Colma, California | |
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 Flag  Seal | |
| Motto: "It's great to be alive in Colma" | |
 Location of Colma in San Mateo County, California | |
  Colma, California Location of Colma Show map of San Francisco Colma, California Colma, California (San Francisco Bay Area) Show map of San Francisco Bay Area Colma, California Colma, California (California) Show map of California Colma, California Colma, California (the United States) Show map of the United States | |
| Coordinates:37°40′44″N122°27′20″W / 37.67889°N 122.45556°W /37.67889; -122.45556 | |
| Country | United States |
| State | California |
| County | San Mateo |
| Incorporated as "Lawndale" | August 5, 1924[1] |
| Name changed to "Colma" | November 17, 1941 |
| Government | |
| • Mayor[2] | Joanne del Rosario |
| • City Manager[3] | Daniel Barros |
| Area | |
• Total | 1.89 sq mi (4.90 km2) |
| • Land | 1.89 sq mi (4.90 km2) |
| • Water | 0 sq mi (0.00 km2) 0% |
| Elevation | 121 ft (37 m) |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 1,507 |
| • Density | 797.1/sq mi (307.78/km2) |
| United States Census Bureau | |
| Time zone | UTC−8 (PST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−7 (PDT) |
| ZIP Code | 94014 |
| Area code | 650 |
| FIPS code | 06-14736 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1658303 |
| Website | www.colma.ca.gov |
Colma (Ohlone for "Springs")[5][6] is a small incorporatedtown inSan Mateo County, California, United States, on theSan Francisco Peninsula in theSan Francisco Bay Area. The population was 1,507 at the2020 census. The town was founded as anecropolis in 1924.[7]
With most of Colma's land dedicated tocemeteries, the population of the dead—not specifically known but speculated to be around 1.5 million[8]—outnumbers that of the living by a ratio of nearly a thousand to one. This has led to Colma being called "the City of the Silent" and has given rise to a humorous motto, formerly featured on the city's website: "It's great to be alive in Colma".[7][9]
The most commonly proposed origin of the name "Colma" is theOhlone word meaning "springs" or "many springs".[10][5][6]
There are several other proposed origins of Colma. Erwin Gudde's California Place Names states seven possible sources of the town's being called Colma:[11] William T. Coleman (a local landowner), Thomas Coleman (a local resident), misspelling ofColmar in France, misspelling ofColima in Mexico, a re-spelling of an ancientUralic word meaning death, a reference toJames Macpherson'sSongs of Selma, and two Ohlone possibilities, one meaning "moon" and one meaning "springs".
Before 1872, Colma was designated as "Station" or "School House Station", the name of its post office in 1869.
The community of Colma was formed in the 19th century as a collection of homes and small businesses alongEl Camino Real and the adjacentSan Francisco and San Jose Railroad line. Several churches, including Holy Angels Catholic Church, were founded in these early years. The community founded its own fire district, which serves the unincorporated area of Colma north of the town limits, as well as the area that became a town in 1924.
Heinrich (Henry) von Kempf moved his wholesale nursery here in the early part of the 20th century, from the land where the Palace of Fine Arts currently sits. The business was growing, and thus required more space for von Kempf's plants and trees. Von Kempf then began petitioning to turn the Colma community into an agricultural township. He succeeded and became the town of Colma's first treasurer.
