Arcadia is a US city in Los Angeles County, California that is located about 20 miles Northeast of downtown Los Angeles It is the site of the Santa Anita Park racetrack and home to the Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Garden. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 53,054.
Discrimination has made a major impact on Arcadia's history. The Santa Anita Park racetrack was repurposed as a Japanese American internment camp during World War II and until a Supreme Court ruling in 1965, every property sale contract in the city required that new owners only resell the property to white Protestants. The demographics have changed radically in the past 30 years, however, and Arcadia is expected to have an Asian majority before the 2010 census.
Arcadia is located at 34°7'58" North, 118°2'11" West (34.132688, -118.036491).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 28.8 km2 (11.1 mi2). 28.4 km2 (11.0 mi2) of it is land and 0.3 km2 (0.1 mi2) of it is water. The total area is 1.08% water.
Arcadia has experienced a tremendous demographic shift in recent years. A city that was almost uniformly white Protestant 30 years ago is now 45% Asian and is expected to have an Asian majority before the 2010 census. The transformation is linked to a rapid increase in wealth in Asian countries such as Taiwan, China, Korea and Hong Kong. This has led to the immigration of many Asians to countries like the United States. Arcadia offers excellent public schools, which are seen by many young upper-middle class Asian immigrant families as a ticket to a good college, and eventually desirable careers for their children in America. The large, established Asian immigrant community and the relatively high quality of life are also attractive.
As of the census of 2000, there are 53,054 people, 19,149 households, and 14,151 families residing in the city. The population density is 1,865.6/km2 (4,830.0/mi2). There are 19,970 housing units at an average density of 702.2/km2 (1,818.1/mi2). The racial makeup of the city is 45.58% White, 1.13% Black or African American, 0.25% Native American, 45.41% Asian, 0.08% Pacific Islander, 4.16% from other races, and 3.39% from two or more races. 10.61% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There are 19,149 households out of which 35.2% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.8% are married couples living together, 11.9% have a female householder with no husband present, and 26.1% are non-families. 22.3% of all households are made up of individuals and 9.6% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.74 and the average family size is 3.23.
In the city the population is spread out with 23.3% under the age of 18, 7.5% from 18 to 24, 27.2% from 25 to 44, 26.5% from 45 to 64, and 15.5% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 40 years. For every 100 females there are 88.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 84.6 males.
Arcadia was originally inhabited by the Tongva ("Gabrielino") Indian tribe, who were forced into slavery by Spanish colonizers at the San Gabriel Mission (in present-day San Gabriel, California). The Gabrielinos were quickly wiped out through a combination of overwork and exposure to "Old World" diseases. During Mexican rule of California (1821-1848), a large area of land that included the present-day borders of Arcadia was sold to a Scottish immigrant, Hugo Reid. The land holding changed owners several times before being acquired by "Lucky" Baldwin, a real estate speculator who made millions off a silver mine in Virginia City, Nevada.
"Lucky" Baldwin made Arcadia into what it is today, building a racetrack and arboretum. He lobbied fiercely to ensure that there would be a railroad stop at his ranch in Arcadia, which later proved crucial for local development. He also took steps to control flooding from the San Gabriel River and installed modern plumbing. When Baldwin was going through a personal financial crisis, he was forced to sell much of his Southern California land, retaining only Arcadia and establishing more or less the city's present-day boundaries.
During World War II, Arcadia's Santa Anita Park racetrack was at one point the largest Japanese American assembly center in the United States. Internees often experienced appalling conditions at the racetrack, some for more than a year, before being moved to permanent "relocation" camps in Owens Valley, Utah, and Wyoming. Imprisoned solely because of their ethnicity, internees lived three families to a barrack (or horse-stable in some cases), took group showers, lacked private bathrooms, and lived under 24-hour armed surveillance. At the time, Arcadia's civic leaders were very vocal in their support of the internment policies of the Federal Government. (See: Japanese internment in the United States).
Until a Supreme Court ruling in 1965, every property sale contract within the borders of Arcadia had to include a provision that the new owner could only sell the property to a white Protestant, though many non-Protestant families did, in fact, own homes and live in Arcadia long before that ruling.
In October 1975, the Santa Anita Fashion Park was opened to the public on the corner of Baldwin Avenue and Huntington Drive. The center court featured a gigantic blue head by Roy Lichtenstein, later removed.
James Dobson, a previous Arcadia resident, founded the nonprofit Christian ministry Focus on the Family in the city in 1977. Its original office still stands on the south side of Foothill Blvd. Focus grew to larger quarters in the city, and in intervening years expanded to Monrovia for warehouse space before moving out of Arcadia completely in 1990. Focus on the Family promotes "traditional family values", advocating school prayer and corporal punishment while strongly opposing abortion and homosexuality.
In the late 1990s, Native American activists threatened to sue Arcadia High School over its use of the "Apache" mascot. The high school's use of Native American symbols, including an "Apache Joe" mascot, the Pow Wow school newspaper, the "Smoke Signals" news bulletin boards, and the school's auxilary team's marching "Apache Princesses" were viewed by these Native American activists as offensive. The school consulted with Native American groups and made some concessions but refused to change the mascot. Some residents of Arcadia, who are former students at the school and have Native American ancestory, do not take offense to the school's use of these symbols.
In August 2000, the 1912 mansion and 19 acre (77,000 m2) estate of Anoakia, the oldest remaining private property in the city, was bulldozed to clear space for 31 luxury homes, which would come to be derided by many as McMansions. The estate, which once belonged to the daughter of city founder Elias "Lucky" Baldwin, featured numerous one-of-a-kind architectural features and a structure whose facade was a replica of Thomas Jefferson's Monticello.
Further reading: Pat McAdam and Sandy Snider: Arcadia: Where Ranch and City Meet. Published by "Friends of the Arcadia Public Library", 1981, ISBN 0-9606390-0-4. Online edition
Source:
ArcadiaCalifornia.com
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