History of Garden Grove, California
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Garden Grove is a city in northern
Orange County, California Orange County is located in the Los Angeles metropolitan area in Southern California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 3,186,989, making it the third-most-populous county in California, the sixth-most-populous in the United States, a ...
, United States, located just southwest of Disneyland (located in Anaheim, CA). The population was 171,949 at the 2020 census. State Route 22, also known as the
Garden Grove Freeway A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the cultivation, display, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The single feature identifying even the wildest wild garden is ''control''. The garden can incorporate bot ...
, passes through the city in an east–west direction. The western portion of the city is known as West Garden Grove.


History


19th century

Garden Grove was founded by Alonzo Cook in 1874. A school district and
Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's ...
church were organized that year. It remained a small rural crossroads and farming community until the arrival of the Pacific Electric Railroad in 1905. The rail connection helped the town prosper with the influx of tourists, visitors and eventually settlers, and it was noted for its crops of
oranges An orange is a fruit of various citrus species in the family Rutaceae (see list of plants known as orange); it primarily refers to ''Citrus'' × ''sinensis'', which is also called sweet orange, to distinguish it from the related ''Citrus × ...
, walnuts,
chili pepper Chili peppers (also chile, chile pepper, chilli pepper, or chilli), from Nahuatl '' chīlli'' (), are varieties of the berry-fruit of plants from the genus ''Capsicum'', which are members of the nightshade family Solanaceae, cultivated for ...
s and later strawberries.


20th century

In 1933, much of the town's central business district was destroyed by the Long Beach earthquake, and one person was killed at the high school. The post-
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
boom led to rapid development, and Garden Grove was incorporated as a city in 1956 with about 44,000 residents. In 1956, Orange County Plaza (now The Promenade) was opened at Chapman and Brookhurst, and upon its expansion in 1959, it had 60 stores, including a J. C. Penney, 2 variety stores and 2 supermarkets, and billed itself as both the largest and the first regional shopping center in Orange County.


Strawberry Festival

An annual event held over Memorial Day weekend, the Garden Grove Strawberry Festival is one of the largest community festivals in the western United States, attracting an estimated 250,000 visitors. It began in 1958 and celebrates the city's agricultural past, which includes cultivating crops such as chili peppers, oranges, walnuts and strawberries. Part of the festivities include the cutting of the world's largest strawberry shortcake, carnival rides, food vendors, live music, and a celebrity-filled parade. Numerous Garden Grove organizations, including the Miss Garden Grove Scholarship Program, are part of the Memorial Day weekend festivities every year. In commemoration of Garden Grove's 50th anniversary, the city painted some of its
fire hydrant A fire hydrant, waterplug, or firecock (archaic) is a connection point by which firefighters can tap into a water supply. It is a component of active fire protection. Underground fire hydrants have been used in Europe and Asia since at least t ...
s with a design that featured a strawberry, recognizing the festival as a big part of Garden Grove's history.


Geography

Garden Grove has a rugged set of boundaries with many
panhandles A salient (also known as a panhandle or bootheel) is an elongated protrusion of a geopolitical entity, such as a subnational entity or a sovereign state. While similar to a peninsula in shape, a salient is most often not surrounded by water o ...
. The West Garden Grove neighborhood is west of Beach Boulevard and is largely separated from the rest of Garden Grove by the city of Stanton, with a small bridge of jurisdiction linking the two along Garden Grove Boulevard. A panhandle in the southern part of the town's borders situated between
Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, B ...
's Ward Street to the west and Santa Ana's Euclid Street to the east creates a small border with the city of Fountain Valley. Other neighboring cities include Cypress and Anaheim to the north,
Orange Orange most often refers to: *Orange (fruit), the fruit of the tree species '' Citrus'' × ''sinensis'' ** Orange blossom, its fragrant flower *Orange (colour), from the color of an orange, occurs between red and yellow in the visible spectrum * ...
to the east, and the cities of
Seal Beach Seal Beach is a coastal city in Orange County, California, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 25,242, up from 24,168 at the 2010 United States census, 2010 census. Seal Beach is located in the w ...
and Los Alamitos to the west. According to the
United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of t ...
, the city has a total area of , 0.10% of which is water.