In the early 20th century, Colma was the site of many majorboxing events. Middleweight world championStanley Ketchel fought six bouts at the Mission Street Arena in Colma, including two world middleweight title bouts againstBilly Papke and a world heavyweight title bout againstJack Johnson.[12]
Colma became the site for numerous cemeteries after San Francisco outlawed new interments within its city limits in 1900, then evicted most existing cemeteries in 1912. In the 1910s, many of the roads to Colma were not maintained.[13] Bodies were transported by street cars in San Francisco downValencia Street in theMission District; which resulted in many mortuaries and funeral homes in this location for quick access to Colma.[13] Approximately 150,000 bodies were moved between 1920 and 1941, at a cost of $10 per grave and marker. Many of the remains in Colma came from theLone Mountain Cemetery complex. Those for whom no one paid the fee were reburied in mass graves, and the markers were recycled in various San Francisco public works.[14] Some examples include drain gutters at Buena Vista Park and bolstering breakwater near theSt. Francis Yacht Club. They can be seen at low tide on Ocean Beach.[14] The completion of the relocation was delayed until afterWorld War II. Themain rail line between San Francisco andSan Jose running through Colma had been bypassed by theBayshore Cutoff, completed in 1907 and providing a route closer to theSan Francisco Bay shoreline, and the former main line was repurposed as a branch line to move coffins to Colma. Decades later, the right-of-way for the branch line through Colma was purchased byBART for use in theSan Francisco International Airport extension project.[14]
An early effort to incorporate in 1903 was condemned by theSan Francisco Call as "a scheme whereby the town of Colma is to be made a plague spot of vice" to benefit gamblers and crooked politicians.[15] The Town ofLawndale was incorporated in 1924,[14][16] primarily at the behest of the cemetery owners with the cooperation of the handful of residents who lived closest to the cemeteries. The residential and business areas immediately to the north continued to be known as Colma. As another California city namedLawndale already existed, inLos Angeles County, the post office retained the Colma designation, and the town changed its name back to Colma in 1941.[14]
Many, if not most, of the well-known people who died in San Francisco since the first cemeteries opened there have been buried or reburied in Colma, with an additional large number of such burials inOakland'sMountain View Cemetery. Some notable people interred in Colma include:
Originally, Colma's residents were primarily employed in occupations related to the many cemeteries in the town. Since the 1980s, however, Colma has become more diversified, and a variety of retail businesses and automobile dealerships has brought more sales tax revenue to the town government.[7][19] In 1986, 280 Metro Center opened for business in Colma; it is now recognized as the world's firstpower center.[20][21]
| Name | Image | Founded | Community | Size | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tung Sen | ? | Chinese | ? | These four cemeteries are within the city limits of Daly City, separated from the western campus of Cypress Lawn byJunipero Serra Boulevard. | |
| Hoy Sun |  | ? | Chinese | ? | |
| Chinese Christian |  | ? | Chinese | ? | |
| Russian Sectarian | ? | Russian | ? | ||
| Holy Cross | _13.jpg) | Jun 3, 1887 | Roman Catholic | ? | Holy Cross Mausoleum, designed byJohn McQuarrie, is the resting site for the men who have served asArchbishop of San Francisco, includingJoseph Sadoc Alemany,Patrick William Riordan,Edward Joseph Hanna,John Joseph Mitty, andJoseph Thomas McGucken.[22]: 63 |
| Home of Peace |  | Jan 1, 1889 | Jewish | 20 acres (8.1 ha) | Occupies the northern half of the site |
| Hills of Eternity |  | 20 acres (8.1 ha) | Occupies the southern half of the site | ||
| Salem |  | Dec 20, 1891 | 17 acres (6.9 ha) | ||
