Lakewood, CA

Lakewood is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. The population was 109,942 at the 2010 census. It is bordered by the cities of Long Beach and Torrance to the south, Whittier to the east, and Norwalk to the north.

Lakewood was incorporated on May 14th, 1907. The city's name comes from its location next to Lakewood Creek. Prior to incorporation as a city, this area was part of the Rancho San Pedro land grant given in 1839 by Governor Pio Pico to Juan Jose Dominguez and his wife Maria Antonia Yorba. In 1884, George H. Peck purchased Rancho San Pedro for $7500 from Dominguez and Yorba.

The first house in what would become Lakewood was built in 1887 by George H. Peck on land that he had purchased from Juan Jose Dominguez and Maria Antonia Yorba for $7500. The house still stands at 9001 Sepulveda Boulevard (formerly Sepulveda Road).

In 1906, A.L Fisher moved his general store from Carson City to what would become downtown Lakewood (at today's intersection of Jefferson Boulevard and Slauson Avenue). This became known as "Fisherville". Other early businesses in Lakewood included the Lakewood News (later renamed the Daily Breeze), J&M Coffee Roasters (now a Starbucks), and Max & Erma's Ice Cream Parlor (now an IHOP).

The 1920s were a time of great growth for Lakewood; new businesses opened including Sears, Roebuck & Co., which opened its first store on Jefferson Boulevard; J&M Coffee Roasters moved into a new building on Slauson Avenue; and several movie theaters—the Paramount Theatre (later renamed Loew's State Theatre), Fox Theatre (later renamed Regal Cinema), and Colonial Theatre—opened their doors along Jefferson Boulevard between Slauson Avenue and Pacific Coast Highway.

It was also during this time that major residential development began taking place in Lakewood; many large homes were built on large lots near Jefferson Boulevard between Slauson Avenue and Pacific Coast Highway, becoming known as "Jefferson Park". These homes include examples such as The Breakers at Jefferson Park (#4200 S Sepulveda Blvd.), Tudor Castle (#5200 W Olympic Blvd.), Rose Hills (#6000 W Olympic Blvd.), Villa Capri (#7000 S Avalon Blvd.), Villa del Lago (#8000 S Avalon Blvd.), Glen Eden (#9000 W Olympic Blvd.), Casa Loma (#11000 S Avalon Blvd.), Stonehurst Manor (#12000 W Olympic Blvd.) ,and more recently The Estates at Westlake Village (#14700 W Washington Blvd.). Today these neighborhoods are among some of the most expensive places in Los Angeles County due to their close proximity to downtown LA as well as their excellent schools including: Serra High School, University High School/ Westlake Village Campus/John Paul II Catholic High School/St John Bosco Catholic Secondary School/Lake View Terrace Elementary School/Westlake Middle School/Lake View Charter High School/.

During World War II there was significant growth in military production due to nearby Naval Base Long Beach so many workers moved into town looking for jobs building aircraft carriers among other things- this is when many African Americans settled into Jefferson Park- they started moving into previously all white neighborhoods such as Rose Hills or Glen Eden- now these areas are some of LA's most diverse neighborhoods with people from all over Asia Pacific Islander America Latin America Europe etc.. . . .