William May Garland was born in Westport, Maine on March 31, 1866. He came to Los Angeles in 1890 and secured employment as the auditor of the Pacific Cable Railway Company, a position which he maintained until 1894, when he most likely became bored, and decided to start working in Los Angeles land sales.
Two short years after entering land sales, in 1896, Garland began the development of the Wilshire Boulevard Tract and was responsible for making it one of the finest early residential districts in Los Angeles. He also specialized in downtown properties. He developed the Garland Tract and the Garland Tract Extension.
Mr. Garland was responsible for coining the word “Realtor” which has come to personify the profession. He served three terms as President of the Los Angeles Realty Board and two terms as President of the National Association of Real Estate Boards.
During World War I he represented the National Association as a Dollar-a-Year Man at Washington, D.C.
In 1923 Garland was the Pacific Coast delegate to the International Olympic Committee. While in Rome he secured the 1932 celebration of the Olympiad for the United States. It took place in the Coliseum which was built by the Community Development Association of which Mr. Garland was President.
