A significant center of the oil and aerospace industries in Southern California, roughly three quarters of the city's land is dedicated exclusively to industrial and commercial uses, including a Chevron oil refinery which alone takes up more than a quarter of the entire city.

The El Segundo and Los Angeles coastal area was first settled by the Tongva (or Gabrieleños) Native American tribes.

Originally a Mexican land grant owned by Antonio Ygnacio Avila, the rancho was later purchased by a Scottish baronet named Sir Robert Burnett in 1860.

It was one of the major producers of SBD Dauntless dive bombers, which achieved fame in the Battle of Midway.

[10][11] In 2009, a pair of local artists discovered the Smoky Hollow area, which mainly consisted of commercial properties.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 5.5 square miles (14 km2), over 99% of which is land.

The beachfront area neighboring the refinery was once dominated by industrial wharves servicing oil tanker ships, and heavily polluted by sewage and stormwater runoff.

The old piers were demolished, an underwater oil terminal was constructed a few miles offshore, and an enormous amount of dredged sand was used to restore and dramatically enlarge the once narrow and polluted beach.

The Marvin Braude Bike Trail runs along this new artificial beach, as the refinery wharves were one of the last remaining industrial facilities directly obstructing the shoreline of the Santa Monica Bay.

El Segundo first appeared as a city in the 1920 U.S. Census[25] as part of the now defunct Redondo Township (pop.

According to the 2010 United States Census, El Segundo had a median household income of $84,341, with 4.8% of the population living below the federal poverty line.

[42] This refinery has received crude oil from the Amazon region of South America – more than 5,000 barrels per day.

[48] In 1930, Los Angeles Municipal Airport, later Los Angeles International Airport, opened north of El Segundo; its presence led to the concentration of aerospace and aviation-related firms in the El Segundo area.

It is also home to the Los Angeles Air Force Base and the Space and Missile Systems Center, which is responsible for space-related acquisition for the military.

The North American headquarters of the Japanese video game company Square Enix are also in the city.

From 1982 until 1996, the headquarters of the Los Angeles Raiders of the National Football League was located in El Segundo.

[55] The Los Angeles Lakers office headquarters and practice facility, the UCLA Health Training Center are also located in El Segundo.

Film production companies are located in El Segundo, including Rhythm and Hues Studios and Lightstorm Entertainment.

The North American branch of the Japanese video game publisher and developer Square Enix has its headquarters in El Segundo.

[60] Due to its proximity to Los Angeles International Airport, El Segundo became the host of several offices of airlines.

[61] Japan Airlines operates its United States headquarters, which was moved from New York City to El Segundo in around 2003.

[68][69] Air China operates its North American headquarters in the 13,000-square-foot (1,200 m2) 2131 East Maple Avenue building, south of LAX, in El Segundo.

Its current North American headquarters opened with a ribbon cutting ceremony and other festivities on Friday March 26, 2010.

[59] In the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, El Segundo is in the Second District, represented by Holly Mitchell.

[86] This portion of the city includes corporate operations providing significant tax revenue to the districts.

Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) is located immediately to the north of El Segundo.

In 2014, an air quality study found harmful ultrafine particles from the takeoffs and landings at LAX to be of a much greater magnitude than previously thought.