Pasadena Will Mark City’s 139th Birthday With Free Festival

Pasadena will celebrate its 139th birthday with a free community festival featuring art activities, live music and birthday cake on June 29.

The Pasadena Museum of History, in partnership with the city, will host “Happy Birthday Pasadena: Cake, Paint, & Party!” from 1 to 4 p.m. at the museum grounds. The event welcomes residents of all ages.

Activities will include hands-on watercolor sessions led by the Pasadena Society of Artists, which is celebrating its own centennial with a “100 Years – 100 Images” exhibition at the museum. Visitors can also join craft workshops, listen to The Jazz Expedition, and compete in Pasadena history trivia contests.

The event will feature interactive water toys, self-guided tours of the 1906 Fényes Mansion and Finnish Folk Art Museum, and a traditional cakewalk. Complimentary birthday cake and popcorn will be available at “Eva’s Sweet Shop.”

Pasadena, incorporated on June 19, 1886, was among the first cities incorporated in what is now Los Angeles County, following only Los Angeles itself. Previous birthday celebrations have featured cake-cutting ceremonies with the mayor and city officials, according to historical reports.

The Pasadena Museum of History, founded in 1924 as the Pasadena Historical Society, celebrated its own 100th anniversary last year. It maintains what it describes as “the area’s largest and most comprehensive collection of documents and artifacts related to the history of Pasadena and the west San Gabriel valley.”

For more information, visit https://pasadenahistory.org/