Los Alamitos, California
Template:Short description Template:Use American English Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox settlement
Los Alamitos (Template:Respell; Spanish for "the little cottonwoods") is a city in Orange County, California, which was incorporated in March 1960. Its population was 11,780 in the 2020 census, up from 11,449 in 2010. A significant part of the city is occupied by [[Joint Forces Training BaseTemplate:SndLos Alamitos]],<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and it hosts the USA Water Polo National Aquatic Center.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
History
The Tongva inhabited the area before the city was established, and Rancho Los Alamitos was known as the village of Puvunga. The area is still sacred to the Tongva people.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
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The town of Los Alamitos was established in 1896 by Lewellyn Bixby to support a new sugar-beet factory built by the Clark brothers. William Andrews Clark, a future Senator from Montana, had built his fortune in mining, banking and logging in that state. His younger brother, J. Ross Clark, managed their operations in California after he moved there for health reasons. Lewellyn Bixby, whose family owned the surrounding land on Rancho Los Cerritos and Rancho Los Alamitos, had been trying to build a sugar beet factory in that area for several years. Due to financial losses during the 1880s, he no longer had the money to build the factory complex on his own. Bixby had made a fortune in the 1850s when he and cousins Benjamin and Thomas Flint formed Flint, Bixby & Co. to deal in mutton and wool on Rancho San Justo, south of San Jose. After selling wool to the government during the Civil War, the Flints and Bixby bought land in southern California; this included the future Irvine Ranch and Rancho Los Cerritos, which is much of the western half of Long Beach. Flint, Bixby hired Lewellyn's younger brother, Jotham, to manage the Cerritos. When the company broke up, Lewellyn assumed their southern California properties, moved to Los Angeles and became the senior partner with Jotham.
Around 1881, cousin John W. Bixby wanted to purchase Rancho Los Alamitos with a consortium which included Lewellyn and Jotham and banker Isaias W. Hellman. When John died on May 7, 1887,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> the ranch was divided among the three families. The northern third, adjacent to the Rancho Los Cerritos (roughly north of present-day Orangewood Avenue), went to the Lewellyn-Jotham faction and became the Bixby Land Company. By the mid-1890s, after the crash following the 1880s land boom, this group was cash-poor and land-rich. After experimenting in northern California with sugar beets, the Bixbys agreed to provide the land and contracted with William A. Clark for capital; E.A. Dyer provided the expertise to build a sugar-beet factory. The community that grew up around the factory complex, with streets of company houses for workers and surrounding farms, was called Los Alamitos. During the early 1900s, sugar beets were delivered to a factory by horse and wagon. Economics, the elimination of a protective tariff, and a 1921 insect infestation reduced the sugar-beet crop in Orange County and ended the industry there and in Los Alamitos. William Clark and his brother H. Ross, who ran the Los Alamitos operation, received Template:Convert east of the factory and purchased Template:Convert north of the factory (primarily in Rancho Los Cerritos) which became Long Beach Airport, Long Beach City College, and the city of Lakewood. Clark and Hellman were also involved with E. H. Harriman, Henry Edwards Huntington, and the Southern Pacific Railroad in southern California; the Clarks completed a railroad from Los Angeles to Salt Lake City, with a desert stop in Las Vegas.
On land south of the factory (and present-day Orangewood Avenue), John Bixby's son Fred had a ranch to fatten cattle for slaughter and managed Hellman's land in present-day Seal Beach). Bixby allowed European-immigrant, Mexican, and Japanese farmers to rent land and grow crops. At the beginning of World War II, the Japanese farmers were rounded up by the military and relocated to internment camps in Manzanar and elsewhere.
