Inland Empire History

June 24, 2008

In yesterday's post I responded to a colunmist's inclusion of "Inland Empire" with a list of oxymorons. Upon investigation of the terms, I concluded that the designation, "Inland Empire" did not fit the definition of an oxymoron. If you click on the comments for yesterday, you will find a great description of why our Riverside/San Benrardino county area is the "Inland Empire".

To recap how the designation developed, I thank the commentator and will echo the comments using information supplied by Wikipedia. "The "Inland Empire" was first used in the 1950s to distinguish the area from the Greater Los Angeles Area, and from Los Angeles itself. The"Inland" part of the name is derived from the regions location about 60 miles inland from the Pacific Ocean and east of Los Angeles. "

The "Empire" part had to do with the strong economic base that had already developed by the 1950s, particularly in realm of the citrus industry. Kaiser Steel at that time was also a major producer. With a number of air force and army bases located in the two county area, the defense industry contributed to the region's growth and economic strength. The diverse geography also contributed to a growing tourist component in the economy. While "empire" is indicative of political power, economic strength also creates "empire".

Today, our region is in the top 20 economic areas in the world. Hooray for the "Inland Empire."