Editing Compton, California

{{Short description|City in California, United States}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2024}}
{{More citations needed|date=February 2024}}
{{Infobox settlement
| name               = Compton
| named_for          = Griffith Dickenson Compton
| settlement_type    = [[List of municipalities in California|City]]
<!-- Images and maps ------>| image_skyline      = {{Photomontage|position=center
| photo1a = Compton martin luther king monument.jpg
| photo1b = Compton High School billboard.jpg
| photo2a = Dominguez Rancho Adobe Museum (cropped).jpg 
| spacing = 2
| color_border = white
| color = white
| size = 280
| foot_montage = Top: [[Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial (Compton)|Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial]] (left) and [[Compton High School]] (right); bottom: [[Dominguez Rancho Adobe]].
}}
| image_seal         = Seal of Compton, California.svg
| seal_size          = 87px
| nickname           = Hub City<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.comptoncity.org/index.php/About-Compton/hub-city.htm |title=Hub City – About Compton |publisher=City of Compton |access-date=December 16, 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150201173012/http://www.comptoncity.org/index.php/About-Compton/hub-city.htm |archive-date=February 1, 2015 }}</ref>
| motto              = Birthing a New Compton<ref>{{cite web |title=City Council Agenda |author=Compton City Council |date=March 5, 2013 |access-date=February 16, 2015 |page=17 |url=http://www.comptoncity.org/agenda/2013/03_2013/130503/20778402272013062143181.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150216214401/http://www.comptoncity.org/agenda/2013/03_2013/130503/20778402272013062143181.pdf |archive-date=February 16, 2015 }}</ref>
| image_map          = File:Los Angeles County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Compton Highlighted 0615044.svg
| map_caption        = Location within Los Angeles County, California
| image_map1         = 
| mapsize1           = 
| map_caption1       = 
| pushpin_map        = Los Angeles#California#USA
| pushpin_map_caption = Location within Los Angeles Metropolitan Area##Location within California##Location within the United States
| pushpin_relief     = 1
| pushpin_label      = Compton
<!-- Location ------------->| coordinates        = {{coord|33|53|48|N|118|13|30|W|region:US-CA|display=inline,title}}
| subdivision_type   = [[List of sovereign states|Country]]
| subdivision_name   = {{Flagu|United States|size=23px}}
| subdivision_type1  = [[U.S. state|State]]
| subdivision_name1  = {{Flag|California|size=23px}}
| subdivision_type2  = [[List of counties in California|County]]
| subdivision_name2  = [[Los Angeles County, California|Los Angeles]]
<!-- History -------------->| established_title  = [[Municipal corporation|Incorporated]]
| established_date   = May 11, 1888<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.calafco.org/docs/Cities_by_incorp_date.doc |title=California Cities by Incorporation Date |format=Word |publisher=California Association of [[Local Agency Formation Commission]]s |access-date=August 25, 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141103002921/http://www.calafco.org/docs/Cities_by_incorp_date.doc |archive-date=November 3, 2014 }}</ref>
<!-- Government ----------->| government_type    = [[Council-manager government|Council-Manager]]
| leader_title       = [[City Council]]<ref name=elected>{{cite web |url=https://www.comptoncity.org/departments/city-clerk/elections/elected-officials |title=Elected Officials |publisher=City of Compton |access-date=December 1, 2023}}</ref>
| leader_name        = Deidre M. Duhart<br />Andre Spicer<br />Jonathan Bowers <br />Lillie P. Darden<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.comptoncity.org/officials/default.asp |title=District 4 |publisher=City of Compton |access-date=July 29, 2021 |archive-date=February 1, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160201182139/http://www.comptoncity.org/officials/default.asp |url-status=live}}</ref>
| leader_title1      = [[List of mayors of Compton, California|Mayor]]
| leader_name1       = [[Emma Sharif]]
| leader_title2      = [[Mayor Pro Tem]]
| leader_name2       = Deidre M. Duhart
| leader_title3      = [[City Manager]]
| leader_name3       = Willie A. Hopkins, Jr.
| leader_title4      = [[City Attorney]]
| leader_name4       = Eric J. Perrodin
| leader_title5      = [[City Treasurer]]
| leader_name5       = Brandon Mims
| leader_title6      = [[City Clerk]]
| leader_name6       = Satra Zurita
<!-- Area ----------------->| unit_pref          = Imperial
| area_footnotes     = <ref name="CenPopGazetteer2020">{{cite web |title=2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files |url=https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/2020_Gazetteer/2020_gaz_place_06.txt |publisher=United States Census Bureau |accessdate=October 30, 2021 |archive-date=March 18, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210318033728/https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/2020_Gazetteer/2020_gaz_place_06.txt |url-status=live}}</ref>
| area_total_sq_mi   = 10.12
| area_total_km2     = 26.20
| area_land_sq_mi    = 10.03
| area_land_km2      = 25.97
| area_water_sq_mi   = 0.09
| area_water_km2     = 0.23
| area_water_percent = 1.03
<!-- Elevation ------------>| elevation_footnotes = <ref>{{Cite GNIS|1652689|Compton |access-date=December 3, 2014}}</ref>
| elevation_ft       = 69
| elevation_m        = 21
<!-- Population ----------->| population_as_of   = [[2020 United States census|2020]]
| population_footnotes = 
| population_total   = 95740
| pop_est_as_of      = 
| pop_est_footnotes  = 
| population_est     = 
| population_rank    = [[List of largest California cities by population|87th]] in California
| population_density_sq_mi = 9548.22
| population_density_km2 = 3686.42
<!-- Time zones ----------->| timezone           = [[Pacific Time Zone|Pacific]]
| utc_offset         = −8
| timezone_DST       = PDT
| utc_offset_DST     = −7
<!-- Codes ---------------->| postal_code_type   = [[ZIP code]]s<ref>{{cite web |url=https://tools.usps.com/go/ZipLookupAction!input.action |title=ZIP Code(tm) Lookup |publisher=[[United States Postal Service]] |access-date=November 20, 2014 |archive-date=January 7, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190107074011/https://tools.usps.com/go/ZipLookupAction!input.action |url-status=live}}</ref>
| postal_code        = 90220–90224
| area_code_type     = [[North American Numbering Plan|Area codes]]
| area_code          = [[Area codes 310 and 424|310/424]]
| blank_name         = [[Federal Information Processing Standard|FIPS code]]
| blank_info         = {{FIPS|06|15044}}
| blank1_name        = [[Geographic Names Information System|GNIS]] feature IDs
| blank1_info        = {{GNIS 4|1652689}}, {{GNIS 4|2410213}}
| website            = {{URL|www.comptoncity.org|comptoncity.org}}
}}

'''Compton''' is a city located in the [[Gateway Cities]] region of southern [[Los Angeles County, California]], United States,<ref name="city">{{cite web |url=http://www.comptoncity.org/ |title=Comptoncity.org |access-date=August 29, 2010 |archive-date=October 3, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151003024554/http://www.comptoncity.org/ |url-status=live}}</ref> situated south of [[downtown Los Angeles]]. Compton is one of the oldest cities in the county, and on May 11, 1888, was the eighth city in Los Angeles County to incorporate. As of the [[2020 United States census|2020 census]], the city had a total population of 95,740.<ref>{{cite web |title=Compton city, California - Census Bureau Profile |url=https://data.census.gov/profile/Compton_city,_California?g=160XX00US0615044 |publisher=United States Census Bureau |access-date=January 3, 2024}}</ref> It is known as the "Hub City" due to its alleged geographic centrality in Los Angeles County,<ref name="city"/> though it is actually near the southern end of the county. Neighborhoods in Compton include Sunny Cove, Leland, downtown Compton, and Richland Farms.

==History==
[[File:Manuel Domínguez of California.jpg|thumb|left|Don [[Manuel Dominguez|Manuel Domínguez]], a signer of the [[Californian Constitution]] and owner of [[Rancho San Pedro]] (also known as Rancho Domínguez), which included all of modern-day Compton]]
[[File:American Retreat after the Siege of Los Angeles.jpg|thumb|left|[[Battle of Dominguez Rancho]], 1846]]
[[File:Compton-1914.jpg|thumb|right|Main Street of Compton, 1914]]

The [[Tongva]] inhabited the Los Angeles Basin.<ref> {{Cite web |title=Gabrielino/Tongva Nation of the Greater Los Angeles Basin – NAHC Digital Atlas |url=https://nahc.ca.gov/cp/tribal-atlas-pages/gabrielino-tongva-nation/ |access-date=2025-01-05 |website=nahc.ca.gov}}</ref>

The [[Spanish Empire]] had expanded into this area when the Viceroy of [[New Spain]] commissioned [[Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo]] to explore the Pacific Ocean in 1542–1543. In 1767, the area became part of the [[The Californias|Province of the Californias]] ({{langx|es|Provincia de las Californias}}), and the area was explored by the [[Portolá expedition]] in 1769–1770. In 1784, the [[Charles III of Spain|Spanish Crown]] deeded [[Rancho San Pedro]], a tract of over {{convert|75,000|acre|km2}}, to soldier Juan José Domínguez. Domínguez's descendants partitioned the land amongst family members, sold parcels to newly arriving settlers, and relinquished some when validating their legal claim with the [[Mexico|Mexican]] government at {{convert|48000|acre|km2|}} in 1828, and with the United States government through a patent validating {{convert|43119|acre|km2|}} in 1858. The Domínguez family name is still applied throughout the area, including the [[Dominguez Rancho Adobe]] historical landmark, in the [[Unincorporated area|unincorporated community]] of [[Rancho Dominguez, California|Rancho Dominguez]], located between the cities of Compton, [[Long Beach, California|Long Beach]] and [[Carson, California|Carson]]. The tree that marked the original northern boundary of the rancho still stands at the corner of Poppy and Short streets.<ref>{{cite web |title=Eagle Tree |url=http://www.comptoncity.org/visitors/eagletree.asp |website=www.comptoncity.org |publisher=City of Compton |access-date=July 22, 2017 |language=en |archive-date=July 27, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170727181011/http://www.comptoncity.org/visitors/eagletree.asp |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=City of Compton – Eagle Tree |url=http://www.comptoncity.org/visitors/eagletree.asp |access-date=April 14, 2021 |website=www.comptoncity.org |archive-date=July 27, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170727181011/http://www.comptoncity.org/visitors/eagletree.asp |url-status=live}}</ref>

