Who was Lewis of Garden Grove's Lewis Street?

Detail from 1922 USGS Garden Grove topographical map.

Lewis Street in Anaheim and Garden Grove was originally called “Lewis Road, or perhaps Lewis Ranch Road,” according to the late great local historian, Phil Brigandi. He said the name is tied to rancher Harry W. Lewis, who was secretary and one of the incorporators of the Dawn Land Company. This company subdivided the Dawn Tract in West Orange in 1912. The Dawn Tract today includes UCI Medical Center (originally Orange County Hospital and Poor Farm), a number of other government facilities, most of The Outlets at Orange, Christ Cathedral (formerly the Crystal Cathedral), a portion of Lewis Street, and more. Phil speculated that Frank N. Lewis, who lived near the Dawn Tract, may have been Harry’s brother. 

The Lewis Street name was clearly in use by 1922. Looking at old maps, it appears it stretched across Highway 101 for some years until the highway became the I-5 Freeway, at which point the street was cut in two.

The Dawn Tract map, 1912

Harry W. Lewis lived at 1770 E. 4th St. in Tustin with his wife, Lena, and children. On his ranch, he primarily grew walnuts and apricots, but also peaches, pumpkins, and sweet potatoes. Born in Ohio in 1873, Lewis’ formal education ended after his first year of high school. Still, he became president of the Santa Ana Walnut Growers Association and a director of the California Walnut Growers' Association. He also served as secretary of the Orange County Grand Jury, was a key figure in fundraising for the new Santa Ana YMCA building (which still stands) and was extremely active in the First Presbyterian Church of Santa Ana. Lewis died in Orange County in 1945.

In December 2005, -- just weeks before the Rev. Robert Schuller’s retirement –Crystal Cathedral Ministries tried to change the name of part of Lewis Street to Crystal Cathedral Street. There was discussion before the City Council regarding who, exactly, would pay for the name change. It’s said that members of the Lewis family also stepped forward to protest the change. In any case, the name change never happened.

The Crystal Cathedral (now Christ Cathedral) campus, circa 1980s.

[A version of this article first appeared in the March 2017 edition of OCHS’ County Courier.]