Signal Hill is a small
cityA city is a relatively large and permanent settlement, particularly a large urban settlement. Although there is no agreement on technical definitions distinguishing a city from a town within general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status...
(2.2 mi², 5.8 km²) in
Los Angeles CountyLos Angeles County is a county in California and is by far the most populous county in the United States. Figures from the U.S. Census Bureau give an estimated 2008 population of 9,862,049 residents, while the California State government's population bureau lists a January 1, 2009, estimate of...
,
CaliforniaCalifornia is the most populous state in the United States, and the third largest by area. California is the second most populous sub-national entity in the Americas, behind only São Paulo, Brazil...
that is an enclave (completely surrounded by the city of
Long BeachLong Beach is a large city located in southern California, USA, on the Pacific coast. It is situated in Los Angeles County, about south of downtown Los Angeles. Long Beach borders Orange County on its southeast edge....
). As of 2005, the city population was 10,951. The city was
incorporatedA municipal corporation is the legal term for a local governing body, including cities, counties, towns, townships, charter townships, villages, and boroughs. Municipal incorporation occurs when such municipalities become self-governing entities under the laws of the state or province in which...
on April 22, 1924, roughly three years after oil was discovered on Signal Hill.
The city once shared three different postal
ZIP codeThe ZIP code is the system of postal codes used by the United States Postal Service . The letters ZIP, a backronym for Zone Improvement Plan, are properly written in capital letters and were chosen to suggest that the mail travels more efficiently, and therefore more quickly, when senders use the...
s with
Long BeachLong Beach is a large city located in southern California, USA, on the Pacific coast. It is situated in Los Angeles County, about south of downtown Los Angeles. Long Beach borders Orange County on its southeast edge....
, but in July 2002, the City of Signal Hill received its own ZIP code, 90755. It is in the
562 area codeArea code 562 is a California telephone area code that was split from area code 310 on January 25, 1997. It is the area code for much of the Gateway Cities region of southeastern Los Angeles County, California, including Long Beach and surrounding cities such as Cerritos, Lakewood, Pico Rivera,...
.
History
The hill that the city is named after is 365 feet (110 m) above the surrounding community of
Long BeachLong Beach is a large city located in southern California, USA, on the Pacific coast. It is situated in Los Angeles County, about south of downtown Los Angeles. Long Beach borders Orange County on its southeast edge....
. Because of this height, it was used by the local
TongvaThe Tongva are a Native American people who inhabited the area in and around Los Angeles, California, before the arrival of Europeans. Tongva means "people of the earth" in the Tongva language, a language in the Uto-Aztecan family. The Tongva are also sometimes referred to as the Gabrieleño/Tongva...
Indians for
signal fireSignal fire can refer to:*A smoke signal*"Signal Fire" , a 2007 song by Snow Patrol*Signal Fire Films, an independent film company...
s that could be seen throughout the surrounding area and even out to
Catalina IslandSanta Catalina Island, often called Catalina Island, or just Catalina, is a rocky island off the coast of the U.S. state of California. The island is 22 miles long and eight miles across at its greatest width. The island is located about 22 miles south-southwest of Los Angeles, California...
, 26 miles (42 km) away.
After the Spanish discovered
Alta CaliforniaAlta California was formed when Spain separated the Dominican Missions from the Franciscan Missions in approximately 1769 with the founding of the first Alta California mission in San Diego...
("Upper California," or what is now the state of California), Signal Hill eventually became part of the first large rancho grant to be allotted under Spanish rule in Alta California. The
Rancho San PedroRancho San Pedro was one of the first California land grants, and the first to win a patent from the United States. The land grant was validated by the Mexican government at in 1828, and a US patent validating was issued in 1858...
(Dominguez Rancho) land grant exceeded as granted to a soldier, Juan Jose Dominguez, who accompanied Junipero Serra, by Governor Fages through authority of
King Carlos IIICharles III was the King of Spain and the Spanish Indies from 1759 to his death in 1788.Eldest son of Philip V of Spain and his second wife, Princess Elisabeth of Parma, he became the Duke of Parma and Piacenza under the name of Charles I ; later on in 1734 while Duke of Parma he conquered...
of
SpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain , is a country located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.