In 1867, Griffith Dickenson Compton led a group of 30 pioneers to the area. These families had traveled by wagon train south from [[Stockton, California]], in search of ways to earn a living other than the rapid exhaustion of gold fields. Originally named Gibsonville, after one of the tract owners, it was later called Comptonville. However, to avoid confusion with the [[Camptonville, California|Camptonville]] located in [[Yuba County, California|Yuba County]], the name was shortened to Compton.<ref name="city"/> Compton's earliest settlers were faced with terrible hardships as they farmed the land in bleak weather to get by with just the barest subsistence. The weather continued to be harsh, rainy and cold, and fuel was difficult to find. To gather firewood it was necessary to travel to mountains close to [[Pasadena, California|Pasadena]]. The round trip took almost a week. Many in the Compton party wanted to relocate to a friendlier climate and settle down, but as there were two general stores within traveling distance—one in the pueblo of [[Los Angeles]], the other in [[Wilmington, Los Angeles, California|Wilmington]]—they eventually decided to stay put.<ref name="city"/>

By 1887, the settlers realized it was time to make improvements to the local government. A series of town meetings were held to discuss incorporation of their little town. Griffith D. Compton donated his land to incorporate and create the city of Compton in 1889, but he did stipulate that a certain acreage be zoned solely for agriculture and named Richland Farms.<ref name="Comp">{{cite web |url=http://www.kcet.org/socal/departures/richland-farms/the-past/ |title=1 The Past &#124; Departures |publisher=KCET |date=July 23, 2010 |access-date=August 29, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100915160002/http://www.kcet.org/socal/departures/richland-farms/the-past/ |archive-date=September 15, 2010 }}</ref> In January 1888, a petition supporting the incorporation of Compton was forwarded to the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, who in turn forwarded the petition to the State Legislature. On May 11, 1888, the city of Compton was [[municipal corporation|incorporated]] with a population of 5000 people. The first City Council meeting was held on May 14, 1888.<ref name="city"/>

In 1890, a series of votes were held by the residents of Compton, with the aim of shedding significant portions of the city. By the end of the year, Compton was down to only eighty acres of land, with five remaining voters residing within that territory. Due to the limited number of people able to fill positions within the city government, Compton effectively ceased to exist as a functioning city. By 1906, lawyers Emmett Wilson and E.T. Sherer filed suits to nullify the 1890 elections, which in turn restored Compton to a size of 600 acres.<ref>{{cite web |title=4 Oct 1906, 16 - The Los Angeles Times at Newspapers.com |url=http://latimes.newspapers.com/image/380205031/ |access-date=October 15, 2021 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en |archive-date=October 15, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211015201838/http://latimes.newspapers.com/image/380205031/ |url-status=live}}</ref> Compton was reborn, with elections held to fill open positions.<ref>{{cite web |title=23 Oct 1906, 24 - The Los Angeles Times at Newspapers.com |url=http://latimes.newspapers.com/image/380216587/?terms=%22City%20of%20Compton%22&match=1 |access-date=October 15, 2021 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en |archive-date=October 15, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211015201825/http://latimes.newspapers.com/image/380216587/?terms=%22City%20of%20Compton%22&match=1 |url-status=live}}</ref>

The ample residential lots of Richland Farms gave residents enough space to raise a family, and food to feed them, along with building a barn, and caring for livestock. The farms attracted the black families who had begun migrating from the rural South in the 1950s, and there they found their 'home away from home'. Compton could not support large-scale agricultural business, but it did give the residents the opportunity to work the land for their families.<ref name="Comp" />

The 1920s saw the opening of the Compton Airport. Compton Junior College was founded and city officials moved to a new City Hall on Alameda Street.<ref name="city"/> On March 10, 1933, [[1933 Long Beach earthquake|a destructive earthquake]] caused many casualties: schools were destroyed and there was major damage to the central business district.<ref name="city"/> While it would eventually be home to a large black population, in 1930 there was only one black resident.<ref>{{cite book |last=Horne |first=Gerald |title=Fire This Time: The Watts Uprising and the 1960s |publisher=Da Capo Press |year=1997 |location=New York, New York |page=[https://archive.org/details/firethistimewatt00horn/page/27 27] |isbn=978-0-306-80792-3 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/firethistimewatt00horn/page/27}}</ref>

From the 1920s through the early 1940s, the Compton area was home to a sizable Japanese American population, a large proportion of whom were farmers. Shortly after President Roosevelt issued [[Executive Order 9066]] in February 1942, Compton residents of Japanese descent were forcibly removed from their homes and interned for the duration of World War II. Most were initially detained at the Santa Anita Assembly Center; they were later transferred to and incarcerated at Manzanar and other internment centers, called "Relocation Centers."<ref>{{cite book |last=Seigel |first=Shizue |title=In Good Conscience: Supporting Japanese Americans During the Internment |url=https://archive.org/details/ingoodconscience00seig |url-access=registration |publisher=AACP, Inc. |year=2006 |location=San Mateo, California |pages=[https://archive.org/details/ingoodconscience00seig/page/93 93–99] |isbn=978-0-934609-18-0}}</ref>

In the 1950s, middle-class black families began moving into the area, mostly on the west side. Compton grew quickly throughout the decade. This is partially due to its proximity to [[Watts, Los Angeles, California|Watts]], where there was an established black population. The eastern side of the city was predominantly white until the 1970s. Despite being located in the middle of a major metropolitan area, thanks to the legacy of Griffith D. Compton, there still remains one small pocket of agriculture from its earliest years.<ref name="Comp"/>

During the 1950s and 1960s, after the Supreme Court declared all racially exclusive housing covenants (title deeds) unconstitutional in the case ''[[Shelley v. Kraemer]]'', the first black families moved to the area.<ref name="black">{{cite web |url=http://www.comptoncity.org/index.php/About-Compton/history-of-the-city.htm |title=History of the City &#124; About Compton |publisher=Comptoncity.org |date=March 10, 1933 |access-date=August 29, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100710154944/http://www.comptoncity.org/index.php/About-Compton/history-of-the-city.htm |archive-date=July 10, 2010 }}</ref> Compton's growing black population was still largely ignored and neglected by the city's elected officials. [[Centennial High School (Compton, California)|Centennial High School]] was finally built to accommodate a burgeoning student population.<ref name="black"/> A black man first ran for City Council in 1958, and the first black councilman was elected in 1961.<ref name="black"/>
[[File:Compton-1920.jpg|thumb|right|Aerial view of Compton, 1920]]

In 1969, [[Douglas Dollarhide]] became the mayor, the first black man elected mayor of any metropolitan city in California.<ref name="black"/> Two African Americans and one Mexican-American were also elected to the local school board.<ref name="black"/> Four years later, in 1973, [[Doris A. Davis]] defeated Dollarhide's bid for re-election to become the first female black mayor of a metropolitan American city. By the early 1970s, the city had one of the largest concentrations of African Americans in the country, at over sixty five percent.<ref>{{cite web |last=Feder-Haugabook |first=Ayala |date=August 20, 2017 |title=Compton, California (1867– ) • |url=https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/compton-california-1867/ |access-date=April 14, 2021 |language=en-US |archive-date=April 23, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210423205630/https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/compton-california-1867/ |url-status=live}}</ref> In 2013, [[Aja Brown]], age 31, became the city's youngest mayor to date; she was re-elected in 2017.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Oreskes |first=Benjamin |date=June 7, 2017 |title=Compton Mayor Aja Brown wins second term |url=https://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-compton-mayor-20170606-story.html |access-date=January 6, 2024 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}}</ref>

For many years, Compton was a much sought-after suburb for the black middle class of Los Angeles. This past affluence is reflected in the area's appearance: Compton's streets are lined with relatively spacious and attractive single family houses.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Chang |first1=Ailsa |author-link=Ailsa Chang |last2=Intagliata |first2=Christopher |last3=Mehta |first3=Jonaki |date=May 5, 2021 |title=How A Predatory Real Estate Practice Changed The Face Of Compton |url=https://www.npr.org/2021/05/05/993993572/how-a-predatory-real-estate-practice-changed-the-face-of-compton |url-status=live |access-date=May 6, 2021 |website=NPR News |language=en |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210505232321/https://www.npr.org/2021/05/05/993993572/how-a-predatory-real-estate-practice-changed-the-face-of-compton |archive-date=May 5, 2021}}</ref> However, several factors have contributed to Compton's gradual decline. One of the most significant factors was a steady erosion of its tax base, something that was already sparse due to limited commercial properties. In later years, there were middle-class [[white flight|whites who fled]] to the newly incorporated cities of [[Artesia, California|Artesia]], [[Bellflower, California|Bellflower]], [[Cerritos, California|Cerritos]], [[Paramount, California|Paramount]] and [[Norwalk, California|Norwalk]] in the late 1950s. These nearby cities remained largely white early on, despite [[Racial integration|integration]].<ref>Scott, Allen John and Edward Soja (1996). ''The City: Los Angeles and Urban Theory at the End of the Twentieth Century'' Berkeley: University of California Press. 10.</ref> This white middle class flight accelerated following the [[Watts Riots|1965 Watts Riots]] and the [[1992 Los Angeles riots]].<ref>{{cite news |first=John |last=McWhorter |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/discussion/2005/08/12/DI2005081201348.html |title=Outlook: The Negative Impact of the Watts Riots |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=August 15, 2005 |access-date=August 29, 2010 |archive-date=June 29, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110629031414/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/discussion/2005/08/12/DI2005081201348.html |url-status=live}}</ref>

By the late 1960s, middle-class and upper-middle-class African Americans found other areas to be more attractive to them. Some were unincorporated areas of [[Los Angeles County, California|Los Angeles County]] such as [[Ladera Heights, California|Ladera Heights]], [[View Park-Windsor Hills, California|View Park]] and [[View Park-Windsor Hills, California|Windsor Hills]], and others were cities such as [[Inglewood, California|Inglewood]] and [[Carson, California|Carson]]. Carson was particularly significant, because it had successfully thwarted attempts at [[annexation]] by neighboring Compton. The city opted instead for incorporation in 1968; notably, its black population was actually more affluent than its white population. As a newer city, it also offered more favorable tax rates and lower crime.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://ci.carson.ca.us/content/department/about_carson/growing_pains.asp |title=Growing Pains of a Young City – City of Carson, CA |publisher=City of Carson |access-date=August 29, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100716131444/http://ci.carson.ca.us/content/department/about_carson/growing_pains.asp |archive-date=July 16, 2010 }}</ref>

==Geography and climate==
[[File:Compton sign.jpg|thumb|Highway sign for Compton on State Route [[California State Route 91|91]] ]]
[[File:Map of Compton, California (c. 2001).gif|thumb|Map of Compton, c. 2001]]
According to the [[United States Census Bureau]]'s 2020 data,<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Compton city, California |url=https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/comptoncitycalifornia/PST045222 |access-date=January 6, 2024 |website=www.census.gov |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Census profile: Compton, CA |url=http://censusreporter.org/profiles/16000US0615044-compton-ca/ |access-date=January 6, 2024 |website=Census Reporter |language=en}}</ref> the city has a total area of {{convert|10.1|sqmi|km2}}. {{convert|10.03|sqmi|km2}} of it is land and {{convert|0.1|sqmi|km2}} of it (1.03%) is water.

