trade, and smaller industries began relocating to the area. Although high taxes and government regulations sometimes hindered new job growth, the economy continued to develop.

Los Angeles, like the rest of California, experienced an economic upheaval during the 1990s. Unemployment actually dropped during the decade, but the jobs that replaced the lost aerospace and automotive positions were often lower-paying. Poverty increased during this time, and many jobs were filled by undocumented immigrants, further depressing the wage structure in the city.

Los Angeles entered into the twenty-first century with many advantages and many difficulties. The city has strong business and professional management services sectors, and it experienced an economic boom beginning in 1999, when the Staples Center sports facility was completed. The years that followed saw an influx of foreign investment and redevelopment projects in downtown LA. The city undertook rail expansion and airport infrastructure improvements. Social problems, such as educational disparity and high crime rates, are still significant issues in certain LA neighborhoods, however. Homelessness also remains an intractable problem there.

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