[The Spanish constitution does not establish any official denomination of the country, even though España , Estado español and Nación española are used interchangeably...]
in 1784.
Between 1913 and 1923 an early California movie studio, Balboa Amusement Producing Company (also known as Balboa Studios) was located in Long Beach and used 11 acres (45,000 m²) on Signal Hill for outdoor locations.
Buster KeatonJoseph Frank "Buster" Keaton VI was an American comic actor and filmmaker. Best known for his silent films, his trademark was physical comedy with a consistently stoic, deadpan expression, earning him the nickname "The Great Stone Face".Keaton was recognized as the seventh greatest director of all...
and
Fatty ArbuckleRoscoe Conkling "Fatty" Arbuckle was an American silent film actor, comedian, director, and screenwriter. Starting at the Selig Polyscope Company he eventually moved to Keystone Studios where he worked with Mabel Normand and Harold Lloyd. He mentored Charlie Chaplin and discovered Buster Keaton...
were two of Balboa Studio actors who had films shot on Signal Hill.
Before oil was discovered in Signal Hill, there were large homes built on the hill itself, and in the lower elevations was an agricultural area where fruits, vegetables, and flowers were grown. Many of the truck farmers were Japanese.
Oil is discovered on Signal Hill
Signal Hill changed forever when oil was discovered. The hill would soon become one of the most productive oil fields in the world. On June 23, 1921,
Shell Oil CompanyShell Oil Company is the United States-based affiliate of Royal Dutch Shell, a multinational oil company of Anglo Dutch origins, which is amongst the largest oil companies in the world. Approximately 22,000 Shell employees are based in the U.S. The head office in the U.S. is in Houston, Texas...
's Alamitos #1 well erupted. The
gasNatural gas is a gas consisting primarily of methane. It is found associated with fossil fuels, in coal beds, as methane clathrates, and is created by methanogenic organisms in marshes, bogs, and landfills...
pressure was so great the
gusherAn oil gusher is an uncapped oil well connected to a reservoir of petroleum oil that is under high pressure. The oil can shoot 200 feet or higher into the air....
was 114 ft (35 m) in the air. Soon Signal Hill was covered with over 100
oil wellAn oil well is a general term for any boring through the earth's surface that is designed to find and produce petroleum oil hydrocarbons. Usually some natural gas is produced along with the oil. A well designed to produce mainly or only gas may be termed a gas well.-History:The earliest known oil...
s and was known as "Porcupine Hill".
The city was incorporated on April 22, 1924. Among the reasons for incorporating was avoiding annexation by Long Beach with its zoning restrictions and per-barrel oil tax. Signal Hill's first mayor, Jessie Nelson, was also California's first female mayor.
Later years
One of the city's more colorful residents was the boxer Kid Mexico (real name, Tod Faulkner) who was the state's
bantamweightThe term bantamweight usually refers to a class in boxing or boxers who weigh between 112 and 118 pounds . Wrestling also has similar weight classes including bantamweight. The name is derived from Bantam chickens.-History:...
champion in 1914 (at age 14—he had lied about his age) and the state's
welterweightWelterweight is a weight class division in combat sports. Originally the term "welterweight" was used only in boxing, but other combat sports like kickboxing, taekwondo and mixed martial arts also began to use it for their own weight division system...
champion in 1925. He put his earnings into businesses and real estate in Signal Hill, including an 8 lane bowling alley, restaurant, cocktail lounge, auditorium, and movie house. He also had a
bingo parlorBingo is a game of chance played with randomly drawn numbers which players match against numbers that have been pre-printed on 5x5 matrices. The matrices may be printed on paper, card stock or electronically represented and are referred to as "cards." Many versions conclude the game when the...
that was ignored by the local police for many years. He was well-known for his large annual Christmas parties for children from Signal Hill and Long Beach. Besides his bowling alley, he also had a single lane for bowling in his nearby home. Eventually he was arrested for
gamblingGambling is the wagering of money or something of material value on an event with an uncertain outcome with the primary intent of winning additional money and/or material goods. Typically, the outcome of the wager is evident within a short period....
