Carson, California
Carson is a city in the South Bay[9] and the Harbor regions of Los Angeles County, California, located 13 miles (21 km) south of downtown Los Angeles[10] and approximately 14 miles (23 km) away from Los Angeles International Airport.[11] It was Incorporated on February 20, 1968.[12] The city is locally known for its plurality of Filipino-Americans and immigrants.[13] As of the 2020 United States Census, the city had a population of 95,558.[14]
Carson, California
February 20, 1968[1]
Arleen Bocatija Rojas
Cedric L. Hicks, Sr.
Jim Dear,
Lula Davis-Holmes
Jawane Hilton
Monica Cooper
David C Roberts, Jr.
18.97 sq mi (49.12 km2)
18.73 sq mi (48.51 km2)
0.24 sq mi (0.61 km2) 1.29%
39 ft (12 m)
95,558
86th in California
5,101.60/sq mi (1,969.77/km2)
History[edit]
Tongva Indians lived in the area.[15] Carson lies on part of the Spanish land grant Rancho San Pedro, from the King of Spain in 1784.[16] The Dominguez Rancho Adobe Museum on Alameda Street in Compton (not far from Carson's city limits) is the historic ranch home of the grantees Juan Dominguez and Manuel Dominguez. Carson was named after George Henry Carson, who married a daughter of the Dominguez family in 1857 and managed the rancho.
The year 1921 marked the first drilling for oil at Dominguez Hill, on the northwest side of the Rancho San Pedro (also called Rancho Domínguez), site of the famous battle during the Mexican–American War called the Battle of Rancho Domínguez in 1846. The mineral rights to this property were owned by Carson Estate Company, the Hellman family, the Dominguez Estate Company, and the Burnham Exploration Company of Frederick Russell Burnham. On September 7, 1923, Burnham Exploration partnering with Union Oil brought in the first producer on the site: Callender No. 1-A well at a depth of 4,068 feet (1,240 m) and 1,193 barrels per day (189.7 m3/d).[17] Before long a number of refineries were up and running, with over 350 oil derricks, tank farms, and sprawling industrial complexes becoming a familiar part of the scenery. The principal leases were with Shell Oil Company and Union Oil of California and the first two wells were located west of Central Avenue and north of Victoria Street. Oil led to an increase in jobs in the community and a subsequent post-war population surge. An average of 300 barrels per day (48 m3/d) was produced from each of these wells through 1960.
In 2011, Shell was ordered by the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board to clean up the Carousel Tract neighborhood after the discovery of benzene and methane gas contamination, as well as soil and groundwater contamination.[18]
In 2021, Carson was subjected to an air pollution event as a result of hydrogen sulfide emanating from the nearby Dominguez Channel.[19]
Education[edit]
Primary and secondary schools[edit]
Most of Carson is served by the Los Angeles Unified School District. A portion of Carson is in the Compton Unified School District.[46]
High schools serving LAUSD portions of Carson include Carson High School in Carson, Rancho Dominguez Preparatory School in Long Beach, and Banning High School in the Wilmington area of Los Angeles.[47] The area is within Board District 8.[48]
Magnolia Science Academy-3, a public span school (serving grades 6-12) in Carson, is a Magnolia Public Schools campus.
Circa 2019 there were plans to open a campus of the charter school Ganas Academy on the campus of the LAUSD public school Catskill Avenue Elementary School, but there was opposition to this move.[49]
Although the California Academy of Mathematics and Science is located in Carson on the campus of California State University, Dominguez Hills, it is actually a part of the Long Beach Unified School District. The school accepts residents of LBUSD, Compton USD, portions of LAUSD (including sections serving Carson), and other districts.
Infrastructure[edit]
Emergency services[edit]
Fire protection in Carson is provided by the Los Angeles County Fire Department which operates out of Fire Stations 10, 36, 105, 116, and 127.[51] Ambulance transportation is provided by McCormick Ambulance Service Station 17.[52] The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department (LASD) operates the Carson Station in Carson.[53]
Health care[edit]
The Los Angeles County Department of Health Services operates the Torrance Health Center in Harbor Gateway, Los Angeles, near Torrance and serving Carson.[54]
Carson's sister cities are:[63]
