Ventura in California

Wednesday, 1 May 2024 - 11:00 am (CET/MEZ) Berlin | Author/Destination:
Category/Kategorie: General, Greater Los Angeles Area
Reading Time:  5 minutes

Sunset © flickr.com - Jeff Turner/cc-by-2.0

Sunset © flickr.com – Jeff Turner/cc-by-2.0

Ventura, officially named San Buenaventura (Spanish for “Saint Bonaventure“), is a city in and the county seat of Ventura County, California, United States. It is a coastal city located northwest of Los Angeles. The population was 110,763 at the 2020 census. Ventura is a popular tourist destination, owing to its historic landmarks, beaches, and resorts.

Ventura has been inhabited by different peoples, including the Chumash Native Americans, for at least 10,000 years. With the arrival of Spanish missionaries in 1782, Mission San Buenaventura was established by Junípero Serra, giving the city its name. Following the Mexican secularization of the Californian missions, San Buenaventura was granted by Governor Pío Pico to Don José de Arnaz as Rancho Ex-Mission San Buenaventura and a small community arose. Following the American Conquest of California, San Buenaventura eventually incorporated as a city in 1866. The 1920s brought a major oil boom, which along with the post–World War II economic expansion, significantly developed and expanded Ventura.

Ventura is a popular tourist destination in Southern California, owing to its historic landmarks, beaches, and the local leisure economy. Businesses related to tourism and hospitality account for a significant portion of Ventura’s economic activity.

The outdoor clothing manufacturer Patagonia is based in Ventura. Diaper bag manufacturer Petunia Pickle Bottom was founded in Ventura. Research and resource company The Barna Group is located near downtown Ventura.

In 2009 the City of Ventura created Ventura Ventures Technology Center, a business incubator with a high-tech focus. Ventura Ventures Technology Center was created as an economic engine to develop jobs and companies locally, as well as attract entrepreneurs to the area. The Trade Desk was started in the incubator. The Trade Desk, an industry leader in advertising on streaming services, is the second biggest publicly-traded company in Ventura County by market capitalization.

Ventura County Fair © flickr.com - danhuse/cc-by-2.0 Ventura Harbor © Platinummedia/cc-by-sa-4.0 Ventura Pier © Busition/cc-by-sa-4.0 Shops in Downtown Ventura © Cbl62/cc-by-sa-4.0 Elizabeth Bard Memorial Hospital © Cbl62/cc-by-sa-4.0 Fishermen's Memorial at Ventura Harbor © BeenAroundAWhile/cc-by-sa-3.0 Former Ventura County Courthouse, today Ventura City Hall © Cbl62/cc-by-sa-4.0 Historic California Churrigueresque architecture in Downtown Ventura © flickr.com - Ken Lund/cc-by-sa-2.0 Historic Ventura Theatre © Cbl62/cc-by-sa-4.0 Mission Basilica San Buenaventura © Geographer/cc-by-1.0 Sunset © flickr.com - Jeff Turner/cc-by-2.0 Ventura Harbor © flickr.com - Rennett Stowe/cc-by-2.0 © Greekmatthew/cc-by-sa-4.0 © flickr.com - Ken Lund/cc-by-sa-2.0 © flickr.com - Konrad Hädener/cc-by-2.0
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Historic California Churrigueresque architecture in Downtown Ventura © flickr.com - Ken Lund/cc-by-sa-2.0
The Majestic Ventura Theater is an early 20th-century landmark in the downtown. The Ventura County Fairgrounds is the home of the annual Ventura County Fair. The train station for Amtrak‘s Pacific Surfliner route is adjacent to the fairgrounds.

Downtown Ventura is home to the Mission San Buenaventura, museums, galleries, dining, and shopping. Located in downtown is the historic Ortega Adobe, once home to the Ortega family known for chili products. Downtown Ventura is home to Ventura’s ornate city hall. Downtown includes restaurants, wine bars, breweries, and the Rubicon Theatre Company.

In Plaza Park (Chestnut and Santa Clara streets, downtown) stands a large Moreton Bay fig tree. Across the street, the main post office has murals on interior walls commissioned by the Section of Painting and Sculpture of the U.S. Treasury Department as New Deal art.

Ventura Harbor has fishing boats, seafood restaurants and a retail center, the Ventura Harbor Village. The Channel Islands National Park Headquarters is also located at the harbor, and boats to the Channel Islands depart daily.

The Olivas Adobe, one of the early “California Rancho”-styled homes, is operated as a museum and performing arts venue. Living history reenactments, demonstrations of Rancho life and ghost stories are presented. A summer music series of performances held in the courtyard features an eclectic assortment of artists from blues to jazz to country.

“Two Trees” is two lone trees on a hilltop, visible from much of Ventura. Access to the hill is private property. In early October 2017, one of the trees was destroyed by high winds.

Read more on VisitVenturaCA.com, VisitCalifornia.com – Ventura, Wikivoyage Ventura and Wikipedia Ventura (Smart Traveler App by U.S. Department of State - Weather report by weather.com - Global Passport Power Rank - Travel Risk Map - Democracy Index - GDP according to IMF, UN, and World Bank - Global Competitiveness Report - Corruption Perceptions Index - Press Freedom Index - World Justice Project - Rule of Law Index - UN Human Development Index - Global Peace Index - Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index). Photos by Wikimedia Commons. If you have a suggestion, critique, review or comment to this blog entry, we are looking forward to receive your e-mail at comment@wingsch.net. Please name the headline of the blog post to which your e-mail refers to in the subject line.




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