Orange County Heritage Coordinating Council

I just stumbled upon the Orange County Public Library's historical images collection today.

It looks like the collection was launched back in June, and it currently consists of just under 1,100 digitized images from various Orange County historical organizations.

The evolution of The Orange County Register began on Nov. 25, 1905, when a group of businessmen launched the Santa Ana Register to serve Orange County's 20,000 residents. Through the years, the Register has continued to reinvent itself and grow with the region.

The First American Corporation traces its roots to 1889, when Orange County, California—a rural, undeveloped area at the time—split off from the county of Los Angeles. Two firms opened to handle title matters in the brand-new county. Five years later, C.E. Parker, a local businessman, succeeded in merging the two competitors into a single entity. He was named president of the resulting company—Orange County Title Company—the immediate predecessor to today’s First American Title Insurance Company, the largest subsidiary of The First American Corporation.

The 2009 Images of Orange County calendar is available for sale by the Orange County Mexican American Historical Society (OCMAHS).

Calendars may be purchased for $10 plus shipping/handling (or in person at Calacas in Santa Ana), but are included with a $15 annual membership to OCMAHS.

To place an order send your address and check/money order to:

OCMAHS Calendar
C/O Susan Luévano,
449 W. Jacaranda Place
Fullerton, CA 92832-1436

The Orange County Mexican American Historical Foundation was founded in 2003.

The Society has a growing digital collection of historic photographs of Mexicans in Orange County. The collection strength is in twentieth century images. Many of these images have been showcased in the annual OCMAHS Images of Orange County calendars that have been published and sold since 2005.

The organization holds quarterly general meetings with invited speakers.

Welcome to the Orange County Heritage Coordinating Council’s Web site. It’s here that you will find information about who we are, our upcoming meetings, items of interest, members’ blogs, and links to local museums, historical societies, libraries, archives, and organizations. This site also provides a forum in which you may post general questions about Orange County history, preservation, conservation, and/or access when you just can’t wait for the next HCC meeting.