Demographics


2010

The
2010 United States Census The United States census of 2010 was the twenty-third United States national census. National Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2010. The census was taken via mail-in citizen self-reporting, with enumerators servi ...
reported that Garden Grove had a population of 170,883. The population density was . The racial makeup of Garden Grove was 68,149 (39.9%)
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White o ...
, 2,155 (1.3%)
Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ...
, 983 (0.6%) Native American, 63,451 (37.1%) Asian, 1,110 (0.6%)
Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...
, 28,916 (16.9%) from
other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...
, and 6,119 (3.6%) from two or more races.
Hispanic or Latino ''Hispanic'' and '' Latino'' are ethnonyms used to refer collectively to the inhabitants of the United States who are of Spanish or Latin American ancestry (). While the terms are sometimes used interchangeably, for example, by the United States ...
of any race were 63,079 persons (36.9%).
Non-Hispanic whites Non-Hispanic whites or Non-Latino whites are Americans who are classified as "white", and are not of Hispanic (also known as "Latino") heritage. The United States Census Bureau defines ''white'' to include European Americans, Middle Eastern Ame ...
were 22.6% of the population, down from 90.6% in 1970.
Vietnamese Americans Vietnamese Americans ( vi, Người Mỹ gốc Việt, lit=Viet-origin American people) are Americans of Vietnamese ancestry. They make up about half of all overseas Vietnamese and are the fourth-largest Asian American ethnic group after Chinese ...
numbered 47,331 of the population. At 27.7% this was the highest concentration of any city in the United States except for adjacent
Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, B ...
. The Census reported that 168,942 people (98.9% of the population) lived in households, 1,234 (0.7%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 707 (0.4%) were institutionalized. There were 46,037 households, out of which 21,361 (46.4%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 26,659 (57.9%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 6,866 (14.9%) had a female householder with no husband present, 3,588 (7.8%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 2,025 (4.4%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 269 (0.6%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 6,491 households (14.1%) were made up of individuals, and 2,842 (6.2%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.67. There were 37,113
families Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Ideal ...
(80.6% of all households); the average family size was 3.94. The population was spread out, with 43,763 people (25.6%) under the age of 18, 17,383 people (10.2%) aged 18 to 24, 49,105 people (28.7%) aged 25 to 44, 42,106 people (24.6%) aged 45 to 64, and 18,526 people (10.8%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35.6 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 7.7 males. There were 47,755 housing units at an average density of , of which 26,240 (57.0%) were owner-occupied, and 19,797 (43.0%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.2%; the rental vacancy rate was 4.6%. 96,308 people (56.4% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 72,634 people (42.5%) lived in rental housing units. According to the 2010 United States Census, Garden Grove had a median household income of $59,988, with 15.5% of the population living below the federal poverty line.


Government


Local government

Garden Grove uses a council-manager form of government. In July 2015, the city was sued by a resident who claimed that the longstanding at-large elections had affected the Latino vote and was in violation of the
California Voting Rights Act The California Voting Rights Act of 2001 (CVRA) is a state law in the state of California. It makes it easier for minority groups in California to prove that their votes are being diluted in "at-large" elections by expanding on the federal Voting ...
. On January 26, 2016, the city council voted to settle the lawsuit, and therefore adopted that council members would be voted by district (six districts total) and no longer at-large; the mayor, however, will continue to be elected at-large. The
city council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counc ...
consists of
mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...
Steve Jones, Phat Bui, George S. Brietigam III, John R. O'Neill, Thu-Ha Nguyen, Stephanie Klopfenstein, and
mayor pro tem ''Pro tempore'' (), abbreviated ''pro tem'' or ''p.t.'', is a Latin phrase which best translates to "for the time being" in English. This phrase is often used to describe a person who acts as a ''locum tenens'' (placeholder) in the absence of ...
Kim B. Nguyen. According to the city's most recent Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the city's various funds had $206.0 million in revenues, $193.0 million in expenditures, $1,098.9 million in total assets, $251.5 million in total liabilities, and $196.3 million in cash and investments. The following list of city officials is current as of August 2019.


Emergency services

The Garden Grove Police Department provides law enforcement, with mutual aid assistance offered at times by the Anaheim Police Department's helicopter and the Orange County Sheriff's Department Air Unit. In August 2019, the city of Garden Grove entered into a 10-year contract with the
Orange County Fire Authority The Orange County Fire Authority (OCFA) is the agency that provides fire protection and emergency medical services for unincorporated areas of Orange County, California as well as 25 cities within the county that contract OCFA's services. There ...
(OCFA) for fire and rescue services, and merged all existing Garden Grove Fire Department personnel and equipment into the OCFA.


