Founded in 1888, South Pasadena has managed to preserve its small town charm and character while maintaining excellent opportunities for businesses to prosper. The city maintains its own police and fire departments, an active parks and recreation program and an award-winning library system. It is a vibrant city with numerous community events held during the year. All of these things combine to make South Pasadena one of California's most desirable locations.
South Pasadena offers a wide variety of parks and recreation programs. Arroyo Seco Park has facilities for baseball, football and tennis, picnic tables, a bridle trail and boarding stable, hiking trials and a playground. Garfield Park has a playground, lighted tennis courts and a picnic area. Orange Grove Playground features a playground, facilities for baseball, basketball, volleyball, badminton and shuffleboard as well as lighted tennis courts.
Arroyo Seco Golf Course is an 18-hole, par 3 course with a restaurant and pro shop. It is lighted for night golfing and also offers a nine-hole miniature golf course. There are numerous 18-hole, championship courses located through the Valley.
When it comes to entertainment, there are also plenty of choices. The Fremont Centre Theatre features plays and music the year round. The historic Rialto Theater -- built originally for vaudeville acts -- now plays movies and a Saturday midnight showing of the Rocky Horror Picture Show. The Traditional Music & Dance Conservancy features Cajun and Zydeco entertainment, traditional Cajun music, live Zydeco bands, dancing, dance lessons and workshops.
Elementary and middle school students in the city are served by the South Pasadena Unified School District, one of the top ranked districts in the state. South Pasadena High School is the sole high school in South Pasadena. Established in 1907, the school has consistently been ranked among the top schools in California.
Many renowned institutions of higher learning are within commuting distance of South Pasadena including the California Institute of Technology, California State University at Los Angeles, Claremont College, Loyola Marymount University, Occidental College, Pasadena City College, UCLA, the University of Southern California and Whittier College.
Much of the city's development can be traced back to historic Route 66. The historic Mission West is frequented by celebrities and designers and still reflects the charm and character it did in the early 1920s and 1930s. The area features numerous antique, curio, gift and collectable shops as well as galleries and interior-design shops. There is an assortment of small cafes, ice cream and coffee shops. The South Pasadena Museum is housed across the street in the original Meridian Iron Works building, one of the oldest structures still standing in the city. The museum holds numerous artifacts tracing the history of this area of the San Gabriel Valley.
Across Mission Street is the Century House, one of South Pasadena's oldest standing residences. The structure was recently moved to its present location and is currently undergoing extensive renovations. The Century House may look familiar to some visitors as the centerpiece for a number of major motion pictures including two of the "Halloween" horror movies.
Further east on Mission Street is the Fair Oaks Pharmacy and Soda Fountain (corner of Mission Street and Fair Oaks Avenue). This turn-of-the-century pharmacy has been restored in recent years, and today offers visitors a glimpse of a simpler time. The Soda Fountain serves everything from phosphates and egg creams to hot fudge sundaes in surroundings that transport its guests to another time. Further north on Route 66, where Mission becomes Fair Oaks Avenue, is an area that has become the center of South Pasadena's business community.
While the area was first settled by Native Americans, the first recorded history of South Pasadena came with the missionaries. Established in 1835, Rancho San Pasqual enveloped most of Altadena, Pasadena, some of South Pasadena and San Marino. When Jose Perez and Enrique Sepulveda took over the mission in 1930, they built the first adobe houses in South Pasadena since the Indians. The first business followed 30 years later in 1870 with David M. Raab's Oak Hill Dairy. Already starting to pull away from Pasadena, South Pasadenans established their own school district in Clinton B. Ripley's house on Columbia Hill in 1878 and their own post office in the Hermosa Vista Hotel in 1882.
At the turn of the century, South Pasadena's population doubled to 1001 while businesses sprung up along Mission St. and Fair Oaks, the first bank opened in 1904, a volunteer fire department formed in 1907, businessmen organized the South Pasadena Chamber of Commerce, the high school opened and graduated six students in 1907 and the first Big Red Cars of the Pacific Electric Railway ran through South Pasadena in 1902.
South Pasadena's population jumped to 4,659 in 1910 and then to 7,652 in 1920. During this time, the South Pasadena Theater opened on Mission St in 1910, the city bought Garfield Park in 1920, San Marino joined the South Pasadena Unified School District, the Rialto opened in 1925, and the Oneonta Club, South Pasadena Kiwanis Club, and the South Pasadena Realty Board were established in 1923. During the twenties, South Pasadena's population almost doubled again to total 13,730 in 1930. Construction began on the Arroyo Seco Parkway (now the Pasadena Freeway) in 1938 and was completed two years later.
The decade of 1960 brought a population of 19,706 to South Pasadena, the beginning of a long fight against the State Division of Highways with the opening of Fight the Freeway headquarters in 1964.
A hard-hitting earthquake in 1971 welcomed the 22,979 residents of South Pasadena and the rest of Los Angeles to the '70s. Again, this decade proved to be one of development, with projects ranging from widening Monterey Road to revitalizing sixty-nine acres in South Pasadena and to a downtown superblock. This decade, however, also presented several preservation projects including the formation of a Cultural Heritage Commission, restoration of South Pasadena landmarks, fighting the ongoing battle to stop the 710 freeway, saving the Rialto from destruction, and rebuilding a turn-of-the-century bungalow to reflect Craftsman-era charm.
