Martis Creek Lake andDam at the southern edge of eastern Nevada County near Truckee: At full pool, the lake extends into Placer County in the distance to the south.Martis Creek Lake and Dam in Nevada County: This picture was taken over Placer County, looking north into Nevada County.
Created in 1851, from portions ofYuba County, Nevada County was named after the mining town ofNevada City, a name derived from the Sierra Nevada Mountains. The wordnevada is Spanish for "snowy" or "snow-covered".[11]Charles Marsh was one of the first settlers in what became Nevada City, and is perhaps the one who named the town. He went on to build extensive water flumes/ditches/canals in the area, and was influential in the building of thefirst transcontinental railroad and theNevada County Narrow Gauge Railroad.[12]
Nevada City was the first to use the word "Nevada" in its name. In 1851, the newly formed Nevada County used the same name as the county seat. The bordering state ofNevada used the same name in 1864. The region came to life in theGold Rush of 1849. Many historical sites remain to mark the birth of this important region in California's formative years. Among them are theNevada Theatre in Nevada City, the oldest theater built in California in 1865. It operates to this day and once hosted Mark Twain, among other historical figures. The Old 5 Mile House stagecoach stop, built in 1890, also operates to this day as a provider of hospitality spanning three centuries. This historical site still features "The stagecoach safe" that is on display outside the present-day restaurant and is the source of many legends of stagecoach robbers and notorious highwaymen in the California gold rush era. The gold industry in Nevada County thrived into the post-WWII days.
Gold nugget of about 6troy ounces, from the Yuba River placers of Nevada County - size: 8.3 x 2.8 x 2.3 cm
The county had many firsts and historic technological moments. The first long-distance telephone in the world, built in 1877 by the Ridge Telephone Company, connected French Corral with French Lake, 58 miles (93 km) away.[13] It was operated by the Milton Mining Company from a building on this site that had been erected about 1853. ThePelton wheel, designed to power gold mines, still drives hydroelectric generators today. Nevada City andGrass Valley were among the first California towns with electric lights. TheOlympics,NASA, and virtually everytelevision station around the country uses video/broadcasting equipment designed and manufactured byGrass Valley Group, founded in Grass Valley.
The Nevada County Narrow Gauge Railroad, built in 1876, was the only railroad in the West that was never robbed, though its primary freight was gold. (Builder-ownerJohn Flint Kidder's reputation made it clear that he would personally hunt down and kill anyone who tried.) The rail line closed in 1942 and was torn up for scrap.
Nevada County is home to theEmpire Mine State Historic Park, which is the site of one of the oldest, deepest, and richest gold mines in California. The park is in Grass Valley at 10791 East Empire Street. In operation for more than 100 years, the mine extracted 5.8 million ounces of gold before it closed in 1956.
In 1988, the49er Fire was accidentally started near Highway 49 by a homeless local man who was suffering from undiagnosed schizophrenia. The fire went on to burn well over 100 homes and more than 33,000 acres in Nevada County.[14]
Since the enactment of the statute in which theCalifornia State Legislature defined the common boundary between Nevada andSierra Counties in 1874, no survey was conducted to determine where the straight line segment of the common boundary between the two counties ran. In particular, the statute, at the time codified as Section 3921 of the California Political Code, at the time stated:
...thence south on said state line (state of Nevada) to the northeast corner of Nevada County, a point east of the source of the South Fork of the Middle Yuba River; thence west to the source of, and down the South Fork of the Middle Yuba River to a point ten miles above the mouth of the latter.
Since the line had never beensurveyed and the legislature never defined where the "point east of the source of the South Fork of the Middle Yuba River" was, the location of the straight air line between the state line and this point was unknown. As such, both counties claimed that the point east of the source, which itself was also unknown, was located in different places. This created a situation where a strip of land averaging 1.22 miles in width and around 31.29 square miles were under dispute, with Sierra County claiming that Nevada County was encroaching on their jurisdiction when attempting to levyproperty taxes. Thetrial court ofPlumas County, sided with Sierra County, declaring that the disputed area had always belonged to Sierra, since the legislature defined the boundary in dispute by referencingPublic Land Survey System lines. It also determined that the source of South Fork of the Middle Yuba was that of several springs in theSierra Nevada, rather than the artificial English Lake, which ceased to exist after thefailure of its dam in 1883, which is where the source of the South Fork was in the eyes of Nevada County. TheCalifornia Supreme Court affirmed the trial court's decision on December 28, 1908.[15]
According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 974 square miles (2,520 km2), of 16 square miles (41 km2) (1.6%) are covered by water.[16] The county is drained byMiddle andSouth Yuba Rivers.[17]
The western part of the county is defined by the course of several rivers and the irregular boundaries of adjoining counties. When the county was created, the founders wanted to include access to thetranscontinental railroad, so a rectangular section was added that includes the railroad town ofTruckee.
The county has substantial areas of forest, grassland,savanna,riparian area, and otherecosystems. Forests include both coniferous- and oak-dominated woodland types. Also, numerous understory forbs and wildflowers occur, including the yellow mariposa lily (Calochortus luteus).[18]
Nevada County, California – Racial and ethnic composition Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.
