Fountain Valley, Ca

History Of Fountain Valley, California
The marsh that has blossomed into Fountain Valley once was known as Gospel Swamp, where cattle grazed and
itinerant preachers set up tents on small islands.But a severe drought in the late 1870’s turned the marsh – fed
by the Santa Ana River – into rich farmland, blessed with natural springs and artesian wells.Abel Stearns, a
Massachusetts investor, sold off large chunks of the fertile land to wheat, sugar beet, barley and lima-bean
farmers, according to the historical society.By the late 1890s, the area had a blacksmith shop, the Fountain
Valley School, a general store and a post office. When pioneer James T. Talbert formed a drainage district in
1903 that channeled the wandering Santa Ana River, land values jumped from $10 to $500 an acre.At the turn of
the century, the population was 20,000. By 1920, there were 61,000 area residents, and two small villages were
forming.During the 1930s large farms gave way to truck farming, mostly by Japanese-American farmers, in the
community then known as Talbert.The 1950s brought freeways and talk of incorporation to fend off possible
annexation to the cities of Santa Ana or Garden Grove. Supporters of an independent city favored a return to
what they considered the town’s original name – Fountain Valley, after the old school.In June 1957, 160 voters
overwhelmingly supported incorporation, and Fountain Valley became Orange County’s 21st city. The first City
Council, made up primarily of farmers, pledged to keep the new city a farming community. But in the early 1960s
the new San Diego (I-405) Freeway sliced the community in half, driving up land values and luring housing
developers. Information Provided by Orangecounty.net) Click for link