| Cypress Lawn |  | 1892 | Non-sectarian | 148 acres (60 ha) | Split into two campuses straddling El Camino Real: the 47-acre (19 ha) eastern (1892) and the 101-acre (41 ha) western (1901). |
| Mount Olivet |  | 1896 | 65 acres (26 ha) | Renamed to Olivet Memorial Park. Acquired by Cypress Lawn in 2020. | |
| Italian |  | 1899 | Italian | 35 acres (14 ha) | |
| Serbian |  | 1901 | Christian Orthodox | 16 acres (6.5 ha) | |
| Japanese |  | Jun 1901 | Japanese | 2 acres (0.81 ha) | |
| Eternal Home |  | Jul 1901 | Jewish | 25 acres (10 ha) | Also hosts theJewish Community Memory Garden, adjacent to the children's section of the cemetery.[23] |
| Greenlawn |  | 1903 | Non-sectarian | 47 acres (19 ha) | Site purchased in 1903 by the directors of theIndependent Order of Odd Fellows cemetery in San Francisco using allegedly embezzled funds, resulting in the disavowal of the site by the IOOF Grand Lodge.[22]: 113 |
| Woodlawn |  | Oct 29, 1904 | Non-sectarian | 92 acres (37 ha) | Originally 47 acres (19 ha) |
| Sunset View | .jpg) | 1907 | Non-sectarian | ? | Paupers' burial site; closed in 1951.[24] Site now used for Cypress Hills Golf Course.[22]: 124 |
| Greek Orthodox |  | 1935 | Eastern Orthodox | 8 acres (3.2 ha) | Consecrated April 1936.[22]: 126 |
| Pets Rest |  | 1947 | Pet | 5 acres (2.0 ha) | |
| Hoy Sun |  | 1988 | Chinese | 8 acres (3.2 ha) | Acquired from Cypress Hills Golf Course when the course shrank from 18 to 9 holes. |
| Golden Hills |  | Feb 23, 1994 | Chinese | 14 acres (5.7 ha) | Acquired from Cypress Hills Golf Course when the course shrank from 18 to 9 holes. |
According to theUnited States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 1.9 sq mi (4.9 km2), all land. The town's 17 cemeteries comprise approximately 73% of the town's land area.[7] It bordersDaly City (to the north and west, separated byJunipero Serra Boulevard),South San Francisco (to the south, separated by Arlington, Mission, and Lawndale), andSan Bruno Mountain State Park (to the east).[25]
Colma is situated on theSan Francisco Peninsula at the highest point of theMerced Valley, a gap betweenSan Bruno Mountain and the northernmost foothills of theSanta Cruz Mountain Range.[26][27] The foothills and eastern flanks of the range are composed largely of poorly consolidatedPliocene-Quaternary freshwater and shallow marinesediments that include the Colma and Merced Formations, recent slope wash, ravine fill,colluvium, andalluvium. These surficial deposits unconformably overlay the much olderJurassic to Cretaceous-aged Franciscan Assemblage. TheJunipero Serra Landfill, which closed in 1983 and extended approximately 135 ft (41 m) deep, was developed and reopened as the 260,000 sq ft (24,000 m2) mixed-use Metro Center.[28]
Colma Creek flows through the city as it makes its way from San Bruno Mountain toSan Francisco Bay.
BART has two stations serving Colma:Colma, at the northern border near Daly City, andSouth San Francisco, just across the southern border. In addition,SamTrans buses serve the city with public transportation.
There are three primary north-south roads for automobile and truck traffic through Colma; from west to east, they areJunipero Serra Boulevard,El Camino Real, and Hillside Boulevard. They are connected approximately through the center of Colma by Serramonte Boulevard.
In theCalifornia State Legislature, Colma is inthe 11th senatorial district, represented byDemocrat Scott Wiener, and inthe 19th Assembly district, represented byDemocrat Catherine Stefani. In theUnited States House of Representatives, Colma is inCalifornia's 15th congressional district, represented byDemocrat Kevin Mullin.[29]
Colma has one private school, Holy Angels School, a Catholic school for preschool through 8th grade.[30]
Colma belongs to theJefferson Elementary School District, which has two schools in Colma: Garden Village Elementary (grades K–5) and Benjamin Franklin Intermediate (grades 6–8). High school students typically attendWestmoor High School in theJefferson Union High School District.
