Downey, city, Los Angeles County, southwestern California, between the Rio Hondo and the San Gabriel River, near Los Angeles; incorporated 1956. Manufactures include aerospace and electrical equipment, metal products, and rubber goods. The city is home to many medical and healthcare facilities as well as the Downey Museum of Art. The community, laid out in 1873 with the arrival of the railroad, was an agricultural center until the late 1940s. It is named for John G. Downey, governor of California from 1860 to 1862. Population (1980) 82,602; (1990) 91,444 93,653 (1998 estimate).
