Duarte () is a city in

Los Angeles County, California Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles and sometimes abbreviated as LA County, is the List of United States counties and county equivalents, most populous county in the United States, with 9,663,345 residents estimated in 202 ...

, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 21,727. It is bounded to the north by the

San Gabriel Mountains The San Gabriel Mountains () are a mountain range located in Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties, California, United States. The mountain range is part of the Transverse Ranges and lies between the Los Angeles Basin and the Mojave Desert ...

, to the north and west by the cities of Bradbury and

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, to the south by the city of Irwindale, and to the east by the cities of Irwindale and Azusa. Duarte is located on historic U.S. Route 66, which today follows Huntington Drive through the middle of the city. The town is named after Andrés Avelino Duarte, a

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

''ranchero'' (rancher) who founded the community on his land grant, Rancho Azusa de Duarte.

History

Around 500 B.C., a band of

Shoshone The Shoshone or Shoshoni ( or ), also known by the endonym Newe, are an Native Americans in the United States, Indigenous people of the United States with four large cultural/linguistic divisions: * Eastern Shoshone: Wyoming * Northern Shoshon ...

an-speaking Indians established settlements in what is now the

San Gabriel Valley The San Gabriel Valley (), sometimes referred to by its initials as SGV, is one of the principal valleys of Southern California, with the city of Los Angeles directly bordering it to the west and occupying the vast majority of the southeastern ...

. These Native Americans were dubbed the Gabrieliño Indians (after San Gabriel, the local mission) by early Spanish colonial explorers, but now generally prefer to be called the Tongva. Since the San Gabriel Valley area was home to large numbers of oak trees such as coast live oak and interior live oak, a staple of the Tongva diet was an

acorn The acorn is the nut (fruit), nut of the oaks and their close relatives (genera ''Quercus'', ''Notholithocarpus'' and ''Lithocarpus'', in the family Fagaceae). It usually contains a seedling surrounded by two cotyledons (seedling leaves), en ...

meal made by boiling acorn flour.

Spanish era

Duarte's history with Europeans dates back to 1769, when all land in California was claimed by the

king of Spain The monarchy of Spain or Spanish monarchy () is the constitutional form of government of Spain. It consists of a Hereditary monarchy, hereditary monarch who reigns as the head of state, being the highest office of the country. The Spanish ...

. The first Europeans visited the San Gabriel Valley during a 1769 expedition from

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Monterey Bay Monterey Bay is a bay of the Pacific Ocean located on the coast of the U.S. state of California, south of the San Francisco Bay Area. San Francisco itself is further north along the coast, by about 75 miles (120 km), accessible via California S ...

commanded by Don Gaspar de Portolà. Accompanying Portolà was a

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...

priest from Junípero Serra's order in

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

Juan Crespí Juan Crespí, OFM (Catalan language, Catalan: ''Joan Crespí''; 1 March 1721 – 1 January 1782) was a Franciscan missionary and explorer of The Californias, Las Californias. Biography A native of Majorca, Crespí entered the Franciscan ord ...

, who served as the diarist of the expedition. Much of what is known of early California is known only from the detailed descriptions recorded by Crespi. On September 8, 1771, the Franciscans established the Mission San Gabriel Arcangel in the San Gabriel Valley. The mission was a resting point for early California travelers and gathered most of the native Tongva into an agricultural lifestyle. Following Mexican independence in 1821, the mission lands were nationalized.

Mexican era

On May 10, 1841, the governor of

Alta California Alta California (, ), also known as Nueva California () among other names, was a province of New Spain formally established in 1804. Along with the Baja California peninsula, it had previously comprised the province of , but was made a separat ...

