Olive Through the Ages: Welcome to Olive, California

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Olive Through the Ages ... now and then

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Welcome to Olive, California, an unincorporated community in Orange County, comprised of 61 single family residences¹ nestled on a hill in the northern region of the city of Orange.

Founded circa 1812—the second oldest community in the county²—Olive was once known as the Gateway City of Orange County in the 1920s due to its location between Riverside and the coastal cities.³ But the history of the Olive area goes back even farther than this, as indicated by a marker on the northwest corner of Orange-Olive Road and Lincoln Avenue:

Photo by DLO

The "Old Santa Ana" marker, pictured above and to the right in the banner header, consists of a bronze plaque on a field stone monument.

Portola camped on bank of Santa Ana River in 1769. Jose Antonio Yorba, member of expedition, later returned to Rancho Santiago de Santa Ana. El Camino Real crossed river in this vicinity. Place was designated Santa Ana by travelers, and known by that name until present town of Santa Ana was founded.

(Historical Landmark No. 204, California State Park Commission)

The marker hints at much of Olive's early history. Don Gaspár de Portolá of Spain—former explorer and military leader, appointed governor of Baja California in 1767⁴—first visited the Olive area in 1769, camping on the bank of the nearby Santa Ana River. José Antonio Yorba—a soldier in Portolá's expedition—later petitioned for and received a land grant⁵ of Rancho Santiago de Santa Ana that included the Olive area.⁶ The path of the El Camino Real (The Royal Highway) that links the 21 California Missions crossed this area, as Olive had been considered for the fourth mission site. The mission was eventually founded in 1771 as Mission San Gabriel Arcángel,⁷ five years before Mission San Juan Capistrano would be founded. The Olive region subsequently became known as "Old Santa Ana," a name that remained until the local town of Santa Ana was founded in 1869.⁸

Throughout its history, Olive has experienced a number of changes: From a pastoral community in the mid-1700s to the mid-1800s; to a bustling 1880s boom town with a lucrative flour mill; to an orchard-filled community with its own citrus packing houses in the 1920s to the 1950s; to a residential island from the early 1960s to present times, struggling to retain its name and identity amidst growing pressures to incorporate into the City of Orange.

This Web site was created as a tribute to Olive, to make the public aware of its existence, and to preserve its history. The following sections included in this site are accessible via the navigational bar at the top of each page:

Tour - This section includes a map of Olive and its surrounding region, with significant, historical sites marked
Timeline - This section provides a list of events in Olive's history
History - This section features a story about the history of Olive
Images - This section features maps and photos of Olive and the surrounding community, past and present
References - This section includes a list of references used at this site
The LIVING BRANCH - A link to the new branch of this site, which is a site in progress

For the latest photos of the Olive area, please see Olive Through the Ages ... now and then.

Do you have old photos of Olive or stories to share about the Olive community? Please send them to me (Daralee) at the email address mentioned in the left column of this page. Material submitted by contributors will be posted to The Living Branch section of this Web site, a site-in-progress.

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