Benbow, California

Benbow
—  census-designated place  —
Benbow
Location in California
Coordinates:
Country  United States
State  California
County Humboldt County
Area[1]
 • Total 4.881 sq mi (12.642 km2)
 • Land 4.881 sq mi (12.642 km2)
 • Water 0 sq mi (0 km2)  0%
Elevation[2] 440 ft (134 m)
Population (2010)
 • Total 321
 • Density 65.8/sq mi (25.4/km2)
Time zone Pacific (PST) (UTC-8)
 • Summer (DST) PDT (UTC-7)
ZIP Code
GNIS feature IDs 1655827; 2611375
U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Benbow, California; U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Benbow, California

Benbow is a census-designated place[3] in Humboldt County, California, located beside the South Fork Eel River.[2] It is located 2 miles (3.2 km) south-southeast of Garberville,[4] at an elevation of 440 feet (134 m).[2] Its population was 321 at the 2010 census.

History

The town began in 1926.[4] A post office operated at Benbow from 1929 to 1953.[4] The name is from the Benbow family that had established a summer resort and a Tudorbethan inn at the site, which is still in operation as the premier hotel property on US Route 101 between Humboldt Bay and the San Francisco Bay Area.[4]

Demographics

The 2010 United States Census[5] reported that Benbow had a population of 321. The population density was 65.8 people per square mile (25.4/km²). The racial makeup of Benbow was 294 (91.6%) White, 0 (0.0%) African American, 2 (0.6%) Native American, 1 (0.3%) Asian, 0 (0.0%) Pacific Islander, 13 (4.0%) from other races, and 11 (3.4%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 25 persons (7.8%).

The Census reported that 319 people (99.4% of the population) lived in households, 2 (0.6%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 0 (0%) were institutionalized.

There were 150 households, out of which 39 (26.0%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 60 (40.0%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 17 (11.3%) had a female householder with no husband present, 9 (6.0%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 16 (10.7%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 0 (0%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 51 households (34.0%) were made up of individuals and 13 (8.7%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.13. There were 86 families (57.3% of all households); the average family size was 2.55.

The population was spread out with 59 people (18.4%) under the age of 18, 19 people (5.9%) aged 18 to 24, 79 people (24.6%) aged 25 to 44, 108 people (33.6%) aged 45 to 64, and 56 people (17.4%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 46.2 years. For every 100 females there were 101.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 103.1 males.

There were 178 housing units at an average density of 36.5 per square mile (14.1/km²), of which 119 (79.3%) were owner-occupied, and 31 (20.7%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.4%; the rental vacancy rate was 0%. 257 people (80.1% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 62 people (19.3%) lived in rental housing units.

References

  1. ^ U.S. Census
  2. ^ a b c U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Benbow, California
  3. ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Benbow, California
  4. ^ a b c d Durham, David L. (1998). California's Geographic Names: A Gazetteer of Historic and Modern Names of the State. Quill Driver Books. p. 16-17. ISBN 9781884995149. 
  5. ^ All data are derived from the United States Census Bureau reports from the 2010 United States Census, and are accessible on-line here. The data on unmarried partnerships and same-sex married couples are from the Census report DEC_10_SF1_PCT15. All other housing and population data are from Census report DEC_10_DP_DPDP1. Both reports are viewable online or downloadable in a zip file containing a comma-delimited data file. The area data, from which densities are calculated, are available on-line here. Percentage totals may not add to 100% due to rounding. The Census Bureau defines families as a household containing one or more people related to the householder by birth, opposite-sex marriage, or adoption. People living in group quarters are tabulated by the Census Bureau as neither owners nor renters. For further details, see the text files accompanying the data files containing the Census reports mentioned above.