In 1894, the Union Oil Company purchased 1,200 acres of land to be used for oil development. They struck it rich in 1898 when the first oil well, Olinda Oil Well #1, came in - thus creating an oil boom in the hills of Brea and Olinda and paving the way for the thriving city that Brea is today.
An actual town did not develop until 1911 when businesses and small industries sprang up to serve the oil field workers and their families. The official founding date for the town of Brea is January 19, 1911, when the old map of the town of Randolph was refilled under a new name. The City of Brea became incorporated on February 23, 1917, with a population of 752.
Brea's oil boom lasted until the 1940s. As oil production declined, the next three decades brought new housing developments and businesses to Brea. The 70s saw big changes with the opening of the Brea Mall. The city grew steadily through the years. As oil production declined, the 40s, 50s and 60s brought many new housing developments and new businesses. The 70s saw big changes with the opening of the Orange (57) freeway and the construction of the Brea Mall. Industrial parks and retail areas thrived in Brea during the 70s and 80s, as more and more companies took advantages of the city’s strategic location in the center of So Cal.