Santa Maria, CA news and local guide

In the late 19th century the valley's rich soil drew farmers, and by 1900 it was one of the most productive agricultural areas in the state. Between 1869 and 1874 four settlers, Rudolph Cook, John Thornburg, Isaac Fesler and Isaac Miller, built homes near one another at what is now the corner of Broadway and Main Street, and streets named for them form a six-block square at the center of town. The townsite was recorded in 1875 as Grangerville, then became Central City. Because mail was often sent by mistake to Central City, Colorado, it was renamed Santa Maria on February 18, 1885, after the name Juan Pacifico Ontiveros had given his property 25 years earlier. Oil exploration began in 1888. In 1902 Union Oil discovered the large Orcutt Oil Field in the Solomon Hills south of town and had 22 wells producing two years later, and the Lompoc field in 1903 and the Cat Canyon field in 1908 followed. Sources Wikipedia: Santa Maria, California