Cudahy, California
Encyclopedia
Cudahy is a city located in southeastern Los Angeles County, California
Los Angeles County, California
Los Angeles County is a county in the U.S. state of California. As of 2010 U.S. Census, the county had a population of 9,818,605, making it the most populous county in the United States. Los Angeles County alone is more populous than 42 individual U.S. states...

. In terms of area, Cudahy is the second smallest city in Los Angeles County, after Hawaiian Gardens
Hawaiian Gardens, California
Hawaiian Gardens is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is the smallest city in the county and was incorporated on April 9, 1964. The population was 14,254 at the 2010 census, down from 14,779 at the 2000 census.The town's unusual name originated in a 1920s refreshment...

. with one of the highest population densities of any incorporated city in the United States. It is part of the Gateway Cities
Gateway Cities
The Gateway Cities of Southern California are those located in southeastern Los Angeles County. There is some cross-over between these cities and those composing South Los Angeles, East Los Angeles, the South Bay, and the San Gabriel Valley...

 region.

Cudahy is populated predominantly by Latino
Latino
The demonyms Latino and Latina , are defined in English language dictionaries as:* "a person of Latin-American descent."* "A Latin American."* "A person of Hispanic, especially Latin-American, descent, often one living in the United States."...

 immigrants and has a population of 23,805 as of the 2010 Census
United States Census, 2010
The Twenty-third United States Census, known as Census 2010 or the 2010 Census, is the current national census of the United States. National Census Day was April 1, 2010 and is the reference date used in enumerating individuals...


History

Cudahy is named for its founder, meat-packing
Meat packing industry
The meat packing industry handles the slaughtering, processing, packaging, and distribution of animals such as cattle, pigs, sheep and other livestock...

 baron Michael Cudahy
Michael Cudahy (meat packing)
Michael Cudahy was an American industrialist.Cudahy was born in Callan, County Kilkenny Ireland in 1841 and emigrated to the United States in 1849...

, who purchased the original 2777 acres (11.2 km²) of Rancho San Antonio in 1908 to resell as 1 acres (4,046.9 m²) lots. These "Cudahy lots" were notable for their dimensions—in most cases, 50 to 100 ft (15.2 to 30.5 m) in width and 600 to 800 ft (182.9 to 243.8 m) in depth, a length equivalent to a city block
City block
A city block, urban block or simply block is a central element of urban planning and urban design. A city block is the smallest area that is surrounded by streets. City blocks are the space for buildings within the street pattern of a city, they form the basic unit of a city's urban fabric...

 or more in most American towns. Such parcels, often referred to as "railroad lots", were intended to allow the new town's residents to keep a large vegetable garden, a grove of fruit tree
Fruit tree
A fruit tree is a tree which bears fruit that is consumed or used by people — all trees that are flowering plants produce fruit, which are the ripened ovaries of flowers containing one or more seeds. In horticultural usage, the term 'fruit tree' is limited to those that provide fruit for...

s (usually citrus), and a chicken coop
Chicken coop
A chicken coop is a building where female chickens are kept. Inside there are often nest boxes for egg laying and perches on which the birds can sleep, although coops for meat birds seldom have either of these features....

 or horse stable
Stable
A stable is a building in which livestock, especially horses, are kept. It most commonly means a building that is divided into separate stalls for individual animals...

. This arrangement, popular in the towns along the lower Los Angeles
Los Angeles River
The Los Angeles River is a river that starts in the San Fernando Valley, in the Simi Hills and Santa Susana Mountains, and flows through Los Angeles County, California, from Canoga Park in the western end of the San Fernando Valley, nearly southeast to its mouth in Long Beach...

 and San Gabriel
San Gabriel River (California)
The San Gabriel River flows through southern Los Angeles County, California in the United States. Its main stem is about long, while its farthest tributaries extend almost altogether...

 rivers, proved particularly attractive to the Southerners and Midwesterners who were leaving their struggling farms in droves in the 1910s
1910s
File:1910s montage.png|From left, clockwise: The Model T Ford is introduced and becomes widespread; The sinking of the R.M.S. Titanic causes the deaths of nearly 1,500 people and attracts global and historical attention; Title bar: All the events below are part of World War I ; French Army lookout...

 and 1920s
1920s
File:1920s decade montage.png|From left, clockwise: Third Tipperary Brigade Flying Column No. 2 under Sean Hogan during the Irish Civil War; Prohibition agents destroying barrels of alcohol in accordance to the 18th amendment, which made alcoholic beverages illegal throughout the entire decade; In...

 to start new lives in Southern California
Southern California
Southern California is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of California. Large urban areas include Greater Los Angeles and Greater San Diego. The urban area stretches along the coast from Ventura through the Southland and Inland Empire to San Diego...

