Our African American Legacy in Science, Engineering & Medicine

Eleven people connected to Los Angeles County who broke racial barriers and made their marks in science, engineering, medicine.

Ten Romantic Movies Set in Los Angeles

Was the fortune cookie actually invented in Los Angeles?

Walt Disney planned to build Disneyland in Burbank. How did it end up in Anaheim?

Los Angeles has nicknames that go as far back as the 1800s.

A species of tree found only on Santa Catalina Island is one of the rarest trees in North America.

Valspeak or Valley Speak is a social class dialect said to have originated among materialistic young upper-class white women in Los Angeles’ San Fernando Valley.

What is "The Grapevine"?

The rainiest day on record in Downtown Los Angeles was March 2, 1938, recording 5.88 inches of rain.

Southern California's First Christmas Tree

It was believed to be the first Christmas tree ever erected anywhere in Southern California.

As the celebration of Christmas became increasingly commercialized, a Los Angeles Jewish department store owner decided that Hanukkah should not be left out.

How a tragic gun accident in Los Angeles led to help for others across America.

Who are the Native American tribal groups that are native to Los Angeles County?

In the 2020 presidential election, as expected, Los Angeles County turned out to be a political "sea of blue." Joe Biden received 71 percent of the county's vote. There were, however, a few communities in Los Angeles County in which the Republican presidential candidate received the majority of votes. These were communities mostly in the northern part of the county. These were the cities of La Habra Heights and Rolling Hills and (in northern Los Angeles County) the unincorporated communities of Acton, Agua Dulce, Antelope, Castaic, Del Sur (Antelope Valley), Gorman (northwest corner of L.A. County), Green Valley, Lamanda (Pasadena Area), Leona Valley, Llano (Antelope Valley), Neenach (Antelope Valley), Pearblossom (Antelope Valley), and Quartz Hill.

Los Angeles County is home to the largest concentration of American Indians in the United States.

Although President Abraham Lincoln is considered one of the nation’s greatest presidents, he was not popular in Los Angeles County in his time.

Political Party Registration Among Los Angeles County Cities

Which L.A. County cities have more Democrats? Republicans? No Party Preference?

Mysterious L.A.: The Devil's Gate area has long drawn the attention of paranormal enthusiasts.

Los Angeles is on the move. Literally.

According the last census in 2010, more people in Los Angeles County are living to age 100 and over.

The Namesake of Olvera Street

So, who was Olvera and why is L.A.'s iconic street named for him?

On a hot day in August, 1975, Los Angeles County Sheriff's Deputy Irma Alvarez confirmed that women were up to the challenges of police work on the streets.

For English-only speakers, we offer a new map of Los Angeles County in the English language. It will probably appear quite foreign.

Is the Los Angeles basin basically just a giant bowl of sand?

One in three Los Angeles County residents was born outside the United States, the largest foreign-born population in the nation. This is arguably one of the most culturally diverse concentrations of humanity ever.

It is among America's worst firefighter disasters and, for a long time, the biggest loss of lives to a wildfire in California history.

The most intense earthquake ever recorded in the United States occured in the Los Angeles area.

Will Los Angeles really eventually fall into the ocean?

Do tornadoes occur in Los Angeles County?

First Americans to Visit the Los Angeles Area

He led the first Americans known to visit the Los Angeles area. He was also trying to avoid the authorities.

How to Pronounce "Los Angeles"

Although there is little dispute today about how to pronounce "Los Angeles," this wasn't always the case.

No. COVID-19 is not just like the flu.

The chart above shows the comparative impact of seasonal influenza (the "flu") with COVID-19 in Los Angeles County. Even if you were to combine the total of flu cases and deaths over nine seasons in Los Angeles County, the influenza toll still pales in comparison against the number of COVID-19 cases and deaths just for 2020 so far. The number of influenza-related deaths are so small, compared to COVID-19 deaths, that they are barely visual or not visible at all in this chart. COVID-19 is not just like the flu. It is more contagious, does more damage, is deadlier, and there is no vaccine for it.

Los Angeles Almanac Chart

A Little History: The Confederate County of Los Angeles

In 1861, the U.S. South was not the only part of the nation clamoring for secession from the Union.

What Did the Founders of Los Angeles Look Like?

Most Angelenos probably know little to nothing about the 44 people who, 239 years ago, founded what became today a world-class megalopolis of 10 million people. Every day, however, you probably see the likeness of their faces and hear their voices in the streets of L.A.

What Causes “June Gloom”?

It's called “May Gray,” “June Gloom,” and, sometimes, “No-Sky-July” and even “Fogust.” What makes it happen?

Not all that long ago, your opportunities for buying or improving a home in most places in Los Angeles County were highly restricted, if you were not white.

L.A.'s First Uprising Against Racial Injustice

The struggle in Los Angeles against racial abuse and injustice goes back a long time. The first recorded uprising occurred in 1785. It was led by a young woman.

