Buena Park : Building to Be Named After Longtime Official

In 1954, less than a year after Buena Park became a city, Marguerite Courson rolled up her sleeves and went to work as a secretary for the city manager-city clerk.

By 1955, Courson assumed one of her bosses’ roles and became Buena Park’s first full-time city clerk--a role she kept for 31 years.

Today, Courson’s colleagues plan to honor her by naming after her the city building in which she worked.

“I was surprised. I suppose they realize that I spent a lot of hours in this building,” said Courson, who recently turned over her job and became a consultant in the city clerk’s office.

Although Courson, 70, officially retired from her role as Buena Park’s first and only city clerk, she said she does not want to stop working for Buena Park and hopes to continue her job as consultant.

“I’ve still got a lot of work to do--a lot of things I want to accomplish before I go,” she said.

Born and raised in nearby La Mirada, Courson saw Buena Park grow from a population of 10,000 in the early 1950s to about 65,000 people today.

Courson began her job with the city after spending 16 years as an escrow officer with the Bank of America.

When she started to work for the city, it was in a one-room city hall that housed six employees. The city’s growth with its “development after development” in the ‘50s was one of the most exciting times to work for Buena Park, Courson said.

As the city grew, so did the number of employees and the size of city hall.

At 3 p.m. today, officials will dedicate to Courson the structure known up to now as Building 1, which houses the council chambers and the city clerk’s office. The ceremony will feature special guests Grady Travis (Buena Park’s first mayor,) state Sen. Paul B. Carpenter (D-Cypress), Orange County Supervisor Ralph Clark and Whittier City Clerk Trudy Hill, who also is president of the City Clerks Assn. of California, Southern Division.

Despite a few “periods of trial,” Courson described her time with the city as “wonderful years.”

“It is an experience that I really have enjoyed very, very much. It’s been a wonderful career for me.”