, tax evasion, and election fraud (Davis, 2006, p.62-64).
Today, many of the oil wells and nodding donkey oil pumps are gone, although some remain. Signal Hill is now a mix of residential and commercial areas.
County, state, and federal representation
For sixteen years, Signal Hill contracted for their fire protection services from the City of Long Beach. On November 6, 2003, Signal Hill returned to
Los Angeles County Fire DepartmentThe 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 the City of La Habra, in Orange County...
protection as Station 60.
Signal Hill is in the 4th Supervisorial District of Los Angeles County, with
Don KnabeDonald R. Knabe is a member of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, serving the Fourth District. He recently was reelected on the June 3, 2008 election.
- Education and Early Political Career :...
the current Supervisor. Signal Hill is in the 37th
Congressional DistrictA congressional district is an electoral constituency that elects a single member of a congress. Countries with congressional districts include the United States, the Philippines, and Japan...
of the U.S. Congress, represented by Congresswoman
Laura RichardsonLaura Richardson is a Democratic Representative in the United States Congress. She represented California's 55th Assembly District for the 2007 term until she was elected to the House of Representatives for in a special election on August 21 to fill the vacancy resulting from the death of Juanita...
(D). It is in the 27th California State Senate District, represented by
Alan LowenthalAlan S. Lowenthal has been a Democratic member of the California State Senate since 2004. He previously served in the California State Assembly representing the 55th Assembly district from 1998 until 2004. In both posts, the areas he represented are the city of Long Beach and its surrounding suburbs...
, and the 54th California Assembly District, represented by
Bonnie LowenthalBonnie Lowenthal is a Democratic assemblymember representing California's 54th Assembly District. She was elected to that post in 2008...
.
Economy
Prior to its dissolution, the airline
Jet America AirlinesJet America Airlines was an airline that operated domestic flights in the United States between 1981 and 1987. It was headquartered in Signal Hill, California, near Long Beach.-History:...
was headquartered in Signal Hill.
Public schools
Signal Hill is served by
Long Beach Unified School DistrictThe Long Beach Unified School District is a school district headquartered in Long Beach, California, United States.LBUSD serves most of Long Beach, all of the city of Signal Hill, and portions of Lakewood, and Paramount, as well as Avalon and Two Harbors on Santa Catalina Island.-School uniforms...
.
There are three elementary schools within the city limits:
- Signal Hill Elementary School
Signal Hill Elementary School is a K-5th magnet grade school in Signal Hill, California, U.S.A. with advanced 3-5th grade class program S.H.A.R.P. The school is operated by Long Beach Unified School District....
- Juan Bautista Alvarado Elementary School
- Burroughs Elementary School (A Teacher Resource Center is adjacent to the Burroughs campus).
The three areas have separate attendance zones.
In addition, Robinson School in Long Beach takes some students in Signal Hill for elementary school and middle school.
Some residents attend
Butler SchoolButler School may refer to:in the United States* Mary Butler School, a K-8 school in Long Beach, California*Butler School , listed on the NRHP in Illinois...
, a K-8 school, for middle school only. Some other residents attend
Hughes Middle SchoolCharles Evans Hughes Middle School is a public middle school, part of the Long Beach Unified School District in Long Beach, California.Hughes is located in the Bixby Knolls and serves portions of the cities of Long Beach and Signal Hill. As of 2009, the principal is Monica Daley...
. Some attend the
Jefferson Leadership AcademiesThe Jefferson Leadership Academies is a middle school in the Long Beach Unified School District in Long Beach, California....
. Areas within the city are zoned, for middle school, to either Butler, Hughes, Jefferson, or Robinson.
High school students usually go to
Long Beach Polytechnic High SchoolLong Beach Polytechnic High School, founded in 1895 as Long Beach High School, is a High school located at 1600 Atlantic Avenue in Long Beach, California, United States....
