Ontario, California
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Ontario is a city located in San Bernardino County, California. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 158,007. It is the home of Ontario International Airport and the huge Ontario Mills shopping mall (the largest in the Inland Empire and one of the largest in North America). It is also the former home of the Ontario Motor Speedway. It takes its name from the Ontario Model Colony development established in 1882 by Canadian engineers George Chaffey and William Chaffey, who named the settlement after their home province of Ontario, Canada.
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History
The area that is now Ontario was probably part of the lands used for hunting and foraging by the nomadic Tongva (Gabrieleño) Indians, who came to the region in about 500 BCE. Juan Bautista de Anza is said to have passed through the area on his 1774 expedition, and to this day a city park and an elementary school bear his name. Following the 1819 establishment of San Bernardino Asistencia, which served as an outpost of the San Gabriel mission, it became part of a large, vaguely identified area called "San Antonio". The 1834 secularization of California land holdings resulted in the land's transferral to private hands. In 1881, the Chaffey brothers purchased the land (which at that time also included the present-day city of Upland) and the water rights to it. They engineered a drainage system channeling water from the foothills of Mount Baldy down to the flatter lands below that performed the dual functions of allowing farmers to water their crops and preventing the floods that periodically afflict them. They also created the main thoroughfare of Euclid Avenue (California Highway 83), with its distinctive wide lanes and grassy median. The new "Model Colony" (called so because it offered the perfect balance between agriculture and the urban comforts of schools and churches) was originally conceived as a dry town, but attracted (primarily citrus) farmers and ailing Easterners seeking a drier climate. A impress visitors and potential settlers with the "abundance" of water in Ontario, a fountain was placed at the Southern Pacific railway station, where it was set to turn on once an hour--just at the moment the train arrived. Today the fountain is located outside the Ontario Museum of History and Art. Agriculture was vital to the early economy, and many street names recall this legacy. The Sunkist plant also remains as a living vestige of the citrus era. The Chaffey brothers left to found the settlement of Mildura, Australia, which was not as successful. Charles Frankish continued their work, and was instrumental in the 1887 creation of the mule cart, which travelled up Euclid Avenue to 24th street and allowed the mule to ride on the way down. No longer in use, the mule cart is commemorated with an enclosed statue south of C Street on the Euclid median. Ontario was incorporated as a city in 1891, and North Ontario broke away in 1910, calling itself Upland.
Geography
Ontario is located at 34°3'10" North, 117°37'40" West (34.052811, -117.627861)GR1.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 129.1 km² (49.9 mi²). Of that, 128.9 km² (49.8 mi²) is land and 0.2 km² (0.1 mi²) is water. The total area is 0.14% water.
Demographics
As of the censusGR2 of 2000, there are 158,007 people, 43,525 households, and 34,689 families residing in the city. The population density is 1,225.5/km² (3,173.9/mi²). There are 45,182 housing units at an average density of 350.4/km² (907.6/mi²). The racial makeup of the city is 30.83% White, 0.51% African American, 0.06% Native American, 3.88% Asian, 0.37% Pacific Islander, 47.00% Hispanic.
There are 43,525 households out of which 49.4% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.9% are married couples living together, 15.5% have a female householder with no husband present, and 20.3% are non-families. 15.1% of all households are made up of individuals and 4.6% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 3.60 and the average family size is 3.96.
In the city the population is spread out with 34.4% under the age of 18, 11.2% from 18 to 24, 32.4% from 25 to 44, 16.1% from 45 to 64, and 5.9% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 28 years. For every 100 females there are 100.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 98.7 males.
The median income for a household in the city is $42,452, and the median income for a family is $44,031. Males have a median income of $31,664 versus $26,069 for females. The per capita income for the city is $14,244. 15.5% of the population and 12.2% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 19.1% of those under the age of 18 and 7.6% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.
Law enforcement/crime
Ontario is well-known for the infamous OVS Black Angels gang that has engaged in countless incidents of gang violence since the 1950s. In response, the Ontario Police Department has become somewhat well-known for its attempts in keeping the city's gang problem under control.
Famous people from or residing in Ontario
External links
- Maps and aerial photos
- Street map from Google Local or Yahoo! Maps
- Topographic map from TopoZone
- Aerial image or topographic map from TerraServer-USA
- Satellite image from Google Local or Microsoft Virtual Earth
| Incorporated cities and unincorporated communities of San Bernardino County, California | ||||||||
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