State and federal representation

In the California State Senate, Garden Grove is in . In the California State Assembly, Garden Grove is split between , , and . In the
United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...
, Garden Grove is split between California's 46th, 47th, and 48th congressional districts, which are represented by , , and , respectively.


Politics

According to the California Secretary of State, as of October 22, 2018, Garden Grove has 72,768 registered voters. Of those, 26,604 (36.56%) are registered Democrats, 21,449 (29.48%) are registered Republicans, and 21,941 (30.15%) have declined to state a political party/are independents. Although Democrat
Kamala Harris Kamala Devi Harris ( ; born October 20, 1964) is an American politician and attorney who is the 49th vice president of the United States. She is the first female vice president and the highest-ranking female official in U.S. history, as well ...
easily won California and also won Orange County in the 2016 United States Senate election, Democrat Loretta Sanchez easily won Garden Grove by a 67%-33% margin, her widest margin of victory for any city in Orange County. Garden Grove, although traditionally Republican in presidential elections, has voted for the Democratic presidential nominee in each of the last three presidential elections.
Hillary Rodham Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States senat ...
carried the city by a 23-point margin in
2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the Impeachment of Dilma Rousseff, impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses duri ...
. In
2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global social and economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, worldwide lockdowns and the largest economic recession since the Great Depression in t ...
, however, Joe Biden managed to keep the city in the Democratic column by just over a point, largely because of gains Donald J. Trump made in Orange County's Vietnamese community.


Economy

According to the city's 2021 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report, the top employers in the city are:


Education

The
Garden Grove Unified School District The Garden Grove Unified School District (GGUSD) is the 14th-largest school district in California. It includes boundaries in Anaheim, Cypress, Fountain Valley, Garden Grove, Santa Ana, Stanton, and Westminster. The district includes forty ...
serves most of the city, as well as the
Westminster School District The Westminster School District (WSD) is a school district in Orange County, California, established in 1872 and headquartered in Westminster. It operates schools in Westminster, Garden Grove, Huntington Beach, and Midway City. It operates elem ...
, Huntington Beach Union High School District, Anaheim Elementary School District,
Anaheim Union High School District The Anaheim Union High School District (AUHSD) is a public school district serving portions of the Orange County cities of Anaheim, Buena Park, Cypress, La Palma, and Stanton. It oversees eight junior high schools (7-8), eight high schools (9 ...
and the Orange Unified School District, which serves portions in Garden Grove. King of Kings Lutheran School is a Christian school (3K-8th grade) of the
Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod The Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS), also referred to simply as the Wisconsin Synod, is an American Confessional Lutheran denomination of Christianity. Characterized as theologically conservative, it was founded in 1850 in Milwauke ...
(WELS) in Garden Grove.


Arts and culture

Garden Grove is home to two stage theaters, the Gem Theater and the Festival Amphitheater. The Festival Amphitheater hosts Shakespeare Orange County, which presents an annual Shakespeare Festival each summer. Both venues are owned by the City of Garden Grove, but operated by outside entities. The Gem Theater is currently operated by Damien Lorton and Nicole Cassesso of 'One More Productions'. The Festival Amphitheater is managed by Thomas Bradac, the producing artistic director of Shakespeare Orange County. The
Garden Grove Playhouse The Garden Grove Playhouse was a non-profit community theater organization near the western edge of the city of Garden Grove in Orange County, California. The organization was originally called the Garden Grove Community Theatre, but the name ...
used to be an active theatre, now closed down. It was operated by a non-profit group of the same name. The song "Garden Grove" by Sublime details taking a trip to Garden Grove.


