El Sobrante, California

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

El Sobrante is a census-designated place (CDP) in Contra Costa County, California, United States. The population was 12,260 at the 2000 census. Its name literally means 'the leftover' in Spanish.

Contents 1 Geography 2 Demographics 3 Errata 3.1 Music 4 External links

[edit] Geography

El Sobrante is located at 37°58′7″N, 122°17′45″W (37.968535, -122.295883)^GR1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 8.0 km² (3.1 mi²), all land.

El Sobrante lies within unincorporated Contra Costa County. Main roads include San Pablo Dam Road (a major road that runs from Richmond and San Pablo southeast past EBMUD's San Pablo Dam and San Pablo Reservoir to Orinda), Valley View Road and Appian Way. San Pablo Dam Road and Appian Way both connect to Interstate 80 to the west.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there were 12,260 people, 4,676 households, and 3,170 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 1,527.0/km² (3,953.1/mi²). There were 4,803 housing units at an average density of 598.2/km² (1,548.7/mi²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 60.35% White, 12.16% Black or African American, 0.67% Native American, 12.50% Asian, 0.29% Pacific Islander, 6.97% from other races, and 7.06% from two or more races. 15.58% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 4,676 households out of which 32.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.6% were married couples living together, 14.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.2% were non-families. 24.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.61 and the average family size was 3.11.

In the CDP the population was spread out with 24.7% under the age of 18, 7.3% from 18 to 24, 31.0% from 25 to 44, 25.2% from 45 to 64, and 11.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 94.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.2 males.

The median income for a household in the CDP was $48,272, and the median income for a family was $59,342. Males had a median income of $44,232 versus $34,661 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $24,525. About 6.6% of families and 9.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.5% of those under age 18 and 10.7% of those age 65 or over.

El Sobrante is also home to a growing Sikh population, one of the largest in the San Francisco Bay Area and western United States. The center of the Sikh community is the Gurdwara Sahib Temple (known for its large golden dome) which sits high in the hills above San Pablo Dam Road.

[edit] Errata

According to Les Claypool (Primus), the definition of an El Sobrante fortnight is somewhere between two weeks and a decade.

[edit] Music

Famous musicians such as Kirk Hammett of Metallica and Exodus, Les Claypool of Primus, and Ler LaLonde of Primus and Possessed, Jason Beebout of Sam I Am and Isocracy and John Kiffmeyer of Green Day and Isocracy all grew up in El Sobrante, and most of them attended De Anza High School. Not surprisingly, many of these musicians have close ties. Hammett and Claypool were friends as children. LaLonde was a founding member of death metal pioneers Possessed, who toured with Metallica before joining Claypool in Primus, and Claypool auditioned to join Metallica; however Claypool was turned down because his style was too funky for Metallica. Also, former Green Day drummer John Kiffmeyer took his stage name, "Al Sobrante" from the town.

[edit] External links

• Bay Area Storytelling Festival Annual storytelling festival in May
• Maps and aerial photos Coordinates: 37.968535° -122.295883°
  • 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
• Gurdwara Sahib Temple