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Located on a plateau next to the foothills at the tip of Northern Orange County, Brea was known to Indians and pioneers as a place where tar seeped out of the foothills and chunks of tar were used for domestic purposes and fuel. The word "Brea" means tar in Spanish. In 1898, the first oil well came in and started an oil boom in the hills of Brea and Olinda. The first workers lived in tents; as the industry grew, settlements spilled down to where the roads connected to the rest of the county. The city was incorporated on February 23, 1917 with a population of 752. For a short time the early settlement's name was Randolph. The city grew steadily through the years. As oil production declined, the 40s, 50s and 60s brought many new housing developments and new businesses. The 70s ushered in an incredible period of development with the opening of the Orange (57) Freeway and the construction of the Brea Mall. Industrial parks and retail areas proliferated in Brea during the 70s and 80s as more and more companies took advantage of the city's strategic location in the center of Southern California. Today, Brea is an important retail and industrial center. The Brea Mall has undergone expansion twice in the last decade, nearly doubling its space and adding JC Penney Department Store to its other major anchors: Sears, Robinson-May, Macy's and Nordstrom. Nordstrom built an entirely new building in 1989 and Robinson-May and Macy's have both expanded their existing facilities. A full-service 229-room Embassy Suites Hotel opened in 1990 and attracts visitors, conferences and small conventions from many domestic and foreign locales. Homestead Village, an extended stay hotel, opened in 1998. Brea is planning for the future through community task forces that discuss open space and potential residential and commercial development in the city's "sphere of influence" which encompasses 7 1/2 square miles of unincorporated land in the hills to the north of the city. Nearly 150 residents participated in a consensus-building workshop that addressed issues such as environmental preservation and economics. This pro-active approach to development ensures that Brea will continue to be a vital, beautiful place to live, work and do business in the years ahead.
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