Before and early in the war, the area around Los Alamitos became a center of the aircraft industry. The Clark heirs arranged for Donald Douglas to begin construction of the Douglas Aircraft Company plant north of the Long Beach airport, and the Navy needed an auxiliary airfield for its reserve training facility at the airport. A touch-and-go field was built on level ground east of Los Alamitos in August 1940, Orange County's first military post. In February 1941, the Navy moved its reserve aviation training from Long Beach and purchased Template:Convert. Trainees and other troops began using the new facilities in November of that year, and Naval Reserve Air Base Long Beach moved its operations to NRAB Los Alamitos in May 1942. NRAB Los Alamitos was the nation's busiest reserve air base during the Korean War, but suburban residential development began to curtail its activity by the late 1950s. The Navy moved out in 1972, and the California National Guard took over management of the base as an Armed Forces Reserve Center the following year. It is a reserve support center for units of the Army, Navy, National Guard and Marines and home to other government agencies, including Homeland Security, FEMA and the State of California Office of Emergency Services.<ref name="ReferenceA">Strawther, Larry; "A Brief History of Los Alamitos," History Press, 2012</ref>
Former military personnel remained in Los Alamitos after the war, living in neighborhoods such as Carrier Row (whose streets are named for World War II aircraft carriers,. Carrier Row was three small subdivisions, built in 1947–48, 1950, and 1955 by different builders. The first subdivision was Alamos Ranchos, first occupied in April 1948. The homes had sewage problems, and the builder stopped after completing the two blocks east of Lexington and south of Katella. In 1950, two more blocks were constructed as Plainview Homes. In 1955, the tract was completed with the construction of Los Alamitos Park. Los Alamitos Terrace, a 193-unit subdivision, was built north of Old Town West on a Bixby-operated dairy farm whose headquarters was present-day Los Alamitos High School.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
In 1956, Ross Cortese purchased land to build the walled community of Rossmoor southwest of Los Alamitos. Rossmoor, Orange County's largest single development, was the first walled community in the United States and home to over 10,000 upper-middle-class professionals. Rossmoor's homes were initially designed by Earle G. Kaltenbach, and two later phases were designed by Chris Choate. Ranch-style homes dominated 1950s suburban architecture. Before Rossmoor, Choate and May worked with Cortese on the nearby Lakewood Rancho Estates in Long Beach.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
Although Rossmoor is not part of Los Alamitos, they have become linked. When Los Alamitos was incorporated, its population was about 3,400; Rossmoor's population was almost 10,000. Los Alamitos is slightly larger, with a population of over 11,000. Rossmoor's success led to the Los Alamitos subdivisions of Dutch Haven (1960), Rossmoor Highlands (1961), and Suburbia, New Dutch Haven, Greenbrook and College Park North (1967). Los Alamitos has been the hometown for a number of noted athletes, including baseball Hall of Famer Bob Lemon (although he spent more time in Long Beach), and Olympic gymnast Cathy Rigby. The Los Alamitos youth baseball leagues, which began in 1958 as the Rossmoor Little League and (after moving its fields to the Navy base) changing its name to Los Alamitos Youth baseball), developed Andy Messersmith. During the late 1980s, six former league players were playing major-league baseball: Robb Nen, J. T. Snow, Greg Harris, Dennis Lamp, Greg Pirkl, and Mike Kelly. The area has been home to long-distance swimmer Lynne Cox, California Supreme Court Chief Justice Malcolm M. Lucas, and mystery writer Jan Burke.
Geography
Los Alamitos is bordered by Cypress on the north and east, West Garden Grove on the east, and Seal Beach on the south. The census-designated place of Rossmoor is bordered by Los Alamitos on the north, east, and west.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The city shares a northwestern border with Long Beach's El Dorado Park neighborhood. Coyote Creek separates Los Alamitos from Long Beach.
Flora
The most common native plant species are hairy sand verbena, red sand verbena, and pink sand verbena.
Climate
Los Alamitos' USDA hardiness zone is 9,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and its Sunset climate zone is 22.<ref>Template:Cite newsTemplate:Dead link</ref>
Demographics
Los Alamitos was first listed as a city in the 1960 U.S. census.<ref name=1960CensusCA/> Before then, the area was part of Seal Beach Township (1950 population 6,824).<ref name=1950CensusCA/>
| Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic) | Pop 1980 | Pop 1990 | Pop. 2000<ref name=2000CensusP004>Template:Cite web</ref> | Pop. 2010<ref name=2010CensusP2>Template:Cite web</ref> | Template:Partial<ref name=2020CensusP2>Template:Cite web</ref> | % 1980 | % 1990 | % 2000 | % 2010 | Template:Partial |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NH white | 9,530 | 9,040 | 7,836 | 6,721 | 5,449 | 82.66% | 77.42% | 67.93% | 58.70% | 46.26% |
| NH Black or African American | 56 | 337 | 358 | 300 | 347 | 0.49% | 2.89% | 3.10% | 2.62% | 2.95% |
| NH Native American or Alaska Native | 91 | 45 | 31 | 22 | 34 | 0.79% | 0.39% | 0.27% | 0.19% | 0.29% |
| NH Asian | 423 | 781 | 1,090 | 1,447 | 2,060 | 3.67% | 6.69% | 9.45% | 12.64% | 17.49% |
| NH Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander | 35 | 47 | 69 | 0.30% | 0.41% | 0.59% | ||||
| NH other | 35 | 13 | 18 | 46 | 68 | 0.30% | 0.11% | 0.16% | 0.40% | 0.58% |
| NH multiracial | x | x | 320 | 448 | 727 | x | x | 2.77% | 3.91% | 6.17% |
| Hispanic or Latino | 1,394 | 1,460 | 1,848 | 2,418 | 3,026 | 12.09% | 12.50% | 16.02% | 21.12% | 25.69% |
