The park was named for Martha McLean, an activist who worked with her friend Ruth Anderson to save the Santa Ana River from being channelized, as proposed by the US Army Corps of Engineers in the 1960s [REF].
The park is located at a section of the Santa Ana River referred to as the Anza Narrows, in reference to the crossing point where the Juan Bautista de Anza Expedition crossed the river in 1774 and 1776 [REF].