FIRST -- Group Calling Itself The Chamber of Commerce - Arcadia, CA - First of its Kind on Waymarking.com

The plaque says, "With the demise of the famous Red Line electric railway, land in the median of Huntington Drive directly across from the famous Santa Anita Park horse track became available on which to build a headquarters for the Arcadia Chamber of Commerce in 1964. The photos above show the design by architect Fickes & Fickes and the groundbreaking ceremony at this location.

The round building, dedicated on Nov. 13, 1965, has been likened to a UFO or something from the futuristic cartoon TV series “The Jetsons,” but it instantly made the Chamber the geographic and civic hub of the City and has served the Chamber well for nearly half a century and counting. During the 1980s and 1990s, the Arcadia Tournament of Roses Association used a room in the Chamber headquarters as its base of operations.

Deep 20th Century Roots...

The roots of the Arcadia Chamber of Commerce stretch back to April 1914 in a group called the Arcadia Board of Trade.
That Board's last official meeting of record was on July 1, 1918. Three years later the first group calling itself the Chamber of Commerce was formed on September 19, 1921, with R.H. Schwarzkop as the first president.
The Chamber tried valiantly to raise the credibility and image of Arcadia by petition the City Council to create the position of City Manager in 1922 to keep up with neighboring towns like Monrovia despite a population in Arcadia of only 2,500. It would be about three more decades before Arcadia would hire its first City manager.
During the 1920s and 1930s the Chamber absorbed the members of several other local business organizations such as the Arcadia Service Association and the Arcadia Business Men's Association.
But it was more than a decade before articles of incorporation and by-laws were submitted during a December 1933 meeting at City offices by retiring president George Pope, according to The Arcadia Tribune. The Arcadia Chamber of Commerce finally became official with its incorporation on July 16, 1934 under new president Albert L. Daniels.
The Tribune attributed support for the Chamber to the organizations efforts to improve streets and the water system, plant trees and beautify homes, add street signs and support the building of everything from sidewalks, a new church, and the Pacific Electric station, to a daily newspaper and factories, as well as represent Arcadia in the Rose Parade.
The incorporation of the Chamber came only five months before the first Opening Day at Santa Anita Park on Christmas Day, 1934, which the Chamber promoted with "Welcome" banners for the Los Angeles Turf Club and its patrons along Hunting Drive.

...Supporting Strong 21st Century Chamber

In the 1960s and 1970s the Chamber created two enduring annual events, first prestigious Citizen of the Year Award and later Taste of Arcadia (see photographs). The latter, featuring food and drink of every variety from local restaurants and vendors, usually in the idyllic open-air setting of the Los Angeles County Arboretum, come to be hailed as the city's signature event.
Nearly a century later in 2009, as it marked the 75th anniversary of its official incorporation, the Chamber continued to count the city's most prominent community leaders among its members and serve as the city's most visible and influential proponent of business in Arcadia."

FIRST - Classification Variable: Person or Group Date of FIRST: Not listed More Information - Web URL: Not listed

Recent Visits/Logs:

There are no logs for this waymark yet.