Notable people


Entertainment

*
Justin Chon Justin Jitae Chon (born May 29, 1981) is an American actor and filmmaker. He has directed three films, ''Gook'' (2017), '' Ms. Purple'' (2019), & ''Blue Bayou'' (2021). He is also known for portraying Eric Yorkie in '' The Twilight Saga'' film ...
, actor *
Wally George Wally George (born George Walter Pearch; December 4, 1931 – October 5, 2003) was an American conservative radio and television commentator. Calling himself the "Father of Combat TV," he was a fixture on Southern California television for ...
, talk-show host *
Scott Klopfenstein Scott Allen "Scotty" Klopfenstein is an American musician and a former member of the band Reel Big Fish. He sings and plays trumpet, guitar, and keyboard. Before joining Reel Big Fish, Klopfenstein played trumpet in Nuckle Brothers and trump ...
, backup singer, keyboardist, trumpeter and guitarist for the
ska-punk Ska punk (also spelled ska-punk) is a fusion genre that mixes ska music and punk rock music together. (sometimes spelled skacore) is a subgenre of ska punk that mixes ska with hardcore punk. Early ska punk mixed both 2 tone and ska with hard ...
band
Reel Big Fish Reel Big Fish is an American ska punk band from Orange County, California. The band gained mainstream recognition in the mid-to-late 1990s during the third wave of ska with the release of the gold-certified album ''Turn the Radio Off''. Soon af ...
*
Dexter Holland Bryan Keith "Dexter" Holland (born December 29, 1965) is an American musician who is the lead vocalist, rhythm guitarist, primary songwriter and last remaining original member of the American rock band the Offspring. He is also the creator of t ...
, lead singer,
The Offspring The Offspring is an American rock band from Garden Grove, California, formed in 1984. Originally formed under the name Manic Subsidal, the band's current lineup consists of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Bryan "Dexter" Holland, lead guit ...
, also wrote the song " The Kids Aren't Alright" about the city *
Steve Martin Stephen Glenn Martin (born August 14, 1945) is an American actor, comedian, writer, producer, and musician. He has won five Grammy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and was awarded an Honorary Academy Award in 2013. Additionally, he was nominate ...
, actor, comedian, musician and writer; graduate of Garden Grove High School *
Jennette McCurdy Jennette Michelle Faye McCurdy (born June 26, 1992) is an American writer, director, podcaster, singer and former actress. McCurdy's breakthrough role as Sam Puckett in the Nickelodeon sitcom '' iCarly'' (2007–2012) earned her various awards ...
, podcaster, author and actress, '' iCarly'' and ''
Sam & Cat ''Sam & Cat'' is an American teen sitcom that originally aired from June 8, 2013, to July 17, 2014, on Nickelodeon. It is a spin-off of two TV shows ''iCarly'' and ''Victorious'', which Dan Schneider also created. It stars Jennette McCurdy as S ...
'' * Monique Powell, lead singer,
Save Ferris Save Ferris is an American ska punk band formed circa 1995 in Orange County, California, United States. Their name is a reference to the 1986 film ''Ferris Bueller's Day Off''. In 1995, the band began to perform underground venues in Southern Cal ...
* Eunice Pringle, actress, notably who accused movie mogul Alexander Pantages in 1929 of rape * Kevin 'Noodles' Wasserman, lead guitarist,
The Offspring The Offspring is an American rock band from Garden Grove, California, formed in 1984. Originally formed under the name Manic Subsidal, the band's current lineup consists of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Bryan "Dexter" Holland, lead guit ...
*
Atreyu Atreyu is an American metalcore band from Yorba Linda, California, formed in 1998. The band currently consists of clean vocalist Brandon Saller, guitarists Dan Jacobs and Travis Miguel, bassist and unclean vocalist Marc "Porter" McKnight, and ...
, a metalcore band * Kieu Chinh, actress *
Poreotics Poreotics, also known as Poreotix, is an American all-male dance crew from Westminster, California. The crew was formed in 2007 by Matthew "Dumbo" Nguyen and specializes in popping, choreography and robotics, hence the name Po-reo-tics. They ha ...
, dance crew *
Dave Mustaine David Scott Mustaine (born September 13, 1961) is an American musician. He is the co-founder, lead vocalist, rhythm guitarist and primary songwriter of the thrash metal band Megadeth, as well as their sole consistent member. Mustaine has relea ...
, lead singer, Megadeth; played baseball in Garden Grove Eastside Little League, lived on Pearce Ave * Basil "Bill" Poledouris, musician; motion picture film score music composer *
Vicky Nguyen Vicky Nguyen (born ) is a Vietnamese people, Vietnamese-born American investigative journalism, investigative journalist working with NBC News in New York City. Nguyen joined NBC News in April 2019 as the Investigative and Consumer correspondent. ...
, news reporter, KFYR-TV, NBC Affiliate * Shubhendra Shankar, musician, composer and graphic artist * Mick Mars, musician and guitarist for Mötley Crüe *
David J. Peterson David Joshua Peterson (born January 20, 1981) is an American conlanger who has constructed languages for television series such as '' Game of Thrones'' and ''The 100'' and movies such as '' Thor: The Dark World'' and '' Dune.'' Life Peter ...
, creator of the
Dothraki The fictional world in which the ''A Song of Ice and Fire'' novels by George R. R. Martin take place is divided into several continents, known collectively as The Known World. Most of the story takes place on the continent of Westeros and in ...
and Valyrian languages from HBO's '' Game of Thrones''


