Pre-history The area is the home of the
Tongva,
Luiseño, and
Juaneño tribal nations, who were there "as early as 4,000 years ago." The Tongva defined their world as
Tovaangar, a nation which "extended from Palos Verdes to San Bernardino, from Saddleback Mountain to the San Fernando Valley" and included the entire territory of present-day Yorba Linda. Spanish colonization between 1769 and 1840 brought "disease, invasive species, and livestock" into the area, which "upended the ecological balance of the region and forced the Tongva to resettle around three missions." The village of
Hutuknga was located in the area of Yorba Linda.
Early years In 1810, the Spanish crown granted
José Antonio Yorba 63,414 acres of land, which "spread across much of modern-day Orange County." In 1834, following Mexico's independence from Spain, Yorba's most successful son,
Bernardo Yorba (after whom the city would later be named), was granted the
Rancho Cañón de Santa Ana by Mexican governor
José Figueroa. Most of this original land was retained after the
Mexican–American War in 1848 by descendants of the Yorba family. A portion of the city's land is still owned and developed by descendants of
Samuel Kraemer, who acquired it through his marriage to Angelina Yorba, the great-granddaughter of Bernardo Yorba. The site of the
Bernardo Yorba Hacienda, referred to as the Don Bernardo Yorba Ranch House Site, is listed as a
California Historical Landmark. Near that same site sits the second oldest private cemetery in the county, the historic
Yorba Cemetery. The land was given to the
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles by Bernardo Yorba since Orange County was not established out of
Los Angeles County as a separate county until 1889. The cemetery closed in 1939 and was subsequently vandalized; however, in the 1960s, the Orange County Board of Supervisors took possession of the property to repair the damage, and tours are now available one day per month. and proceeded to subdivide the land and sell it for agriculture and manufacturing. In 1910, the agricultural aspect of that endeavor materialized, and the first of many
lemon and
orange groves were planted: at the time, the population was still less than 50. In 1917, the first street was paved, Yorba Linda Boulevard. It has since become an online section of the
OC Register. A printed version of the Star is available at various city buildings free of charge and is delivered to every household in Yorba Linda each Thursday. Past articles are on
microfilm at the Yorba Linda Public Library. The townspeople of Yorba Linda "refused to allow the housing of braceros in their city, forcing the nearby town of
Placentia to board them within the segregated Mexican
colonia."
Population growth The small town had grown significantly by the 1960s, with more than 1,000 residents by the
1960 census. Three annexation attempts were made by adjoining cities:
Brea in 1958 and
Anaheim and
Placentia in 1963. The campus included the
Birthplace of Richard Nixon. In 1994, the
community center opened. many residents now oppose further
urban development and have organized to reduce
traffic congestion. The Yorba Linda Preservation Foundation seeks to protect historical buildings in the city.
Post 2008 In November 2008, eastern Yorba Linda
suffered from fires that destroyed 113 homes and damaged 50 others. The destruction was due largely to erratic winds causing embers to fly up to half a mile away. On February 3, 2019, at approximately 1:45 pm, a twin engine 1981 Cessna (N414RS) on route from
Fullerton Municipal Airport to Nevada crashed from roughly 7,500 ft into a single family residence in the 19700 block of Crestknoll Drive near Glenknoll Elementary School. The pilot (75-year-old Antonio Pastini) and four individuals in the residence were killed. In October of the heightened
2020 California wildfires, fires destroyed one home and damaged ten others in the Yorba Linda area. Initially a brush fire, the Blue Ridge Fire quickly spread to 13,964 acres before being doused on November 11, 2020. ==Geography==