Compton is bordered by the unincorporated [[Willowbrook, California|Willowbrook]] on the north and northwest, the unincorporated [[West Compton, California|West Compton]] on the west, the city of [[Carson, California|Carson]] on the southwest, the unincorporated [[Rancho Dominguez, California|Rancho Dominguez]] on the south, the city of [[Long Beach, California|Long Beach]] on the southeast, the city of [[Paramount, California|Paramount]] and the unincorporated [[East Compton, California|East Compton]] on the east, and by the city of [[Lynwood, California|Lynwood]] on the northeast.

===East Compton===
[[East Compton, California|East Compton]], also known as '''East Rancho Dominguez''', is a mostly industrial [[unincorporated community]] and [[census-designated place]] (CDP). The population was 15,135 according to the [[2010 United States census|2010 Census]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.census.gov/2010census/popmap/ipmtext.php?fl=06:0621034 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20140715024601/http://www.census.gov/2010census/popmap/ipmtext.php?fl=06:0621034 |url-status=dead |archive-date=July 15, 2014 |title=2010 Census Interactive Population Search |author=Website Services & Coordination Staff(WSCS) |work=census.gov |access-date=June 14, 2015}}</ref> East Rancho Dominguez is an accepted city name according to the [[United States Postal Service|USPS]], and shares the 90221 [[ZIP Code]] with Compton.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://zip4.usps.com/zip4/zcl_3_results.jsp |title=USPS.com® – ZIP Code Lookup |work=usps.com |access-date=June 14, 2015 |archive-date=February 6, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120206094758/http://zip4.usps.com/zip4/zcl_3_results.jsp |url-status=live}}</ref> Its [[sphere of influence#California|sphere of influence]] is the city of Compton, which has tried to annex East Rancho Dominguez, but business and property owners in the area have opposed the annexation.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20071008051455/http://www.thecomptonbulletin.com/news04_012506/index.html The Compton Bulletin Online – LOCAL NEWS]. Web.archive.org (October 8, 2007). Retrieved on February 10, 2011.</ref><ref>[http://www.lalafco.org/Agendas/2006/030806a.pdf#search=%22%22East%20Rancho%20Dominguez%22%20Compton%22 City of Carson SOI Update Resolution] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110720155155/http://www.lalafco.org/Agendas/2006/030806a.pdf#search=%22%22East%20Rancho%20Dominguez%22%20Compton%22 |date=July 20, 2011 }}, March 8, 2006</ref> <!-- LOCAL AGENCY FORMATION COMMISSION REGULAR MEETING AGENDA 3/8/2006-->

===Climate===
{{Weather box
|location = Compton, California
|width = 50%
|single line = Y
|Jan high F = 67
|Feb high F = 68
|Mar high F = 68
|Apr high F = 72
|May high F = 73
|Jun high F = 77
|Jul high F = 81
|Aug high F = 82
|Sep high F = 81
|Oct high F = 77
|Nov high F = 72
|Dec high F = 68
|year high F= 74
|Jan record high F = 93
|Feb record high F = 91
|Mar record high F = 98
|Apr record high F = 105
|May record high F = 104
|Jun record high F = 108
|Jul record high F = 109
|Aug record high F = 105
|Sep record high F = 111
|Oct record high F = 111
|Nov record high F = 101
|Dec record high F = 91
|year record high F= 111
|Jan low F = 46
|Feb low F = 48
|Mar low F = 50
|Apr low F = 53
|May low F = 57
|Jun low F = 60
|Jul low F = 63
|Aug low F = 64
|Sep low F = 63
|Oct low F = 58
|Nov low F = 51
|Dec low F = 46
|year low F= 55
|Jan record low F = 25
|Feb record low F = 33
|Mar record low F = 33
|Apr record low F = 38
|May record low F = 40
|Jun record low F = 46
|Jul record low F = 51
|Aug record low F = 54
|Sep record low F = 50
|Oct record low F = 39
|Nov record low F = 34
|Dec record low F = 28
|year record low F= 25
|precipitation colour = green
|Jan precipitation inch = 3.21
|Feb precipitation inch = 3.32
|Mar precipitation inch = 2.68
|Apr precipitation inch = 0.68
|May precipitation inch = 0.24
|Jun precipitation inch =  0.08
|Jul precipitation inch =  0.02
|Aug precipitation inch =  0.12
|Sep precipitation inch =  0.25
|Oct precipitation inch =  0.40
|Nov precipitation inch =  1.15
|Dec precipitation inch =  1.81
|year precipitation inch=  13.96
|source 1 =<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.plantmaps.com/90220 |title=Zipcode 90220 – Compton, California Hardiness Zones |access-date=March 13, 2021 |archive-date=September 24, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210924145157/https://www.plantmaps.com/90220 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://weather.com/weather/monthly/l/315783141391d6c3966f6084ec82f6512d026d63aa7181c05eb1d61ae2d96ac9 |title=Compton, CA Monthly Weather Forecast |publisher=weather.com |date= |accessdate=February 21, 2022 |archive-date=September 24, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210924145158/https://weather.com/weather/monthly/l/315783141391d6c3966f6084ec82f6512d026d63aa7181c05eb1d61ae2d96ac9 |url-status=live}}</ref>
}}

==Demographics==
{{US Census population
|1870= 160
|1890= 636
|1910= 922
|1920= 1478
|1930= 12516
|1940= 16198
|1950= 47991
|1960= 71812
|1970= 78547
|1980= 81350
|1990= 90454
|2000= 93493
|2010= 96455
|2020= 95740
|align-fn=center
|footnote=U.S. Decennial Census<ref name="DecennialCensus">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census/decade.html|title=Decennial Census by Decade|website=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=|archive-date=July 6, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220706023553/https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census/decade.html|url-status=live}}</ref><br>1850–1870<ref name=1870CensusCA1>{{Cite web|title=1870 Census of Population - Population of Civil Divisions less than Counties - California - Almeda County to Sutter County|url=https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1870/population/1870a-12.pdf|website=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=August 12, 2024|archive-date=September 7, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240907072108/https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1870/population/1870a-12.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=1870CensusCA2>{{Cite web|title=1870 Census of Population - Population of Civil Divisions less than Counties - California - Tehama County to Yuba County|url=https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1870/population/1870a-13.pdf|website=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=August 12, 2024|archive-date=August 28, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240828190324/https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1870/population/1870a-13.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> 1880–1890<ref name=1890CensusCA>{{Cite web|title= 1890 Census of Population - Population of California by Minor Civil Divisions |url=https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1890/bulletins/demographics/134-population-of-ca.pdf|website=[[United States Census Bureau]]}}</ref><br> 1900<ref name=1900CensusCA>{{Cite web|title=1900 Census of Population - Population of California by Counties and Minor Civil Divisions|url=https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1900/bulletins/demographic/10-population-ca.pdf|website=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=August 12, 2024|archive-date=August 12, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240812164053/https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1900/bulletins/demographic/10-population-ca.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> 1910<ref name=1910CensusCA>{{Cite web|title=1910 Census of Population - Supplement for California|url=https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1910/abstract/supplement-ca.pdf|website=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=August 12, 2024|archive-date=August 23, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240823050629/https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1910/abstract/supplement-ca.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> 1920<ref name=1920CensusCA>{{Cite web|title= 1920 Census of Population - Number of Inhabitants - California |url=https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1920/bulletins/demographics/population-ca-number-of-inhabitants.pdf|website=[[United States Census Bureau]]}}</ref><br> 1930<ref name=1930CensusCA>{{Cite web|title=1930 Census of Population - Number and Distribution of Inhabitants - California|url=https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1930/population-volume-1/03815512v1ch03.pdf|website=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=August 12, 2024|archive-date=August 28, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240828162810/https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1930/population-volume-1/03815512v1ch03.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> 1940<ref name=1940CensusCA>{{Cite web|title=1940 Census of Population - Number of Inhabitants - California|url=https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1940/population-volume-1/33973538v1ch03.pdf|website=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=August 12, 2024|archive-date=September 18, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240918190408/https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1940/population-volume-1/33973538v1ch03.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> 1950<ref name=1950CensusCA>{{Cite web|title=1950 Census of Population - Number of Inhabitants - California|url=https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1950/population-volume-1/vol-01-08.pdf|website=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=August 12, 2024|archive-date=September 21, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240921120611/https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1950/population-volume-1/vol-01-08.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref><br> 1960<ref name=1960CensusCA>{{Cite web|title=1960 Census of Population - General population Characteristics - California|url=https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1960/population-volume-1/vol-01-06-d.pdf|website=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=August 12, 2024|archive-date=August 12, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240812164028/https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1960/population-volume-1/vol-01-06-d.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> 1970<ref name=1970CensusCA>{{Cite web|title=1970 Census of Population - Number of Inhabitants - California|url=https://www2.census.gov/prod2/decennial/documents/1970a_ca1-01.pdf|website=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=August 12, 2024|archive-date=August 12, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240812164028/https://www2.census.gov/prod2/decennial/documents/1970a_ca1-01.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> 1980<ref name=1980CensusCA>{{Cite web|title=1980 Census of Population - Number of Inhabitants - California|url=https://www2.census.gov/prod2/decennial/documents/1980a_caAB-01.pdf|website=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=August 12, 2024|archive-date=August 23, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240823052400/https://www2.census.gov/prod2/decennial/documents/1980a_caAB-01.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref><br> 1990<ref name=1990CensusCA>{{Cite web|title=1990 Census of Population - Population and Housing Unit Counts - California|url=https://www2.census.gov/prod2/cen1990/cph2/cph-2-6.pdf|website=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=August 12, 2024|archive-date=August 14, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240814213918/https://www2.census.gov/prod2/cen1990/cph2/cph-2-6.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>
2000<ref name=2000CensusCA>{{Cite web|title= 2000 Census of Population - Population and Housing Unit Counts - California |url=https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/2003/dec/phc-3-6.pdf|website=[[United States Census Bureau]]}}</ref> 2010<ref name=2010CensusCA>{{Cite web|title=2010 Census of Population - Population and Housing Unit Counts - California|url=https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/2010/cph-2/cph-2-6.pdf|website=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=August 12, 2024|archive-date=February 4, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230204210903/https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/2010/cph-2/cph-2-6.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref><br> 2020<ref name=2020CensusP2/>
}}