There are eight threatening volcanoes in California. Is the Los Angeles region in the danger zone?

Two very famous World War II generals were Angelenos.

Most of the families selected to establish the tiny farming village of Los Angeles in 1781 were people of color. The head of one of the families was Filipino.

How did the San Gabriel Valley become America's "Suburban Chinatown?"

People from Los Angeles are commonly called "Angelenos." So, what are people from Culver City or Long Beach called?

What are those bells placed along streets and highways in Los Angeles County (and throughout California)?

There is probably no other major city in America or even in the world whose original name is as disputed as that of Los Angeles.

As it turns out, our current need to Stay-at-Home during the COVID-19 pandemic seems to have given Los Angeles some of the cleanest air among major cities of the world. Recently, IQAir, a Swiss air quality tech company that also monitors air pollution levels in cities around the world, ranked Los Angeles as high as third place among 97 world cities with the cleanest air in the world. At one point in the last week, Los Angeles ranked ahead of Berlin, Germany, and just behind second place Salt Lake City, Utah, and ahead of six other U.S. cities in the list, San Francisco, New York, Detroit, Denver, Portland, Oregon and Seattle. This further follows EPA’s 2019 Air Quality Index Report showing Los Angeles County to have had the most number of good quality air days since at least 1980.

The most extreme amount of rain to fall anywhere in California during any 24-hour period fell in our own backyard.

Today's black bears roaming through Southern California's backyards are not truly native here. The California Grizzly was Southern California's only native bear. So, how did this happen?

The earliest known human remains found in the Los Angeles area are that of a young woman from about 9,000 years ago. She was named "La Brea Woman," due to her remains being uncovered at the famous La Brea Tar Pits. Found with her remains were those of a domestic dog, which may make her L.A.'s earliest known pet owner.

How bad does the seasonal flu actually get in Los Angeles County?

Do you love the Los Angeles Dodgers, you should thank this woman.

A young immigrant Asian woman becomes one of America's aviation pioneers.

The largest number of registered voters in Los Angeles County are registered as Democrats. The second largest number of registered voters are not registered as you might think.

The two most famous brothers in early Los Angeles history were of Indian, African and Spanish descent.

Five U.S. Presidents, at some point in their lives, made their home in Los Angeles County.

Los Angeles wasn't the only local city founded by people of African descent.

The geographic label "Southern California" (or “SoCal”) has fairly recent origins.

What does life expectancy look like for Angelenos and how it compare to that for the average American?

Angelino Heights is the oldest surviving residential suburb of Los Angeles.

Immigration has long been a hot issue in California. It certainly was, 174 years ago.

She was the first woman to practice medicine in Los Angeles. It was not easy.

A Los Angeles department store was the first to use commercial advertising to promote Hanukkah gift-giving.

Some of the inspiration for a much-beloved Christmas song came from a hot San Fernando Valley day.

This Altadena display is the oldest large-scale Christmas lighting display in the world.

This very famous Christmas song was actually written from the perspective of a New Yorker who found himself in Beverly Hills during Christmas.

They are the foods and beverages believed to have originated in Los Angeles (and in Pasadena).

Los Angeles County was one of the first to deploy paramedic firefighter units in the nation. It did not happen easily.

So, what does it cost to attend a four-year college in Los Angeles County?

U.S. military troops deployed eight times into the Los Angeles area for military or security purposes.

111 years before Elon Musk and Tesla was this Los Angeles teenager.

Mysterious L.A.: During one summer afternoon in 1961, the story was that, for several hours, this creature terrorized the Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles.

Mysterious L.A.: She is said to have haunted Elysian Park and environs since at least World War II.

Before America entered World War II, the Nazis appeared to be building a fortress in Los Angeles.

Mysterious L.A.: What happened to cause the violent deaths of these long ago Los Angeles area residents?

Immigration has long been a hot issue in California. At one time, American citizens were the illegal immigrants.

Actually, Spanish has never been a foreign language in Los Angeles. At least, not since 1771.

The highest recorded temperature in Downtown Los Angeles was 113 ^oF on September 27, 2010. The highest recorded temperature anywhere in Los Angeles County was 119 ^oF on July 22, 2006, in Woodland Hills.

What are the longest and shortest streets in Los Angeles County (and those with the steepest grades)?

A British newspaper declared an Alhambra ice cream shop to be the best place in the world to drink a milkshake. Yes, in the world.

This wonderful and iconic bookstore in Pasadena is the oldest independent bookstore in Southern California.

Your Area Code says a lot about you.

What are the current minimum wage rates in Los Angeles County?

The median pay of child care workers in Los Angeles County in 2018 was $13.00 per hour.

Los Angeles County has a population of more than 10 million people. What would 10 million people even look like, if you could imagine it?

Four Apollo astronauts who set foot on the moon and their significant ties to Los Angeles County.

When and how did the largest fashion industry in the United States get started?

Santa Catalina Island has a queen. We had the privilege to meet her.

How can a city stand up to support fatherhood?

