Anza | |
|---|---|
 Anza, California, View of the Cahuilla mountains from Cahuilla road | |
 Location of Anza in Riverside County, California. | |
  Anza Location within the state of California Show map of California Anza Anza (the United States) Show map of the United States | |
| Coordinates:33°33′18″N116°40′25″W / 33.55500°N 116.67361°W /33.55500; -116.67361 | |
| Country | United States |
| State | California |
| County | Riverside |
| Area | |
• Total | 27.68 sq mi (71.68 km2) |
| • Land | 27.59 sq mi (71.47 km2) |
| • Water | 0.081 sq mi (0.21 km2) 0.30% |
| Elevation | 3,921 ft (1,195 m) |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 3,075 |
| • Density | 111.4/sq mi (43.02/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-8 (Pacific (PST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-7 (PDT) |
| ZIP codes | 92539 |
| Area code | 951 |
| FIPS code | 06-02294 |
| GNIS feature ID | 269555;2582935 |
| Website | anza-valley |
Anza is acensus-designated place inRiverside County, California, in theAnza Valley, a semi-arid region at a mean elevation of 3,921 feet (1,195 m) above sea level. It is located 13 miles (21 km) south ofIdyllwild,[3] 32 miles (51 km) east-northeast ofTemecula, 40 miles (64 km) southwest ofPalm Springs, and 90 miles (140 km) northeast of San Diego, being traversed byState Route 371. Anza is on thePacific Crest Trail and theJuan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail.[4][5] The population was 3,075 at the 2020 census.
Locally, Anza and several other mountain communities (including Garner Valley,Idyllwild, Pinyon Pines andAguanga) are collectively referred to as "the Hill."
TheZIP code is 92539, and the community is insidearea code 951.
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It is estimated that theCahuilla aboriginal tribes inhabited an area including what is today the Anza Valley more than two thousand years ago and encountered Europeans only as late as 1774, when a Spanish expedition in search of an overland route from Sonora to Alta California made its way from Tubac,Sonora through the valley toMonterey,Alta California. ExplorerJuan Bautista de Anza first passed through the valley on March 16, 1774, and again on December 27, 1775.[6] De Anza originally named the valley "San Carlos"; it was renamed in his honor from Cahuilla Valley to Anza Valley on September 16, 1926.[7]
Up until about 1580 the area was in the proximity of a larger body of inland water known asLake Cahuilla, but that inland lake larger than the currentSalton Sea, which occupies a portion of its former location, evaporated, thus increasing the desert character of the Anza Valley. During the 19th century, settlement includedranchers, a limited number ofminers, andhoney producers. The mid-to-late 19th century witnessed moderate population and above average economic prosperity for this isolated community.
From the late 1860s on, Anza was largely settled by families seeking to build ranches under theHomestead Act. Of the homesteads in the area, one, the Cary Ranch on Cary Road (south of Anza, east of the Tripp Flats Ranger Station) still exists and is still owned and occupied by family members of the original settlers. The ranch is now occupied by the Hopkins family. The Hopkins are direct descendants of the Cary family. Although the Cary Ranch used to encompass hundreds of acres of land, most has been sold off, and only a 20-acre (81,000 m2) parcel and several original buildings exist.
The post office opened in 1926.[3]
Already in the 1970s sales of property parcels and lots in Anza were promoted with particular emphasis on the proximity of the unspoiled countryside to larger coastal cities ofsouthern California. Though perceived by outsiders as friendly and open to newcomers, Anza has been determined to avoid the social and environmental problems of over-urbanization, and since the 1980s the community has sought to preserve its unique artistic and creative culture by closely scrutinizing any development plans that could give rise to dysfunctions experienced in other regions of the state.
According to theUnited States Census Bureau, the CDP covers an area of 27.7 square miles (71.7 km2), 99.7% of it land and 0.3% of it water.
Regional geographic subdivisions of the unincorporated town includeAnza Valley and Cave Rocks (Central); Tripp Flats, Chandler Heights andCahuilla (West) as well as Oak Spring, Burnt Spring and Heller Spring (East). The Anza Valley in which the unincorporated town is nestled is bordered by three significant mountains: Cahuilla Mountain to the west,Thomas Mountain to the northeast and Beauty Mountain to the southwest.