Compton first appeared as a city in the [[1870 U.S. Census]].<ref name=1870CensusCA1/> 

===2020 census===
The U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program (PEP), updated annually, reported that the City of Compton has a population of 91,988 as of its 2022 estimate. The following household information is based on 5-year census estimates between 2018 and 2022:<ref name=":0" />
* The owner-occupied housing unit rate was 57.4%
* The median value of owner-occupied housing units was $489,400
* The number of households and persons per household were 24,617 and 3.83, respectively
* The median household income was $69,728

No Compton households reported speaking a non-English language at home as their primary shared language. This does not consider the potential multilingual nature of households, but only the primary self-reported language spoken by all members of the household. 83.1% of the residents of Compton are U.S. citizens.

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|+ Compton city, California – Racial and ethnic composition<br><small>{{nobold|''Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.''}}</small>
!Race / Ethnicity <small>(''NH = Non-Hispanic'')</small>
!Pop 1980<ref>{{cite web |title=1980 Census of Population|url=https://usa.ipums.org/usa/resources/voliii/pubdocs/1980/1980a_caCs1-01.pdf|access-date=December 6, 2023|website=[[United States Census Bureau]]}}</ref>
!Pop 1990<ref>{{cite web |title=1990 Census of Population|url=https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1990/cp-1/cp-1-6-1.pdf|access-date=December 20, 2023|website=[[United States Census Bureau]]}}</ref>
!Pop 2000<ref>{{cite web |title=P004Hispanic or Latino, and not Hispanic or Latino by race [73]– Compton, California |url=https://data.census.gov/table/DECENNIALSF12000.P004?q=p004&g=050XX00US24033_160XX00US0615044|access-date=November 19, 2023|website=[[United States Census Bureau]]}}</ref>
!Pop 2010<ref>{{cite web |title=P2 Hispanic or Latino, and not Hispanic or Latino by race – 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Compton, California |url=https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?g=1600000US0615044&tid=DECENNIALPL2010.P2 |access-date=January 19, 2022 |website=[[United States Census Bureau]] |archive-date=January 19, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220119211303/https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?g=1600000US0615044&tid=DECENNIALPL2010.P2 |url-status=live}}</ref>
!{{partial|Pop 2020}}<ref name=2020CensusP2>{{cite web |title=P2 Hispanic or Latino, and not Hispanic or Latino by race – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Compton, California |url=https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?g=1600000US0615044&tid=DECENNIALPL2020.P2 |access-date=January 19, 2022 |website=[[United States Census Bureau]] |archive-date=January 19, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220119211304/https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?g=1600000US0615044&tid=DECENNIALPL2020.P2 |url-status=live}}</ref>
!% 1980
!% 1990
!% 2000
!% 2010
!{{partial|% 2020}}
|-
|[[Non-Hispanic or Latino whites|White]] (NH)
|2,191
|1,321
|954
|782
|style="background: #ffffe6;" |856
|{{Percentage|2191|81350|2}}
|{{Percentage|1321|90454|2}}
|{{Percentage|954|93493|2}}
|0.81%
|style="background: #ffffe6;" |0.89%
|-
|[[African Americans|Black or African American]] (NH)
|60,096
|47,680
|37,263
|30,992
|style="background: #ffffe6;" |24,342
|{{Percentage|60096|81350|2}}
|{{Percentage|47680|90454|2}}
|{{Percentage|37263|93493|2}}
|32.13%
|style="background: #ffffe6;" |25.43%
|-
|[[Native Americans in the United States|Native American]] or [[Alaska Native]] (NH)
|162
|116
|170
|175
|style="background: #ffffe6;" |132
|{{Percentage|162|81350|2}}
|{{Percentage|116|90454|2}}
|{{Percentage|170|93493|2}}
|0.18%
|style="background: #ffffe6;" |0.14%
|-
|[[Asian Americans|Asian]] (NH)
|1,382
|1,525
|189
|222
|style="background: #ffffe6;" |365
|{{Percentage|1382|81350|2}}
|{{Percentage|1525|90454|2}}
|{{Percentage|189|93493|2}}
|0.23%
|style="background: #ffffe6;" |0.38%
|-
|[[Native Hawaiian]] or [[Pacific Islander Americans|Pacific Islander]] alone (NH)
|&ndash;{{efn|Under Asian.}}
|&ndash;
|953
|684
|style="background: #ffffe6;" |544
|&ndash;
|&ndash;
|{{Percentage|953|93493|2}}
|0.71%
|style="background: #ffffe6;" |0.57%
|-
|[[Race and ethnicity in the United States census|Other race]] alone (NH)
|293
|302
|100
|140
|style="background: #ffffe6;" |440
|{{Percentage|293|81350|2}}
|{{Percentage|302|90454|2}}
|{{Percentage|100|93493|2}}
|0.15%
|style="background: #ffffe6;" |0.46%
|-
|[[Multiracial Americans|Mixed race or Multiracial]] (NH)
|&ndash;{{efn|Not included as census option until 2000.}}
|&ndash;
|721
|791
|style="background: #ffffe6;" |1,270
|&ndash;
|&ndash;
|{{Percentage|721|93493|2}}
|0.82%
|style="background: #ffffe6;" |1.33%
|-
|[[Hispanic and Latino Americans|Hispanic or Latino]] (any race)
|17,162
|39,510
|53,143
|62,669
|style="background: #ffffe6;" |67,791
|{{Percentage|17162|81350|2}}
|{{Percentage|39510|90454|2}}
|{{Percentage|53143|93493|2}}
|64.97%
|style="background: #ffffe6;" |70.81%
|-
!Total
!81,350
!90,454
!93,493
!96,455
!style="background: #ffffe6;" |95,740
!100.00%
!100.00%
!100.00%
!100.00%
!style="background: #ffffe6;" |100.00%
|}

===2010===
The [[2010 United States census]]<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.census.gov/2010census/popmap/ipmtext.php?fl=06:0615044 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20140715024228/http://www.census.gov/2010census/popmap/ipmtext.php?fl=06:0615044 |url-status=dead |archive-date=July 15, 2014 |title=2010 Census Interactive Population Search: CA – Compton city |publisher=U.S. Census Bureau |access-date=July 12, 2014}}</ref> reported that Compton had a population of 96,455. The population density was {{convert|9,534.3|PD/sqmi|PD/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. The racial makeup of Compton was 31,688 (32.9%) [[Black (U.S. Census)|Black]]; 24,942 (25.9%) [[White (U.S. Census)|White]], (0.8% Non-Hispanic White);<ref name=quif>{{cite web |url=http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/06/0615044.html |title=Compton (city) QuickFacts |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]] |access-date=February 25, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120927014357/http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/06/0615044.html |archive-date=September 27, 2012 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://socds.huduser.org/Census/race.odb?msacitylist=31100*0600015044*1.0&metro=cbsa |title=SOCDS Census Data Output: Compton city, CA |work=huduser.org |access-date=June 14, 2015 |archive-date=April 30, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150430001058/http://socds.huduser.org/Census/race.odb?msacitylist=31100*0600015044*1.0&metro=cbsa |url-status=live}}</ref> 655 (0.7%) [[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]]; 292 (0.3%) [[Asian (U.S. Census)|Asian]]; 718 (0.7%) [[Pacific Islander (U.S. Census)|Pacific Islander]]; 34,914 (36.2%) from [[Race (United States census)|other races]]; and 3,246 (3.4%) from two or more races. [[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Latino (U.S. Census)|Latino]] of any race were 62,669 persons (65.0%).

The Census reported that 95,700 people (99.2% of the population) lived in households, 643 (0.7%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 112 (0.1%) were institutionalized.

There were 23,062 households, out of which 13,376 (58.0%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 10,536 (45.7%) were [[marriage|opposite-sex married couples]] living together, 6,373 (27.6%) had a female householder with no husband present, 2,354 (10.2%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 1,725 (7.5%) [[POSSLQ|unmarried opposite-sex partnerships]], and 158 (0.7%) [[same-sex partnerships|same-sex married couples or partnerships]]. 2,979 households (12.9%) were made up of individuals, and 1,224 (5.3%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 4.15. There were 19,263 [[family (U.S. Census)|families]] (83.5% of all households); the average family size was 4.41.

The age distribution of the population was as follows: 31,945 people (33.1%) under the age of 18, 11,901 people (12.3%) aged 18 to 24, 26,573 people (27.5%) aged 25 to 44, 18,838 people (19.5%) aged 45 to 64, and 7,198 people (7.5%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 28.0 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.7 males.

There were 24,523 housing units at an average density of {{convert|2,424.0|/mi2|/km2|disp=preunit|units&nbsp;|units|}}, of which 12,726 (55.2%) were owner-occupied, and 10,336 (44.8%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.9%; the rental vacancy rate was 5.9%. 53,525 people (55.5% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 42,175 people (43.7%) lived in rental housing units.

During 2009–2013, Compton has a median household income of $42,953, with 26.3% of the population living below the federal poverty line.<ref name=quif/>

===Crime===
Following the [[Watts riots]] in 1965, crime in Compton rose sharply. Although the city was largely exempt from the destruction of the 1965 riot, it prompted middle-class residents to flee over the next few years. By 1969, it had the highest crime rate in the state of California.<ref name=Straight/>

In ''Black, Brown, and White: Stories Straight Outta Compton'', [[Lynne Isbell]] and two friends from other ethnic backgrounds have written about their lives growing up in Compton during the 1960s and early 1970s. They tell how Compton changed from a mostly white town to a mostly black one and became known as "the Murder Capital of the United States".<ref name="Blackwell's">[https://blackwells.co.uk/bookshop/product/Black-Brown-and-White-Stories-Straight-Outta-Compton-by-Isbell-Lynne-A/9798985154009 "Black, Brown, and White: Stories Straight Outta Compton"], [[Blackwell's]], December 15, 2021. Accessed August 15, 2022.</ref>

Compton's violent reputation reached the national spotlight in the late 1980s with the rise of local [[gangsta rap]] groups [[Compton's Most Wanted]] and [[N.W.A]], the latter of whom released the album ''[[Straight Outta Compton]]'' in 1989. The city became notorious for [[gang violence]], primarily caused by the [[Bloods]] and [[Crips]].<ref name=Straight>{{cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-0815-compton-image-20150815-story.html |title='Straight Outta' a different Compton: City says much has changed in 25 years |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |date=August 14, 2015 |first1=Angel |last1=Jennings |last2=Esquivel |first2=Paloma |access-date=April 16, 2020 |archive-date=May 14, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200514224713/https://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-0815-compton-image-20150815-story.html |url-status=live}}</ref> After years of decline in crime, Compton's murder rate skyrocketed in 2004 with racial conflicts between Blacks and Latinos.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4804296 |title=A Deadly Year for the City of Compton |last=del Barco |first=Mandalit |date=August 17, 2005 |website=NPR News |language=en |access-date=October 31, 2019 |archive-date=October 31, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191031014101/https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4804296 |url-status=live}}</ref>

2005 was the city's deadliest year on record when the city murder rate reached 72 killings with a total population of 90,000 residents. The spike was the highest since 1991, when the city had more than 100,000 residents.<ref name="rate">{{cite web |url=https://www.macrotrends.net/cities/us/ca/compton/murder-homicide-rate-statistics |title=Compton CA Murder/Homicide Rate 1999-2018 |website=Macrotrends.net |access-date=August 1, 2023}}</ref> The rise in homicides frightened residents who had long lived with high levels of gang violence but had seen a downturn in violent crime in recent years.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2006-jan-02-me-compton2-story.html |title=Compton Killings Highest in Years |last=GARVEY |first=MEGAN |date=January 2, 2006 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US |access-date=October 31, 2019 |archive-date=October 31, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191031014055/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2006-jan-02-me-compton2-story.html |url-status=live}}</ref>

In 2013, the homicide rate was 36.8 per 100,000 residents, a decrease from the mid-2000s peak.<ref name="rate" /> Guns are used in the vast majority of homicides in Compton. Between 2000 and 2016, 91.5% were killed with guns compared to the national average of 67.7%.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://homicide.latimes.com/neighborhood/compton/year/all |title=The Homicide Report |website=Homicide.latimes.com |access-date=November 11, 2017 |archive-date=October 5, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161005113520/http://homicide.latimes.com/neighborhood/compton/year/all |url-status=live}}</ref> In 2015, there was a record low of 15 homicides while the homicide rate in the rest of the US increased.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://homicide.latimes.com/neighborhood/compton/year/2015 |title=The Homicide Report |website=Homicide.latimes.com |access-date=November 11, 2017 |archive-date=October 5, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161005105306/http://homicide.latimes.com/neighborhood/compton/year/2015 |url-status=live}}</ref> In recent years, homicides have increased while remaining well below the 1980s and 90s, with 32 in 2021.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Homicide Report |url=https://homicide.latimes.com/neighborhood/compton/officer_involved/false/year/2021 |access-date=January 7, 2022 |archive-date=January 7, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220107062649/https://homicide.latimes.com/neighborhood/compton/officer_involved/false/year/2021 |url-status=live}}</ref>

The neighborhood lost residents with the worsening safety problems and, after the [[1992_Los_Angeles_riots|1992 riots]] in the [[Los Angeles, California|Los Angeles metropolitan area]], many African Americans left the city.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.comptoncity.org/index.php/About-Compton/demographic-information.htm |title=Demographic Information |publisher=Comptoncity.org |date=December 3, 1991 |access-date=August 30, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100710154937/http://www.comptoncity.org/index.php/About-Compton/demographic-information.htm |archive-date=July 10, 2010 }}</ref>

Although ''[[U.S. News & World Report]]'' did not list Compton in the 2011 "11 Most Dangerous Cities" for overall crime rates in the United States,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2011/02/16/the-11-most-dangerous-cities |title=The 11 Most Dangerous Cities |first=Danielle |last=Kurtzleben |work=U.S. News & World Report |access-date=June 14, 2015 |archive-date=June 17, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120617110519/http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2011/02/16/the-11-most-dangerous-cities |url-status=live}}</ref> the ''CQ Press'', using data from the [[Crime in the United States|FBI's annual report of crime statistics]] "Crime in the United States 2010," which ranked Compton as having the eighth highest crime rate in the country.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://os.cqpress.com/citycrime/2010/City_crime_rate_2010-2011_hightolow.pdf |title=AMSAFC2.WK4 |access-date=July 31, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150412010233/http://os.cqpress.com/citycrime/2010/City_crime_rate_2010-2011_hightolow.pdf |archive-date=April 12, 2015 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

Compton experienced a drop in homicide in the late 1990s and 2000s.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/193812.pdf |title=Homicide in Los Angeles: An Analysis of the Differential Character of Adolescent and Other Homicides |website=Ncjrs.gov |access-date=November 11, 2017 |archive-date=December 10, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161210112643/https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/193812.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref> Crime has stabilized overall since the 2010s.{{citation needed|date=February 2022}}<ref>{{cite web |url=http://s3.amazonaws.com/nixle/uploads/pub_media/user21087-1323214707-media1 |title=Archived copy |access-date=October 28, 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160123080201/http://s3.amazonaws.com/nixle/uploads/pub_media/user21087-1323214707-media1 |archive-date=January 23, 2016 }}</ref> The decrease in homicides has been attributed to various factors, including changing demographics, faster response times by police (reducing shots fired) and better medical care (increasing survival rates). [[Aja Brown]], mayor elected in 2013, helped to settle turf wars between the gangs, which has further reduced the homicide rate.<ref name="latimes.com">{{cite web |url=https://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-compton-selected-to-receive-federal-aid-20150928-story.html |title=Compton selected to receive federal aid to reduce violent crime |first=Angel |last=Jennings |date=September 28, 2015 |via=LA Times |access-date=April 16, 2020 |archive-date=January 13, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200113082803/https://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-compton-selected-to-receive-federal-aid-20150928-story.html |url-status=live}}</ref>

Mexican and Central American immigrants have increasingly replaced African Americans who moved to safer cities.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2023/05/15/compton-latinos-black-political-power/#:~:text=But%20as%20the%20city's%20crime,a%20bachelor's%20degree%20or%20higher.|title=In Black-led Compton, a Latino majority fights for political power|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|author-last1=Foster-Frau|author-first1=Sylvia}}</ref>
===="Gifts for Guns"====
The Los Angeles Sheriff's Department began the annual "Gifts for Guns" program within that same year{{When|date=January 2025}} where the citizens of Compton were given the option to turn in firearms and receive a $50–$100 check for various goods in an effort to combat [[gun violence]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2008-dec-09-me-gifts-for-guns9-story.html |title=Residents turn in guns in Compton |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |date=December 9, 2008 |access-date=August 12, 2010 |first=Kate |last=Linthicum |archive-date=September 24, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090924043847/http://articles.latimes.com/2008/dec/09/local/me-gifts-for-guns9 |url-status=live}}</ref> People have turned in about 7,000 guns over the last few years, [[KABC-TV]] reported. The program's success has prompted the [[Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department|LASD]] to expand the program countywide.<ref name="SD">Compton Sheriff's Station 2009 Year in review publication {{Verify source|date=December 2023}}</ref>

===Homelessness===

In 2022, [[Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority]]'s Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count counted 644 homeless individuals in Compton.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Homeless Count by City/Community |url=https://www.lahsa.org/data?id=54-homeless-count-by-city-community |access-date=April 14, 2023 |website=LAHSA}}</ref>

{{Historical populations
|title        = Homeless population
|align        = none
|cols         = 
|footnote     = 
|source       = [https://www.lahsa.org/data?id=54-homeless-count-by-city-community Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count]<br/>[[Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority]]
|2016 | 383
|2017 | 384
|2018 | 365
|2019 | 430
|2020 | 652
|2022 | 644
}}

===Mapping L.A.===

[[Mexican Americans|Mexican]] was the most common ancestry according to the 2000 census. [[Mexico]] and [[El Salvador]] were the most common foreign places of birth in 2000.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://maps.latimes.com/neighborhoods/neighborhood/compton/index.html |title=Compton Profile - Mapping L.A. - Los Angeles Times |website=Los Angeles Times}}</ref>

==Economy==
[[File:Gateway Town Center.jpg|thumb|left|Gateway Towne Center]]
In 1994, Compton was designated as an "Entrepreneurial Hot Spot" by Cognetics, Inc., an independent economic research firm.<ref>{{cite book |title=Entrepreneurial Hot Spots: The Best Places in America to Start and Grow a Company |first=David L. |last=Birch |publisher=Cognetics |year=1994 |pages=48, 64 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3YMnAQAAMAAJ |access-date=March 8, 2021 |archive-date=February 21, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220221105946/https://books.google.com/books?id=3YMnAQAAMAAJ |url-status=live}}</ref> Compton made the national list for best places to start and grow a business, and ranked #2 in [[Los Angeles County]] out of a field of 88 cities.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.simplyhired.com/a/local-jobs/city/l-Compton,+CA |title=Compton Jobs (CA) |publisher=Simply Hired |access-date=August 30, 2010 |archive-date=August 9, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100809023429/http://www.simplyhired.com/a/local-jobs/city/l-Compton%2C+CA |url-status=live}}</ref> The city's Planning and Economic Development department provides a business assistance program consisting of a comprehensive mix of resources to small business owners and entrepreneurs. The grocery chains [[Ralphs]] and [[Food 4 Less]], subsidiaries of [[Kroger]], are headquartered in Compton.<ref>"[http://www.kroger.com/company_information/careers/Pages/contact_us.aspx Contact Us] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090422164703/http://www.kroger.com/company_information/careers/Pages/contact_us.aspx |date=April 22, 2009 }}." ''[[Kroger]]'' and Aldi, Superior Grocery Store, Smart 'n Final. Retrieved on April 30, 2009.</ref> Gelson's Market, a subsidiary of Arden Group, Inc., a holding company, is also based there.
<ref>[http://www.gelsons.com/about/company/index.asp Gelson's – About Gelson's<!-- Bot generated title -->] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110203120819/http://www.gelsons.com/about/company/index.asp |date=February 3, 2011 }}</ref>

Compton is surrounded by multiple freeways that provide access to destinations throughout the region.<ref name=LAMag/> The [[Port of Long Beach|Long Beach]] and [[Port of Los Angeles|Los Angeles]] Ports are less than 20 minutes from downtown Compton, providing access to international destinations for customers and suppliers. The [[Alameda Corridor]], a passageway for 25% of all U.S. waterborne international trade, runs directly through Compton from north to south.<ref name="comptoncity.org">{{cite web |url=http://www.comptoncity.org/index.php/About-Compton/hub-city.htm |title=Hub City &#124; About Compton |publisher=Comptoncity.org |access-date=August 30, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150201173012/http://www.comptoncity.org/index.php/About-Compton/hub-city.htm |archive-date=February 1, 2015 }}</ref>

The City of Compton's Parks and Recreation Department operates and maintains a total of 16 playgrounds for a combined {{convert|118|acre|ha|abbr=on}} of active park space. Facilities include six community centers, seven neighborhood parks, two walking parks, two competition-size swimming pools, three regulation size gymnasiums, a skate park, Jackie Robinson Baseball Stadium, Nine-Hole Par 3 Golf Course, and the two-story {{convert|29641|sqft|m2|sigfig=2}} Douglas F. Dollarhide Community Center.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Recreation Facilities {{!}} Compton, CA |url=https://www.comptoncity.org/departments/recreation/recreation-facilities |access-date=January 6, 2024 |website=www.comptoncity.org |language=en}}</ref>

==Arts and culture==
Some episodes of the [[sitcom]] ''[[The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air]]'' took place in Compton because [[Will Smith|Will Smith's]] friend, [[DJ Jazzy Jeff]], lived there.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.answers.com/topic/the-fresh-prince-of-bel-air |title=The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air: Information from |publisher=Answers.com |access-date=August 30, 2010 |archive-date=October 27, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101027050241/http://www.answers.com/topic/the-fresh-prince-of-bel-air |url-status=live}}</ref> Many rap artists' careers started in Compton, including [[N.W.A]] ([[Eazy-E]], [[MC Ren]], [[Dr. Dre]], [[Ice Cube]], [[DJ Yella]]), [[Coolio]], [[DJ Quik]], [[2nd II None]], [[Hi-C (rapper)|Hi-C]], [[Tweedy Bird Loc]], [[Game (rapper)|The Game]], [[Kendrick Lamar]], [[YG (rapper)|YG]], [[Vince Staples]], [[Roddy Ricch]], and [[Compton's Most Wanted]]. In their lyrics, they rap about the streets and their lives in Compton and the areas nearby. [[Steve Lacy]] and Blues musician [[Keb' Mo']] are also from Compton.

Compton has been referred to on numerous occasions in [[gang]] affiliation, [[gangsta rap]] and [[g-funk]] songs, especially in the late 1980s and throughout the 1990s, and so has attained an association not only with gang violence and crime, but with [[hip hop music]] as well. The city is known as the home of many famous rappers. The [[Compton Swap Meet]] is featured prominently in the remix version of the 1995 #1 song [[California Love]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://uproxx.com/music/compton-swap-meet-kendrick-lamar-tupac-nwa/ |title=How NWA, Tupac, And Kendrick Lamar Made The Compton Swap Meet A West Coast Rap Historical Landmark|website=Uproxx|author-first1=Fidel|author-last1=Martinez|date=May 30, 2017}}</ref><br>
<br>Championed by the Compton Entertainment Chamber of Commerce, the city of Compton honored Musical Entertainer rapper Eazy-E, with a symbolic street in his stage name. On November 22, 2023, the 100 block of Auto Drive South, which runs off Alameda Street and into the Gateway Towne Center shopping plaza was renamed to Eazy Street. It is also a reference to a song of the same name.<br>
<br>Eazy-E grew into the music industry as part the N.W.A group that spawned hip hop icons, such as Easy-E, Ice Cube, Dr. Dre, Mc Ren, DJ Yella and many others. In 1989, N.W.A released the colossal hit song Straight Outta Compton, which is the incontestable communicable global catchphrase for the City of Compton. [Eric Lynn Wright, was born September 7, 1964, in Compton, and passed away March 26, 1995.]

Many [[NBA]] players attended high school in the city as well. [[Arron Afflalo]] attended [[Centennial High School (Compton, California)|Centennial High School]]; [[DeMar DeRozan]] attended Compton High School; and [[Tayshaun Prince]], [[Tyson Chandler]], [[Brandon Jennings]], [[Cedric Ceballos]] and the late [[Dennis Johnson]] attended Dominguez High. Actor/comedian [[Paul Rodriguez (actor)|Paul Rodriguez]] Sr. also attended Dominguez High.<ref>{{cite web |title=American Experience, George H. W. Bush |publisher=pbs.org |access-date=June 12, 2008 |url=https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/bush41/timeline/ |archive-date=May 15, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080515224510/http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/bush41/timeline/ |url-status=live}}</ref>

Although an [[Inner suburbs|inner suburb]] of Los Angeles, Compton has seen an increase of middle-class residents in the last few years, due to its affordable housing. With the influx of immigrants and the demographic shift in ethnic population, it was after the [[2000 U.S. Census]] that Latinos were recognized as the majority.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.comptoncity.org/index.php/About-Compton/history-of-the-city.htm |title=History of the City &#124; About Compton |publisher=Comptoncity.org |date=March 10, 1933 |access-date=August 30, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100710154944/http://www.comptoncity.org/index.php/About-Compton/history-of-the-city.htm |archive-date=July 10, 2010 }}</ref>

Compton has evolved into a younger population; the median age of people living in Compton was 25 at the time of the census survey in 2010; the United States average at the time was 35.3.<ref>[http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/06/0615044.html Compton (city), California entry] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120927014357/http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/06/0615044.html |date=September 27, 2012 }}, State & County QuickFacts, [[US Census Bureau]]. Accessed August 10, 2015.</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.americantowns.com/ca/compton-information |title=Compton California (CA) Census and detailed community profile |publisher=AmericanTowns.com |access-date=August 30, 2010 |archive-date=February 1, 2022 |archive-url=https://wayback.archive-it.org/all/20220201214622/https://www.americantowns.com/ |url-status=live}}</ref>

Compton is home to the [[Compton Cricket Club]], the only all American-born exhibition cricket team. Its founder, Ted Hayes, said, "The aim of playing cricket is to teach people how to respect themselves and respect authority so they stop killing each other."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://cricket.tedhayes.us/ |title=Compton CRicket Club |work=tedhayes.us |access-date=June 14, 2015 |archive-date=February 1, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150201084742/http://cricket.tedhayes.us/ |url-status=live}}</ref> [[Tam's Burgers]] has been seen as a symbol of the city.

===Historical landmarks===
[[Angeles Abbey Memorial Park]] contains examples of [[Byzantine]], [[Moorish]] and Spanish architectural styles. The cemetery was built in 1923 and survived the [[1933 Long Beach earthquake]].<ref name="history">{{cite web |url=http://www.comptoncity.org/index.php/Historical-Landmarks/heritage-house.htm |title=Heritage House &#124; Historical Landmarks |publisher=Comptoncity.org |access-date=August 29, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100831003623/http://www.comptoncity.org/index.php/Historical-Landmarks/heritage-house.htm |archive-date=August 31, 2010 }}</ref>

[[Compton/Woodley Airport|Compton Airport]] opened on May 10, 1924.<ref name=LAMag/> Located on [[Alondra Boulevard]], the airport offers flight training, has accommodations for more than 200 planes, and is home to several aviation clubs.<ref name="history"/>

The [[Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial (Compton)|Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial]] sits in a plaza surrounded by the Civic Center, Compton Court House, Compton City Hall, and Compton Public Library.<ref name="history 2">{{cite web |url=http://www.comptoncity.org/index.php/Historical-Landmarks/dr-martin-luther-king-jr-memorial.htm |title=Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial |publisher=Comptoncity.org |access-date=September 3, 2020 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100724031600/http://www.comptoncity.org/index.php/Historical-Landmarks/dr-martin-luther-king-jr-memorial.htm |archive-date=July 24, 2010 }}</ref>

The [[Eagle Tree]] is a natural boundary marker of [[Rancho San Pedro]] dating to 1858. It contains a historic marker and plaque placed by the [[Daughters of the Golden West]] in 1947.<ref name="history"/><ref>{{cite news |title=Compton's Historic Tree Has Fallen Far From Glory Days |date=November 15, 1987 |first=Terry |last=Spencer |newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]] |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1987-11-15-hl-21044-story.html |access-date=February 29, 2016 |archive-date=March 6, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160306084015/http://articles.latimes.com/1987-11-15/news/hl-21044_1_eagle-tree |url-status=live}}</ref>

The '[[Heritage House (Compton, California)|Heritage House]]' was built in 1869 and is a [[California Historical Landmark]], and a Los Angeles County Historic Landmark.<ref name="history" /> The oldest house in Compton, it was restored as a tribute to early settlers. It is an important landmark of Compton's rich history. At the corner of Myrrh and Willowbrook near the Civic Center Plaza, the Heritage House is a rustic-looking home that will eventually have a museum detailing early life in Compton. For now it shows the stark difference between the simple life of the 19th century and the fast-paced urban environment of the 21st.<ref name="history"/> The oldest tree in Compton was the [[Eagle Tree]], which marked the boundary of [[Rancho San Pedro]]. It fell in 2022.

[[Woodlawn Memorial Park (Compton, California)|Woodlawn Memorial Park]] contains the graves of 17 American Civil War veterans.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Brown |first=Kailyn |date=May 16, 2021 |title=In Compton, the fate of a cemetery hangs in the balance |url=https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2021-05-16/in-compton-the-fate-of-a-cemetery-hangs-in-the-balance |url-status=live |access-date=May 18, 2021 |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US |archive-date=May 18, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210518035045/https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2021-05-16/in-compton-the-fate-of-a-cemetery-hangs-in-the-balance}}</ref>

==Government==

===Municipal government===
After [[Lionel Cade]], an accountant, assumed the mayor's office in 1977, one of the first orders of business was to conduct an audit of the city's finances. It was discovered that the city was $2 million in debt. The administration was able to eliminate the huge deficit in one year by making cuts in every department. It also aggressively sought federal funding to help pay for essential services, which was at least partially effective. However, with the passage of the property tax cutting initiative [[Proposition 13]] by California voters, Compton was one of the cities hardest hit, since it had already eliminated most of the excess from its budget.<ref>William A. Fischel [http://www.dartmouth.edu/~wfischel/Papers/Martin%20comment%20feb09.pdf Serrano and Proposition 13: Comment on Isaac Martin, "Does School Finance Litigation Cause Taxpayer Revolt"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121017232834/http://www.dartmouth.edu/~wfischel/Papers/Martin%20comment%20feb09.pdf |date=October 17, 2012 }}, Dartmouth College, 2009</ref>

====Corruption====
Civic [[Political corruption|corruption]] has also been a widespread problem in Compton.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://articles.latimes.com/1990/oct/25 |work=The Los Angeles Times |title=Popular Articles & Stories for October 25, 1990 – Los Angeles Times |access-date=April 16, 2020 |archive-date=February 16, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180216103949/http://articles.latimes.com/1990/oct/25 |url-status=dead}}</ref> 

In 2000, the [[Compton Police Department]] was disbanded amidst controversy and charges of corruption. The police department claims it was disbanded after investigations of gang activity led to then-Compton Mayor [[Omar Bradley (California politician)|Omar Bradley]]. Once this became public, the mayor charged it was the police who were themselves corrupt, and he disbanded the police department. Omar Bradley has since faced serious corruption charges.<ref>[http://www.blackpressusa.com/news/Article.asp?SID=3&Title=National+News&NewsID=2776 Former Compton Mayor among Five Officials Arrested after Probe] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081206051559/http://www.blackpressusa.com/news/Article.asp?SID=3&Title=National+News&NewsID=2776 |date=December 6, 2008 }}. ''BlackPressUSA''</ref> 

[[Eric J. Perrodin]], the city's former mayor, was investigated in 2007 by the California State Bar for threatening to violate a local newspaper's First Amendment rights after the paper printed an investigative report relative to a contract granted to one of Perrodin's associates. Following the report, Perrodin threatened to yank the city's advertising contract with the paper.<ref>[http://www.metnews.com/articles/2006/bull063006.htm District Attorney's Office Probing Prosecutor Over Alleged Threats] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091019111852/http://www.metnews.com/articles/2006/bull063006.htm |date=October 19, 2009 }}. "Metropolitan News-Enterprise".</ref> A Times review of city records shows Perrodin was absent from city board and commission meetings nearly two-thirds of the time between July 2009 and July 2010.<ref name=AP>{{cite news |title=Compton council fires city manager |quote=Charles Evans is the second top administrator to be fired in three years. Mayor Eric Perrodin says the top priority for a new city manager will be to reestablish a local police department in Compton. |date=September 9, 2010 |first=Abby |last=Sewell |newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]] |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2010-sep-09-la-me-0909-compton-20100909-story.html |access-date=February 29, 2016 |archive-date=March 6, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160306073801/http://articles.latimes.com/2010/sep/09/local/la-me-0909-compton-20100909 |url-status=live}}</ref>

Current recall efforts are a direct response from residents of the accusations of corruption of the city's mayor and council. Some of the accusations involve the issuing of city contracts to personal donors and friends. One particular accusation involved the trash and recycling contract of the city to [[Pacific Coast Waste and Recycling]] LLC in 2007.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.thecomptonbulletin.com/series1/index.html |title=Archived copy |website=www.thecomptonbulletin.com |access-date=January 11, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200113082845/http://www.thecomptonbulletin.com/series1/index.html |archive-date=January 13, 2020 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

Notices of intent to circulate recall petitions against four Compton city officials are expected to be filed in August 2010, by a group of citizens who claim corruption in Compton is being ignored by the same authorities who were shocked by the recent salary controversy in the city of [[Bell, California|Bell]].<ref>{{cite web |author=BETTY PLEASANT |url=http://www.wavenewspapers.com/opinion/Bottom-Line-In-Compton-recall-paperwork-soon-to-land-on-the-desks-of-top-city-officials-101040384.html |title=Bottom Line: In Compton, recall paperwork soon to land on the desks of top city officials |publisher=Wavenewspapers.com |date=August 18, 2010 |access-date=August 30, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100823002147/http://www.wavenewspapers.com/opinion/Bottom-Line-In-Compton-recall-paperwork-soon-to-land-on-the-desks-of-top-city-officials-101040384.html |archive-date=August 23, 2010 }}</ref>

Compton had discharged its city manager, in 2010, the second time in three years. ''The Los Angeles Times'' says the City Council voted in a closed meeting, September 9, 2010, to fire Charles Evans. ''The Times'' says council members refused to discuss the reasons for their decision. Evans took office in 2007, after the dismissal of previous City Manager Barbara Kilroy. City Controller Willie Norfleet will take over until a permanent manager can be named.<ref name=AP/>

In July 2021, U.S. Representative [[Maxine Waters]] called for a [[United States Department of Justice|Department of Justice]] inquiry into whether a [[Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department#Deputy gangs|deputy gang]] called the [[Compton Executioners|Executioners]] was operating out of the Compton station of the [[Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department|LASD]].<ref name="LATimesWaters">{{cite web |last=Tchekmedyian |first=Alene |date=July 21, 2021 |title=Rep. Waters, who was accused of providing inside information and support for her husband, a powerful banker, during the economic recovery post the 2008 market crash. Waters seeks federal probe of L.A. County deputies' alleged Executioners gang |url=https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2021-07-21/maxine-waters-requests-sheriffs-department-compton-executioners-investigation |url-status=live |access-date=August 11, 2021 |website=[[Los Angeles Times]] |language=en-US |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210721191202/https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2021-07-21/maxine-waters-requests-sheriffs-department-compton-executioners-investigation |archive-date=July 21, 2021}}</ref>

===State and federal representation===
In the [[California State Legislature|state legislature]], Compton is in {{Representative|casd|35|fmt=sdistrict}}, and in {{Representative|caad|65|fmt=adistrict}}.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://statewidedatabase.org/gis/gis2011/index_2011.html |title=Statewide Database |publisher=UC Regents |access-date=November 21, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150201113744/http://statewidedatabase.org/gis/gis2011/index_2011.html |archive-date=February 1, 2015 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

In the [[United States House of Representatives|U.S. House of Representatives]], Compton is in {{Representative|cacd|43|fmt=district}}.<ref>{{Cite GovTrack|CA|43}}</ref>

==Education==
[[File:Centennial High School.jpg|thumb|left|[[Centennial High School (Compton, California)|Centennial High School]]]]
The city is served by [[Compton Unified School District]].<ref name="education">{{cite web |url=http://www.comptoncity.org/index.php/About-Compton/education-system.htm |title=Education System &#124; About Compton |publisher=Comptoncity.org |access-date=August 29, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100831003724/http://www.comptoncity.org/index.php/About-Compton/education-system.htm |archive-date=August 31, 2010 }}</ref> All of Compton is in CUSD, except for a small sliver of land<!--See the hook--> in the [[Paramount Unified School District]].<ref name=LACountycensusSDmap2020>{{cite web|url=https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/DC2020/PL20/st06_ca/schooldistrict_maps/c06037_los_angeles/DC20SD_C06037.pdf|title=2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Los Angeles County, CA|publisher=[[U.S. Census Bureau]]|page=10 (PDF p. 11/19)|access-date=November 23, 2023}}</ref> The CUSD district is a participant of the FOCUS program conducted by the [[University of California, Irvine]]. The goals of the program are to improve mathematics and science achievement by uniting the efforts of mathematics, science, education and research library faculty and staff with educators of the school district.<ref>[http://focus.web.uci.edu/smarts/participants.php FOCUS Program Participants] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060914085418/http://focus.web.uci.edu/smarts/participants.php |date=September 14, 2006 }}. FOCUS at UCI</ref>

The CUSD provides public education for grades K–12. The district operates 24 elementary schools, eight middle schools, three high schools, and one adult school, which also serves as an alternative school. The district maintains five alternative learning schools.<ref name="education"/>

The four high schools of the CUSD are [[Centennial High School (Compton, California)|Centennial High School]], Compton Early College High School,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://cechs-compton-ca.schoolloop.com/ |title=Compton Early College High School: Home Page |website=cechs-compton-ca.schoolloop.com |language=en |access-date=January 29, 2018 |archive-date=January 29, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180129141238/https://cechs-compton-ca.schoolloop.com/ |url-status=live}}</ref> [[Dominguez High School]], and [[Compton High School]].<ref name="education"/>

The city is also served by [[Compton College]], which offers community college courses for those planning to enter a four-year degree program, as well as those seeking further education in specific trade fields.<ref name="education"/>

The Compton Library offers adult, children's and Spanish language materials; reference services; a Literacy Center and a Homework Center; public computers with Internet access and word processing capabilities; public typewriters; and a bilingual story time every Saturday at 12:00 noon.<ref name="education"/>

Occidental's Center for Food and Justice and its Compton Farm-to-School project were featured in a segment of ''Life and Times'', a half-hour news program on [[PBS]] member television station [[KCET]] in Los Angeles.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.oxy.edu/x2948.xml |title=Occidental College :: Oxy in the News |publisher=Oxy.edu |date=June 22, 2005 |access-date=February 7, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110310202324/http://www.oxy.edu/x2948.xml |archive-date=March 10, 2011 }}</ref>

Barack Obama Charter School is a kindergarten through sixth grade public charter school.<ref name=LAMag>{{cite news |url=http://www.lamag.com/citythinkblog/15-other-things-straight-outta-compton/ |title=15 Other Things Straight Outta Compton |work=[[Los Angeles Magazine]] |date=August 7, 2015 |first=Kyle |last=Fitzpatrick |access-date=September 30, 2015 |archive-date=October 1, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151001143000/http://www.lamag.com/citythinkblog/15-other-things-straight-outta-compton/ |url-status=live}}</ref>

==Infrastructure==
The [[Los Angeles County Department of Health Services]] operates the South Health Center in [[Watts, Los Angeles, California|Watts]], [[Los Angeles]], serving Compton.<ref>"[http://publichealth.lacounty.gov/phn/docs/HealthCenter/southla.pdf South Health Center] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100527190511/http://publichealth.lacounty.gov/phn/docs/HealthCenter/southla.pdf |date=May 27, 2010 }}." [[Los Angeles County Department of Health Services]]. Retrieved on March 18, 2010.</ref>

The [[United States Postal Service]] operates the Compton Post Office at 701 South Santa Fe Avenue,<ref>"[https://archive.today/20120723011312/http://usps.whitepages.com/service/post_office/14296?p=1&s=CA&service_name=post_office&z=Compton Post Office Location – COMPTON]." [[United States Postal Service]]. Retrieved on December 6, 2008.</ref> the Hub City Post Office at 101 South Willowbrook Avenue,<ref>"[https://archive.today/20130210144733/http://usps.whitepages.com/service/post_office/27401?p=1&s=CA&service_name=post_office&z=Compton]." United States Postal Service. Retrieved on December 6, 2008.</ref> and the Fashion Square Post Office at 2100 North Long Beach Boulevard.<ref>"[https://archive.today/20120715115240/http://usps.whitepages.com/service/post_office/64676?p=1&s=CA&service_name=post_office&z=Compton Post Office Location – FASHION SQUARE]." ''[[United States Postal Service]]''. Retrieved on December 6, 2008.</ref> <!--The Willowbrook PO is NOT in Compton - it is in Willowbrook, uninc. LA County, California-->

===Law enforcement===
The [[Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department]] operates the Compton Station in Compton.<ref>"[http://www.lasd.org/stations/for2/compton/index.html Compton Station] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090223134347/http://www.lasd.org/stations/for2/compton/index.html |date=February 23, 2009 }}." [[Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department]]. Retrieved on January 21, 2010.</ref> When the LASD replaced the [[Compton Police Department]] in 2000,<ref name=Gateway>{{cite web |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2008-mar-31-me-compton31-story.html |title=Compton feeling good: A shopping center with several national retail chains gives a self-esteem boost to a city branded as poor and crime-ridden. |date=March 31, 2008 |first=Paloma |last=Esquivel |newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]] |access-date=February 29, 2016 |archive-date=March 6, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160306073343/http://articles.latimes.com/2008/mar/31/local/me-compton31 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=AP/> they increased patrol service hours from 127,410 to 141,692. Compton Station is centrally located in the Los Angeles area. The station is easily accessible from the Century Freeway (I-105) to the north, the Gardena Freeway (SR-91) to the south, the Harbor Freeway (I-110) to the west, and the Long Beach Freeway (I-710) to the east. Diane Walker, a 30-year veteran of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, was promoted to the rank of captain by Sheriff [[Lee Baca]], and is now commander of Compton Station.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.la-sheriff.org/stations/for2/compton/index.html |title=Los Angeles County Sheriff's Dept. – Compton Station |publisher=La-sheriff.org |access-date=August 30, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101125033218/http://la-sheriff.org/stations/for2/compton/index.html |archive-date=November 25, 2010 }}</ref> There is also a LASD substation located in the Gateway Town Center.<ref name="SD" />

===Transportation===
[[File:HSY- Los Angeles Metro, Compton, Platform View.jpg|thumb|left|Compton station of the [[Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority|LA Metro]]]]
[[File:COMPTON AIRPORT 2.jpg|thumb|upright|Compton/Woodley Airport]]
Four freeways are within or near the city's boundaries and provide access to destinations throughout the region. [[Interstate 710 (California)|Interstate 710]] runs through the eastern boundary, [[California State Route 91|State Route 91]] runs through the southern boundary. [[Interstate 105 (California)|Interstate 105]] runs slightly along the north of the city, and [[Interstate 110 (California)|Interstate 110]] along to the west.

The [[A Line (Los Angeles Metro)|Metro A Line]] (formerly the Blue Line) [[light rail]] runs north–south through Compton. [[Compton (LACMTA station)|Compton station]] is in the heart of the city, adjacent to the Renaissance Shopping Center. [[Artesia (LACMTA station)|Artesia station]] serves the southern part of the city. The A Line connects Compton to [[downtown Los Angeles]] and downtown Long Beach.

There is also a [[List of small Southern California transit agencies#Compton Renaissance Transit|Compton Renaissance Transit System]] that serves the area.<ref name=LAMag/>

[[Compton/Woodley Airport]] is a small [[general aviation]] [[airport]] located in the city. The airport lies within busy airspace, as it is situated within a few miles of both [[Los Angeles International Airport]] and [[Long Beach Airport]].

[[Greyhound Lines]] operates the Compton station.

Collectively, these multifaceted transportation links lend justification to the city's familiar nickname of "the Hub City."<ref name=LAMag/><ref name="comptoncity.org"/>

From 1902 to 1961, Compton was served by the [[Pacific Electric]] [[Long Beach Line]].

==Notable people==
{{Main listing|List of people from Compton, California}}

==Sister cities==
On January 19, 2010, the Compton City Council passed a resolution creating a [[sister cities]] program,<ref name=Sistercities>{{cite web |url=http://www.comptonsistercities.org/ |title=Sister Cities of Compton |publisher=comptonsistercities.org |access-date=July 2, 2013 |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160123040049/http://www.comptonsistercities.org/ |archive-date=January 23, 2016 }}</ref> to be managed as a chapter of the Compton Chamber of Commerce. The city has established partnerships:
*{{flagicon|SAM}} [[Apia]], Samoa (2010)<ref name=LAMag/>
*{{flagicon|NGR}} [[Onitsha]], Nigeria (2010)<ref name=LAMag/>
*{{flagicon|SPA}} [[Torrejon de Ardoz]], Spain (2010)

==See also==
{{Portal|Greater Los Angeles}}
* [[South Los Angeles]]
* [[Shooting of Deandre Brunston]]

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==Further reading==
* Adams, Emily, "[https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-08-03-me-4550-story.html Bush's Compton Roots Raise Thorny Issue]," ''Los Angeles Times'', August 3, 1992, page B-1
* McClave, Stuart ([[University of Southern California]] [[University of Southern California Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism|Annenberg School for Communication]] journalism major). "[https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2009-may-19-oe-mcclave19-story.html Compton: Who should govern?]" (Opinion). ''[[Los Angeles Times]]''. April 3, 2014.
* Miller, Gary J., ''Cities by Contract: The Politics of Municipal Incorporation'', The MIT Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts and London, England, 1981
* Gould, Lewis L. (editor), ''American First Ladies: Their Lives and Their Legacy'', Garland Publishing, New York and London, 1996. See pages 612–613 regarding the Bush family's "nomadic" existence in the cities of [[Huntington Park, California|Huntington Park]], [[Bakersfield, California|Bakersfield]], [[Whittier, California|Whittier]], [[Ventura, California|Ventura]] and Compton, [[California]].
* Straus, Emily E., ''Death of a Suburban Dream: Race and Schools in Compton, California.'' Philadelphia, PA: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2014.

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Wikivoyage|Compton}}
{{Commons category|Compton, California}}
* {{official website|http://www.comptoncity.org/}}

{{Geographic Location
|Center    = [[Downtown Compton]]
|North     = [[Willowbrook, California|Willowbrook]]
|Northeast = [[Lynwood, California|Lynwood]]
|East      = [[East Rancho Dominguez, California|East Rancho Dominguez]]
|Southeast = [[Long Beach, California|Long Beach]]
|Southwest = [[Carson, California|Carson]]
|South     = [[Rancho Dominguez, California|Rancho Dominguez]]
|West      = [[West Compton, California|West Compton]]
|Northwest = [[Willowbrook, California|Willowbrook]]
}}
{{Compton, California}}
{{Cities of Los Angeles County, California}}
{{Greater Los Angeles Area}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Bloods]]
[[Category:Compton, California| ]]
[[Category:Crips]]
[[Category:Cities in Los Angeles County, California]]
[[Category:Gateway Cities]]
[[Category:Incorporated cities and towns in California]]
[[Category:California Enterprise Zones]]
[[Category:1888 establishments in California]]
[[Category:Populated places established in 1888]]
[[Category:N.W.A]]
[[Category:Chicano and Mexican neighborhoods in California]]
[[Category:African-American culture]]