Having worked for a daily newspaper during my formative years and running my own small-town publication, I know that correct facts are often immaterial to a story. So keep that in mind as you read this article on Los Alamitos’ fifth anniversary. But there are some things of (verifiable) interest.
From the Press-Telegram, March 3, 1965
By Bob Sanders
There’s going to be a little party among the Little Cottonwood trees Saturday.
Los Alamitos (which translates from Spanish into the little cottonwood trees) is celebrating its fifth birthday as an incorporated city and 181 years as a community. [ref] the latter fact is a little dubious. It’s hard to consider unplowed, untouched grazing land as a community. A more precise definition of “community” would wait until at least after a building was constructed and people lived in the area and that didn’t happen until late 1896. [/ref]
Just by coincidence – and a lot of planning—the city will also dedicate its new 126,100 City Hall at the same time.
The festivities will begin at 2pm in front of the City Hall at 3191 Katella Avenue, and everyone, including Jesse Unruh, state assembly speaker, Congressman Richard T. Hanna, State assemblyman James E. Whetmore and William E. Dannemeyer and Orange County Supervisor David Baker will speak.
The new 4,224 square Spanish-style building is the pride of the city.
Los Alamitos was settled in in 1784 but not much happened around here until 1879 when a sugar beet mill was built. [ref] excuse me, please someone hand this man a fact attack. The area wasn’t settled until 1896, and the sugar beet factory was opened for business in 1897. But why let facts get in the way of a newspaper article. [/ref]. This refinery was a stimulant to sugar beet farming in the area, and during its development sugar refining became the largest single industry in Orange Couty. (True story)
During World War I things slowed down but picked up again when a dog food manufacturer bought the old sugar mill buildings in 1925. [ref] not to be picky but Dr. Ross Dog Food Company LEASED the sugar factory buildings in 1933. [/ref]
The main building used by the beet refiners and pet food factory is now part of a manufacturing company at 3592 E. Cerritos Ave. [ref] I assume they’re referring to the warehouse now used By Pacific Grating, but the main buildings were the admin and main buildings. Go figure. [/ref]
The oldest building in town however is DeBruyn’s Café at 10791 Los Alamitos Blvd. Originally it was Felts’ Department Store and stood at the corner of Florista and Reagan (formerly Main). [ref] Technically, it was the C.B. Scott Department Store before it was Felts, but it originally may have been under another owner ’cause Scott is not listed as a merchant in the 1899 directory. This is probably the same C.B. Scott who was a merchant in Artesia along with __ Frampton, and who both became officers in the main bank of Artesia which listed Herman Hellman of Los Angeles as the President. A __ Felts was the treasurer of this bank as well. [/ref]
Today Los Alamitos means race track or Navy Air Station to most people who don’t live there. They are usually surprised to know that the city, which was incorporated with a population of 4,312, now has a population of 8,200.
The Los Alamitos Race Track, however, is not in Los Alamitos. In intricate annexation and incorporation moves in recent years, the track became part of Cypress.
Inside the 3.78 square miles of Los Alamitos are 1,928 homes, five churches, four schools and 16 different industries in the city’s Katella Industrial Park. Construction of a 150-bed hospital was recently approved by the City Council.
“The place is changing,” says city councilman August J. Labourdette, 61-year old native of Los Alamitos.
“It’s a lot different than it was when Grandpa Watts used to preach at the old Congregational Church and come to the grade school to tell the kids how his wife made him a hat and he went off from Kansas to fight for the Confederacy in the Civil War.”
“They were awfully good stories, though.”