, Juan Bautista Alvarado, granted to former Mexican corporal Andrés Avelino Duarte and his wife nearly of prime land in the central-northern San Gabriel Valley. Duarte named his new holdings " Rancho Azusa de Duarte". The name ''Azusa'' was derived from ''Asuksa-gna'', meaning "skunk place," the name of the Tongva settlement on the

foothills Foothills or piedmont are geography, geographically defined as gradual increases in elevation at the base of a mountain range, higher hill range or an highland, upland area. They are a transition zone between plains and low terrain, relief hill ...

of the San Gabriel Valley, on the western side of the alluvial fan where the San Gabriel River exits the San Gabriel Mountains; a portion of this area forms the northeastern-most corner of Duarte. That land grant now comprises portions of Arcadia, portions of

, all of Bradbury, all of Duarte, portions of Irwindale, portions of Azusa and a portion of Baldwin Park. Corporal Duarte had the local Indians build a small hut for his family and help him plant a kitchen garden and orchards near "the Indian Springs of the Asuksas" (in what is now Fish Canyon).

Post-Conquest era

Following the American Conquest of California, the territory was ceded by Mexico to the United States in 1848 at the end of the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War (Spanish language, Spanish: ''guerra de Estados Unidos-México, guerra mexicano-estadounidense''), also known in the United States as the Mexican War, and in Mexico as the United States intervention in Mexico, ...

. In 1851, Congress passed a bill that established a Board of Land Commissioners whose duty was to determine the validity of all grants of Alta California land by Spanish and Mexican authorities. Corporal Duarte began incurring legal expenses and other debts, which he defrayed by selling portions of his Rancho. This first sale was a parcel at the southern end of the Rancho to Michael Whistler and two unidentified colleagues. Whistler later bought out his colleagues and sold the entire parcel to Dr. Nehemiah Beardslee, who started the first school in Duarte (which now bears his surname) and laid out the first section of Duarte's water lines. Corporal Duarte divided much of the Rancho's remainder into plots and sold them individually. Corporal Duarte finally won a favorable ruling from the

Supreme Court In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

for his land grant case in 1878, but by then he had sold the entire Rancho. Many of Duarte's earliest pioneer families came to Duarte in the mid-19th century for their health, the pleasant climate, and the fertile soil. English settlers, Americans from the

Midwest The Midwestern United States (also referred to as the Midwest, the Heartland or the American Midwest) is one of the four census regions defined by the United States Census Bureau. It occupies the northern central part of the United States. It ...

and Deep South, Latinos who remained from the Rancho days, and Japanese immigrants enabled Duarte to grow into a thriving agricultural community specializing in citrus production. The first recorded avocado tree grown in California was planted in Duarte by William Chappelow, Sr. grown from one of four seeds sent to him by the Division of Pomology of the

United States Department of Agriculture The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is an executive department of the United States federal government that aims to meet the needs of commercial farming and livestock food production, promotes agricultural trade and producti ...

in 1893.

Modern era

Two medical institutions were started in Duarte in the early part of the 20th century. In 1913, the Jewish Consumptive Relief Association started a tuberculosis sanitarium in the form of a small tent city on of land south of Duarte Road. This later evolved into the world-renowned City of Hope National Medical Center, a recognized leader in fighting cancer and other catastrophic diseases. In 1930, a group of Carmelite nuns known as the Carmelite Sisters of the Most Sacred Heart of Los Angeles established what is now the Santa Teresita Rest Home, known until recently as Santa Teresita Medical Center. After decades as a full-service hospital, Santa Teresita was downgraded to "medical center" in the early 21st century, after financial problems, caused both by administrative missteps as well as the costs of providing medical coverage to the uninsured, forced the hospital to close its emergency room. Santa Teresita now operates as an "outpatient services only" facility. In 1957, a dedicated group of community members, fearing annexation by neighboring cities, led a fight for incorporation. Indeed, parts of the original Rancho had already been annexed by neighboring Monrovia, Azusa, Irwindale, and Baldwin Park. At the same time, a rival group representing an affluent enclave in the foothills started a competing drive for incorporation and broke off to form the separate city of Bradbury. A 2001 ''

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'' article stated that their petition for incorporation arrived in

