Kings Mountain, California

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Kings Mountain, an unincorporated community in San Mateo County, California, is located along State Route 35 (Skyline Boulevard) between Skeggs Point and Pise Mountain. This is about seven miles north of Woodside Road (SR84). In the U.S. Geological Survey, National Geographic Names Database, the area is identified only as a geographic feature of type "summit" and not as a populated place. Latitude and longitude for the summit feature are 37°26′27″N, 122°19′24″W which falls roughly near the middle of the mass of residences in the community. The community is inside area code 650 and uses the Woodside ZIP Code 94062.

The community derived its name from a former 19th century landmark hotel, the "Kings Mountain Browhouse", run by the Frank King family. Long-time nationally prominent residents include: Birth control pill inventor and novelist, Carl Djerassi; Billionaire investor, Forbes columnist, and local historian Kenneth Fisher; and Rock ‘n Roll legend, Neil Young.

On the Woodside, California 7.5-minute quadrangle, (1997), features supporting the name include Kings Mountain Road and Kings Mountain School. The school, a K-5 institution, is operated by Cabrillo School District of Half Moon Bay. The latitude and longitude for the school are listed in the National Geographic Names Database as 37°25′14″N, 122°19′24″W. Variant names for the school include Kings Mountain Primary (U.S. Department of Education) and Kings Mountain Elementary School (local fundraising documents).

County government documents also identify a Kings Mountain Fire Station and Community Center at 13899 Skyline Boulevard. This is between Kings Mountain Road and Pise Mountain.

An annual art fair is held, usually on the first weekend of September, to raise funds for the school and purchase equipment for the volunteer firefighters. A breakfast and lunch are served to raise money. The first Kings Mountain Art Fair was held in 1963.

The community is encircled by government reservations. The San Francisco Peninsula Watershed, owned by the City and County of San Francisco, is north. East of the community is Huddart County Park and the adjoining Phleger Estate operated by the County of San Mateo. To the south and west is Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District's Purisima Creek Redwoods Open Space Preserve.

During the late 19th century, an extensive timber and saw-milling industry felled thousands of acres of virgin redwoods. The remaining and substantial redwood forests are nearly all second-growth trees. Until the 1950s, a majority of Kings Mountain's inhabitants were summer residents, including residents of Henrik Ibsen Park, a private 40-acre recreational facility for Sons of Norway members from San Francisco. More recently, however, with the building of interstate highway 280 making San Francisco only a 40 minute commute, and a booming Silicon Valley economy, Kings Mountain has become a full-time residential community, with million dollar homes now outnumbering rustic cabins.

Kings Mountain is also home to the corporate headquarters of Fisher Investments, an independent, global money management firm, whose CEO is local resident Kenneth Fisher.

[edit] Sources

• U.S. Geological Survey, National Geographic Names Database.
• Woodside, California 7.5-minute quadrangle, U.S. Geological Survey, 1997.
• U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Educational Statistics.

[edit] See also

• Sky Londa, California also known as Skylonda.
• Skyline Boulevard
• Santa Cruz Mountains
• California State Route 35
• Purisima Creek Redwoods Open Space Preserve

[edit] External links

• Annual art fair web site.
• Maps and aerial photos Coordinates: 37.44083° -122.32333°
  • Street map from Google Maps or MapQuest
  • Satellite image from Google Maps, Microsoft Virtual Earth, or WikiMapia
  • Topographic map from TopoZone
  • Aerial image or topographic map from TerraServer-USA