Category: Archive

Local historian Eric Plunkett will discuss his research on Richard Henry Dana, Jr., Dana Point’s early use as an anchorage, and the specific South Orange County locations featured in Dana’s book, Two Years Before the Mast, at the next meeting of the Orange County Historical Society.

Nov. 14, 2019
7:30p.m.
Trinity Episcopal Church
2400 N. Canal St., in Orange.

Eric graduated with a degree in history from Cal State University Fullerton in 2008. His article, “Richard Henry Dana at Dana Point,” appeared last year in The Branding Iron, published by the Los Angeles Corral of Westerners.

Eric co-planned OCHS’ day-long Portola tour earlier this year and recently spoke to the Society on the subject of Hippolyte Bouchard’s raid on San Juan Capistrano. His blog, Visions of California, explores “the story of Orange County in the greater context of California history during the Spanish, Mexican and early American eras.” (visionsofcalifornia.blogspot.com)

  Celebrate Santa Ana’s 150th birthday with a special presentation, “Santa Ana Before 1900,” by local historian Manuel “Manny” Escamilla at the next meeting of the Orange County Historical Society, June 13, 7:30p.m., at Trinity Episcopal Church, 2400 N. Canal St., in Orange.

In 1869, William H. Spurgeon and Ward Bradford bought 74 acres of the Rancho Santiago de Santa Ana. The town grew quickly after Spurgeon platted the townsite the following year. It grew even faster when the Southern Pacific Railroad arrived in 1877, opening up commerce, transportation and opportunities for agriculture. Santa Ana incorporated as a city in 1886 and – after a battle with Anaheim — became the seat of the new County of Orange three years later. By any standard, Santa Ana’s first several decades were an exciting time. Opportunities seemed limitless, success was never assured, and the Wild West was reluctantly giving way to a more modern and civilized era.

Former OCHS board member Manny Escamilla is writing a history of his hometown of Santa Ana and has presented a number of related historical programs throughout the community during this sesquicentennial year. He served as a City representative on the Santa Ana Arts & Cultural Master Plan and remains on staff in the City of Santa Ana’s Planning Department. He volunteers as a consultant to local artists incorporating historical themes and site-specific considerations across the city and as a board member of the Makara Art Center. Manny received a BA in History from UC Berkeley, a Masters in Library & Information Science from UCLA and is currently working on Master’s in Urban and Regional Planning at UCLA’s Luskin School of Public Affairs.

In 1769, Captain Gaspar de Portolá led the first Spanish overland expedition through what is now Orange County. It marked a turning point in the history of California, and provides us with our first written descriptions of the area and its native inhabitants.

Historian Phil Brigandi will present a description of the expedition, discuss their encounters with the Indians, and trace the trail through Orange County at the next Orange County Historical Society meeting, March 14, 7:30p.m., at Trinity Episcopal Church, 2400 N. Canal St., in Orange.

Brigandi is also coordinating our bus tour this summer along the Portolá trail, which will feature stops near several of the campsites and talks by local historians. Reservations are now open on our website or you can sign up at the meeting.

Uncover the story of Anaheim’s Chinatown with archaeologist Ivan Strudwick at the Orange County Historical Society’s meeting on Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, 7:30p.m., at Trinity Episcopal Church, 2400 N. Canal St., in Orange.

Orange County’s largest “China Town” was established in the early 1870s near the center of the vineyard colony of Anaheim. From the mid-1850s to the 1880s, one of every ten California residents was Chinese. When Anaheim incorporated in 1876, about a sixth of the city’s population was Chinese. And by 1890, 75% of California’s agricultural workforce was Chinese.

“Many Chinese engaged in truck farming northeast of Anaheim and their vegetable wagons were a familiar sight,” wrote Anaheim historian Leo Friis. “Actually, Anaheim was a good place for Chinese to live. Its citizens never carried to extremes the prejudice found in many other towns.”

Anaheim’s Chinatown is depicted on 1907 and 1911 Sanborn maps near the center of the original colony, just west of the modern intersection of Anaheim Blvd. and Lincoln Ave. In 1924, this small community was demolished, ostensibly for health concerns, and the last building was torn down in 1940.

Our speaker, Ivan H. Strudwick, was born and raised in southern California. He attended California State University, Long Beach, where he obtained both his bachelor and master’s degrees in anthropology, specializing in archaeology. During a professional archaeological career spanning four decades, Mr. Strudwick conducted and managed all phases of archaeological and historic projects, including survey and excavation, laboratory analysis, research, and report writing conducted in more than twenty California counties and on three of California’s Channel Islands. Mr. Strudwick was the field director and primary report author for the first cultural resource management project ever awarded for San Clemente Island. He has also worked as Native American coordinator for large multi-year projects and has numerous professional publications. For the past twenty five years, Mr. Strudwick has been employed as a professional archaeologist at LSA in Irvine.

At OCHS’ February meeting, Strudwick will discuss Anaheim’s Chinatown and some of the artifacts that were found when this historic area was recently graded for development.