1880
Citrus, wine grapes, and other fruits and vegetables are grown throughout the Los Angeles area. The area of present-day Beverly Hills consists mostly of bean fields; Hollywood is made up of fig orchards.
1881
The Southern Pacific Railroad links Los Angeles directly with the eastern United States for the first time, allowing for the transport of fresh produce.
1901
In response to increased consumer demand, the City of Los Angeles leases a vacant lot at Ninth Street and Los Angeles Street to provide a more regulated space for the exchange of fruit and vegetables. The Hughes Market opens its stalls the same year and grows at a rapid rate.
1903
After outgrowing its boundaries, the Hughes Market leases another vacant lot from the City of Los Angeles at Third Street and Central, establishing the Los Angeles Market Company.
1906
The City of Los Angeles annexes a 16mile strip of land on the outskirts of San Pedro and Wilmington. Three years later, these two harbor towns join the City of Los Angeles.
1907
The Port of Los Angeles is officially founded with the creation of the Los Angeles Board of Harbor Commissioners.
1909
A multiethnic group of immigrant farmers and vendors from China, Russia, and Japan unite to organize a wholesale produce marketplace aptly named the City Market.
The complex has eight brick and reinforced concrete buildings around central loading docks. Eventually, the premises becomes outdated and is overtaken by the larger Seventh Street Market.
1911
The Port of Long Beach officially opens.
1914
The Panama Canal brings transpacific traffic to the Port of Los Angeles.
1917
The Grand Central Market opens on South Broadway, a commercial and entertainment corridor in downtown Los Angeles.