What causes “May Gray” and “June Gloom?”

What are the fastest growing occupations in Los Angeles County?

Of 3,506 Congressional Medals of Honor awarded since 1861, 30 went to persons from Los Angeles County.

They are among the fastest growing Asian ethnic groups in Los Angeles County.

They lived in the Los Angeles area for more than 2,000 years. By what name do we call them?

On April 29, 1992, Los Angeles exploded.

Although many believe Pentecostalism spread from Jerusalem long ago, its modern version spread from Los Angeles.

And next to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, another exciting new museum is rising.

At one time, Los Angeles County reigned as "King of Agriculture" in America.

Before hamburgers, the McDonald brothers tried another type of business in the Los Angeles area.

One of the youngest American women multibillionaires is Lynsi Synder, heiress, sole owner and president of In-N-Out, Inc. Her wealth is estimated to be about $3 billion.

The oldest business founded and still operating in California was founded here in Los Angeles.

An Angeleno (or La Cañada Flintridger, to be exact) discovered evidence of water on Mars and holds the off-world driving record.

She was one of our nation's first African American woman police officers. She was also an officer of the Los Angeles Police Department.

Angelenos once mounted ostriches and alligators, gawked at celebrity lions, threw peanuts at monkeys, and cheered killer whales.

So, when did Wyoming begin looking a lot like Los Angeles?

It's almost like visiting the garage for the whole of the San Fernando Valley.

Los Angeles International Airport actually has an official song and the song was actually a hit.

The Los Angeles County Arboretum offers a new delight for the holidays.

Heritage Square Museum is a time portal that will take you back into an earlier Los Angeles.

What does a former Navy pilot have to do with some of the most historic stained glass artwork in Southern California?

Without contest, it is the most unusual museum in Los Angeles County. It is also the most unusual museum we've visited anywhere in the world.

There are a number of places at or near LAX to indulge your interest in aviation and aviation history.

Not very long ago, as many as 18,000 animals were being killed in Los Angeles animal shelters each year. That was then.

There are food retailers still operating today that launched their business in Los Angeles as far back as 1873.

During the 2017-2018 school year, the 22 community colleges in Los Angeles County enrolled a combined total of 623,558 students. The largest community college district in the county, the Los Angeles Community College District, is also the largest in the nation. Its nine campuses enrolled more than 230,000 students.

In the Little League World Series, two significant "Firsts" for the United States came out of Long Beach and San Pedro.

Just how big is Los Angeles County's population in California, the U.S., and the World?

How a passion for ice cream beginning in Glendale and Pasadena came to reach around the world.

He was was the first native Southern California to achieve international fame.

Air travellers are often less than happy these days, but those using an air transporation service operating from Santa Monica Airport appear to be the exception.

Long Beach was once going to be the location of a new $3 billion Disney theme park.

About one in three Los Angeles County residents are foreign-born.

According to an article in GQ Magazine, what part of Los Angeles may be America's Next Great City?

The Los Angeles River empties into the ocean at Long Beach. That wasn't always the case.

It was the leading amusement attraction in the Los Angeles area before there was a Disneyland.

Farmers Market, located at the corner of Fairfax and Third Street in Los Angeles, opened in 1934 at what was then known as the Gilmore Ranch. 18 farmers parked their trucks on the corner and began selling produce from their tailgates. The Market now features more than 100 shops visited by an estimated 3 million people each year (approximately one-third of which are tourists). Vendors at The Market speak about 23 different languages. The Farmers Market website offers other interesting facts about The Market.

On September 10, 1915, Los Angeles became the first major U.S. city to have a woman mayor.

The nation's oldest Holocaust museum founded by survivors takes visitors into the depths of Holocaust history.

With 92,708 employees, it is the single largest employer in Southern California.

Angelenos know that their city is expensive to live in. How does it rank against the cities of the world?.

La Raza was the best known and most influential of Chicano activist publications during the late 1960s and into the 1970s.

If you have no means to hire a defense attorney if facing a criminal charge, you should thank Clara Shortridge Foltz.

If ever there is a unique example of passion and love, there is The Bunny Museum in Altadena.

Oldest operating restaurant in Los Angeles County

The Time Travel Mart is a “convenience store for time travelers.”

Among the three designers of the iconic “Theme Building” at the center of Los Angeles International Airport was a rather unique architect, especially for his time.

According the last census in 2010, more people in Los Angeles County are living to age 100 and over.

Celebrated every December at Olvera Street, it is said to be the oldest, continuously-celebrated Christmas event in Los Angeles.

Amelia Earhart...Where Her Love of Flying Began.

Before the California Highway Patrol (CHP), they patrolled California roadways as the Highway Patrol Service.

This now ubiquitous nationwide chain of restaurants had its humble origins in Lakewood.

These bookstores are Southern California's oldest, California's largest, the nation's largest university bookstore and the nation's oldest children's bookstore.

Origin of the Name "Dodgers" for the Los Angeles Dodgers