Placentia ( ) is a city in Orange County, California, United States. It is part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area. Placentia's population was 51,233 at the 2020 US census. The city is primarily referred to as a bedroom community.
In 1971, Placentia was honored with the All-America City Award: given out annually by the National Civic LeagueAll America City Award to 10 cities in the United States.
History
Indigenous peoples of California referred to by the Spanish as Gabrielenos, known as the Tongva, lived in the area for thousands of years. One estimate wrote that the native population in what was to become northern Orange County was at least 1,000. The large village of Hutuknga was closely situated to the area that is now Placentia.
In 1837, the Mexican government granted the area that is now Placentia to Juan Pacifico Ontiveros as part of the Rancho San Juan Cajón de Santa Ana land grant.
In 1865, American pioneer Daniel Kraemer arrived and purchased . Many other American pioneers soon followed, and the community developed.
The local school district was originally named the Cajon School District. In 1878, the school district's name was changed to Placentia School District by Sarah Jane McFadden, Placentia being derived from a Latin word meaning "pleasant place to live". She was the wife of William McFadden, who was the second White settler to arrive in Placentia. The town eventually took its own name after the school district.
The first commercial orange grove was established in 1880, worked by mostly Mexican and English laborers.
20th century
From a handful of scattered ranches, the core of the town was developed around 1910. It functioned as a major railroad stop along the Santa Fe Railroad for processing oranges. Later, during the Great Depression, a brief strike of citrus workers occurred in Placentia.
Oil was found in 1919, which led to the development of numerous oil wells in eastern and northern Placentia. The town of Richfield, which later became Atwood, was built to house oil workers. Mexican laborers formed the majority of the labor force in the oil industry. The neighboring town of La Jolla, Placentia was constructed for a similar reason as a segregated colonia.
Several schools were constructed in Placentia from the 1910s to the 1930s that were segregated between White and Mexican students. Isabel Martínez was the first student of Mexican parentage to graduate from Fullerton High School in 1931, being celebrated in the Placentia Courier as an "exceptional" Mexican. Within six years, the number of Placentia students graduating high school numbered only six.
The predominately Mexican areas of Placentia were heavily hit by the Santa Ana River flood of 1938, which destroyed everything in the area but "the La Jolla School Building and three brick structures." The flood left 3,700 refugees and 1,500 homes uninhabitable, and "caused more than 50 deaths, most from the Atwood area."
Mexican-American war veterans from World War II worked to end school segregation in Placentia in 1948. This campaign was led by Alfred Aguirre, who noted that some white ranchers believed Mexicans were good fruit pickers, but that "the White kids are too advanced" for Mexican students to keep up in the classroom.
The Mexican-American community in Placentia developed its own political power base in the 1950s. This resulted in the election of Aguirre to Placentia's city council from 1958 to 1962 and the registration of hundreds of Chicano voters in the city.
In July 2020, Placentia organized and established its own fire department, Placentia Fire and Life Safety Department, leaving the Orange County Fire Authority as the first city to ever disband from the OCFA.
Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which 0.22% is covered by water. State Route 57 (the Orange Freeway) runs through the southwest section of Placentia. State Route 91 (the Riverside Freeway) passes directly south of the city. Districts in Placentia include the neighborhood of La Jolla and the formerly unincorporated community of Atwood.
Climate According to the Köppen climate classification, Placentia has a warm-summer Mediterranean climate, CSA on climate maps.Climate Summary for Placentia, California
Demographics
Placentia was first listed as a city in the 1930 U.S. Census. Prior to 1920, the area was part of unincorporated Fullerton Township (pop 5,037 in 1920).
Racial and ethnic composition +Placentia city, California – Racial and ethnic compositionRace / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)Pop 1980Pop 1990Pop 2000Pop 2010% 1980% 1990% 2000% 2010White alone (NH)25,74726,91224,96722,59018,99373.48%65.23%53.71%44.70%36.65%Black or African American alone (NH)4246967468189461.21%1.69%1.60%1.62%1.83%Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)2501391771231050.71%0.34%0.38%0.24%0.20%Asian alone (NH)1,4213,2725,1217,4579,9404.06%7.93%11.02%14.76%19.18%Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)6558690.14%0.11%0.13%Other race alone (NH)816661742190.23%0.16%0.13%0.15%0.42%Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)xx8919971,861xx1.92%1.97%3.59%Hispanic or Latino (any race)7,11810,17414,46018,41619,69120.31%24.66%31.10%36.44%38.00%Total35,04141,25946,48850,53351,824 100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%
2020 census As of the 2020 census, Placentia had a population of 51,824. The population density was . The median age was 39.0 years, with 22.3% of residents under the age of 18, 9.7% aged 18 to 24, 25.6% aged 25 to 44, 26.1% aged 45 to 64, and 16.2% aged 65 or older. For every 100 females, there were 94.8 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 92.4 males age 18 and over.