| Total | 11,529 | 11,676 | 11,536 | 11,449 | 11,780 | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% |
2020
Los Alamitos had a population of 11,780 in the 2020 United States census, and its population density was Template:Convert. The city's racial makeup was 53.3 percent white, 3.3 percent African-American, 0.9 percent Native American, 17.8 percent Asian, 0.6 percent Pacific Islander, 8.5 percent from other races, and 15.6 percent from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 25.7 percent of the population.<ref name=DP1>Template:Cite web</ref> The census indicated that 98.8 percent of the population lived in households, 0.1 percent lived in non-institutional group quarters, and 1.1 percent were institutionalized.<ref name=DP1/>
Of its 4,266 households, 39.2 percent included children under age 18, 48.2 percent were married households, 5.7 percent were cohabiting households, 30.2 percent had a female householder with no partner, and 15.9 percent had a male householder with no partner present. One-person households were 21 percent, and 10.2 percent were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.73.<ref name=DP1/> There were 3,104 families (72.8 percent of all households).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
The city's age distribution was 23.5 percent under age 18, 8.9 percent ages 18 to 24, 25.4 percent ages 25 to 44, 26.1 percent ages 45 to 64, and 16.1 percent aged 65 or older. The median age was 39.3Template:Nbspyears. For every 100 females, there were 91.0 males.<ref name=DP1/>
There were 4,376 housing units, with an average density of Template:Convert, of which 4,266 (97.5 percent) were occupied. Of these, 44.4 percent were owner-occupied and 55.6 percent were rented.<ref name=DP1/>
In 2023, the U.S. Census Bureau estimated that the median household income was $98,539 and the per capita income was $51,404. About 7.2 percent of families and 9.3 percent of the population were living below the poverty line.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
2010
The city had a 2010 population of 11,449,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> with a population density of Template:Convert. Los Alamitos' racial makeup was 8,131 (71 percent) white (58.7 percent non-Hispanic white),<ref name="quickfacts.census.gov">Template:Cite web</ref> 324 (2.8 percent) African American, 51 (0.4 percent) native American, 1,471 (12.8 percent) Asian, 50 (0.4 percent) Pacific islander, 726 (6.3 percent) from other races, and 696 (6.1 percent) from two or more races. The Hispanic or Latino population (any race) was 2,418 (21.1 percent). According to the census, 11,206 people (97.9 percent) lived in households; 40 (0.3 percent) lived in non-institutional group quarters, and 203 (1.8 percent) were institutionalized.
There were 4,212 households, of which 1,610 (38.2 percent) included children under age 18; 2,025 (48.1 percent) were opposite-sex married couples, 731 (17.4 percent) had a female householder with no husband, 282 (6.7 percent) had a male householder with no wife. There were 209 (five percent) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 19 (0.5 percent) same-sex married couples or partnerships. Individuals made up 885 households (21 percent), and 355 (8.4 percent) had someone living alone who was 65 or older. Average household size was 2.66. There were 3,038 families (72.1 percent of all households); the average family size was 3.10.
Ages were diverse, with 2,741 people (23.9 percent) under age 18, 1,077 people (9.4 percent) aged 18 to 24, 2,938 people (25.7 percent) aged 25 to 44, 3,099 people (27.1 percent) aged 45 to 64, and 1,594 people (13.9 percent) age 65 or older. The city's median age was 38.7 years. For every 100 females, there were 89.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.1 males.
There were 4,355 housing units, with an average density of Template:Convert, of which 1,967 (46.7 percent) were owner-occupied and 2,245 (53.3 percent) were rented. The homeowner vacancy rate was 0.8 percent, and the rental vacancy rate was 3.1 percent. Owner-occupied units housed 5,274 people (46.1 percent), and 5,932 (51.8 percent) lived in rental housing. Median household income was $80,449, and 7.2 percent of the population lived below the federal poverty line.<ref name="quickfacts.census.gov"/>
Government
The five-member, elected City Council represents the city's five districts. The council's first meeting of the year appoints one of its members to be mayor for the year. After the selection of a mayor, the mayor holds a city-council election to appoint a council member as mayor pro tempore.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Shelley Hasselbrink is the mayor of Los Alamitos.<ref>https://cityoflosalamitos.org/165/City-Council 2024-25</ref>
State, federal, and county representation
In the California State Legislature, Los Alamitos is in Template:Representative, and in Template:Representative<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In the United States House of Representatives, Los Alamitos is in Template:Representative.<ref>Template:Cite GovTrack</ref> The city, in the Orange County Board of Supervisors' first district, has been represented by Janet Nguyen since 2024. According to the Orange County Registrar of Voters,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Los Alamitos had 7,526 registered voters on May 17, 2025.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Of those, 2,676 were registered Republicans; 2,725 were registered Democrats, and 1,577 (26.72 percent) declined to state a political party.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Economy
The first Claim Jumper restaurant opened in Los Alamitos in 1977; in 2025, the location was a Hof's Hut. Neverland Studios, often used by Christian rock bands, was in Los Alamitos. Tillys had its original location in the city.