. Sam Quinones of the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....

said that the large, narrow parcels of land gave Cudahy Acres a "rural feel in an increasingly urban swath." As late as the 1950s
1950s
The 1950s or The Fifties was the decade that began on January 1, 1950 and ended on December 31, 1959. The decade was the sixth decade of the 20th century...

, some Cudahy residents were still riding into the city's downtown areas on horseback. After World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

 the city was a White American
White American
White Americans are people of the United States who are considered or consider themselves White. The United States Census Bureau defines White people as those "having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa...

 blue collar town with steel and automobile plants in the area.

By the late 1970s, the factories closed down and the white American residents of Cudahy left for jobs and housing in the San Gabriel and San Fernando Valleys. Stucco apartment complexes were built on former tracts of land. The population density increased; in 2007 the city was the second-densest in California, after Maywood
Maywood, California
Maywood is a small city in southeast Los Angeles County, California. At , Maywood is the third-smallest incorporated city in Los Angeles County....

.

Geography

Cudahy is located at 33.964214°N 118.182575°W.

According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...

, the city has a total area of 3.175 square kilometre, over 95% of it land.

Cudahy is bordered by Bell
Bell, California
Bell is a city in Los Angeles County, California. Its population was 35,477 at the 2010 census, down from 36,664 in the 2000 census. Bell is located on the west bank of the Los Angeles River and is a suburb of the city of Los Angeles...

 on the north, Bell Gardens
Bell Gardens, California
Bell Gardens is a city in Los Angeles County, California. The population was 42,072 at the 2010 census, down from 44,054 at the 2000 census.Bell Gardens is notable for being one of only five Los Angeles County cities to permit casino gambling...

 on the east, South Gate
South Gate, California
South Gate is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. The sixteenth largest city in Los Angeles County, it encompasses . South Gate is located just southeast of downtown Los Angeles It is part of the Gateway Cities region of southeastern Los Angeles County...

 on the south and southwest, and Huntington Park
Huntington Park, California
Huntington Park is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 58,114, down from 61,348 at the 2000 census.- History :...

 on the west.

In 2007, of the 5,800 housing units, 5,000 were rentals.

2010

The 2010 United States Census reported that Cudahy had a population of 23,805. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...

 was 19,417.5 people per square mile (7,497.2/km²). The racial makeup of Cudahy was 11,708 (49.2%) White, 333 (1.4%) African American, 246 (1.0%) Native American, 137 (0.6%) Asian, 24 (0.1%) Pacific Islander, 10,339 (43.4%) from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

, and 1,018 (4.3%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 22,850 persons (96.0%).

The Census reported that 23,797 people (100% of the population) lived in households, 8 (0%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 0 (0%) were institutionalized.

There were 5,607 households, out of which 3,712 (66.2%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 2,941 (52.5%) were opposite-sex married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...

 living together, 1,362 (24.3%) had a female householder with no husband present, 686 (12.2%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 589 (10.5%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships
POSSLQ
POSSLQ is an abbreviation for "Persons of Opposite Sex Sharing Living Quarters," a term coined in the late 1970s by the United States Census Bureau as part of an effort to more accurately gauge the prevalence of cohabitation in American households....

, and 42 (0.7%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 399 households (7.1%) were made up of individuals and 176 (3.1%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 4.24. There were 4,989 families
Family (U.S. Census)
A family or family household is defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes as "a householder and one or more other people related to the householder by birth, marriage, or adoption. They do not include same-sex married couples even if the marriage was performed in a state...

 (89.0% of all households); the average family size was 4.32.

The population was spread out with 8,325 people (35.0%) under the age of 18, 2,858 people (12.0%) aged 18 to 24, 7,279 people (30.6%) aged 25 to 44, 4,121 people (17.3%) aged 45 to 64, and 1,222 people (5.1%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 27.0 years. For every 100 females there were 98.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.5 males.

