The Tongva were the first inhabitants of the area.[9][10]
The city is named after Pomona, the ancient Roman goddess of fruit.[11] For horticulturist Solomon Gates, "Pomona" was the winning entry in a contest to name the city in 1875, before anyone had ever planted a fruit tree there.[12] The city was first settled by Ricardo Véjar and Ygnacio Palomares in the 1830s when California and much of the now-American Southwest were part of Mexico.
Rubottom's Hotel and stagecoach station at Spadra, 1867Louis Phillips's 1875 Second Empire-style mansion at the site of the town of Spadra
Phillips sold a parcel of his land to William "Uncle Billy" Rubottom, in 1866 who founded a new town there and named it Spadra after his hometown, now part of Clarksville, Arkansas. The site of Spadra is 3 miles (4.8 km) west of the Pomona Station along Pomona Blvd. just east of the 57 (Orange) Freeway. Spadra became a stagecoach stop, Rubottom built the Spadra Hotel and Tavern to serve travelers, and by 1870, Spadra had 400–500 residents, three stores, a school, and a post office. In 1873, Phillips convinced the Southern Pacific Railroad to build a line to Spadra. Phillips thought Spadra would become a great town, and built his Phillips Mansion there in 1875, which together with the Spadra Cemetery are the only two remnants of the town that still exist today. Fullerton's Main north–south road was named Spadra Road for its first 75 years, as long before the 57 Freeway it was the road through Brea Canyon to Spadra, and was later renamed Harbor Boulevard. The Southern Pacific Railroad had a terminus at Spadra, but the line was extended east to Colton, and Spadra lost momentum. In 1964, the area was annexed by Pomona.[13][14]
1880–present
By the 1880s, the arrival of Coachella Valley water, together with railroad access, made it the western anchor of the citrus-growing region. Pomona was officially incorporated on January 6, 1888.[2]
In the 1920s Pomona was known as the "Queen of the Citrus Belt", with one of the highest per-capita levels of income in the United States. In the 1940s it was used as a movie-previewing location for major motion picture studios to see how their films would play to modally middle-class audiences around the country (for which Pomona was at that time viewed as an idealized example).[15]
Religious institutions are deeply embedded in the history of Pomona. There are now more than 120 churches, representing most religions in today's society. The historical architectural styles of these churches provide glimpses of European church design and architecture from other eras.[12]
Pomona is approximately 30 miles (48 km) east of downtown Los Angeles, 27 miles (43 km) north of Santa Ana, 26 miles (42 km) west of Riverside, and 33 miles (53 km) west of San Bernardino.
Pomona has a Mediterranean climate (Köppen climate classificationCsa) with hot, dry summers and mild, damp winters, and a large amount of sunshine year-round. Summers are characterized by sunny days and very little rainfall during June through September. Fall brings cooler temperatures and occasional showers, as well as seasonal Santa Ana winds originating from the northeast.
Climate data for Pomona, California, 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1949–2017
Source 2: National Weather Service (mean maxima/minima 1981–2010)[22]
Demographics
According to Mapping L.A., Mexican and German were the most common ancestries in 2000. Mexico and the El Salvador were the most common foreign places of birth in Pomona.[23]
The most common ancestries in Pomona are German, English, Italian, Irish and French.[24]
Pomona, California – Racial and ethnic composition Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.
The 2010 United States Census[30] reported that Pomona had a population of 149,058, a slight decline from the 2000 census population.[31] The population density was 6,491.2 inhabitants per square mile (2,506.3/km2). The racial makeup of Pomona was 71,564 (48.0%) White (12.5% Non-Hispanic White),[7] 10,924 (7.3%) African American, 1,763 (1.2%) Native American, 12,688 (8.5%) Asian of which is Chinese 2,217 1.48%
Filipino 2,938 1.97%
Japanese 443 0.3%
Korean 633 0.42%
Vietnamese 1643 1.1% ,[32] 282 (0.2%) Pacific Islander, 45,171 (30.3%) from other races, and 6,666 (4.5%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 105,135 persons (70.5%).
The Census reported that 144,920 people (97.2% of the population) lived in households, 2,782 (1.9%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 1,356 (0.9%) were institutionalized.