The area is characterized ashigh desert, experiencing somewhat stronger temperature variations than those of the coastal cities, including sudden dips of temperature even on summer evenings, due to the high elevation. Directly to the north of Anza is theSanta Rosa Mountains, a part of the Peninsular Ranges. TheAnza Trail—originally traveled on horseback byJuan Bautista de Anza in 1774 through what was then referred to as the Cahuilla Valley—traverses the community from southeast to northwest.
According to theKöppen Climate Classification system, Anza has awarm-summer Mediterranean climate.[8] Anza weather can range from warm to hot with common afternoon thunderstorms during summer, to chilly with occasional rain and snow during fall and winter. Its higher 4000 ft elevation at the edge of the mountains makes the weather much cooler and far more variable than the lower surrounding cities with often drastic day-to-day changes.
During the summer months, highs range from the lower 80s to mid 90s with low temperatures in the 50s and 60s. Monsoon thunderstorms are common in the afternoon between July and September when typically 3–6" of rain falls. October high temperatures are in the 60s and 70s with night lows in the 40s and 50s with under .25" of rain. Between November and early December, high temperatures are typically in the lower 50s and 60s with lows in the upper 20s and 30s. Rain doesn't fall often and is usually light, occasionally turning to snow with light dustings. Total rainfall is typically 1" or less.
During winter, typical highs are in the 40s and 50s with overnight lows in the lower 20s and 30s. Precipitation is a varied with rain and snowfall occurring 1–2 days a week. An entire winter typically sees 5–10" of rain and 8–16" of snow with a couple snowfalls of several inches to 1 ft common over the higher east side of town. Snowfall melts quickly in the much warmer daytime temperatures with little tree coverage, although deeper more regular snowpack can found over the upper reaches of town near the treeline at 5000 ft at the border of the San Bernardino National Forest. Spring is brief with any snowfall ending by early April and rain becoming a rarity by May and June with 1–2" of rain falling mostly in March and April.[9][10][11]
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 3,014 | — | |
| 2020 | 3,075 | 2.0% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census[12] 1850–1870[13][14] 1880-1890[15] 1900[16] 1910[17] 1920[18] 1930[19] 1940[20] 1950[21] 1960[22] 1970[23] 1980[24] 1990[25]2000[26] 2010[27] | |||
Anza first appeared as acensus designated place in the2010 U.S. census.[27]
The2020 United States census reported that Anza had a population of 3,075. The population density was 111.4 inhabitants per square mile (43.0/km2). The racial makeup of Anza was 59.3%White, 1.0%African American, 1.8%Native American, 8.3%Asian, 0.2%Pacific Islander, 16.5% fromother races, and 12.9% from two or more races.Hispanic or Latino of any race were 30.3% of the population.
The census reported that 99.8% of the population lived in households, 0.2% lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and no one was institutionalized.
There were 1,194 households, out of which 20.5% included children under the age of 18, 43.8% were married-couple households, 7.1% werecohabiting couple households, 23.2% had a female householder with no partner present, and 25.9% had a male householder with no partner present. 28.2% of households were one person, and 15.4% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.57. There were 757families (63.4% of all households).
The age distribution was 18.5% under the age of 18, 6.5% aged 18 to 24, 21.5% aged 25 to 44, 31.4% aged 45 to 64, and 22.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 48.1 years. For every 100 females, there were 115.0 males.
There were 1,406 housing units at an average density of 51.0 units per square mile (19.7 units/km2), of which 1,194 (84.9%) were occupied. Of these, 73.9% were owner-occupied, and 26.1% were occupied by renters.[28][29]
During the 1990s, the community enjoyed an increasingly widespread reputation as a growing artists colony featuring newcomers from as far away as Europe. Common free-time activities include trail wandering, local historical activities and festivals as well asmotorbiking,rockhounding andhorseback riding along the Anza Trail. The Mountain Cahuilla operate acasino from theirreservation on the southwestern edge of the community.
Every summer, Anza has a parade to celebrate the Fourth of July. This festival is called Anza Days and is celebrated by the whole town, and people travel miles each year to see it.
Anza also has a localgymkhana horseshowing circuit put on by theLions Club six months out of the year. This is also a popular event the public enjoys.
It is in theHemet Unified School District.[30]
Colleges and universities:
