West Whittier-Los Nietos, California

Golden West Airlines Flight 261, a De Havilland Twin Otter DHC-6, collided with a Cessna 150 (N11421), owned by CessnAir Aviation, Inc., near Whittier, California. The accident occurred on January 9, 1975, at approximately 4:07 p.m. PST, while the Sun was just 9 degrees above the western horizon, directly into the eyes of the pilots of GW flight 261. Both aircraft were destroyed by the collision and subsequent ground impact. The 10 passengers and 2 pilots on the Twin Otter, and the instructor pilot and student pilot in the Cessna 150 were killed. Debris fell on homes and lawns but no one on the ground was injured. The wreckage of both aircraft was scattered over an 8 to 10 city block area. The fuselage of the Twin Otter fell into the schoolyard of Katherine Edwards Middle School, where about 300 spectators were watching an outdoor basketball game, while the wings landed two blocks away. The fuselage of the Cessna fell in the front yard of a house, about two blocks from the Otter fuselage. The Cessna impacted the left side of the Twin Otter at an approximate angle of 90 degrees. "(1) the Cessna's firewall and instrument panel were embedded in the Twin Otter's fuselage forward of the wing; (2) the propeller slashes in the Cessna's right wing formed an angle of about 88 degrees with the wing leading edge; and (3) the Twin Otter's left engine nacelle and engine were driven inboard by the collision." Ground witnesses said that neither plane made any last moment maneuver attempt to avoid the collision. GW 261 was a regularly scheduled passenger flight between the Ontario International Airport (ONT) and the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), both in the Los Angeles area of California. The flight departed from ONT at 1556 PST, on a visual flight rules (VFR) flight plan. That separated GW 261 from the larger aircraft, which arrived at LAX on instrument flight rules (IFR) flight plans. The IFR flights were required to remain within the confines of the Los Angeles Group 1 terminal control area (TCA), while smaller planes were required to remain outside of the TCA, until the designated entry point, which was specified in their assigned VFR TCA arrival. In the case of GW 261, it was to remain outside of the TCA until the 10 DME fix of runway 24 right localizer, and to enter at an altitude of 1,500 feet MSL. The top of the TCA was 7,000 feet, while the base varied, depending on the distance from LAX. That mixed it in with all the other small plane VFR traffic in the Los Angeles Basin, which did not have transponders. Most of those were not flying to LAX, so they were not in radio communication with LAX radar controllers. The only defense was the "see and be seen" method of collision avoidance. That deficient method of traffic separation failed to work that day, as it has failed many other times in high density traffic areas.

Pioneer High School is a public school in West Whittier-Los Nietos, a census-designated place in unincorporated Los Angeles County, California.

Rancho Paso de Bartolo also called Rancho Paso de Bartolo Viejo was a 10,075-acre (40.77 km2) Mexican land grant in present-day Los Angeles County, California given in 1835 by Governor Jose Figueroa to Juan Crispin Perez. The name refers to a San Gabriel River ford called Paso de Bartolo Viejo (Old Bartolo's Crossing). The rancho includes present-day Montebello, Whittier, and Pico Rivera.

Pío Pico State Historic Park is the site of El Ranchito, also known as the Pío Pico Adobe or Pío Pico Mansion, the final home of Pío Pico, the last Governor of Alta California under Mexican rule and a pivotal figure in early California history. Located in Whittier, California, at 6003 Pioneer Blvd. near Whittier Blvd. and Interstate 605, it is California Historical Landmark No. 127, listed as "Casa de Governor Pío Pico". Just west of the park is the San Gabriel River. Across the river is the city that bears his name—Pico Rivera. The park consists of the adobe and about three acres of surrounding land.

The Fred C. Nelles Youth Correctional Facility was in essence a prison for youth located on Whittier Boulevard, in Whittier, California. Operated by the California Youth Authority, now part of California Department of Corrections, it once quartered young people incarcerated for law-breaking until it was closed by the state of CA in June 2004. Open for 113 years, it had been the oldest juvenile facility in the state, and became registered as California Historical Landmark #947. It was closed because of the reduction in the number of juveniles being housed.

El Rancho High School is a public high school located in the city of Pico Rivera, California, United States. It is a part of the El Rancho Unified School District.

PIH Health Hospital - Whittier is a hospital in Whittier, California. It has 548 licensed beds. Founded in 1959 as Presbyterian Intercommunity Hospital, it has been managed by the nonprofit InterHealth Corporation since the mid-1980s. The organization changed its name to PIH Health in 2012. The PIH Health organization started as one hospital in Whittier but now operates three including PIH Health Hospital - Downey which was formerly known as Downey Regional Medical Center added in 2013 and PIH Health Good Samaritan Hospital located in Downtown Los Angeles, added in 2019 making it the third hospital in the medical network. Between all locations PIH Health has 7,100 full-time employees, three hospitals totaling 1,130 licensed beds, and 26 outpatient clinics The organization operates medical offices in primary care, specialist care and urgent care centers in the region that were formerly branded as Bright Medical and Pioneer Medical Group which was added in 2019 to expand the geographic footprint. PIH Health is the largest employer in Whittier, and one of the largest in that region of Los Angeles County.

The Paradox Hybrid Walnut Tree was planted by George Weinshank in 1907. The Paradox Hybrid Walnut Tree was designated a California Historic Landmark (No.681) on May 29, 1959. The Paradox Hybrid Walnut Tree is located is in what is now the City of Whittier, California in Los Angeles County at 12300 Whittier Blvd, Whittier, Cal. George Weinshank worked with Professor Ralph Smith with the University of California in the development of Walnut Trees for growing in California. The experimental Walnut Tree is still growing and the Walnut industry in California has done well. About 99% of all the United States walnuts are grown in California. Walnuts grown in California account for two-thirds of the world’s walnut trade.

Pico Rivera is a city located in southeastern Los Angeles County, California. The city is situated approximately 11 miles (18 km) southeast of downtown Los Angeles, on the eastern edge of the Los Angeles basin, and on the southern edge of the area known as the San Gabriel Valley. As of the 2020 United States census, the city has a population of 62,088. Pico Rivera is bordered by Montebello to the west, Downey to the south, Santa Fe Springs to the southeast, and Whittier to the east.

The El Rancho Unified School District is located in the City of Pico Rivera, California.

Whittier High School (WHS) is a high school located in Whittier, California. It belongs to the Whittier Union High School District. It is the alma mater of President Richard Nixon (class of 1930) and John Lasseter (class of 1975), founder of Pixar.

The Omega Chemical Corporation was a refrigerant and solvent recycling company that operated from 1976 to 1991 in Whittier, California. Due to improper waste handling and removal, the soil and groundwater beneath the property became contaminated and the area is now referred to as the Omega Chemical Superfund Site. Cleanup of the site began in 1995 with the removal of hazardous waste receptacles and a multimillion-dollar soil vaporization detoxifying system.