'''MONROVIA'''

is a city located in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains in the San Gabriel Valley of Los Angeles County, California, United States. The population was 36,590 at the 2010 census, down from 36,929 at the 2000 census. Monrovia has been used for filming TV shows, movies and commercials.

HISTORY

Category: Image - :Monrovia-1886.jpg|left|thumb|Monrovia, 1886 (Myrtle Avenue, looking north)
Monrovia is the fourth oldest general law city in Los Angeles County and the L.A. Basin (after Los Angeles, Santa Monica, and Pasadena). Incorporated in 1887, Monrovia has grown from a sparse community of orange ranches to a residential community of 37,000.
Around 500 BC, a band of Shoshonean-speaking Indians established settlements in what is now the San Gabriel Valley. They were called the Gabrieliño Indians by early Spanish explorers, and are now referred to as the Tongva. The Tongva were not farmers; they gathered wild seeds, berries, and plants along rivers and in marshlands. Abundant oaks in the Valley, such as Coast Live Oak and Interior Live Oak provided a staple of the Tongva diet: acorn mush made of boiled acorn flour.
Category: Image - :Monrovia-1892.jpg|left|thumb|Monrovia, 1892 (Myrtle Avenue, looking north)
In 1769, when all California was claimed by the King of Spain, Europeans first visited the San Gabriel Valley, including Monrovia. An expedition from San Diego passed through en route to Monterey Bay, commanded by Don Gaspar Portola. Accompanying Portola were a Franciscan Father from Father Junipero Serra's Franciscan order of Mexico, and Juan Crespi, the expedition's diarist. Much of what is known of early California is known only from Crespi's detailed descriptions.
In 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 the Mexican Revolution in 1839, the mission lands were nationalized.
In 1841, California Governor Juan Alvarado gave Rancho Azusa de Duarte to Andres Duarte, a Mexican soldier, and he gave Rancho Santa Anita to Hugo Reid, a naturalized Mexican citizen of Scottish birth. Monrovia is made of parts of these two ranchos.
In the mid-19th century, most of Rancho Azusa de Duarte was subdivided and sold by Duarte to settle his debts. Some of those parcels became part of the ranch of William N. Monroe, Monrovia's namesake.
Category: Image - :Monrovia-1903.jpg|left|thumb|Pacific Electric in Monrovia, 1903
Rancho Santa Anita changed hands several times before the multimillionaire, silver baron and rancher, E.J. "Lucky" Baldwin acquired it in 1875. That same year his Los Angeles Investment Company began subdividing and selling parcels from many of his ranchos. In 1883, 240 acres (970,000 m²) of Rancho Santa Anita were sold to Monroe for $30,000. Additional parcels of Rancho Santa Anita were sold to Edward F. Spence, John D. Bicknell, James F. Crank, and J.F. Falvey.
The completion of the Santa Fe (which would run through Monrovia) and Southern Pacific railroads to Southern California would bring new people looking for homes and investment opportunities. With this in mind, Monroe, Spence, Bicknell, Crank, and Falvey combined their land under the business name of the Monrovia Land and Water Company in 1886. The combined lots formed the Town of Monrovia Subdivision. The original borders of the Town of Monrovia Subdivision were Canyon Boulevard to the east, Walnut Avenue to the south, Magnolia Avenue to the west, and Lime Avenue to the north. The subdivision was subdivided into 600 Interwiki: convert » 500|ft|m|sing=on by Interwiki: convert » 160|ft|m|sing=on lots and sold.
The town was incorporated in 1887 under the leadership of prohibitionists who wished to control the arrival of an unwelcome saloon. The first order of business for the newly formed government was to pass a tippler's law, prohibiting the sale of alcohol.
In 1903 the Monrovia News was established. In the same year, the Pacific Electric was opened providing transportation to and from Los Angeles, making it possible for Monrovian homeowners to work in Los Angeles.
Category: Image - :Monrovia-May-16-1914.jpg|thumb|Monrovia, 1914 (Myrtle Avenue, looking north)
In 1905 Carnegie funds became available and with the help of the Board of Trade (forerunner to the Chamber of Commerce), and the Monrovia Women's Club, a bond issue was passed to purchase the Granite Bank Building to be used as a City Hall, and to acquire property for a public park. The Granite Building serves as the city hall, fire and police department facilities in 1961 and the fire department in 1974. In 1956, the old Carnegie library building was torn down and and a new library was constructed. In March of 2007, a new library was voted on by the people of Monrovia. It won with 70% yes votes. The library now has 190,000 books, a heritage room for historical documents, and areas for children, teens, and adults.
A city council-manager type government was instituted in 1923.
In 1937, Patrick McDonald opened a simple restaurant on Huntington Drive (Route 66) near the old Monrovia Airport called "The Airdrome" (hamburgers were ten cents, and all-you-can-drink orange juice was five cents); the restaurant remained there until 1940, when he and his two sons, Maurice and Richard, moved the building Interwiki: convert » 40|mi|km east to San Bernardino to the corner of West 14th Street and 1398 North E Street renaming it "McDonald's". In 1955, milkshake machine salesman Ray Kroc made a franchising deal with the McDonald brothers. In 1961 Kroc purchased the business rights for $2.7 million. For years after the McDonald's Corporation claimed the 1955 Des Plaines, Illinois Mcdonald's to be the first (it was the first location franchised through Ray Kroc), and only recently has recognized San Bernardino. Some though claim Monrovia to be the "real" birthplace, which is subjective since McDonald's as it was first franchised in 1953 (in Phoenix, Arizona and Downey, California) came into being following the development of the "Speedee Service System" in 1948.
Category: File - :UptonSinclairHouse-186-sm.jpg|thumb|Upton Sinclair House
The Upton Sinclair House, home to activist and author Upton Sinclair, is located in Monrovia and is a National Historic Landmark. In 1995 Monrovia received the All America City Award from the National Civic League.
Monrovia Fire and Police Departments are led by Fire Chief Christopher Donovan and Chief of Police Roger W. Johnson

