BREA : City to Start Celebrating Its 75th Year

A giant birthday party will be held Saturday at the Brea Mall as the city officially kicks off its 75th anniversary celebration.

About 1,000 people are expected to attend the birthday bash, the first in a series of events scheduled throughout the yearlong jubilee.

“I think that the community is interested in where it has come from and where we are going,” said Community Services Directory Ret Wixted, whose department is coordinating the celebrations. “There is a great deal of community pride in Brea.”

The party will be followed on Sunday with living history tours and the opening of a time capsule buried in 1967 under the old City Hall flagpole.

During the tours, residents will be treated to snapshots from the city’s past, including one of the most devastating catastrophes in Brea’s history.

In 1926, oil tanks from San Luis Obispo to the Stewart Tank Farm--a mile west of what is now downtown Brea--caught fire after lightning strikes. In Brea, the fiery oil spilled out and jumped to nearby orange, lemon and walnut groves, devastating everything in its path.

The city’s lone fire truck couldn’t handle the blaze, which took several fire departments from other cities to tame. Nor could it stop the cyclone which churned up in the fire-driven wind that toppled buildings and sheared off roofs.

On Sunday, residents can visit the site of the oil tank fire, the field that once was the site of the city’s airport and the Brea Boulevard warehouse where inventor Fred Thaheld built the first low-winged monoplane.

“There are very few people who know that we had an airport here at one time,” said Brian Saul, a local historian who is heading up the historical committee. “This even surprised me.”

For several months, more than 100 community volunteers have been working to put the finishing touches on the jubilee. Six committees have been busy tackling everything from ordering chairs for the birthday party to organizing a parade scheduled for May 16.

Other events include historical home tours planned for April and a Fourth of July country fair. More events are being added along the way, officials said.

“We want to make sure that any one who passes through knows we are proud of our town,” said volunteer Chris Reimer.

“We are expecting a good turnout (this weekend),” he added. “We are really excited.”

For more information on the anniversary events, call the jubilee hot line at (714) 990-7771.

Brea Milestones

This year is Brea’s 75th anniversary. Among the significant events in the city’s history: 1898--First oil well came in. This started an “oil boom” in the hills of Brea and Olinda.

1912--Pacific Electric Railway made its way through town.

1917--City of Brea ( Brea is Spanish for tar) was incorporated in February with a population of 752.

1923--First official fire engine, “Seagrave,” purchased.

1926--Brea-Olinda High School was constructed in the barley fields of East Birch Street.

1930--First City Hall was built.

WWII--Brea residents staffed airplane spotter’s lookout stations on the roof of Brea-Olinda High School during World War II.

1945--Chamber of Commerce was formally incorporated.

1950--First tract homes were constructed in the southeast area of Brea.

1960--”Good Ole Brea” project began to enliven the downtown economy.

1972--Orange Freeway was completed.

1977--Brea Mall opened.

1980--New Civic and Cultural Center was built.

1982--Relocated Olinda School became the Brea Senior Citizen Center.

1989--New Brea-Olinda High School opened.

1990--Imperial Plaza East Shopping Center opened.

1991--Brea Mall expansion was completed.

1992--Brea is 75.

Source: Brea Historical Society