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1880 | 188 | — | |
| 1930 | 369 | — | |
| 1940 | 354 | −4.1% | |
| 1950 | 297 | −16.1% | |
| 1960 | 500 | 68.4% | |
| 1970 | 537 | 7.4% | |
| 1980 | 395 | −26.4% | |
| 1990 | 1,103 | 179.2% | |
| 2000 | 1,191 | 8.0% | |
| 2010 | 1,792 | 50.5% | |
| 2020 | 1,507 | −15.9% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census[31] | |||
Informally, as of 2006 Colma had "1,500 aboveground residents ... and 1.5 million underground".[7]
The2020 United States census reported that Colma had a population of 1,507. The population density was 796.9 inhabitants per square mile (307.7/km2). The racial makeup of Colma was 347 (23.0%)White, 60 (4.0%)African American, 21 (1.4%)Native American, 460 (30.5%)Asian, 6 (0.4%)Pacific Islander, 368 (24.4%) fromother races, and 245 (16.3%) from two or more races.Hispanic or Latino of any race were 621 persons (41.2%).[32]
The census reported that 1,450 people (96.2% of the population) lived in households, 26 (1.7%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 31 (2.1%) were institutionalized.[32]
There were 509 households, out of which 192 (37.7%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 224 (44.0%) were married-couple households, 32 (6.3%) werecohabiting couple households, 127 (25.0%) had a female householder with no partner present, and 126 (24.8%) had a male householder with no partner present. 110 households (21.6%) were one person, and 49 (9.6%) were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.85.[32] There were 353families (69.4% of all households).[33]
The age distribution was 302 people (20.0%) under the age of 18, 116 people (7.7%) aged 18 to 24, 378 people (25.1%) aged 25 to 44, 430 people (28.5%) aged 45 to 64, and 281 people (18.6%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41.8 years. For every 100 females, there were 103.6 males.[32]
There were 526 housing units at an average density of 278.2 units per square mile (107.4 units/km2), of which 509 (96.8%) were occupied. Of these, 247 (48.5%) were owner-occupied, and 262 (51.5%) were occupied by renters.[32]
In 2023, the US Census Bureau estimated that the median household income was $121,488, and theper capita income was $49,693. About 8.6% of families and 9.5% of the population were below the poverty line.[34]
The2010 United States census[35] reported that Colma had a population of 1,792. The population density was 938.6 inhabitants per square mile (362.4/km2). The racial makeup of Colma was 620 (34.6%)White, 59 (3.3%)African American, 7 (0.4%)Native American, 619 (34.5%)Asian, 9 (0.5%)Pacific Islander, 366 (20.4%) fromother races, and 112 (6.3%) from two or more races.Hispanic orLatino of any race were 708 persons (39.5%).
The Census reported that 1,763 people (98.4% of the population) lived in households, 0 (0%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 29 (1.6%) were institutionalized.
There were 564 households, out of which 217 (38.5%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 271 (48.0%) wereopposite-sex married couples living together, 110 (19.5%) had a female householder with no husband present, 42 (7.4%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 44 (7.8%)unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 8 (1.4%)same-sex married couples or partnerships. 91 households (16.1%) were made up of individuals, and 31 (5.5%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.13. There were 423families (75.0% of all households); the average family size was 3.45.
The population was spread out, with 390 people (21.8%) under the age of 18, 178 people (9.9%) aged 18 to 24, 532 people (29.7%) aged 25 to 44, 488 people (27.2%) aged 45 to 64, and 204 people (11.4%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36.4 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.9 males.
There were 586 housing units at an average density of 306.9 per square mile (118.5/km2), of which 224 (39.7%) were owner-occupied, and 340 (60.3%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.7%; the rental vacancy rate was 2.3%. 738 people (41.2% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 1,025 people (57.2%) lived in rental housing units.
Actors, many of them professional, portrayed a number of local Jewish luminaries, such asLevi Strauss,Alice B. Toklas and Joshua Abraham Norton, a late 1800s San Francisco celebrity better known as "Emperor Norton." [...] notable Jews buried there, includingJulie Rosewald (America's first female cantor) andJosephine Earp (wife of famed lawmanWyatt Earp, who is buried at her side).
Bay Area Location:Holy Cross Cemetery on Old Mision[sic] Road in Colma.
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