Orange County Living

Orange County is siutated in sunny Southern California, and is a convenient drive to both Los Angeles and San Diego. Its modern incarnation began as farm country, full of orange groves and grape vineyards. The region came to life in the 1940's and 1950's, as housing started to spring up as people moved out of Los Angeles, seeking more affordable housing and a quieter way of life. In the early days, folks commuted into L.A. for work. As more and more dissatisfied Angelians moved to these little bedroom communities, Orange County grew to become its own metropolitan center, with services springing up to accommodate the increasing population.

The Orange County of today has developed quite the reputation, with a lot of help from recent popular television shows such as "The O.C." What many southern Californians have always just written off as the 'burbs of Los Angeles, Orange County's status has been elevated to the stuff of prime time dreams, full of sprawling ocean-front homes, chic boutiques, and sexy citizens. The truth is a little of both. Orange County is large and diverse, with fifty-seven separate towns and cities.

With nearly 3,000,000 residents, Orange County is the fifth largest county by population in the United States, as well as America's fifth fastest-growing county during the 1990's. Orange County's urban core is the Los Angeles-Long Beach area. It county seat is Santa Ana. The region has a strong and diverse economy. Manufacturing is still the largest employment sector here, with seventeen percent of residents working in this field. The retail trade follows in second place, employing just over eleven percent. Rounding out the top three is the sector of professional services, the sciences and technology, employing approximately eight percent of locals.

What most newcomers to the region will see is that this is the southern California of every American's imagination. The one with surfboards and Beach Boys' songs. With kids on bikes and adults firing up the barbecue. With walking to the beach to spend a day in the sun. Orange County is even the birthplace of the skateboard, and can take credit for some of the traits associated with the region. With its beach communities and rugged coastal bluffs, rolling hills, the Pacific Ocean, and mild temperatures that vary between 45 and 70 degrees, Orange County has much to offer.

Here, residents enjoy a relaxed lifestyle focused on community, family, and the outdoors. With its mild climate, you will be able to swim, boat, jog, or simply watch the sun set over the ocean all year round. There are numerous festivals to participate in, including the Festival of Whales and Fourth of July fireworks. To commemorate a special event, you could take a charter cruise around one of the region's many harbors, or even take the ferry to Catalina Island for a romantic getaway.

Orange County offers a variety of communities that maintain a vibrant yet relaxed lifestyle. Residents may tell you that living close to the ocean fosters a certain state of calmness not evident in other areas. While this may not be scientifically proven, there is enough anecdotal evidence in the region to support this idea. If you're thinking of moving, consider a move to one of the many spectacular communities of Orange County, California! To learn more, request our free relocation packet today.

In 1887, silver was discovered in the Santa Ana Mountains. Thousands of fortune seekers flocked to the "diggings." Land speculators and farmers came by rail from the East to settle in such boomtowns as Buena Park, Fullerton and El Toro.

In 1889, Orange County was formally organized as a political entity separate from the County of Los Angeles . The wilderness had finally given way to irrigated farmlands and prosperous communities. A year-round harvest of Valencia oranges, lemons, avocados, and walnuts made agriculture the most important industry in the new county. And with orange groves beginning to proliferate throughout the area (150,000 orange trees), the new county was named for the fruit: "Orange County."

The twentieth century brought with it many industrious individuals such as Walter Knott, a farmer turned entrepreneur, who founded the Knott legacy in Buena Park.

During the years that followed, Orange County witnessed the discovery of oil in Huntington Beach, the birth of the aerospace industry on the Irvine Ranch, and filming of several Hollywood classics in the Newport area.

In 1955, Walt Disney opened his Magic Kingdom in Anaheim. Noted as the pioneer of animated films, Disney revolutionized the entertainment world again with his "theme park" recreation concept.

By 1960, the neighboring metropolis of Los Angeles was "bursting at the seams." As the population spilled over the county line and across the rural Santa Ana Valley, it left in its wake an urban landscape of homes, shopping malls, and industrial parks.