[1][2] In November 1881 George and William Chaffey purchased the land from Joseph Garcia, a retired Portuguese sea captain.
The town was named for a Native American tribe living on the shores of Lake Michigan.
The first long-distance telephone call in southern California was completed between San Bernardino and Etiwanda in 1882 and the Chaffey-Garcia house boasted electric lights on December 4, 1882.
[1][2] The Pacific Electric Railway, the "Big Red Cars", reached Etiwanda in 1914, with rails reaching Etiwanda from Upland by December 1913, on a line that connected San Bernardino to the east with the greater Los Angeles basin to the west.
On October 1, 1951, the San Bernardino line was completely dieselized and the trolley wire was removed shortly thereafter.