Chapter 7: Industrial and Commercial Organization

Los Angeles holds the claim of being the largest manufacturing center in the United States with 500,ooo workers in manufacturing activities in 2003. The largest components are:
Apparel: 63,800 jobs
Computer and electronic products: 60,000 jobs
Transportation products: 54,600 jobs
Fabricated metal products: 49,900
Food products: 44,800
Furniture: 27,400

Only Detroit produces more automobiles than Los Angeles. Banking and financing also are important industries as more than 100 foreign and countless domestic banks operate branches in Los Angeles. The best known industry in Los Angeles is the entertainment, with the production of film, television, and music.

Chapter 6: Agriculture, Gathering, And Extractive Industries

Oil


In 1850 the first salable petroleum in California was found at Pico Canyon, near San Fernando. The oil boom does not begin until 1890 when Edward L. Doheny discovered oil at 2nd St. and glendale Blvd. in downtown L.A. This discovery set off the "second black gold rush." Los Angeles soon became the center of oil production and by 1897 it had approximately 500 derricks. In the 1920's drilling reached new heights as major strikes were hit in Whittier, Montebelo, Compton, Torrance, and Inglewood. The largest oil strikes were found at Huntington Beach in 1920, Santa Fe Springs and Signal Hill in 1921. These finds upset national oil prices, and flooded the existing storage facilities. By the end of the 20th century, almost 1,500 oil wells operated throughout L.A. Between 1952 and 1988 some 1,000 oil wells pumped some 375 million barrels of "black gold."

Agriculture


The San Fernando Valley was annexed and incorporated in 1874. The Valley provided Los Angeles with land that had ample and reliable water supply, coastal valley climate, and 12 inches of rain a year. It also benefited from an irrigation system that had been put in place during the Mission era. This irrigation system facilitated the planting of wheat and fruit trees. By the 1920's fruit and especially citrus cultivation was San Fernando's biggest industry. Olives also benefited from the natural conditions of the Valley, and the 2,000 acre Sylmar Olive Grove, which was the largest in the nation at that time, produced 50,000 gallons of olive oil, and 200,000 gallons of ripe olives. Agricultural out led to the establishment of other industries such as canning companies, and fruit preservers. Agricultural land eventually gave way to housing development following World War II as there was a major migration to Southern California to work in the production industries.

Harbors

The San Pedro Harbor became operationa during the late 1840's and became the the principal harbor for trade in the county. In 1911 the Long Beach Harbor was established, and a port was added to San Pedro looking to give Los Angeles a position in international trade.


Today the Port of Long Beach is the second busiest sea port in the nation. In 2003 merchandise trade passing through Long Beach was valued at $96 Billion.

Chapter 5: Political Geography

The county is governed by a five-member Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors which today is made up of:
District 1: Gloria Molina, Democrat
District 2: Yvonne Brathwaite, Democrat
District 3: Zen Yaroslavsky, Democrat
District 4: Don Knabe, Republican
District 5: Michael D. Antonvich, Republican
The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors created by the state legislature in 1852 and its members are elected to 4 year terms by voters within their respective districts. The Board of Supervisors has executive, legislative, and quasi-judicial roles. The Board appoitns all department heads other than assessor, district attorney, and sheriff, which are all elective positions.

The county must provide numerous services which include law enforcement, property assessment, tax collection, public health protection, public social services, and relief to indignents. The 88 cities within the county each have their own city council. All the cities contract with the county to provide municipal services, 37 of these cities contract for all of their municipal services.

In general the county is liberal, but some of the suburban cities are relatively conservative, as in the 2004 presidential elections 26 cities had majority vote for George W. Bush, while the remainder of the cities and districts voted for his Democratic counterpart John Kerry.

