Lomita is a small city in Los Angeles County, California, in the South Bay region that stretches along the coast between Los Angeles and the Palos Verdes Peninsula. Incorporated on June 30, 1964, the city takes its name from the Spanish word for "little hill," a reference to the low rise on which much of the community sits. The 2020 census recorded about 20,900 residents. Lomita is bordered by Torrance to the west and north, by the Los Angeles neighborhoods of Harbor City and Wilmington to the east, and by the unincorporated Walteria area and the Palos Verdes Peninsula to the south. Its location places residents minutes from the coast, the Port of Los Angeles, and the open hillsides of Palos Verdes, while the city itself remains distinctly residential in character. The city's best-known landmark is the Lomita Railroad Museum, a steam-era railroad museum opened in 1966 by Irene Lewis on a residential street in the city. The museum displays a steam locomotive, cabooses, and other rolling stock, and it reflects Lomita's pride in a small-town civic identity within the larger metropolis. The city also maintains local parks and a public library, and fire protection is provided by the Los Angeles County Fire Department. Lomita is served by the Los Angeles Unified School District, including Narbonne High School, which serves the city along with the Harbor City area. The community's housing consists largely of established single-family homes on compact lots, giving it a modest, close-knit feel. For residents, Lomita offers a small, walkable city with its own identity, centrally located between the coast, the ports, and the employment centers of the South Bay, and its hillside views and neighborhood-scale streets reinforce the "little hill" character that gives the city its name.