Today, South Pasadena continues to fight to retain its history, its charm and excellent quality of life.
South Pasadena offers a wide variety of parks and recreation programs. Arroyo Seco Park has facilities for baseball, football and tennis, picnic tables, a bridle trail and boarding stable, hiking trials and a playground. Garfield Park has a playground, lighted tennis courts and a picnic area. Orange Grove Playground features a playground, facilities for baseball, basketball, volleyball, badminton and shuffleboard as well as lighted tennis courts.
Arroyo Seco Golf Course is an 18-hole, par 3 course with a restaurant and pro shop. It is lighted for night golfing and also offers a nine-hole miniature golf course. There are numerous 18-hole, championship courses located through the Valley.
When it comes to entertainment, there are also plenty of choices. The Fremont Centre Theatre features plays and music the year round. The historic Rialto Theater -- built originally for vaudeville acts -- now plays movies and a Saturday midnight showing of the Rocky Horror Picture Show. The Traditional Music & Dance Conservancy features Cajun and Zydeco entertainment, traditional Cajun music, live Zydeco bands, dancing, dance lessons and workshops.
Elementary and middle school students in the city are served by the South Pasadena Unified School District, one of the top ranked districts in the state. South Pasadena High School is the sole high school in South Pasadena. Established in 1907, the school has consistently been ranked among the top schools in California.
Many renowned institutions of higher learning are within commuting distance of South Pasadena including the California Institute of Technology, California State University at Los Angeles, Claremont College, Loyola Marymount University, Occidental College, Pasadena City College, UCLA, the University of Southern California and Whittier College.
Much of the city's development can be traced back to historic Route 66. The historic Mission West is frequented by celebrities and designers and still reflects the charm and character it did in the early 1920s and 1930s. The area features numerous antique, curio, gift and collectable shops as well as galleries and interior-design shops. There is an assortment of small cafes, ice cream and coffee shops. The South Pasadena Museum is housed across the street in the original Meridian Iron Works building, one of the oldest structures still standing in the city. The museum holds numerous artifacts tracing the history of this area of the San Gabriel Valley.
Across Mission Street is the Century House, one of South Pasadena's oldest standing residences. The structure was recently moved to its present location and is currently undergoing extensive renovations. The Century House may look familiar to some visitors as the centerpiece for a number of major motion pictures including two of the "Halloween" horror movies.
Further east on Mission Street is the Fair Oaks Pharmacy and Soda Fountain (corner of Mission Street and Fair Oaks Avenue). This turn-of-the-century pharmacy has been restored in recent years, and today offers visitors a glimpse of a simpler time. The Soda Fountain serves everything from phosphates and egg creams to hot fudge sundaes in surroundings that transport its guests to another time. Further north on Route 66, where Mission becomes Fair Oaks Avenue, is an area that has become the center of South Pasadena's business community.
While the area was first settled by Native Americans, the first recorded history of South Pasadena came with the missionaries. Established in 1835, Rancho San Pasqual enveloped most of Altadena, Pasadena, some of South Pasadena and San Marino. When Jose Perez and Enrique Sepulveda took over the mission in 1930, they built the first adobe houses in South Pasadena since the Indians. The first business followed 30 years later in 1870 with David M. Raab's Oak Hill Dairy. Already starting to pull away from Pasadena, South Pasadenans established their own school district in Clinton B. Ripley's house on Columbia Hill in 1878 and their own post office in the Hermosa Vista Hotel in 1882.
At the turn of the century, South Pasadena's population doubled to 1001 while businesses sprung up along Mission St. and Fair Oaks, the first bank opened in 1904, a volunteer fire department formed in 1907, businessmen organized the South Pasadena Chamber of Commerce, the high school opened and graduated six students in 1907 and the first Big Red Cars of the Pacific Electric Railway ran through South Pasadena in 1902.
South Pasadena's population jumped to 4,659 in 1910 and then to 7,652 in 1920. During this time, the South Pasadena Theater opened on Mission St in 1910, the city bought Garfield Park in 1920, San Marino joined the South Pasadena Unified School District, the Rialto opened in 1925, and the Oneonta Club, South Pasadena Kiwanis Club, and the South Pasadena Realty Board were established in 1923. During the twenties, South Pasadena's population almost doubled again to total 13,730 in 1930. Construction began on the Arroyo Seco Parkway (now the Pasadena Freeway) in 1938 and was completed two years later.
The decade of 1960 brought a population of 19,706 to South Pasadena, the beginning of a long fight against the State Division of Highways with the opening of Fight the Freeway headquarters in 1964.
A hard-hitting earthquake in 1971 welcomed the 22,979 residents of South Pasadena and the rest of Los Angeles to the '70s. Again, this decade proved to be one of development, with projects ranging from widening Monterey Road to revitalizing sixty-nine acres in South Pasadena and to a downtown superblock. This decade, however, also presented several preservation projects including the formation of a Cultural Heritage Commission, restoration of South Pasadena landmarks, fighting the ongoing battle to stop the 710 freeway, saving the Rialto from destruction, and rebuilding a turn-of-the-century bungalow to reflect Craftsman-era charm.
Today, South Pasadena continues to fight to retain its history, its charm and excellent quality of life.