Sports

*
Bert Blyleven Bert Blyleven (born Rik Aalbert Blijleven, April 6, 1951) is a Dutch-American former professional baseball pitcher who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1970 to 1992, primarily with the Minnesota Twins. Blyleven recorded 3,701 ...
,
Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
pitcher,
Hall of Famer A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actual halls or muse ...
, color commentator, graduate of Santiago High School *
Ed Caruthers Edward Julius Caruthers Jr. (born April 13, 1945) is an American former athlete who competed mainly in the men's high jump event during his career. Born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, he competed for the United States at the 1968 Summer Olympics h ...
, Olympic silver medalist, 1968 Mexico City. Taught at Bolsa Grande High School. *
Bobby Crosby Robert Edward Crosby (born January 12, 1980) is an American former professional baseball infielder and current coach. He played in Major League Baseball for the Oakland Athletics, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Arizona Diamondbacks. The son of former ...
,
MLB Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
Rookie of the Year (2004), attended Pacifica High School and La Quinta High School * Mary Decker, runner in
National Track and Field Hall of Fame The National Track and Field Hall of Fame is a museum operated by The Armory Foundation in conjunction with USA Track & Field. It is located within the Armory Foundation (the former Fort Washington Avenue Armory) at 216 Fort Washington Avenue, ...
; grew up in Garden Grove *
Lenny Dykstra Leonard Kyle Dykstra (; born February 10, 1963), is an American former professional baseball center fielder, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Mets (1985–1989) and Philadelphia Phillies (1989–1996). Dykstra was a thre ...
, MLB player with Mets, Phillies; graduate of Garden Grove High School *
Amanda Freed Amanda Louise Freed (born December 26, 1979) is an American, former professional softball utility player and pitcher. She played college softball for UCLA, winning the national title for the Bruins in the 1999 Women's College World Series. In ...
, Olympic gold medalist in softball (2004), attended Pacifica High School, Bell Intermediate and Patton Elementary * Luis Gil, soccer player for
Real Salt Lake Real Salt Lake, often shortened to RSL, is an American professional soccer franchise based in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area. The club competes as a member club of Major League Soccer (MLS) in the Western Conference. RSL began play in 2 ...
* Gary Hall Sr., Olympic swimmer, silver medalist * Lorrin "Whitey" Harrison, legendary surfer and surfing innovator * Mike Iupati, football player *
Jeremy Jackson Jeremy Dunn Jackson (born October 16, 1980) is an American actor and singer. He is best known for his role as Hobie Buchannon on the television show ''Baywatch''. Career Television Jackson appeared in 159 episodes of the TV series ''Baywatch' ...
, mixed martial artist *
Norm Johnson Norman Douglas Johnson (born May 31, 1960) is an American former professional football player who was a placekicker for 18 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). During that time, he played for the Seattle Seahawks (1982–90), Atlanta ...
, NFL kicker *
Darryl Kile Darryl Andrew Kile (December 2, 1968 – June 22, 2002) was an American professional baseball starting pitcher. He pitched from 1991 to 2002 for three Major League Baseball (MLB) teams, primarily for the Houston Astros. Kile was known for his shar ...
, MLB pitcher *
Leah O'Brien Leah Marie O'Brien-Amico (born September 9, 1974) is an American, former collegiate All-American, three-time Olympian, left-handed-hitting softball outfielder and sports commentator originally from Chino, California. O'Brien-Amico is best know ...
, softball infielder, Olympic gold medalist 1996 * Craig Paquette, MLB third baseman, graduate of Rancho Alamitos High School *
Nam Phan Nhat Nam Si Phan (born March 13, 1983), better known as Nam Phan, is an American retired mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist and professional boxer. A professional in mixed martial arts since 2001, Phan has also competed for the Ultimate Fig ...
, mixed martial artist *
Troy Polamalu Troy Aumua Polamalu (; born Troy Benjamin Aumua; April 19, 1981) is an American former football strong safety who played his entire 12-year career for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football ...
, NFL player with the Pittsburgh Steelers *
Dennis Sigalos Arthur Dennis Sigalos (born August 16, 1959) is an American former professional speedway rider. Career Born in Garden Grove, California, Sigalos was a rising star in speedway racing during the late 1970s. Sigalos served notice that he was a c ...
, motorcycle speedway rider, winner of the 1982 Speedway World Pairs Championship *
Leo Sutherland Leonardo Sutherland Cantin (born April 6, 1958) is a Cuban-born former professional baseball player, an outfielder who appeared in 45 in Major League Baseball games for the 1980–1981 Chicago White Sox. He threw and batted left-handed, stood t ...
, MLB player *
Ed Templeton Ed Templeton (born July 28, 1972) is an American professional skateboarder, contemporary artist, and photographer. He is the founder of the skateboard company, Toy Machine, a company that he continues to own and manage. He is based in Huntingt ...
, professional skateboarder and artist * Alan Trammell, MLB shortstop and manager for the Detroit Tigers *
Matt Treanor Matthew Aaron Treanor (born March 3, 1976) is an American former professional baseball catcher in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played for the Florida Marlins, Detroit Tigers, Texas Rangers, Kansas City Royals, and Los Angeles Dodgers. High s ...
, MLB catcher * Randy Vataha, football player at Stanford,
Jim Plunkett James William Plunkett (born December 5, 1947) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for sixteen seasons. He achieved his greatest professional success during his final eight seasons with the ...
's favorite receiver