The2010 United States census reported that Nevada County had a population of 98,764. Theracial makeup of Nevada County was 90,233 (91.4%) White, 389 (0.4%) African American, 1,044 (1.1%) Native American, 1,187 (1.2%) Asian, 110 (0.1%) Pacific Islander, 2,678 (2.7%) from other races, and 3,123 (3.2%) from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 8,439 persons (8.5%).[46]
As of the census[47] of 2000, 92,033 people, 36,894 households, and 25,936 families resided in the county. The population density was 96/sq mi (37/km2). The 44,282 housing units had an average density of 46 per square mile (18/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 93.4% White, 0.3% African American, 0.9% Native American, 0.8% Asian, 2.0% from other races, and 2.6% from two or more races. About 5.7% of the population were Hispanics or Latinos of any race. Regarding ancestry,16.4% wereGerman, 16.3%English, 11.1%Irish, 6.8%Italian, and 6.6%American, according toCensus 2000; 94.0% spokeEnglish and 4.2%Spanish as their first language.
Of the 36,894 households, 28.7% had children under 18 living with them, 57.6% were married couples living together, 8.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.7% were not families. About 22.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.8% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.47, and the average family size was 2.88.
In the county, the age distribution was 23.1% under 18, 6.1% from 18 to 24, 24.1% from 25 to 44, 29.3% from 45 to 64, and 17.4% who were 65 or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.3 males. For every 100 females 18 and over, there were 94.7 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $45,864, and for a family was $52,697. Males had a median income of $40,742 versus $27,173 for females. Theper capita income for the county was $24,007. About 5.5% of families and 8.1% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 9.5% of those under age 18 and 4.9% of those age 65 or over.
According to theCalifornia Secretary of State, as of February 10, 2019, Nevada County has 78,736 registered voters. Of those, 24,677 (36%) are registeredDemocrats, 22,252 (32.3%) are registeredRepublicans, 9,426 (13.76%) are registered to another party, and 7,845 (11.5%) havedeclined to state a political party.[49] In both 2000 and 2004,George W. Bush won a majority of the votes in the county. In 2008,Barack Obama carried the county with a 51.5%–46.2% margin.2008 marked the first time Nevada County went for a Democrat sinceLyndon Johnson in1964. In2012, Obama lost by a narrow margin toMitt Romney, turning the county red once again, only forHillary Clinton to win it back in2016 overDonald Trump.Joe Biden won the county in 2020 with the largest share of votes for a presidential candidate in recent elections, continuing its Democratic shift.Kamala Harris won the county in 2024, though with a slightly smaller percentage of the vote compared to Biden.
United States presidential election results for Nevada County, California[50][note 4]
On November 4, 2008, Nevada County voted forProposition 8, which amended the California Constitution to ban same-sex marriages by three votes, the narrowest margin of any county in the state.[52]
Nevada County Connects, operated by Nevada County, runs fixed route bus service in Grass Valley, Nevada City, Penn Valley, Alta Sierra and Lake of the Pines. A connection is available between Grass Valley and Auburn (Placer County).
Tahoe Area Rapid Transit, operated by Placer County, has a route connecting Truckee with Lake Tahoe and the state of Nevada. Truckee also has its own local bus service.
YubaBus offers Charter and Shuttle Bus service in and around Western Nevada County.
Nevada County Now is the paratransit bus company providing door to door service for seniors and persons with disabilities in Grass Valley, Nevada City, and Penn Valley.
Lyman Gilmore, a contemporary of the Wright Brothers who developed early powered aircraft and operated the world's first commercial air field in Grass Valley. There is also evidence he may have flown before the Wright brothers, though this claim is doubted.[58]
John Christopher Stevens, American career diplomat and lawyer who served as the U.S. Ambassador to Libya from May 22, 2012, to September 11, 2012. Stevens was killed when the U.S. Special Mission in Benghazi, Libya, wasattacked in 2012 by radical Islamic terrorists. He was born in Grass Valley and is buried in the local cemetery. A memorial to him was created in Grass Valley's downtown area.
Joanna Newsom, an American multi-instrumentalist, singer-songwriter, and actress. Born and raised in Northern California, Newsom was classically trained on the harp in her youth, and began her musical career as a keyboardist in the San Francisco-based indie band The Pleased.
^Comstock, David Allan. "Charles Marsh: Our Neglected Pioneer-Genius,"Nevada County Historical Society Bulletin, pp. 9, 10, 14–16, Volume 50, No. 2, April 1996.
^California, California State Parks, State of."Nevada".CA State Parks.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
^abcdefghijklmnopqU.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey, 2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, Table B02001.U.S. Census website. Retrieved October 26, 2013.
^abU.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey, 2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, Table B03003.U.S. Census website. Retrieved October 26, 2013.
^abU.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey, 2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, Table B19301.U.S. Census website. Retrieved October 21, 2013.
^abU.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey, 2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, Table B19013.U.S. Census website. Retrieved October 21, 2013.
^abU.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey, 2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, Table B19113.U.S. Census website. Retrieved October 21, 2013.
^abU.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey, 2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates.U.S. Census website. Retrieved October 21, 2013.
^U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey, 2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, Table B01003.U.S. Census website. Retrieved October 21, 2013.
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