King City, California
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| King City, CA | |
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| Coordinates: | |
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| Country | United States |
| State | California |
| County | Monterey |
| Founded | 1886 |
| Government | |
| - Mayor | Jeff Pereira |
| - Senate | Jeff Denham (R) |
| - Assembly | Anna M. Caballero (D) |
| - U. S. Congress | Sam Farr (D) |
| Area | |
| - Total | 3.7 sq mi (9.6 km²) |
| - Land | 3.6 sq mi (9.5 km²) |
| - Water | 0.1 sq mi (0.1 km²) |
| Elevation | 335 ft (102 m) |
| Population (2004) | |
| - Total | 11,225 |
| - Density | 3,030.0/sq mi (1,170.3/km²) |
| Time zone | PST (UTC-8) |
| - Summer (DST) | PDT (UTC-7) |
| ZIP code | 93930 |
| Area code(s) | 831 |
| FIPS code | 06-38520 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1652734 |
| Website: http://www.kingcity.com/ | |
King City is a city in Monterey County, California, United States. It lies along U.S. Route 101 and adjacent to the Salinas River in the Salinas Valley of the Central Coast of California. King City is a member of the Association of Monterey Bay Area Governments.
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[edit] History
King City, originally known as King’s City for the founder, Charles King. In 1884 Charles King acquired 13,000 acres of the San Lorenzo Rancho, a Spanish land grant, and began growing 6,000 acres wheat. The town began as a train stop in 1886, for the Southern Pacific Railroad, to service the farms and ranches in the south Salinas Valley, and transport the goods to San Francisco and Los Angeles. It was originally called "Hog Town" since swine were one of the major agricultural products of the area in the 1880s.[1]
J. Ernst Steinbeck, father of the novelist John Steinbeck, claimed to have been the first permanent resident of King City. Steinbeck was certainly among the first settlers. He was the first agent for the S.P. Milling Company, which built an early warehouse and flour mill alongside the railroad tracks running through town. The mill was built by R. M. Shackelford, an early California settler and later businessman who owned sheep pasturage next to that of Charles King.[2]
[edit] Geography
King City elevation is 330 feet (100 m) above sea level, between Greenfield to the northwest and San Lucas to the southwest. The amount of land area in King City is 2.8 square miles (7 km²).
[edit] Demographics
As of the census[3] of 2000, there were 11,094 people, 2,736 households, and 2,251 families residing in the city. The population density was 3,030.0 people per square mile (1,170.3/km²). There were 2,822 housing units at an average density of 770.8/sq mi (297.7/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 42.09% White, 0.59% Black or African American, 1.05% Native American, 1.23% Asian, 0.14% Pacific Islander, 50.46% from other races, and 4.46% from two or more races. 80.42% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 2,736 households out of which 54.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.2% were married couples living together, 12.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 17.7% were non-families. 13.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 4.03 and the average family size was 4.28.
In the city the population was spread out with 35.7% under the age of 18, 13.7% from 18 to 24, 31.2% from 25 to 44, 13.3% from 45 to 64, and 6.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 25 years. For every 100 females there were 115.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 119.6 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $34,398, and the median income for a family was $33,750. Males had a median income of $27,377 versus $25,286 for females. The per capita income for the city was $11,685. About 16.9% of families and 20.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.5% of those under age 18 and 17.1% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] Media
- See also: Media in Monterey County
Local radio stations include KEXA-FM - 93.9 and KRKC-AM - 1490. Television service for the community comes from the Monterey-Salinas-Santa Cruz designated market area (DMA). Locale newspapers include the Monterey County Herald.
[edit] References in culture
The town's name is one of many mentioned in the 2007 motion picture, There Will Be Blood, directed by Paul Thomas Anderson and starring Daniel Day-Lewis. In the film, a gentleman named Henry Brands (Kevin J. O'Connor) attempts to pass himself off as being a relative of the film's central figure, Daniel Plainview (Lewis). As Plainview comes to recognize that Brands is, in fact, an impostor likely bent on obtaining money from him, he confronts Brands in the middle of the night with a pistol. Brands explains that he is, in fact, not of the same bloodline as Plainview but that he met someone in King City who was, and who had mentioned a 'brother' that had recently come into a substantial amount of money. Shortly thereafter the brother passed away, leaving a diary with numerous insights into his personal life. Brands takes this and memorizes it so as to inhabit the role of the brother, and swindle Plainview out of his newfound wealth. Plainview, in a demonic rage, shoots Brands and scans through the diary, where a brief description of King City and the surrounding areas can be glimpsed.
The town features prominently in the song "Queen of King City," on the Red Meat album We Never Close.
[edit] References
- ^ "Our History" - King City official website
- ^ King City - Monterey County Historical Society
- ^ American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
[edit] External links
- King City, California is at coordinates Coordinates:
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