Coalinga, California

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Coalinga is a city in Fresno County, California, United States. The population was 11,668 at the 2000 census and 17,080 as of 2005, according to the Coalinga Chamber of Commerce Web site. On May 2, 1983, the town was heavily damaged by a 6.5 magnitude earthquake.

Contents 1 Geography 2 Demographics 3 Name 4 Claims to Fame 5 External links

[edit] Geography

Coalinga is located at 36°8′27″N, 120°21′30″W (36.140734, -120.358301)^GR1 in Fresno County, California and is sixty miles southwest of the city of Fresno.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 15.4 km² (6.0 mi²). 15.4 km² (5.9 mi²) of it is land and 0.1 km² (0.04 mi²) of it (0.34%) is water.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there were 11,668 people, 3,515 households, and 2,632 families residing in the city. The population density was 758.4/km² (1,963.4/mi²). There were 3,848 housing units at an average density of 250.1/km² (647.5/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 57.31% White, 2.37% Black or African American, 1.52% Native American, 1.65% Asian, 0.24% Pacific Islander, 32.30% from other races, and 4.61% from two or more races. 49.80% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 3,515 households out of which 47.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.2% were married couples living together, 13.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.1% were non-families. 20.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.09 and the average family size was 3.59.

In the city the population was spread out with 33.2% under the age of 18, 11.4% from 18 to 24, 31.1% from 25 to 44, 15.8% from 45 to 64, and 8.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 29 years. For every 100 females there were 108.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 109.4 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $38,133, and the median income for a family was $41,208. Males had a median income of $41,129 versus $29,088 for females. The per capita income for the city was $14,425. About 16.4% of families and 20.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 26.0% of those under age 18 and 7.9% of those age 65 or over.

The Coalinga Chamber of Commerce Web site claims a population of 17,080 in 2005.

[edit] Name

In the early years of railroading, before the extensive development of oil production in California, the steam locomotives were powered by the burning of coal obtained from the northern foothills of Mount Diablo. Various stations for the provision of water and coal were stationed along the routes. On this particular route the stations were named alphabetically Coaling A, Coaling B, etc. Of the villages around these stations, only Coaling A remains. Locals call the city "the boomtown that lived." One theory regarding the name Coalinga was that "Coaling A" retained its name as the exotic sounding Coalinga (pronounced coa-ling-ga, the first 'g' soft, the second hard), which could pass as Nahuatl for "place of snakes" but is more likely related to the coal industry that started the city in the first place.

Today, the city's main industries are agriculture and incarceration. The city is home to Pleasant Valley State Prison and Coalinga State Hospital.

[edit] Claims to Fame

Coalinga made national news on May 2, 1983, as the site of an earthquake that destroyed more than 800 homes and other buildings, and was felt as far away as Los Angeles and western Nevada. That temblor is known as the Coalinga Earthquake. The 1983 earthquake came as a surprise because active faults are quite remote from this coal town. Many buildings such as the PG & E building are made of unreinforced masonry and suffered major damage. After the earthquake shirts were sold, one saying "I survived the coalinga eartquake" and the other said "Where the hell is Coalinga?"

The city is the birthplace of major league ballplayer Frenchy Bordagaray.

Coalinga is also home to California's first new mental health hospital in more than 50 years: a 1500-bed facility built specifically to house sexually violent predators (SVPs). Coalinga State Hospital opened in September 2005 and is currently hiring aggressively to fill the facility, which may have a boosting effect on the city of Coalinga's population.

The members of the Death Metal band Faxed Head are residents of Coalinga.

Flesh-n-Bone, A member of the popular rap-group Bone Thugs-N-Harmony is currently being held at Pleasant Valley State Prison, in Coalinga.

Coalinga held the first practical demonstration for reverse osmosis.

[edit] External links

• Maps and aerial photos Coordinates: 36.140734° -120.358301°
  • Street map from Google Maps, or Yahoo! Maps, or Windows Live Local
  • Satellite image from Google Maps, Windows Live Local, WikiMapia
  • Topographic map from TopoZone
  • Aerial image or topographic map from TerraServer-USA