There were 5,770 housing units at an average density of 4,706.5 per square mile (1,817.2/km²), of which 1,011 (18.0%) were owner-occupied, and 4,596 (82.0%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.3%; the rental vacancy rate was 2.3%. 4,355 people (18.3% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 19,442 people (81.7%) lived in rental housing units.

2000

As of the census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...

of 2000, there were 24,208 people, 5,419 households, and 4,806 families residing in the city. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...

 was 21,627.7 inhabitants per square mile (8,345.3/km²). There were 5,542 housing units at an average density of 4,951.3 per square mile (1,910.5/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 43.14% White
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

, 1.24% Black
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

 or African American
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

, 1.28% Native American
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

, 0.74% Asian
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

, 0.17% Pacific Islander
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

, 48.06% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

, and 5.37% from two or more races. 94.14% of the population were Hispanic or Latino
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

 of any race.

There were 5,419 households out of which 66.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.6% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...

 living together, 21.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 11.3% were non-families. 8.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 3.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 4.47 and the average family size was 4.58.

In the city the population was spread out with 39.9% under the age of 18, 12.4% from 18 to 24, 32.3% from 25 to 44, 11.7% from 45 to 64, and 3.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 24 years. For every 100 females there were 97.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.4 males.

The median income
Median household income
The median household income is commonly used to generate data about geographic areas and divides households into two equal segments with the first half of households earning less than the median household income and the other half earning more...

 for a household in the city was $29,040, and the median income for a family was $28,833. Males had a median income of $19,149 versus $16,042 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...

 for the city was $8,688. About 26.4% of families and 28.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 34.1% of those under age 18 and 18.1% of those age 65 or over.

Government and infrastructure

In the state legislature
California State Legislature
The California State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of California. It is a bicameral body consisting of the lower house, the California State Assembly, with 80 members, and the upper house, the California State Senate, with 40 members...

 Cudahy is located in the 30th Senate
California State Senate
The California State Senate is the upper house of the California State Legislature. There are 40 state senators. The state legislature meets in the California State Capitol in Sacramento. The Lieutenant Governor is the ex officio President of the Senate and may break a tied vote...

 District, represented by Democrat Ronald S. Calderon
Ronald S. Calderon
Ronald Steven Calderon is the California State Senator from the 30th Senate District. He was elected to the Senate in 2006....

, and in the 50th Assembly
California State Assembly
The California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature. There are 80 members in the Assembly, representing an approximately equal number of constituents, with each district having a population of at least 420,000...

 District, represented by Democrat Ricardo Lara
Ricardo Lara
Ricardo Lara is a politician from Los Angeles County, California who serves in the California State Assembly, where he represents the 50th district...

. Federally, Cudahy is located in California's 34th congressional district
California's 34th congressional district
California's 34th congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of California based in Los Angeles County. The district consists of downtown Los Angeles and the neighborhoods of Huntington Park and Bell Gardens...

, which has a Cook PVI
Cook Partisan Voting Index
The Cook Partisan Voting Index , sometimes referred to as simply the Partisan Voting Index , is a measurement of how strongly an American congressional district or state leans toward one political party compared to the nation as a whole...

 of D +23 and is represented by Democrat Lucille Roybal-Allard.

Police Services formerly were contracted through the City of Maywood
Maywood
Maywood may refer to:Places in the United States* Maywood, California* Maywood, Illinois** Maywood , a commuter railroad station* Maywood, New Jersey* Maywood, Nebraska* Maywood Beach, a former water park in northern MississippiOther...

, by the Maywood-Cudahy Police Department, now disbanded. In an emergency meeting conducted July 21, 2010, Cudahy city leaders agreed to contract for police services with the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department
Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department
The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department is a local county law enforcement agency that serves Los Angeles County, California. It is the fourth largest local policing agency in the United States, with the New York City Police Department being the first. The second largest is the Chicago Police...

.

Fire protection in Cudahy is provided by the Los Angeles County Fire Department
Los Angeles County Fire Department
The Los Angeles County Fire Department , serves unincorporated parts of Los Angeles County, as well as 58 cities and towns that choose to have the county provide fire and EMS services, including La Habra. It should not be confused with the Los Angeles City Fire Department, which serves the city of...

.

