Calaveras County, California Totally Explained

Everything about Calaveras County California totally explained

Calaveras County is a county located in the Gold Country of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2000 census, it had a population of 40,554. The county seat is San Andreas. Angels Camp is its only incorporated city. Calaveras Big Trees State Park, a preserve of Giant Sequoia trees, is located in the county several miles east of the town of Arnold on state highway 4. The uncommon gold telluride mineral calaverite is named for the county. Mark Twain set his story, "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County", in the county. Each year, the county hosts its County Fair and Jumping Frog Jubilee, featuring a frog jumping contest, to celebrate the association with Twain's story. The celebrated California red-legged frog, feared absent from the county by 1969, was rediscovered in 2003.

History

Calaveras County was one of the original counties of California, created in 1850 at the time of statehood. Parts of the county's territory were given to Amador County in 1854 and to Alpine County in 1864.
The Spanish word calaveras means "skulls." This county takes its name from the Calaveras River which was reportedly so designated by Spanish explorer Gabriel Moraga when he found, on the banks of the stream, many skulls of Native Americans who had either died of famine or had been killed in tribal conflicts over hunting and fishing grounds.
Calaveras County isn't without historical significance. Mark Twain spent many of his writing years there. Its geography features beautiful landmarks, rolling hills, and giant valleys. It is also know for its friendly communities, and businesses such as agriculture management and construction engineering. It is filled with caverns that attract tourists from around the country.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,037 square miles (2,685 km²), of which, 1,020 square miles (2,642 km²) of it's land and 17 square miles (44 km²) of it (1.62%) is water. A California Department of Forestry report lists the county's area in acres as 663,000, although the exact figure would be . There are a number of caverns located in Calaveras County.

Cities and towns

Special Districts

Special districts in Calaveras County include:

Altaville-Melones Fire District

Angels Camp Fire District

Bret Harte Union High School District

Calaveras County Air Pollution Control District

Calaveras Unified School District

Central Calaveras Fire and Rescue Protection District

Copperopolis Fire Protection District

Ebbetts Pass Fire Protection District

Foothill Fire District

Jenny Lind Fire District

Mark Twain Union Elementary School District

Mokelumne Hill Fire District

Murphys Fire District

San Andreas Fire District

Vallecito Union Elementary School District

Valley Springs Public Utilities District

West Point Fire District.

Adjacent counties

Stanislaus County, California - southwest

San Joaquin County, California - west

Amador County, California - north

Alpine County, California - northeast

Tuolumne County, California - south, southeast

Transportation Infrastructure

Major highways

State Route 4

State Route 12

State Route 26

State Route 49

Public Transportation

Calaveras Transit provides service in Angels Camp, San Andreas, and other communities in the county. Intercounty connections are available to Columbia (Tuolumne County), Jackson (El Dorado County) and Lodi (San Joaquin County)

Airports

Calaveras County Airport is a general aviation airport located just southeast of San Andreas.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 40,554 people, 16,469 households, and 11,742 families residing in the county. The population density was 40 people per square mile (15/km²). There were 22,946 housing units at an average density of 22 per square mile (9/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 91.19% White, 0.75% Black or African American, 1.74% Native American, 0.85% Asian, 0.09% Pacific Islander, 2.07% from other races, and 3.31% from two or more races. 6.82% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 15.7% were of German, 13.0% English, 10.7% Irish, 7.4% Italian and 7.0% American ancestry according to Census 2000. 94.5% spoke English and 4.0% Spanish as their first language.
   There were 16,469 households out of which 26.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.9% were married couples living together, 8.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.7% were non-families. 23.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 2.85.
   In the county the population was spread out with 22.8% under the age of 18, 5.5% from 18 to 24, 22.4% from 25 to 44, 31.1% from 45 to 64, and 18.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females there were 98.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.7 males.
   The median income for a household in the county was $41,022, and the median income for a family was $47,379. Males had a median income of $41,827 versus $28,108 for females. The per capita income for the county was $21,420. About 8.7% of families and 11.80% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.6% of those under age 18 and 6.2% of those age 65 or over.

Major Employers

The major Calaveras County employers include: 250-499 employees:

Bear Valley Ski Area

Forestry & Fire Protection

Mark Twain St. Joseph's Hospital 100-249 employees:

Brett Harte High School

Ironstone Vineyards

Jenny Lind High School

Mark Twain Convalscent Hospital

Mountain Machinery

Politics

Presidential election results>

Year	GOP	DEM	Others
2004	60.9% 13,601	37.1% 8,286	2.0% 456
2000	56.1% 10,599	37.6% 7,093	6.3% 1,184
1996	48.1% 8,279	38.6% 6,646	13.3% 2,281
1992	35.3% 6,006	35.3% 5,989	29.4% 4,996
1988	56.3% 7,640	41.8% 5,674	1.9% 260
1984	64.3% 7,632	34.4% 4,081	1.3% 164
1980	58.9% 6,054	29.9% 3,076	11.2% 1,145
1976	49.1% 3,695	47.9% 3,607	3.0% 226
1972	60.8% 4,119	33.5% 2,268	5.7% 392
1968	52.2% 3,042	36.6% 2,134	11.2% 656
1964	41.6% 2,244	58.3% 3,145	0.1% 8
1960	52.6% 2,820	46.8% 2,509	0.6% 32

Calaveras is a strongly Republican county in Presidential and congressional elections. The last Democrat to win a majority in the county was Lyndon Johnson in 1964.
Calaveras is part of California's 3rd congressional district, which is held by Republican Dan Lungren. In the State Assembly, Calaveras is part of the 25th district, which is held by Republican Tom Berryhill. In the State Senate, Calaveras is part of the 1st district, which is held by Republican Dave Cox.

Further Information

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