Chapter 4: Population Geographies of Canada and the United States since 1950

In 1965 with the Immigration Act, the doors were opened to a new generation of immigrants from all over the world. According to the U.S. census, by 2000 36.2% of all Los Angeles residents were foreign born, when in 1970 the number was only 11.3%. Of Los Angeles' minority population, those of Latino/Hispanic origin number 4.2 million accounting for 47.3% of the entire population. In a survey conducted by the Los Angeles Unified School District, 130 different languages were found to be spoken by all school-age children. Los Angeles has become the major immigrant port of entry, leaving behind New York City.


Population density: 2,344 people per square mile
3,270,909 housing units with an average household of 2.98
Median age 32
Birth rate 2003: 15.1 per 1,000 population
Death rate 2003: 6.1 per 1,000 population
Life expectancy 2004 (entire state of California): 77.8 years

Chapter 3: Settlement Patterns Before 1950

History of Los Angeles

Los Angeles is one of the original 27 counties of California and was established on February 18, 1850. Originally, the County of Los Angeles was only a small area along the coast between Santa Barbara and San Diego of 4,340 square miles. Just one year later the area grew to 34,520 square miles.


The area of Los Angeles was first explored in 1769 by Spanish explorers and missionaries. Friar Juan Crespi, who was part of that first expedition, gave the area the name of Nuestra Senora de Los Angeles De la Porciuncula. In 1771 Father Junipero Serra founded the San Gabriel Mission and it became the center of the community. Ten years later 11 Mexican families were recruited to settle in the area and establish El Pueblo de La Reyna de Los Angleses, which later became known as La Ciudad de Los Angeles. Los Angeles and all of California remained a part of the Spanish crown until 1822 when Mexico gained independence. By 1840 Los Angeles had become the largest town in all of Southern California and became a part of the United States in 1848, with the signing of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. A major increase in population occured after the discovery of gold southwest of the Antelope Valley in what today is the Placerita Canyon.

Los Angeles has always had a diverse community as by the early 1850's settlers from England, France, Spain, Germany, and Mexico had made the journey west. By 1870 there was also a significant community of Chinese immigrants. During the late 1800's and early 20th century new immigrants arrived from Japan, Russia, and other countires of Asia and Eastern Europe.

Chapter 2: Physical Features of the United States and Canada

The county of Los Angeles is made up of various distinct landscapes, of which the valleys, mountains, and coastal areas are the most distinguished.

Mountains

The Santa Monica and San Gabriel Mountains, which make up the Angeles National Forest, are Los Angeles' major mountain ranges. The Angeles National Forest was established on December 20, 1982 and span an area of over 650,000 acres. The elevation ranges from 1,200 ft. - 10,064 ft. with Mount San Antonio, (Mt. Baldy), being its highest peak. The Angeles National Forest contains 10 lakes and reservoirs, and 240 miles of rivers and streams. As it is located just north of the metropolitan area, it is an important get away for Los Angeles city dwellers as it offers various camping grounds and skiing locations in the winter when its surface is covered in snow.

Coastal Area

The County of Los Angeles has 70 miles of coast line and approximately 20 public beaches. Among the most popular beaches are Venice and Santa Monica.


Venice Beach and Santa Monica beach are two of the most popular and visited in Los Angeles. Santa Monica spans across a 3.5 mile stretch and offers 340 days of sunshine throughout the year. The Santa Monica pier offers tourist and locals various forms of entertainment with Pacific Park and its ferris whell, carousel, aquarium, and other attractions. Temperatures in Santa Monica range from mid 60's to low 70's in the winter and 80's in the summer months. Just a few miles south is Venice Beach. Tourists and locals are drawn to venice not only for the ocean, but also by the many attractions, such as street performers, and shops that line Ocean Front Walk.


Valleys

Another physical feature in Los Angeles is the valley. Los Angeles contains the San Fernando Valley and parts of the Antelope Valley. San Fernando spans across an area of 345 square miles and is bound by the Santa Susana Mountains to the north west, the Simi Hills to the west, Santa Monica Mountains to the south, Verdugo mountains to the east, and the San Gabriel Mountains to the north east. The Valley is characterised with having much higher temperatures during the summer months, and can have more rainfall than the coastal and mountainous regions.