Orange County Almanac
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The land that Los Alamitos occupies today was home to a group of Native Americans called the Puvu when Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo spotted the Southern California coast in 1542 while sailing under the Spanish flag. In 1784, Manuel Nieto, a soldier, was given a huge land grant, part of which was Rancho Los Alamitos, named after the abundant cottonwoods.
The area boomed during the sugar beet bonanza from 1896 to 1925. But when the Bixby Sugar factory closed in 1926, Los Alamitos returned to being a small town surrounded by small farms. It became a city in 1960, but with a current population of just over 12,000, Los Alamitos retains a small-town feel.
Today
An old-fashioned Christmas celebration will be held from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. today and Sunday at the Discovery Museum of Orange County’s historic Kellogg House.
Activities at this turn-of-the-century Victorian house will include caroling by local choral groups, holiday crafts, prize drawings and refreshments.
Admission is $5 for the general public and free for children 2 and younger.
The museum is at 3101 W. Harvard St. in Santa Ana. Information: (714) 540-0404.
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