Since its incorporation in , the city has grown from a semi-rural farming community of 16, to an urban area including part of the South Coast Plaza—John Wayne Airport edge city , one of the region's largest commercial clusters, with an economy based on retail, commerce, and light manufacturing. The city is home to the two tallest skyscrapers in Orange County. Members of the Tongva and Acjachemen nations long inhabited the area.
The Tongva villages of Lupukngna , at least 3, years old, and the shared Tongva and Acjachemen village of Genga , at least 9, years old, were located in the area on the bluffs along the Santa Ana River.
After the Mexican-American War , California became part of the United States, and American settlers arrived in this area and formed the town of Fairview in the s near the modern intersection of Harbor Boulevard and Adams Avenue.
To the south, meanwhile, the community of Harper had arisen on a siding of the Santa Ana and Newport Railway , named after a local rancher. This town prospered on its agricultural goods. Fanny Bixby Spencer and her husband sponsored the contest which selected the city's new name. Within three decades of incorporation, the city's population had nearly quintupled. Costa Mesa is located 37 miles 60 km southeast of Los Angeles , 87 miles km northwest of San Diego and miles km southeast of San Francisco.
Costa Mesa encompasses a total of 16 square miles 41 km 2 with its southernmost border only 1 mile 1. Rain falls primarily in the winter months and is close to nonexistent during the summer. Costa Mesa was first listed as an unincorporated community in the U. Census as part of unincorporated Newport Beach Township; [ 25 ] and listed as a city in the U.
