Plumas County, California
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Plumas County, California | |
| Map | |
 Location in the state of California |
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 California's location in the U.S. |
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| Statistics | |
| Founded | 1854 |
|---|---|
| Seat | Quincy |
| Area - Total - Land - Water |
2,613 sq mi (6,768 km²) 2,554 sq mi (6,615 km²) 60 sq mi (155 km²), 2.29% |
| Population - (2000) - Density |
20,824 8/sq mi (3/km²) |
| Website: www.countyofplumas.com | |
Plumas County is a county located in the Sierra Nevada of the U.S. state of California. The county gets its name from the Spanish words for the Feather River (Río de las Plumas), which flows through the county. As of 2000, the population was 20,824. The county seat is Quincy.
The only incorported city in the county is Portola.
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[edit] History
The Spanish originally called one of the tributaries of the Sacramento River El Rio de las Plumas or the "River of Feathers." The Legislature, in creating this county, gave it the name "Plumas" because all of the numerous branches of the Feather River have their origins in its mountains.
[edit] Law and government
[edit] Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 2,613 square miles (6,769 km²), of which, 2,554 square miles (6,614 km²) of it is land and 60 square miles (155 km²) of it (2.29%) is water.
Plumas County has numerous lakes and streams which are renowned for their fishing. Outdoor activities are a major tourist draw. A small part of Lassen Volcanic National Park extends into the northwest corner of the county.
[edit] Cities and towns
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[edit] Designated areas
- Butterfly Valley Botanical Area
- Elephants Playground
- Happy Valley
- Little Last Chance Canyon Special Interest Area
- North Valley
- Valley Creek Special Interest Area
[edit] Water areas
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[edit] Adjacent counties
- Sierra County, California - south
- Yuba County, California - southwest
- Butte County, California - west
- Tehama County, California - northwest
- Shasta County, California - northwest
- Lassen County, California - north, east
[edit] National protected areas
- Lassen National Forest (part)
- Lassen Volcanic National Park (part)
- Plumas National Forest (part)
- Tahoe National Forest (part)
[edit] Transportation Infrastructure
[edit] Major highways
[edit] Public Transit
Plumas Transit Systems provides local service in Quincy and routes to Chester and Portola. Limited service is available to Chico (Butte County) and Reno, Nevada.
[edit] Airports
Gansner Field is a general aviation airport located near Quincy. Rogers Field is located near Chester; in addition to its civil-aviation role it also serves as the Chester Air Attack Base, a logistical & coordination facility for the California Department of Forestry's aerial firefighting (both fixed-wing and helicopter). Resources include fueling, retardant loading, communications, and some quartering for aircrew and ground fire-fighting teams.
[edit] Economy
[edit] Demographics
As of the census[1] of 2000, there were 20,824 people, 9,000 households, and 6,047 families residing in the county. The population density was 8 people per square mile (3/km²). There were 13,386 housing units at an average density of 5 per square mile (2/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 91.78% White, 0.62% Black or African American, 2.55% Native American, 0.53% Asian, 0.10% Pacific Islander, 1.81% from other races, and 2.61% from two or more races. 5.65% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 16.1% were of German, 15.0% English, 10.1% Irish and 8.0% American ancestry according to Census 2000. 95.4% spoke English and 3.6% Spanish as their first language.
There were 9,000 households out of which 26.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.40% were married couples living together, 8.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.80% were non-families. 27.50% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.29 and the average family size was 2.77.
In the county the population was spread out with 22.70% under the age of 18, 6.00% from 18 to 24, 22.60% from 25 to 44, 30.80% from 45 to 64, and 17.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females there were 99.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.90 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $36,351, and the median income for a family was $46,119. Males had a median income of $38,742 versus $25,734 for females. The per capita income for the county was $19,391. About 9.00% of families and 13.10% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.70% of those under age 18 and 6.40% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] Politics
| Year | GOP | DEM | Others |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | 61.7% 6,905 | 36.9% 4,129 | 1.4% 156 |
| 2000 | 61.0% 6,343 | 33.3% 3,458 | 5.8% 600 |
| 1996 | 50.3% 4,905 | 36.3% 3,540 | 13.4% 1,305 |
| 1992 | 36.2% 3,599 | 37.6% 3,742 | 26.2% 2,608 |
| 1988 | 51.1% 4,603 | 47.2% 4,251 | 1.8% 161 |
| 1984 | 56.6% 5,224 | 41.6% 3,837 | 1.8% 167 |
| 1980 | 51.2% 4,182 | 35.7% 2,911 | 13.1% 1,068 |
| 1976 | 43.9% 2,884 | 52.3% 3,429 | 3.8% 250 |
| 1972 | 46.4% 2,952 | 48.1% 3,057 | 5.5% 351 |
| 1968 | 37.4% 2,097 | 52.8% 2,961 | 9.9% 553 |
| 1964 | 29.5% 1,686 | 70.4% 4,019 | 0.1% 8 |
| 1960 | 37.5% 2,015 | 62.0% 3,333 | 0.6% 30 |
Plumas is a strongly Republican county in Presidential and congressional elections. The last Democrat to win a majority in the county was Jimmy Carter in 1976.
Plumas is part of California's 4th congressional district, which is held by Republican John Doolittle. In the state legislature, Plumas is part of the 3rd Assembly district, which is held by Republican Rick Keene, and the 1st Senate district, which is held by Republican Dave Cox.
[edit] Media
The primary local news source since 1866 is Feather Publishing Co., Inc. at plumasnews.com, four Plumas County newspapers published every Wednesday.
[edit] Colleges and universities
[edit] Miscellaneous topics (Sports teams and similar lists)
- The town of Portola is home to the Western Pacific Railroad Museum, one of the largest railroad museums in North America. The WPRM is one of the major tourist draws in the county.
- The town of Chester is home to the Collins Pine Museum, a building completed in 2007, dedicated to preserving and educating about the history of the Collins Pine Company's logging activities in the Chester region.
[edit] References
- ^ American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
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