| Los Alamitos, California |
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Los Alamitos (''"The Little Cottonwoods"'' in Spanish ) is a small city located in Orange County, California . The city was incorporated in March 1960. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 11,536. The USA Water Polo National Aquatic Center, where the men's and women's US Olympic water polo team s train, is located on the US Military Joint Forces Training Base in Los Alamitos. The facility is also used for major Water Polo tournaments, swim classes and local swim teams. HISTORY The clusters of Cottonwood trees Spanish explorers saw more than 200 years ago inspired Los Alamitos' name, but it is the Sugar Beet that figured most prominently in the area's later history. In the early days of Spanish colonization, Los Alamitos (The Little Cottonwoods or Poplars in Spanish ), was the name given to one of five ranchos that a former sergeant in the king of Spain's army deeded to his children. The sergeant, Manuel Nieto , had been awarded a vast land grant by a Spanish territorial governor. The 85,000-acre Rancho Los Alamitos originally included much of present-day Long Beach. Its ownership was to change and its boundaries would shrink many times. The historic ranch house and surrounding facilities for Rancho Los Alamitos can still be found near by in Long Beach. In 1896, the sugar-beet processing industry took root in the area, and with it came the roots of a future city. That year, ex-Sen. William Clark of Montana bought more than 8,000 acres of Los Alamitos rancho land and formed the Los Alamitos Sugar Co. The sugar-beet factory complex, with its streets of company houses for workers, became the basis for a Los Alamitos townsite. Old photos tell the story of an emerging city. There are pictures of recreational facilities the company started for its workers. And there are pictures from the early 1900s of sugar beets being delivered to the factory by horse and wagon. An insect infestation in 1921 caused sugar-beet crop failure and the eventual demise of the sugar industry in Los Alamitos. But the town that had sprung up continued to grow. During World War II , the US Naval Air Station moved its aircraft training field from Terminal Island to Los Alamitos. It employed thousands of people, and it spurred growth. In 1973, the base was designated an Armed Forces Reserve Center. Today, it is a reserve support center for units of the Army, Navy, National Guard and Marines. Many former military personnel chose to stay on in Los Alamitos after the war, maintaining the 1950s style tract housing. One such neighborhood is Carrier Row, where streets are named for World War II Aircraft Carrier s. The Spanish-ranchos-turned-company-town became an official city in March 1960 . The city's population then was about 3,400. Today, the population hovers near the 12,000 mark. The ambitious sugar-beet processor of today would be hard pressed to set up shop in Los Alamitos. Zoning laws keep out heavy manufacturing or industry, because nearly all the city land is developed. The Armed Forces Reserve Center takes up 48 percent of the city's 4.3 square miles. The rest of the city is a snug fitting mix of homes, apartments, businesses and open space. The small city has been the hometown for a number of noted athletes including Olympic gymnast Cathy Rigby , major league baseball player Dennis Lamp , and record holding distance swimmer Lynne Cox . It was also home to California Supreme Court Chief Justice Malcolm Lucas while he served on the Court, and to award-winning mystery writer Jan Burke . DEMOGRAPHICS As of the Census of 2000 ,, there were 11,536 people, 4,246 households, and 3,035 families residing in the city. The Population Density was 1,110.7/km&2 (2,875.5/mi&2). There were 4,329 housing units at an average density of 416.8/km&2 (1,079.1/mi&2). The racial makeup of the city was 76.97% White , 3.20% African American , 0.58% Native American , 9.49% Asian , 0.33% Pacific Islander , 5.37% from Other Races , and 4.07% from two or more races. 16.02% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. There were 4,246 households out of which 36.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.4% were Married Couples living together, 17.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.5% were non-families. 21.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.62 and the average family size was 3.06. In the city the population was spread out with 25.2% under the age of 18, 7.8% from 18 to 24, 30.8% from 25 to 44, 21.3% from 45 to 64, and 14.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 90.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.4 males. The median income for a household in the city was $55,286, and the median income for a family was $60,767. Males had a median income of $49,946 versus $36,002 for females. The Per Capita Income for the city was $26,014. 5.2% of the population and 4.1% of families were below the Poverty Line . 4.9% of those under the age of 18 and 8.8% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line. SCHOOLS
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