Huntington Park, California facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

Quick facts for kids

Huntington Park, California

City

Pacific Boulevard and Clarendon Avenue, 2009

Flag

Seal

Location of Huntington Park in Los Angeles County, California.

Huntington Park, California

Location in the United States

United States

September 1, 1906

Government

• Type

Council–manager

Area

• Total

3.02 sq mi (7.81 km²)

• Land

3.01 sq mi (7.80 km²)

• Water

0.00 sq mi (0.01 km²) 0.11%

Elevation

171 ft (52 m)

Population

(2020)

• Total

54,883

• Estimate

(2022)

52,633

• Density

18,173/sq mi (7,027/km²)

Time zone

UTC-8 (Pacific)

• Summer (DST)

UTC-7 (PDT)

ZIP code

90255

Area code

323

FIPS code

06-36056

GNIS feature IDs

1660778, 2410079

Huntington Park is a city in the South Central part of Los Angeles County, California. It is located in the United States.

The city includes smaller areas like Florence, Firestone Park, Graham, and Walnut Park, California. In 2020, about 54,883 people lived here. Most residents are Hispanic/Latino, and many were born outside the U.S.

Huntington Park and its Pacific Boulevard area are known for being a mostly Hispanic, working-class part of Southeast L.A..

Huntington Park: A City's Story

The first European to arrive in this area was Francisco Salvatore Lugo.

Looking north on Pacific Boulevard, 1907

Huntington Park was named after a famous businessman, Henry E. Huntington. It became a city in 1906. It was designed as a "streetcar suburb." This meant it was a town built along a streetcar line. It allowed workers to live there and easily travel to factories nearby. Many residents still work in factories in places like Vernon and Commerce.

The main shopping street, Pacific Boulevard, was once a very busy area. It served the working-class people of Huntington Park. It was also a big shopping spot for all of Southeast Los Angeles County. For a long time, Huntington Park was mainly a white community.

Over the years, things changed in Los Angeles. Industries declined, and new suburbs grew. This led to many white residents moving out of Huntington Park by the mid-1990s. New residents, mostly Latino families, moved in. These included families looking for better homes and new immigrants from Mexico.

Today, Pacific Boulevard is busy again. It is a major shopping area for working-class people in southeastern Los Angeles County. Many signs are now in Spanish, showing the change in the community.

Huntington Park's Location and Weather

Huntington Park is located in Los Angeles County.

The city covers about 3.0 square miles (7.8 square kilometers) of land.

Cities around Huntington Park include Bell, Cudahy, Los Angeles, Maywood, South Gate, and Vernon.

Huntington Park Climate

Huntington Park usually has 286 sunny days each year. It almost never snows. In July, the average high temperature is around 82 degrees Fahrenheit (28 degrees Celsius). In January, the average low is about 48 degrees Fahrenheit (9 degrees Celsius). Since 2015, summer high temperatures have sometimes reached the low to mid-90s Fahrenheit (around 32-35 degrees Celsius).

People of Huntington Park

Historical population
Census	Pop.	%±
1910	1,299	—
1920	4,513	247.4%
1930	24,591	444.9%
1940	28,648	16.5%
1950	29,450	2.8%
1960	29,920	1.6%
1970	33,744	12.8%
1980	45,932	36.1%
1990	56,065	22.1%
2000	61,348	9.4%
2010	58,114	−5.3%
2020	54,883	−5.6%
U.S. Decennial Census

Health of Children in Huntington Park

A study in 2012 looked at the health of children in California. It found that Huntington Park had the highest percentage of overweight children in the state. About 53% of the city's children were considered overweight or obese.

Population in 2010

In 2010, Huntington Park had a population of 58,114 people. Most of the people living in Huntington Park were Hispanic or Latino.

The city had 14,597 households. Many of these households (58.8%) had children under 18 living in them. The average household size was about 4 people.

The median age of people in Huntington Park was 28.9 years. This means half the people were younger than 28.9, and half were older. About 31.7% of the population was under 18 years old.

Fun and Culture in Huntington Park

Pedestrians on the Pacific Boulevard shopping district

Pacific Boulevard: A Shopping Hub

Pacific Boulevard was a very popular shopping area. It was the busiest shopping street in the southeastern Los Angeles suburbs from the 1930s to the 1950s. It had many department stores.

Cool Buildings on Pacific Boulevard

You can see interesting buildings on Pacific Boulevard. Some buildings show a style called Streamline Moderne. Examples include the Lane-Wells Company Building. Other buildings show Art Deco style. These include old theaters along Pacific Boulevard.

The Warner Theater opened in 1930 and had 1,468 seats. The California Theatre opened in 1925. It later became a fitness center.

Festivals and Fairs

Pacific Boulevard is also a place for fun events. It hosts festivals, carnival fairs, and parades. The "Carnaval Primavera" is a big event held every year. It lasts for three days and covers nine blocks of Pacific Boulevard. This carnival has Central American and Mexican food, carnival rides, games, and live music.

Public Libraries

The County of Los Angeles Public Library runs the Huntington Park Library. It's a great place to find books and learn new things.

Learning in Huntington Park

Huntington Park is part of the Los Angeles Unified School District. This district manages the public schools in the city.

Elementary Schools

Here are some of the public elementary schools in Huntington Park:

Hope Street Elementary School
Huntington Park New Elementary
Middleton Elementary School and Middleton New Primary Center
Miles Elementary School
Pacific Boulevard School
San Antonio Elementary School
Walnut Park Elementary School
Lucille Roybal- Allard Elementary School
KIPP Comienza Community Prep
Aspire: Antonio Maria Lugo Academy
Aspire: Titan Academy
Aspire: Junior Collegiate Academy
Academia Moderna

Middle Schools

These are some of the public middle schools in the city:

Gage Middle School
Nimitz Middle School
Centennial College Preparatory Academy
Aspire: Ollin University Preparatory Academy
Walnut Park Middle School
Prepa Tec
KIPP Comienza Community Prep

High Schools

Here are the public high schools in Huntington Park:

Huntington Park High School
Alliance Collins Family College Ready High School
Aspire Pacific Academy
Linda Esperanza Marquez High School
Maywood Academy High School
Alliance Margaret M. Bloomfield High School
Diego Rivera Learning Complex

There are also private schools in Huntington Park. These include Church of the Nazarene School and St. Matthias Catholic Elementary School.

City Services and Travel

Emergency Services

The Los Angeles County Fire Department helps protect Huntington Park from fires. The Huntington Park Police Department provides law enforcement to keep the city safe.

Getting Around

You can get around Huntington Park using buses. The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority runs bus services. Huntington Park also has its own COMBI bus service. The Slauson station and Florence station on the Metro A Line train are also close to the city.

Famous People from Huntington Park

Many interesting people have come from Huntington Park:

Lois Andrews - an actress.
Elton Gallegly - a former U.S. Representative.
Leon Leyson - the youngest person on Schindler's List, who taught at Huntington Park High School.
Rosario Marin - the 41st Treasurer of the United States and a former mayor of Huntington Park.
Lorenzo Mata - a professional basketball player.
Jeremy McKinney - a professional football player.
Wilbur Nelson - a minister and radio broadcaster.
Slayer - a famous American thrash metal band.
Tim Wallach - a professional baseball player.
Terry Wilson - a stuntman and actor.
Tex Winter - a basketball coach.