GEOGRAPHY

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of Interwiki: convert » 35.5|km2|mi2|1|sp=us. Interwiki: convert » 13.6|sqmi|km2 of it is land and Interwiki: convert » 0.1|sqmi|km2 of it (0.79%) is water.

ECONOMY

Original Tommy's, Trader Joe's, Green Dot and Naked Juice are based in Monrovia.

EDUCATION

Category: File - :Monrhs.JPG|thumb|right|Monrovia High School
Monrovia Unified School District operates public schools.
Monrovia High School was built in 1887. It was located where Monroe School now stands, and housed the entire elementary and high school student body. A new high school on the property now occupied by Clifton Middle School was erected in 1905, and in 1912 was greatly expanded by the addition of new buildings. In 1928 a high school to serve the communities of Monrovia, Arcadia and Duarte was built. The same structure now serves only Monrovia students, as the elementary and high school district were unified into one district in 1961. The district now has one high school, one continuation school, two middle schools and five elementary schools, and is part of the Citrus Community College District. There are three parochial schools in Monrovia.
The city's schools are:

• Bradoaks Elementary School, K-5, 930 E. Lemon
• Calvary Road Baptist Academy, K-12, 319 W. Olive
• Canyon Early Learning Center, public pre-K, 1000 South Canyon
• Canyon Oaks High School (public alternative), 7-12, 930 Royal Oaks Drive
• Carden of the Foothills, K-8, 429 Wild Rose
• Church of the Nazarene, K-6 303 W. Colorado
• Clifton Middle School, 6-8, 226 S. Ivy
• First Lutheran School, pre-K-8, 1323 South Magnolia
• First Presbyterian Church Preschool, 101 E. Foothill Blvd.
• Immaculate Conception School, K-8, 726 Shamrock
• Joe Ferrante Music Academy, K-12, 126 E. Colorado Blvd.
• Mayflower Elementary School, K-5, 210 North Mayflower
• Monroe Elementary School, K-5, 402 W. Colorado
• Monrovia Community Adult School] 920 South Mountain
• Monrovia High School 9-12, 845 W. Colorado Boulevard
• Monrovia Mountain School, public Alternative K-8, 950 S. Mountain Avenue
• Mt. Sierra College Trade College
• Plymouth Elementary K-5, 1300 Boley Street
• Santa Fe Middle School 6-8, 148 W. Duarte Road
• Serendipity Early Care and Education Center, K, 940 W. Duarte Road
• Wild Rose Elementary, A California Distinguished School K-5, 232 Jasmine
• Vista Ridge Academy, 1311S. Shamrock

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