There were 38,477 households, out of which 19,690 (51.2%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 19,986 (51.9%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 6,960 (18.1%) had a female householder with no husband present, 3,313 (8.6%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 2,823 (7.3%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 299 (0.8%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 5,810 households (15.1%) were made up of individuals, and 2,010 (5.2%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.77. There were 30,259 families (78.6% of all households); the average family size was 4.15.
The population was spread out, with 43,853 people (29.4%) under the age of 18, 20,155 people (13.5%) aged 18 to 24, 42,311 people (28.4%) aged 25 to 44, 31,369 people (21.0%) aged 45 to 64, and 11,370 people (7.6%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 29.5 years. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.4 males.
There were 39,620 housing units[33] at an average density of 1,771.8 per square mile (684.1/km2), of which 21,197 (55.1%) were owner-occupied, and 17,280 (44.9%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.0%; the rental vacancy rate was 5.9%. 80,968 people (54.3% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 63,952 people (42.9%) lived in rental housing units.
During 2009–2013, Pomona had a median household income of $49,474, with 21.6% of the population living below the federal poverty line.[7]
Since the 1980s, Pomona's newest neighborhood Phillips Ranch, experienced rapid growth with homes still being built in the hilly area between Downtown and Diamond Bar. Today, Phillips Ranch is nearly all residential.[35]
The city is the site of the Fairplex, which hosts the L.A. County Fair and the Pomona Swap Meet & Classic Car Show. The swap meet (for car parts and accessories) is part of the car show, which is a single-day event held seven times throughout the year.[37]
Pomona was incorporated on January 6, 1888, and adopted a charter in 1911, making it a charter city.[3]
The city is governed by a seven-member city council. Regular municipal elections are held on a Tuesday after the first Monday in November in even-numbered years. Councilmembers serve four-year terms, and the mayor is the presiding councilmember, elected at-large. The other six members are elected by districts. Every eight months, the council appoints a new vice mayor from among its members.[45] The mayor is Tim Sandoval.[45]
Financial report
According to the city's most recent Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the city's various funds had $220.3 million in revenues, $225.5 million in expenditures, $818.3 million in total assets, $520 million in total liabilities, and $80.6 million in cash and investments.[36]
County representation
In the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, Pomona is in the 1st District, represented by Democrat Hilda Solis.
California State Polytechnic University, Pomona (Cal Poly Pomona) is located southwest of the junction of the 10 and 57 freeways. The university was established on the site of breakfast cereal magnate W.K. Kellogg's ranch located on the city's western corner. The university has over 24,000 students and covers an area of over 1,437 acres (5.82 km2). The university is known for its agricultural, hospitality, engineering and architectural[53] programs. Some campus areas are also located in Walnut, and the unincorporated community of Ramona.
Laguna Technical College is also located in downtown Pomona
Media
The major daily newspaper in the area is Inland Valley Daily Bulletin. La Opinión is the city's major Spanish-language paper. There are also a wide variety of smaller regional newspapers, alternative weeklies and magazines, including:
Author James Ellroy used Pomona as the setting for the fictional amusement park Dream-a-Dreamland in his novel L.A. Confidential.[94]
In an episode of I Love Lucy, the main characters of the show "go out to the country" on a day trip to Pomona.[95]
The Fox Theater in Pomona was frequently used by Hollywood during the Golden Age for test screenings. In Sunset Blvd., a character comments: "Bail Bondssh, is this your way of getting out of your responsibilities? Is this the way you act?".
^"Construction Phases FAQ". Foothill Gold Line. Metro Gold Line Foothill Extension Construction Authority. Retrieved December 26, 2018. Major construction is anticipated to begin in 2020, with substantial completion anticipated in 2026[.]
^Valenzuela, Beatriz E. (July 22, 2017). "Did you know these Comic-Con faves are from the Inland Empire?". Press-Enterprise. pe.com. Retrieved October 10, 2019. Chances are Ryan O'Donohue's voice played a major part in many a nerd's childhood. The veteran voice actor born in Pomona has been in such film and television favorites as 'The Iron Giant,' 'Pepper Ann,' 'Recess,' 'A Bug's Life' and 'Batman Beyond' to name a few.
^Ballard, Chris (April 23, 2001). "Bob Seagren, Pole Vaulter". Sports Illustrated. SI Vault. Archived from the original on June 14, 2012. Retrieved January 28, 2015.
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