Brea

History

The area began as part of the homelands of the Tongva, who lived in the area for thousands of years before any contact was made with Europeans. The Tongva established extensive routes for travel and trade between Tongva villages as well as with neighboring Indigenous nations. The closest known village site to the city of Brea today is Hutuknga. The area was visited on July 29, 1769, by the Spanish Portolá expedition, the first Europeans to see inland parts of Alta California. The party camped in Brea Canyon, near a large native village and a small pool of clean water. The village of Olinda was founded in present-day Carbon Canyon at the beginning of the 19th century. Many entrepreneurs came to the area searching for "black gold" (petroleum). The majority of the current city borders of Brea were within the Rancho San Juan Cajon de Santa Ana. The cessation of territory to the United States in 1848 ushered in a new era of decline for the ranchos as rigorous title-proving processes enacted in 1851 and drought in 1860 caused most owners to sell their land. The 1880s saw the development of agriculture in northern Orange County, particularly in the form of Valencia Oranges after it was found that the crop grew better in the cool foothills. Additionally, the construction of the Santa Fe Railroad as well as the discovery of oil in the area created an environment that kept winter frost from damaging the plant. Nearby oil fields provided supply for a process called "smudging", subsequently causing a grimy fog to settle over the area which reportedly caused health issues for the workers. Olinda and Randolph grew and merged as the economy boomed. On January 19, 1911, the town's map was filed under the new name of Brea, from the Spanish language word for natural asphalt, also…

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has an area of . of it is land and 0.26% is water. It is bordered by unincorporated Orange County and Los Angeles County to the north and east, La Habra to the west, Fullerton to the southwest, Placentia to the south, Chino Hills to the northwest, and Yorba Linda to the southeast. According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Brea has a hot-summer Mediterranean climate, abbreviated "Csa" on climate maps.

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• House Finch

  Haemorhous mexicanus (P.L.Statius Müller, 1776) · Aves
  33,421
• Black Phoebe

  Sayornis nigricans (Swainson, 1827) · Aves
  28,718
• Mourning Dove

  Zenaida macroura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  27,644
• American Crow

  Corvus brachyrhynchos C.L.Brehm, 1822 · Aves
  25,373
• Lesser Goldfinch

  Spinus psaltria (Say, 1822) · Aves
  22,771
• Yellow-rumped Warbler

  Setophaga coronata (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  21,080
• Mallard

  Anas platyrhynchos Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  20,441
• Allen's Hummingbird

  Selasphorus sasin (R.Lesson, 1829) · Aves
  20,299

Largest nearby schools

• Anaheim High
  High · Anaheim · 2,750 students · 21:1 ratio
• Katella High
  High · Anaheim · 2,587 students · 23.5:1 ratio
• Troy High
  High · Fullerton · 2,584 students · 23.7:1 ratio
• Valencia High
  High · Placentia · 2,543 students · 22.9:1 ratio
• Sunny Hills High
  High · Fullerton · 2,429 students · 27:1 ratio
• Canyon High
  High · Anaheim · 2,131 students · 26.6:1 ratio
• Villa Park High
  High · Villa Park · 2,110 students · 25.1:1 ratio
• La Habra High
  High · La Habra · 2,054 students · 24.7:1 ratio

Most recent

• M 2.94 — 2026-09-17
  4 km SSE of Compton, CA
• M 2.56 — 2026-09-13
  27 km SSE of Malibu, CA
• M 2.65 — 2026-09-12
  4 km E of Lennox, CA
• M 3.31 — 2026-09-12
  26 km ESE of Avalon, CA
• M 2.95 — 2026-09-12
  26 km ESE of Avalon, CA
• M 2.54 — 2026-09-12
  26 km ESE of Avalon, CA