(usually referred to as Long Beach Poly); most of the city is zoned to Long Beach Polytechnic.
Some students choose to go to
Long Beach Wilson Classical High SchoolWoodrow Wilson Classical High School is a secondary school in Long Beach, California, USA.Wilson High School, in the Long Beach Unified School District, opened in 1925 as the second school in the city. In 2005 Wilson High School was recognized as a California Distinguished School for the second time...
; small portions are zoned to Wilson Classical High School.
Signal Hill Elementary School has earned the California Achieving Schools Award, and the National Achieving Schools Award. Signal Hill and Alvarado are both California Distinguished Schools.
Juan Bautista Alvarado Elementary School is located on the site of the former all male boarding school, the
Southern California Military AcademySouthern California Military Academy was a private, all male military academy boarding school located in Signal Hill, California at the corner of Cherry Avenue and 21st Street. It had classes from K through 9th grades.- Famous alumni :...
.
Colleges and universities
Community college students attend one of the two nearby campuses for
Long Beach City CollegeLong Beach City College, established in 1927, is a community college located in Long Beach, California. It is divided into two campuses. The Liberal Arts Campus, known as LAC, is located in the residential community of the Lakewood Village section of Long Beach, on Carson Street west of Clark Avenue...
.
City parks
Although a small town, Signal Hill has several parks. The largest is
Signal Hill Park at . It is adjacent to City Hall, the Police Department, the Community Center and the Library. The park has picnic tables, a playground, a horseshoe pit, basketball courts, a softball field, and restrooms. There is also an amphitheater where there are weekly outdoor concerts during the summer.
Hilltop Park (3.2 acres) is at the top of Signal Hill and is very popular for its great views. There are several telescopes in the park. There is also some public artwork in the park and a mist tower. This park is a popular location for hiding geocaches.
Reservoir Park (2.8 acres) near the
California Heights-Location:A historic area of Long Beach nestled between the North Long Beach and Bixby Knolls areas of Long Beach and Signal Hill within the 90807 Zip Code.-Description:...
neighborhood of Long Beach is a large grassy area with picnic tables next to a 4.7 million gallon water reservoir.
Discovery Well Park (4.9 acres/1.8 acres flat) is near the original well on Signal Hill.
There are also six
pocket parkA pocket park or mini-park is a small park accessible to the general public. In some areas they are called miniparks or vest-pocket parks....
s of roughly or less, including
Calbrisas Park,
Hillbrook Park,
Panorama Promenade,
Raymond Arbor Park,
Sunset View Park, and
Temple View Park.
Near the
Panorama Promenade, there is the
Unity Sculpture, a 12' height sculpture atop a 4' pedestal with a seating courtyard that is dedicated in memory of the victims of September 11.
There are also several pedestrian-only
trailA trail is a path or road used for walking, cycling, cross-country skiing, or other activities. Some trails are off-limits to everyone other than hikers, and a few trails allow motorized vehicles....
s that travel between various parks and roadways. Hiking along these trails, as well as on the sidewalks in Signal Hill is very popular. Some sections can be found that are between a 15% and 25% grade.
Proposed nature preserve
On the north slope of Signal Hill is a large area that is currently used for oil operations. This area has been proposed as a nature preserve.
Sports
There used to be a popular
Model TThe Ford Model T is an automobile that was produced by Henry Ford's Ford Motor Company from 1908 through 1927. The Model T set 1908 as the historic year that the automobile came into popular usage...
Hill Climb up Hill Street on the east side of Signal Hill.
In 1975 the first professional
street lugeStreet luge is an extreme gravity-powered activity that involves riding a streetluge board down a paved road or course. Street luge is also known as land luge or road luge.-History:...
race was held at Signal Hill. By 1978, however, the races were canceled because of injuries to racers and spectators.
The Long Beach chapter of the
Sierra ClubThe Sierra Club is the oldest and largest grassroots environmental organization in the United States. It was founded on May 28, 1892 in San Francisco, California by the well-known conservationist and preservationist John Muir, who became its first president...
does conditioning hikes twice a week in Signal Hill.
