California, Pennsylvania

California
Borough
Downtown California
Named for: U.S. state of California
Nickname: Cal
Country United States
State Pennsylvania
County Washington
Coordinates
Area 11.2 sq mi (29 km2)
 - land 11.0 sq mi (28 km2)
 - water 0.2 sq mi (1 km2)
Population 5,274 (2000)
Density 478.2 / sq mi (185 / km2)
Established 1849
Mayor Casey Durdines (Republican)
Timezone EST (UTC-4)
 - summer (DST) EDT (UTC-5)
Area code 724
Location of California in Washington County
Location of California in Pennsylvania
Location of Pennsylvania in the United States
Website: www.californiapa.net

California is a borough in Washington County, Pennsylvania, United States, along the Monongahela River. The population was 5,274 as of the 2000 census. California is the home of California University of Pennsylvania. Founded in 1849, the borough was named for the territory of California following the Gold Rush.[1] The borough has had two notably young mayors: Democrat Peter Daley, who was 22 at his election,[2] and Republican Casey Durdines, who was 20 at his election.[3]

Contents

Geography

California is located at (40.065313, -79.897120)[4].

According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of 11.2 square miles (29 km2), of which, 11.0 square miles (28 km2) of it is land and 0.2 square miles (0.52 km2) of it (1.78%) is water.

History

When founded in 1849, the town was named California, though Columbia and Sagamore were names that were also suggested for the new town. Before there were mayors in California, there were burgesses, the first of whom was Solomon Sibbitt.

Demographics

As of the census[5] of 2000, there were 5,274 people, 1,891 households, and 867 families residing in the borough. The population density was 478.2 people per square mile (184.6/km²). There were 2,092 housing units at an average density of 189.7 per square mile (73.2/km²). The racial makeup of the borough was 93.93% White, 4.13% African American, 0.17% Native American, 0.74% Asian, 0.13% from other races, and 0.89% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.49% of the population.

There were 1,891 households out of which 16.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 34.8% were married couples living together, 8.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 54.1% were non-families. 36.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.15 and the average family size was 2.85.

In the borough the population was spread out with 10.7% under the age of 18, 42.2% from 18 to 24, 17.3% from 25 to 44, 15.5% from 45 to 64, and 14.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 24 years. For every 100 females there were 92.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.3 males.

The median income for a household in the borough was $24,628, and the median income for a family was $43,168. Males had a median income of $35,833 versus $24,537 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $14,412. About 7.3% of families and 22.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.7% of those under age 18 and 8.1% of those age 65 or over.

Education

References

External links