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on August 22, 1957, "mere moments" before the petition that would have included what is now Bradbury in the city of Duarte. Still, many ties between the two communities remain in that they both form the Duarte Unified School District; they both share the same post office and the 91008 ZIP code; and they both share combined public services such as the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department and Los Angeles County Fire Department, and garbage pickup (provided by Burrtec Waste Services). The original city logo was created by Bill Botts Sr. in 1957. It consisted of a double-circular seal, with the inner circle containing an adobe arch featuring the Rancho Azusa de Duarte "d" brand (inside the arch is the original date of the Rancho's establishment, 1841) while the outer circle features the year of Duarte's incorporation (1957). The current city logo was created in early 1982 to mark Duarte's 25th anniversary of cityhood. Like many of its neighbors, modern Duarte is a

bedroom community A commuter town is a populated area that is primarily residential rather than commercial or industrial. Routine travel from home to work and back is called commuting, which is where the term comes from. A commuter town may be called by many o ...

. The city of Duarte is geographically isolated from population centers to the east and south due to the San Gabriel River and rock quarry operations in Irwindale and Azusa. These factors have proven to be an ongoing economic challenge for local businesses as the city attracts little outside spending, and most residents spend their money elsewhere. Due to air quality and noise concerns, the city of Duarte has sought repeatedly to halt the expansion of neighboring quarry operations but has had no success against the monied interests behind the quarries and the neighboring city governments beholden to them. Still, over the past few decades, the city leadership has succeeded in bringing retail development to the western portion of Duarte. In September 2010, ''

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'' magazine placed the ZIP code of 91008 at #1 on its annual list of America's most expensive ZIP codes, containing the parts of Duarte immediately north of neighboring Bradbury.

Geography

Duarte is located at . According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the city has a total area of , all land.

Demographics

Duarte first appeared as a city in the 1960 U.S. Census.

2020

The 2020 United States census reported that Duarte had a population of 21,727. The population density was . The racial makeup of Duarte was 57.8%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

(24.7% Non-Hispanic White), 6.1%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 1.3% Native American, 17.2% Asian, 0.1%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, and 6.4% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 49.9% of the population. The Census reported that 63.1% of the population lived in owner-occupied housing. There were 7,132 households, with an average household size of 2.98. The population was 4.5% persons under 5 years old, 17.6% between the ages of 6 and 17, 58.5% ages 18 to 65, and 19.4% 65 years of age or older. The population of Duarte was 54.8% female. According to the 2020 United States census, Duarte had a median household income of $75,083, with 10.2% of the population living below the federal poverty line.

2010

The 2010 United States census reported that Duarte had a population of 21,321. The population density was . The racial makeup of Duarte was 11,076 (51.9%)

(26.9% Non-Hispanic White), 1,587 (7.4%)

, 179 (0.8%) Native American, 3,361 (15.8%) Asian, 26 (0.1%)

, 4,108 (19.3%) from other races, and 984 (4.6%) from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 10,190 persons (47.8%). The Census reported that 20,914 people (98.1% of the population) lived in households, 19 (0.1%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 388 (1.8%) were institutionalized. There were 7,013 households, out of which 2,458 (35.0%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 3,597 (51.3%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 1,004 (14.3%) had a female householder with no husband present, 363 (5.2%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 285 (4.1%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 66 (0.9%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 1,666 households (23.8%) were made up of individuals, and 888 (12.7%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.98. There were 4,964 families (70.8% of all households); the average family size was 3.54. The population was spread out, with 4,737 people (22.2%) under the age of 18, 1,863 people (8.7%) aged 18 to 24, 5,567 people (26.1%) aged 25 to 44, 5,776 people (27.1%) aged 45 to 64, and 3,378 people (15.8%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39.9 years. For every 100 females, there were 89.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.8 males. There were 7,254 housing units at an average density of , of which 4,703 (67.1%) were owner-occupied, and 2,310 (32.9%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.1%; the rental vacancy rate was 4.4%. 14,796 people (69.4% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 6,118 people (28.7%) lived in rental housing units. According to the 2010 United States census, Duarte had a median household income of $62,250, with 13.4% of the population living below the federal poverty line.

Mapping L.A.