The Long Beach Sports Park is scheduled to be built on a parcel of Long Beach that is almost completely surrounded by the city of Signal Hill.
Geography
According to the
United States Census BureauThe 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. As part of the United States Department of Commerce, the Census Bureau serves as the leading source of quality data about...
, the city has a total area of 5.8 km² (2.2 mi²), all land.
The city is surrounded on all sides by the city of
Long Beach, CaliforniaLong Beach is a large city located in southern California, USA, on the Pacific coast. It is situated in Los Angeles County, about south of downtown Los Angeles. Long Beach borders Orange County on its southeast edge....
.
Demographics
The 2009 population according to the
California Department of FinanceThe California Department of Finance is a state cabinet-level agency within the government of California. The Department of Finance is responsible for preparing, explaining, and administering the state’s annual financial plan, which the Governor of California is required under the California...
is 11,430.
As of the
censusA "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.In other words every 10 years...next one would be in 2010 The term is used mostly in connection with...
of 2000, there were 9,333 people, 3,621 households, and 2,096 families residing in the city. The
population densityPopulation density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans. It is a key term used in geography....
was 1,615.9/km² (4,182.0/mi²). There were 3,797 housing units at an average density of 657.4/km² (1,701.4/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 45.48% White, 12.99% African American, 0.59% Native American, 16.49% Asian, 2.08% Pacific Islander, 16.18% from
other racesRace and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the United States Census Bureau and the Federal Office of Management and Budget , 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 6.19% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 29.00% of the population.
There were 3,621 households out of which 31.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 36.8% were
married couplesMarriage is a social union or legal contract between individuals that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged by a variety of ways, depending on the culture or demographic...
living together, 14.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 42.1% were non-families. 30.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.56 and the average family size was 3.34.
In the city the population was spread out with 26.4% under the age of 18, 9.1% from 18 to 24, 35.3% from 25 to 44, 22.0% from 45 to 64, and 7.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 97.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.1 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $48,938, and the median income for a family was $46,439. Males had a median income of $41,487 versus $36,460 for females. The
per capita incomePer capita income means how much each individual receives, in monetary terms, of the yearly income generated in the country. This is what each citizen is to receive if the yearly national income is divided equally among everyone. Per capita income is usually reported in units of currency per year...
for the city was $24,399. About 13.6% of families and 17.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 31.1% of those under age 18 and 3.9% of those age 65 or over.
Politics
In the
state legislatureThe 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...
Signal Hill is located in the 27th
SenateThe California State Senate is the upper house of the California State Legislature. There are 40 State Senators. The state legislature meets in the state capital, Sacramento. The Lieutenant Governor is the ex officio President of the Senate and may break a tied vote...
District, represented by Democrat
Alan LowenthalAlan S. Lowenthal has been a Democratic member of the California State Senate since 2004. He previously served in the California State Assembly representing the 55th Assembly district from 1998 until 2004. In both posts, the areas he represented are the city of Long Beach and its surrounding suburbs...
, and in the 54th
AssemblyThe 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
Betty KarnetteBetty Karnette was elected to a second stint in the California State Assembly in November, 2004, to represent the 54th District. Her district included the cities of Avalon, Long Beach, Palos Verdes Estates, Rancho Palos Verdes, Rolling Hills, Rolling Hills Estates, San Pedro, Signal Hill...
. Federally, Signal Hill is located in
California's 37th congressional districtCalifornia's 37th congressional district encompasses most of Long Beach and Compton, as well as Carson, Signal Hill, and parts of other municipalities. This district is currently represented by Democrat Laura Richardson, who won a special election on August 21, 2007, soundly defeating a Republican...
, which has a
Cook PVIThe 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 +27 and is represented by Democrat
Laura RichardsonLaura Richardson is a Democratic Representative in the United States Congress. She represented California's 55th Assembly District for the 2007 term until she was elected to the House of Representatives for in a special election on August 21 to fill the vacancy resulting from the death of Juanita...
.
External links