Azusa highlight
Foothill community at the base of the San Gabriel Mountains
Azusa was founded in 1887 at the base of the San Gabriel Mountains, nestled against the foothills that give the city its distinctive character and elevation.
Azusa's location has shaped its identity since its founding in 1887 when Jonathan Slauson laid out the town on land that had been El Susa Rancho and before that El Doradoville, a mining settlement during the gold rush of 1854. The city was incorporated on December 29, 1898, and today encompasses 9.13 square miles nestled directly against the San Gabriel Mountain foothills. The San Gabriel Mountains rise immediately to the north and east, their peaks and canyons defining the city's geography and outdoor character.
The mountains provide recreation and refuge for residents of the San Gabriel Valley. Highway 39 runs north from Azusa through San Gabriel Canyon into the higher elevations of the forest. The watershed that feeds the San Gabriel River originates in the mountains above the city. Many families in Azusa have lived there through generations, with roots in the valley established when the area was ranching land, through the years of growth, and into the present day when the foothills remain the city's northern boundary and defining feature.
Mountains have a way of putting household needs in perspective: the view from a foothill community reminds you what endures. Families in Azusa often think about the long term the way the mountains do—in decades and generations. Planning for a family's finances after an unexpected loss is part of that longer view. A term life policy sized to your mortgage, income and the years until your children are independent is the kind of provision that makes a foothill community's permanence real.