On May 2, 1931, the City of Santa Clarita Mayor Emeritus Jo Anne Darcy was born in San Angelo, Texas.

Born Jo Anne Hall, she was brought to California as a child, settling in Los Angeles County. Darcy would end up meeting her husband, Cutis Darcy, and raising four children in Culver City.

Jo Anne worked at TRW as an administrative assistant, and her husband transported beer. Curtis lost his life in 1965 after suffering a major heart attack.

Jo Anne Darcy then moved to Acton in 1967 and took a shift in her working career, reopening the Acton ‘49er saloon as a cook and “bottle washer”.

The family moved once again in the early 1970s to Saugus, where Darcy worked as an assistant manager of the Newhall-Saugus-Valencia Chamber of Commerce. Darcy then quickly started running the chamber and grew their membership exponentially. 

She left the chamber in 1980 and proceeded to serve as the SCV field deputy to the 5th District’s supervisor at the time, Michael D. Antonovich.

During the period when the Santa Clarita population was quickly growing, Darcy shared the chamber’s public affairs and legislative committee, which was the closest thing to local government.

As she took on more responsibilities, she helped launch the Friends of the Libraries group in 1978; she was one of the founders of the Santa Clarita Zonta club and she began the Newhall Walk of Western Stars in 1981.

Darcy was named the Santa Clarita Valley Woman of the Year by the SCV Chamber of Commerce in 1984.

Darcy then served on the Santa Clarita City Council starting in December 1987. While on the city council, she helped start the Domestic Violence Center, began the annual Wine Auction for the Senior Center, and organized the Celebrity Waiter dinner for the American Heart Association.

The county of Los Angeles honored Darcy by naming the Canyon Country library after her as well as memorializing her on the sidewalk of the Newhall Walk of Western Stars.

She served as Santa Clarita mayor four times consecutively, in 1990, 1995, 1999, and 2000. Darcy retired from the city council in April 2002.

Mayoral rotation, Darcy to Boyer, December 1995.

Darcy passed away on October 29, 2017, and left her a 23-year legacy in making Santa Clarita what it is today. 

To read yesterday’s Today in SCV History, click here.

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