Politics

*
Jim Silva James Wayne "Jim" Silva (born January 15, 1944) is a Republican United States politician who served in the California State Assembly. A native of Orange County, Silva earned his Bachelor of Arts in Business from San Jose State University and ...
, former California Assemblyman, former Member of the Orange County Board of Supervisors, former Mayor of Seal Beach *
Bill Thomas William Marshall Thomas (born December 6, 1941) is an American politician. He was a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from 1979 to 2007, finishing his tenure representing California's 22nd congressional district an ...
, retired U.S. Congressman and former Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee (and alumnus of Garden Grove High School) * Robert K. Dornan, former U.S. Congressman. *
Janet Nguyen Janet Q. Nguyen (born May 1, 1976) is an American politician who serves in the California State Assembly. A Republican, she represents the 72nd district, encompassing parts of northern coastal Orange County which includes the cities of Huntin ...
, Orange County supervisor * Curt Pringle, former State Assemblyman, Speaker of the California State Assembly and former mayor of Anaheim * Paul Jeffrey Watford, Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, Assumed office May 22, 2012, born in Garden Grove August 25, 1967


Others

*
Steve Fossett James Stephen Fossett (April 22, 1944 – September 3, 2007) was an American businessman and a record-setting aviator, sailor, and adventurer. He was the first person to fly solo nonstop around the world in a balloon and in a fixed-wing aircraf ...
, aviator and adventurer * Michael A. Monsoor,
Navy SEAL The United States Navy Sea, Air, and Land (SEAL) Teams, commonly known as Navy SEALs, are the U.S. Navy's primary special operations force and a component of the Naval Special Warfare Command. Among the SEALs' main functions are conducting s ...
, Medal of Honor recipient * Tibor Rubin, Medal of Honor recipient *
Robert H. Schuller Robert Harold Schuller (September 16, 1926 – April 2, 2015) was an American Christianity, Christian televangelist, pastor, motivational speaker, and author. In his five decades of television, Schuller was principally known for the weekly ...
, television evangelist * Nicole Brown Simpson, murder victim and former wife of O.J. Simpson


Sister cities

* Anyang, South Korea


See also

*
Christ Cathedral (Garden Grove, California) Christ Cathedral (Latin: ''Cathedralis Christi''; Spanish: ''Catedral de Cristo''; Vietnamese: ''Nhà Thờ Chính Tòa Chúa Kitô''), formerly and informally known as the Crystal Cathedral, is an American church building of the Diocese of Ora ...
* List of U.S. cities with large Hispanic populations


References


External links

*
The Garden Grove Journal

International West
The city's resort and tourist district] * https://web.archive.org/web/20111006164253/http://egov.ocgov.com/portal/site/ocgov/menuitem.02b739dec30413a69add603d100000f7/?vgnextoid=08812ee81775f110VgnVCM1000005b00610aRCRD&vgnextchannel=b2ea4a1d78efd110VgnVCM1000005b00610aRCRD&vgnextfmt=default City of Garden Grove Libraries] {{authority control Garden Grove, California, Cities in Orange County, California Incorporated cities and towns in California Populated places established in 1874 Populated places on the Santa Ana River 1874 establishments in California