The Los Angeles County Department of Health Services
Los Angeles County Department of Health Services
Health services to over 10 million residents in the Los Angeles County are provided by the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services and the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. Mental health services are provided by the County Department of Mental Health...

 operates the Whittier Health Center in Whittier
Whittier, California
Whittier is a city in Los Angeles County, California about southeast of Los Angeles. The city had a population of 85,331 at the 2010 census, up from 83,680 as of the 2000 census, and encompasses 14.7 square miles . Like nearby Montebello, the city constitutes part of the Gateway Cities...

, serving Cudahy.

The United States Postal Service
United States Postal Service
The United States Postal Service is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for providing postal service in the United States...

 Cudahy Post Office is located at 1619 Elizabeth Street.

Economy

After World War II the population of Cudahy worked for plants operated by General Motors
General Motors
General Motors Company , commonly known as GM, formerly incorporated as General Motors Corporation, is an American multinational automotive corporation headquartered in Detroit, Michigan and the world's second-largest automaker in 2010...

, Chrysler
Chrysler
Chrysler Group LLC is a multinational automaker headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan, USA. Chrysler was first organized as the Chrysler Corporation in 1925....

, Firestone
Firestone Tire and Rubber Company
The Firestone Tire and Rubber Company is an American tire company founded by Harvey Firestone in 1900 to supply pneumatic tires for wagons, buggies, and other forms of wheeled transportation common in the era. Firestone soon saw the huge potential for marketing tires for automobiles. The company...

, and Bethlehem Steel
Bethlehem Steel
The Bethlehem Steel Corporation , based in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, was once the second-largest steel producer in the United States, after Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-based U.S. Steel. After a decline in the U.S...

. In 2007 the largest employers in Cudahy were the Kmart
Kmart
Kmart, sometimes styled as "K-Mart," is a chain of discount department stores. The chain acquired Sears in 2005, forming a new corporation under the name Sears Holdings Corporation. The company was founded in 1962 and is the third largest discount store chain in the world, behind Wal-Mart and...

/Big Lots
Big Lots
Big Lots, Inc. is a Fortune 500 retail corporation with annual revenues well over $4 billion.Its department stores focus mainly on selling closeout and overstock merchandise. The company is based in Columbus, Ohio, USA and currently operates over 1,400 stores in 47 states...

 Center and the Superior Super Warehouse.

Education

Cudahy is a part of the Los Angeles Unified School District
Los Angeles Unified School District
Los Angeles Unified School District is the largest public school system in California. It is the 2nd largest public school district in the United States. Only the New York City Department of Education has a larger student population...

. Cudahy is served by several schools, including Teresa Hughes Elementary School, Park Avenue Elementary School, Elizabeth Learning Center (a neighborhood school for grades K-8 and a high school for grades 9 through 12), Ochoa Learning Center (K-8), and Bell High School
Bell High School (Bell, California)
Bell High School is a public high school in Bell, California, United States.The school, which serves grades 9 through 12, is a part of District 6 of the Los Angeles Unified School District....

 in Bell
Bell, California
Bell is a city in Los Angeles County, California. Its population was 35,477 at the 2010 census, down from 36,664 in the 2000 census. Bell is located on the west bank of the Los Angeles River and is a suburb of the city of Los Angeles...

.

All residents are zoned to Bell High School. Any student who lives in the Bell or Huntington Park High School
Huntington Park High School
Huntington Park High School is a public high school in Huntington Park, California, part of the Los Angeles Unified School District.-History:...

 zones may apply to Maywood Academy High School
Maywood Academy High School
Maywood Academy High School is an alternative high school of the Los Angeles Unified School District, located in Maywood, CA.All residents are zoned to Bell High School in Bell and Huntington Park High School in Huntington Park may apply to Maywood Academy High School; Maywood Academy, which...

; Maywood Academy, which opened in 2005 and moved into its permanent campus in 2006, does not have its own attendance boundary because it lacks American football, track and field, and tennis facilities.

South Region Elementary School 3 will open in Cudahy in 2010.

Public libraries

County of Los Angeles Public Library
County of Los Angeles Public Library
-Library System:The County of Los Angeles Public Library is the 4th largest public library system in the United States which serves residents living in 51 of the 88 incorporated cities of Los Angeles County, California...

operates the Cudahy Library at 5218 Santa Ana Street.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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