Tustin, California, United States

🇺🇸 Tustin is a city located in Orange County, California, in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The city is located next to the county seat, Santa Ana, and does not include the unincorporated community of North Tustin.

History Members of the Tongva and Juaneño/Luiseño nations long inhabited this area. After the 1769 expedition of Gaspar de Portolà, a Spanish expedition led by Father Junipero Serra named the area Vallejo de Santa Ana (Valley of Saint Anne). On November 1, 1776, Mission San Juan Capistrano became the area's first permanent European settlement in Alta California, New Spain.

In 1801, the Spanish Empire granted 62,500 acres (253 km²) to José Antonio Yorba, which he named Rancho San Antonio. Yorba's great rancho included the lands where the cities and communities of Olive, Orange, Villa Park, Santa Ana, Tustin, Costa Mesa and Newport Beach stand today. Smaller ranchos evolved from this large rancho including the Rancho Santiago de Santa Ana.

After the Mexican–American War, Alta California became part of the United States and American settlers arrived in this area. Columbus Tustin, a carriage maker from Northern California, founded the city in 1868 on 1,300 acres (5.3 km²) of land from the former Rancho Santiago de Santa Ana. The city was incorporated in 1927 with a population of about 900. The townsite was bordered by Camino Real on the south, Newport Avenue on the east, 1st Street on the north, and Route 43, now known as the Costa Mesa Freeway, on the west.

During World War II, a Navy anti-submarine airship base (later to become a Marine Corps helicopter station) was established on unincorporated land south of the city; the two dirigible hangars are among the largest wooden structures ever built and are listed on the National Register of Historic Places and ASCE List of Historic Civil Engineering Landmarks. Suburban growth after the war resulted in increased population, annexation of nearby unincorporated land including the base, and development of orchards and farmland into housing tracts and shopping centers.

Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 11.1 square miles (28.7 km²). It is bordered by Irvine on the south and east, Orange and the census-designated Tustin Foothills on the north, and Santa Ana on the west.

The city is sometimes referred to as "The City of [the] Trees". Native sycamores and oaks, native to the area, grew in abundance at the time of the founding of the city, and city founder Columbus Tustin was responsible for planting many more along the streets of the city.

Economy: Top employers According to a recent Financial Report, the top employers in the city include: 1 Tustin Unified School District; 2 SchoolsFirst Federal Credit Union; 3 Youngs Market Company LLC; 4 Costco; 5 New American Funding; 6 City of Tustin; 7 Avid Bioservices, Inc.; 8 Vita Best Nutrition; 9 Kaiser Permanente /Kaiser Foundation Hospitals; 10 Logomark Inc.

Points of interest • The Market Place, formerly known as Tustin Market Place • The District • Tustin Area Museum • Enderle Center • Marconi Automotive Museum • Old Town Tustin • Tustin Ranch Golf Course.

Education Primary and secondary education in Tustin and surrounding unincorporated areas is overseen by the Tustin Unified School District. Tustin High School is a California Distinguished School, as is Foothill High School. Arnold O. Beckman High School is in the Best High Schools according to U.S. News & World Report. Tustin High School is also well-known regionally for its strong Model United Nations program. Springfield College, a non-profit, private, higher education institute, is located in the city of Tustin.

Police and fire services The Tustin Police Department is the local law enforcement agency of the city. The department's jurisdiction includes the entire 11.12 square miles (29 km²) of the city of Tustin, as well as the Tustin Legacy development.

Founded in 1928, the Tustin Police Department started with one officer, John Stanton, as "street superintendent", which changed to "chief of police" two months later. Chief Stanton was the only Tustin officer until 1942. At the time of his appointment, there were no police headquarters or stations, and he took calls from his home. The Tustin Police Department had roughly three officers in 1948, twenty years after its founding.

Fire protection in Tustin is provided by the Orange County Fire Authority.