The census reported that 99.3% of the population lived in households, 0.5% lived in noninstitutionalized group quarters, and 0.2% were institutionalized. The city was 100.0% urban and 0.0% rural.
There were 16,915 households, of which 36.5% included children under the age of 18. Of all households, 56.5% were married-couple households, 5.5% were cohabiting couple households, 24.4% had a female householder with no partner present, and 13.6% had a male householder with no partner present. About 17.4% of households were one person, and 9.7% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 3.04. There were 12,897 families (76.2% of all households).
There were 17,368 housing units at an average density of , of which 16,915 (97.4%) were occupied. Of occupied units, 63.2% were owner-occupied and 36.8% were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 0.3% and the rental vacancy rate was 3.9%.
2023 American Community Survey estimate In 2023, the US Census Bureau estimated the median household income was $110,575, and the per capita income was $46,069. About 6.2% of families and 8.5% of the population were below the poverty line.
2010 census The 2010 United States census reported that Placentia had a population of 50,533. The population density was . The racial makeup of Placentia was:
31,373 (62.1%) White (44.7% Non-Hispanic White) 914 (1.8%) African American 386 (0.8%) Native American 7,531 (14.9%) Asian 74 (0.1%) Pacific Islander 8,247 (16.3%) from other races 2,008 (4.0%) from two or more races 18,416 residents (36.4%) were Hispanic or Latino, of any race.
The census reported that 50,196 people (99.3% of the population) lived in households, 253 (0.5%) lived in noninstitutionalized group quarters, and 84 (0.2%) were institutionalized.
Of the 16,365 households, 38.6% had children under 18 living in them, 57.4% were opposite-sex married couples living together, 12.6% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.5% had a male householder with no wife present, 4.6% were unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 0.6% were same-sex married couples or partnerships. About 17.6% of households were made up of individuals, and 7.8% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 3.07. There were 12,366 families (75.6% of all households); the average family size was 3.44.
In the city, the age distribution was 24.6% under 18, 10.3% from 18 to 24, 27.6% from 25 to 44, 24.9% from 45 to 64, and 12.6% were 65 or older. The median age was 36.0 years. For every 100 females, there were 97.0 males. For every 100 females 18 and over, there were 93.7 males.
The 16,872 housing units had an average density of , of which 10,681 (65.3%) were owner-occupied and 5,684 (34.7%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 0.8%; the rental vacancy rate was 4.7%. About 62.9% of the population lived in owner-occupied housing units and 36.5% lived in rental housing units.
The median household income was $75,693, with 12.2% of the population living below the federal poverty line. Economy Placentia has a $20 million Metrolink project that started in the downtown area in 2013. This project is in conjunction with the Orange County Transit Authority (OCTA), and will assist in the continued revitalization of the area, which is also scheduled for the building of more transit-oriented housing to complement the train station, mixed use, retail, and entertainment. All are designed to enhance Placentia's unique presence in Orange County. Placentia is also working with the OCTA on the OC Bridges project. The project, combined with the city of Fullerton, provides around $580 million in funding to build underpasses and/or overpasses at the major north–south roadways in the two cities. The roadways are Lakeview Avenue, Rose Drive/Tustin Avenue, Orangethorpe Avenue, Kraemer Boulevard, Placentia Avenue, State College Boulevard, and Raymond Avenue. The underpasses and overpasses at Placentia, Kraemer, Rose/Tustin and Lakeview are complete.McRea, Heather (Published: October 19, 2011, Updated: August 21, 2013) "First bridge to start on $600 million project to eliminate train crossings" Orange County RegisterWeikel, Dan (June 17, 2014) "Former Placentia official given deadline to repay salary" Los Angeles Times
Top employers According to Placentia's 2012 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report:, the top employers in the city are:
Number Employer Employees1 Placentia-Yorba Linda Unified School District2,5002 UCI Health - Placentia3903 Hartwell3004 Premedia3055 City of Placentia215
Arts and culture The George Key Ranch Historic District is a historic citrus ranch and Victorian ranch house in Placentia. It is now within the George Key Ranch Historic Park, with the historic house museum, outdoor displays, and a citrus grove. It is on the National Register of Historic Places. The Placentia-Santa Fe District is in the southwest or downtown area. The town is home to the A. S. Bradford House, a historic house museum. It is also home to the 100-year-old Berkenstock Mansion.
In 1973, Chicano Park's "founding lead artist" Guillermo Aranda and "founding apprentice artist" Ernesto "Neto" Paul (San Diego natives) collaborated with the art students of the University of California, Irvine (UCI) in painting a mural (about 8 x 36 ft) on the walls of the Tlatepaque Restaurant. Aranda was invited by a professor at UCI. The following year, the chairman of Toltecas en Aztlan, and the board director of the Centro Cultural De La Raza, Guillermo Aranda, also invited these same Orange County artists referred to as the "Santa Ana muralists/Santa Ana artists", to come to Chicano Park and paint on one of the first pillars (second painted pillar) of Chicano Park.
Government and politics