[8] Monterey Park has consistently ranked as one of the country's best places to live due to its schools, growing economy, and central location.

The Tongva lived in dome like structures with thatched exteriors, with an open smoke hole for ventilation and light at the top.

During the cold weather they would wear animal skin capes and occasionally wore sandals made from hide or yucca fiber.

[17] By 1920, the white and Spanish-surname settlers were joined by Asian residents who began farming potatoes and flowers and developing nurseries in the Monterey Highlands area.

[14] In 1926, near the corner of Atlantic Boulevard and Garvey Avenue, Laura Scudder invented the first sealed bag of potato chips.

In an effort to maintain quality and freshness, Laura's team would iron sheets of wax paper together to form a bag.

[18] Real estate became a thriving industry during the late 1920s with investors attracted to the many subdivisions under development and increasing commercial opportunities.

The Midwick View Estates by Peter N. Snyder, a proposed garden community that was designed to rival Bel Air and Beverly Hills.

[19] His efforts to build Atlantic Boulevard, his work with the East Side organization to bring industry to the East Side, and his residential and commercial development projects along Atlantic Boulevard (Gardens Square, Golden Gate Square, and the Midwick View Estates) were a major influence to the surrounding communities.

The development also included an observation terrace above Jardin del Encanto and the fountain with cascading water going down the hillside in stepped pools to De La Fuente.

[14] The end of World War II resulted in a revived growth trend with explosive population gains during the late 1940s and 1950s.

Until this time, the population was concentrated in the northern and southern portions of the city, with the Garvey and Monterey Hills forming a natural barrier.

In the 1970s and 1980s, many affluent waisheng ren Taiwanese immigrants moved abroad from Taiwan and began settling into Monterey Park.

By the 1990 census, Monterey Park became the first city with an Asian descent majority population in the continental United States.

Timothy P. Fong, a professor and director of Asian American studies at California State University, Sacramento, describes Monterey Park as the "First Suburban Chinatown".

[31][30] In the 1980s, the second generation Chinese Americans generally moved out of the old Chinatown and into the San Gabriel Valley suburbs, joining the new immigrants from Taiwan and mainland China.

[36] From that time, with a combined influx of Vietnamese, Taiwanese and Hong Kong immigrant students at the time, Mark Keppel High School, constructed during the New Deal era and located in Alhambra, but also serving most of Monterey Park and portions of Rosemead, felt the impact of this new immigration as the student population increased dramatically, leading to overcrowding.

[40] This controversial move caused many Asian residents and businesses to shift focus, establishing themselves in the neighboring city of Alhambra.

Redevelopment produced several projects included the massive Atlantic Times Square development that opened in 2010 with ground-floor shops and restaurants.

Anchor tenant CVS Pharmacy brings a full-service drug store back to the downtown project,[46] and the center includes a Subway sandwich shop.

[47] In 2017, Monterey Park was recognized as "America's Best Places to Live 2017" ranked at #3 by Money magazine and three local news TV stations.

[48] On January 21, 2023, a mass shooting occurred at a dance studio in the city, after a Chinese New Year celebration where twenty people were shot, killing eleven of them, and injuring nine others.

The gunman, identified as 72-year-old Huu Can Tran, fled and was found dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound in Torrance the next day.

According to the 2010 United States Census, Monterey Park had a median household income of $56,014, with 15.2% of the population living below the federal poverty line.

[72] The Chinese American population in Monterey Park and San Gabriel Valley is relatively diverse in socio-economics and region of origin.

The grounds are open to the public for free astronomical observation on Wednesday evenings from 7:30PM – 10:00PM, hosted by LAAS members.

Centennial Monument in front of City Hall lists all Mayors from 1916 - 2016 In the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, Monterey Park is in the First District, represented by Hilda Solis.

[114] The Edmund D. Edelman Children's Court, Sybil Brand Institute, Central Juvenile District, (Dependency) is located in Monterey Park.

Metro E Line light rail service stops at Atlantic station just south of the city limits.

Metro J Line bus rapid transit stops at Cal State LA station, northwest of Monterey Park.