THE HISTORY

La Palma is all that its founder hoped it wouldn't be.

A group of dairy farmers launched the city as "Dairyland" in 1955 in an effort to keep their land from tract-home developers. The farmers agreed that Dairyland - agricultural since the mid-1800s - should stay that way.

They zoned their city to excluded housing developments, and the area continued to be dominated by cows, chickens and strawberry fields.

But by the mid-1960s Dairyland farmers decided their land had become too valuable to remain wholly agricultural. They changed the city's name to La Palma in 1964 and drafted a master plan with well-defined residential, commercial and industrial areas. Developers were welcomed.

Today, people completely have crowded out La Palma's livestock. The only dairy cow left in town is on the city seal.

Housing tracts cover much of the city, which, covering only 1.76 square miles, is the smallest in Orange County in terms of land size.

Although the days of sweet milk and jumbo eggs are gone in La Palma, some residents say one thing hasn't change: their pride in their city.

To show their town spirit, La Palma holds more seasonal events than some cities several times its size.