Top employers
According to the Los Alamitos 2022 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report,<ref name="cafr2022">City of Los Alamitos CAFR</ref> the city's top employers are:
| # | Employer | # of employees |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | [[UCI HealthTemplate:SndLos Alamitos]] | 1,100 |
| 2 | Arrowhead Products | 780 |
| 3 | Trend Offset Printing | 700 |
| 4 | Epson America | 693 |
| 5 | Mittera California | 238 |
| 6 | Discovery Practice Management | 205 |
| 7 | Bar Bakers | 200 |
| 8 | Resare Marketing | 191 |
| 9 | Alamitos West Health & Rehabilitation | 145 |
| 9 | Evergreen Pharmaceutical of California | 145 |
| 9 | Katella Delicatessen-Restaurant-Bakery | 145 |
Infrastructure
Bus service
Orange County Transportation Authority operates bus service in the city.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Water
Water in Los Alamitos is supplied by the Golden State Water Company,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> which obtains its water from the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California by importing water from the Colorado River Aqueduct and the California State Water Project. Groundwater is also pumped from the Orange County Groundwater Basin.<ref name=":1">water-quality-west-orange-county 2024</ref>
Notable people
- Dana Andrews, actor
- Aaron Barrett, musician, founding member of Reel Big Fish
- Jonathan Bornstein (born 1984), soccer player for USA National Team, Chivas USA, and Chicago Fire
- Tim Carey, football player (attended Los Alamitos High School, but grew up in Seal Beach)
- Kami Cotler (born 1965), actress
- Lynne Cox, long-distance swimmer
- Troy Edgar, American security official
- Landry Fields, basketball player for the New York Knicks (attended Los Alamitos High School, but grew up in Long Beach)
- Ralph Flanagan, Olympic swimmer
- Scott Klopfenstein, musician, former member of Reel Big Fish
- Chris Kluwe, former punter for the Minnesota Vikings (attended Los Alamitos High School, but grew up in Seal Beach)
- Bob Lemon, baseball Hall of Famer as pitcher and manager, lived in City Garden Acres (now Apartment Row) and attended Laurel Elementary before family moved to Long Beach
- Marcedes Lewis, tight end for the Green Bay Packers
- Allison Mack, actress (Chloe in Smallville)
- Taryn Manning (born 1978), actress
- Nikki Monninger, bass guitarist for Silversun Pickups
- Matthew Morrison, singer and actor (Broadway plays, Fox TV's Glee) – attended Los Alamitos HS, but grew up in Cypress
- Tony Muser, former MLB player and manager
- Robb Nen, baseball player—attended Los Alamitos High School, but grew up in Seal Beach
- Cathy Rigby, Olympic gymnast and actress
- Matt "Money" Smith, Fox Sports Radio talk show host
- J. T. Snow (born 1968), baseball player (attended Los Alamitos HS, but grew up in Seal Beach)
- Jodie Sweetin, actress (Stephanie Tanner in Full House)
Schools
The Los Alamitos Unified School District began in 1898 as the Laurel Elementary School District and changed its name in 1953 to the Los Alamitos Elementary School District, providing education through the sixth grade. Students in grades 7-12 attended schools in the Anaheim School District until 1979, when local voters withdrew from the Anaheim High School District and unified their local grades as the Los Alamitos Unified School District.
- Los Alamitos High School (opened September 1967, moved into present location in September 1968)
- Laurel High School (continuation high school, absorbed by Los Alamitos High School in 2014)
- McAuliffe Middle School (originally Pine Junior High)
- Oak Middle School (originally Oak Junior High)
- Hopkinson Elementary in Rossmoor
- Lee Elementary in Rossmoor
- Los Alamitos Elementary
- Rossmoor Elementary in Rossmoor
- Weaver Elementary in Rossmoor
- McGaugh Elementary in Seal Beach
- St. Hedwig School, a K–8 private school
References
External links
Template:Wikivoyage Template:Commons category
- Template:Official website
- Los Alamitos Chamber of Commerce: History
- Local History for Los Alamitos, Rossmoor & Seal Beach
Template:Cities of Orange County, California Template:Greater Los Angeles Area Template:Authority control