Downey celebrates 150 years

From left: former mayors Keith McCarthy and Mario Guerra, school board president Giggy Perez-Saab, councilman Timothy Horn, Assemblymember Blanca Pacheco, Mayor Claudia M. Frometa, Jessica Frometa, councilman Hector Sosa, Alexis Givens and Sarah Sarofeem.

As your Mayor, I had the distinct honor of welcoming our community and former Mayors to a milestone celebration – the 150th anniversary of Downey’s founding on October 13, 1873.

From its earliest days, Downey stood out as a special place, one which promised a “future unlimited”. John Gately Downey, an Irish immigrant who arrived in California during the Gold Rush and becoming Governor, laid the foundation of what was to become Downey. The area grew with new residents attracted by the fertility of the land and pleasant climate.

Many years later, the arrival and development of the aviation industry paved Downey’s place in history. Vultee, which produced 15% of all military aircraft during a pivotal time for our nation, became part of North American Aviation, later North American Rockwell, and then Rockwell International. As the birthplace of the Apollo Space Program, Downey is linked to two of the most defining moments in aerospace history, the Apollo 11, when humans first landed on the moon, and the Apollo 13, the aborted mission to the moon that exemplified the astounding power of the human spirit and teamwork.

The week-long celebration of our City’s founding was a wonderful opportunity for the entire community to come together to celebrate our rich history. I hope you made it out to the Downey History Center, Downey Cemetery, Columbia Memorial Space Center, and other sites last week; but if you didn’t, please do so in the future and take your friends and family. Let’s continue to treasure and preserve our history so our children and future generations can find inspiration knowing where we came from and how far Downey and they can continue to go. We celebrated our Downey’s past, marveled at our innovation over the years and still believe our Future Is Unlimited!

A special thank you to our city staff, the organizations that participated on the week-long celebration and our community residents for attending.

Thank you to former Mayors Mario G. Guerra and Keith McCarthy for their attendance along with DUSD Board President Giggy Perez-Saab. Thank you also to our Assemblymember Blanca Pacheco, also a former Downey Mayor, for her continued support.