“Imperial” refers to Imperial County. The road is named thus because it was part of a grand scheme, set in motion in 1929, to expedite the transport of Imperial County’s fresh produce to Angelenos along a 220 mile paved thoroughfare between El Centro and El Segundo. The saga of Imperial Highway is convoluted and somewhat wonky, but the short version is that it was finally completed in December 1961 – only to have various segments lose the Imperial name. In Los Angeles, portions of 114th Street and 116th Street were renamed Imperial Highway in 1930 and 1931, respectively. The road keeps its name for 41 miles until it reaches the city of Orange, whereupon it becomes Cannon Street. Imperial County owes its own name to newsman/subdivider Luther M. Holt (1840-1920), who’s honored with a street in Pomona.
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