For two decades, the residents of the southernmost tip of Los Angeles County fought for their own county. It all began in 1869 when a plan was proposed to create an Anaheim County from the rural south of Los Angeles County. This was the start of a long and arduous process that would eventually lead to the formation of Orange County in 1893. Established as one of California's original 27 counties in 1850, Los Angeles County had changed shape several times during its first two decades. The last proposal included the communities of Tustin and Orange, but provided for a northwestern border along Coyote Creek, keeping cities such as Whittier and Norwalk within the orbit of Los Angeles.
However, until 1889, the two counties were one, and Los Angeles County extended southward to present-day San Clemente. The proposed name for this new county was prophetic as Valencia's orange groves would later cover vast swaths of Orange County. Max Strobel, mayor of Anaheim, began lobbying the state legislature in 1870, but two attempts to create a new county failed. It wasn't until 1893 that Orange County was finally established when Riverside County was divided from San Bernardino and San Diego counties. Secessionists argued that the long distances separating Anaheim from the county courthouse and Los Angeles administrative offices justified this division. With the formation in 1907 of Imperial County from the eastern half of San Diego County, the current list of counties in Southern California was completed. The separation of Orange County from Los Angeles County was a long and arduous process that took decades to complete.
It was a result of political struggles and maneuvers that began in 1869 with an attempt to create an Anaheim County from the rural south of Los Angeles County. After two failed attempts, Orange County was finally established in 1893 when Riverside County was divided from San Bernardino and San Diego counties. The secessionists argued that the long distances separating Anaheim from the county courthouse and Los Angeles administrative offices justified this division. This separation inspired new attempts to draw new county lines on the map of Southern California and with the formation in 1907 of Imperial County from the eastern half of San Diego County, the current list of counties in Southern California was completed.