According to Mapping L.A., in 2000, Mexican (31.6%) and Filipino (6.6%) were the most common ancestries. Mexico (44.1%) and the Philippines (15.7%) were the most common foreign places of birth.

Government and infrastructure

In the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

, Duarte is in . Duarte has a council-manager government with a city council whose seven members are directly elected by residents. The current mayor is Bryan Urias. The Los Angeles County Department of Health Services operates the Monrovia Health Center in

, serving Duarte. Since 2016, Duarte has been served by

Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LACMTA), branded as Metro, is the county agency that plans, operates, and coordinates funding for most of the Transportation in Los Angeles, public transportation system in Los Ang ...

's A Line

light rail Light rail (or light rail transit, abbreviated to LRT) is a form of passenger urban rail transit that uses rolling stock derived from tram technology National Conference of the Transportation Research Board while also having some features from ...

at the Duarte/City of Hope station.

Education

The Duarte Unified School District serves students from Duarte, Bradbury, and unincorporated communities to the south of Duarte and

. The district contains four elementary schools (Maxwell, Beardslee, Royal Oaks, and Valley View), one

high school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., ...

( Duarte High School) and one continuation high school ( Mt. Olive Continuation High School, since renamed to the "Mt. Olive Institute of Technology" as of June 2013), CS Arts (California School of Arts) as of 2018. Within Duarte, there are also five licensed

private schools A private school or independent school is a school not administered or funded by the government, unlike a public school. Private schools are schools that are not dependent upon national or local government to finance their financial endowme ...

. Foothill Oaks Academy is a non-sectarian school serving students from preschool through 7th grade (since 4 September 2024.)The Duarte Montessori School is affiliated with the American Montessori Society and serves students from preschool through 2nd grade. The School of the Little Scholar is a non-sectarian preschool. ABC School is another non-sectarian preschool that focuses on children with

special education Special education (also known as special-needs education, aided education, alternative provision, exceptional student education, special ed., SDC, and SPED) is the practice of educating students in a way that accommodates their individual di ...

needs. The Hayden Child Care Center is a Roman Catholic-affiliated school serving students in preschool and kindergarten.

Public safety

The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department (LASD) operates the Temple Station in Temple City, serving not only Duarte, but also neighboring Bradbury, while fire protection services are provided by the Los Angeles County Fire Department through Station 44 (paramedic services are provided by nearby Stations 29 in Baldwin Park and 32 in Azusa). Duarte also has its own in-house "Department of Public Safety", where its officers (separate from the LASD) are assigned mainly with issuing citations for various violation of the city's Municipal Code, as well as issuance of dog licenses and bicycle permits.

Media

Duarte community news is provided by the '' San Gabriel Valley Tribune'' and ''Duarte Dispatch'', which is a weekly community newspaper published by Beacon Media News.

Notable people

* David Henry Breaux – activist. * Bill Melton –

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

player for the

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Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. Since , the team ...

, and

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, 1971 American League home run champion, television sports commentator. * Glenn Miller –

big band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s and ...

conductor, arranger, composer, trombone player, and recording artist. * Sam Shepard – playwright, writer and actor.{{cite news , url=https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2003/oct/11/theatre.music , title=The write stuff , location=London , newspaper=

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

, first=John , last=O'Mahony , date=October 11, 2003 , url-status=live , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170414082920/https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2003/oct/11/theatre.music , archive-date=April 14, 2017 * William A. Spinks – Billiards champion, co-inventor of modern billiard cue chalk, oilman, horticulturist (the Spinks Avocado cultivar developed in Duarte was considered the best commercial variety before the Haas was developed). * Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa – actor.{{cite web , last=Chung , first=W , date=February 10, 2010 , title=Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa: Action Master , url=https://goldsea.com/article_details/cary-hiroyuki-tagawa-action-master , website= Goldsea , location= , url-status=live , archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250119221116/https://goldsea.com/article_details/cary-hiroyuki-tagawa-action-master , archive-date=January 19, 2025 , access-date=January 19, 2025