As of the census, it had a population of 25,, up from 24, in the census. It is located in West San Gabriel Valley. It is 3. The original inhabitants of the area were members of the Native American Hahamog-na tribe, a branch of the Tongva Nation part of the Shoshone language group that occupied the Los Angeles Basin. Akuvranga was the Tongva name for the area that covers modern-day South Pasadena and part of Pasadena.
They lived in thatched, dome-shape lodges characteristic for their use of carved wood decorations. They lived on a diet of corn meal, acorns, seeds and herbs, fish, venison, berries, fruits and other small animals. They traded for ocean fish with the coastal Tongva on a daily basis. They made cooking vessels from steatite soapstone from Catalina Island. South Pasadena's adjacency to a natural fording place along the Arroyo Seco served as a gateway to travel and commerce for aboriginal peoples.
It was here that Hahamognas greeted Portola and the missionaries who later established the San Gabriel Mission a few miles to the east. The initial buildings on the Rancho San Pascual were built on the land which eventually became the cities of Pasadena, South Pasadena and Altadena. The first of these adobe structures became headquarters for General Flores and his staff in where they agreed to surrender to American forces, ending Mexican Colonial rule in California. In , the landowners of the area voted to rename their association Pasadena.
In February , members of the southern portion of Pasadena attempted to gain more control over their own property and a vote for incorporation was made. In , South Pasadena incorporated the southern portion of the Indiana Colony and land south and eastward to the Los Angeles border. It was chartered with roughly the same area as the current South Pasadena, about 3. With the completion of the Pacific Electric Short Line, putting the entire city within easy walking distance of the red car stations, South Pasadena also became one of the first suburbs of Los Angeles.
South Pasadena calls itself the "City of Trees". Route It is one of the last remaining single screen cinemas in the country. The Rialto was added to the National Register of Historic Places in , having narrowly missed being torn down that year. It went out of business on August 19, , because of low profits. Racers from kindergarten to age 80 are invited to participate, including a wheelchair event. The 5K is run on flat sidewalks and roads around town, but the 10K 6. There is also a meter children's run for kids 10 and under.
