2013/2014 Chatsworth/Porter Ranch Chamber of Commerce Business Directory & Community Guide 2013/2014 | Page 24

23 Chatsworth/Porter Ranch—Then and Now
The communities of Chatsworth and Porter Ranch are home to some of the most progressive
and cutting edge corporations and manufacturers in our nation. There is also a multitude
of other attractions -- plant nurseries, horse ranches, rustic building facades, hiking trails,
panoramic views and beautiful rock formations -- that connote a quieter, less harried and
rural past.

the most prosperous of all the California missions.

Chatsworth and Porter Ranch are not alone in the transformation from rural to urban lifestyle,
but how they have addressed it throughout the years just may be.

The territory of California was under Spanish rule until 1821, when Mexico declared
independence from Spain. . In 1834-36 the Mexican Government took the mission lands
away from the church, beginning the Rancho Period in California.

Travelers would frequent what is now Chatsworth on their way to and from the San Fernando
Mission, Santa Buenaventura Mission and Santa Barbara Mission. They also used the path
that we now know as Santa Susana Pass to travel through Chatsworth.

Although forward thinking in their approach to business and community needs, both areas
have kept their small town feel with parades, fairs and other hometown events that celebrate
the area’s not-so-distant past.

On February 19 and 20, 1845, the Mexicans and Californians exchanged long-range
artillery fire on the banks of the Los Angeles River. After a truce was called, both sides met in
Los Angeles. By now, many Californians had had enough political instability and began to
look toward the United States.

The different array of groups that have inhabited the northern part of the Val