The entrance lobby and belfry of the Mission San Luis Obispo de Tolosa. A statue of Fray Junípero Serra stands outside the church.Robert Jack House, built c. 1882
Junípero Serra founded theMission San Luis Obispo de Tolosa in 1772, and San Luis Obispo grew around it. The small size of the county's communities, scattered along the beaches, coastal hills, and mountains of the Santa Lucia range, provides a wide variety of coastal and inland hill ecologies to support fishing, agriculture, and tourist activities.
California Polytechnic State University has almost 20,000 students. Tourism, especially for the wineries, is popular. Grapes and other agriculture products are an important part of the economy. San Luis Obispo County is the third largest producer of wine in California, surpassed only by Sonoma and Napa counties. Strawberries are the largest agricultural crop in the county.[8]
The town ofSan Simeon is located at the foot of the ridge where newspaper publisherWilliam Randolph Hearst builtHearst Castle. Other coastal towns (listed from north to south) includeCambria,Cayucos,Morro Bay, andLos Osos -Baywood Park. These cities and villages are located northwest of the city of San Luis Obispo. To the south areAvila Beach and the Five Cities region. The Five Cities originally were:Arroyo Grande,Grover Beach (then known as Grover City),Oceano, Fair Oaks and Halcyon. Today, the Five Cities region consists ofPismo Beach, Grover Beach, Arroyo Grande, Oceano, and Shell Beach (which is actually part of Pismo Beach), i.e., essentially the area from Pismo Beach to Oceano. Just south of the Five Cities, San Luis Obispo County borders northernSanta Barbara County. Inland, the cities ofPaso Robles,Templeton, andAtascadero lie along theSalinas River, near the Paso Robles wine region.San Luis Obispo lies south of Atascadero and north of the Five Cities region.
The prehistory of San Luis Obispo County is strongly influenced by theChumash people. There has been significant settlement here at least as early as theMillingstone Horizon thousands of years ago. Important settlements existed in coastal areas such asMorro Bay andLos Osos.[9][10]
San Luis ObispoSand dunes - Oceano CAMorro Bay Docks
According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 3,616 square miles (9,370 km2), of which 3,299 square miles (8,540 km2) is land and 317 square miles (820 km2) (comprising 8.8%) is water.[11]
Köppen climate types of San Luis Obispo County, California, using 1991–2020 climate normals.
San Luis Obispo County has three main climate types. BSk climate can mainly be found in the eastern portions of the county, along with certain smaller areas in the north. Csa climate can mainly be found in the central portions of the county, in communities such as Paso Robles. The rest of the county is made up of the Csb climate type. The Csb warm-summer mediterranean type climate together with the county's varied landscapes reminds visitors of European locales.[12]
San Luis Obispo 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 San Luis Obispo County had a population of 269,637. The racial makeup of San Luis Obispo County was 222,756 (82.6%)White, 5,550 (2.1%)African American, 2,536 (0.9%)Native American, 8,507 (3.2%)Asian (1.0% Filipino, 0.6% Chinese, 0.4% Japanese, 0.3% Indian, 0.3% Korean, 0.2% Vietnamese), 389 (0.1%)Pacific Islander, 19,786 (7.3%) fromother races, and 10,113 (3.8%) from two or more races.Hispanic orLatino of any race were 55,973 persons (20.8%); 17.7% of San Luis Obispo County is Mexican, 0.3% Puerto Rican, and 0.2% Salvadoran.[34]
As of the census[35] of 2000, there were 246,681 residents, 92,739 households, and 58,611 families in the county. The population density was 75 people per square mile (29 people/km2). There were 102,275 housing units at an average density of 31 units per square mile (12 units/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 84.6%White, 2.0%Black orAfrican American, 1.0%Native American, 2.7%Asian, 0.1%Pacific Islander, 6.2% fromother races, and 3.4% from two or more races. 16.3% of the population wereHispanic orLatino of any race. 13.9% were of German, 11.4% English, 9.7% Irish, 6.1% American and 5.7% Italian ancestry according toCensus 2000. 85.7% spoke English and 10.7% Spanish as their first language.
There were 92,739 households, out of which 28.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.40% were married couples living together, 9.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.8% were non-families. 26.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 3.01.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 21.7% under the age of 18, 13.6% from 18 to 24, 27.0% from 25 to 44, 23.3% from 45 to 64, and 14.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 105.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 105.2 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $42,428, and the median income for a family was $52,447. Males had a median income of $40,726 versus $27,450 for females. The per capita income for the county was $21,864. About 6.8% of families and 12.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.4% of those under age 18 and 5.9% of those age 65 or over.
The mainstays of the economy areCalifornia Polytechnic State University with its almost 20,000 students, tourism, and agriculture. The economic indicators reveal that San Luis Obispo County aligns closely with California regarding median household income and poverty rates. However, the county distinguishes itself through higher educational attainment and homeownership rates, alongside a distinctive employment sector composition favoring agriculture and related industries. Despite these strengths, the county is not immune to challenges, as evidenced by a housing market that is significantly more expensive than the rest of California and growing income inequality. San Luis Obispo County's economy is primarily a service economy. Service jobs account for 38% of the county's jobs, government jobs accounts for 20.7%, and manufacturing jobs represent 6% of the county's jobs.
San Luis Obispo County is the third largest producer of wine in California, surpassed only by Sonoma and Napa counties. Wine grapes are the second largest agricultural crop in the county (after strawberries),[8] and the wine production they support creates a direct economic impact and a growing wine country vacation industry.
The county led the state inhemp cultivation in 2018 as hundreds of acres of the crop were grown in research partnerships.[36] In 2019, nine agricultural research permits were still active. Sixteen commercial permits were issued before a temporary ban on new applications running through June 2020 was passed by the Board of Supervisors.[37]
San Luis Obispo County leaned toward theRepublican Party in presidential andcongressional elections during most of the 20th century; it has, however, become more Democratic starting in the 2000s. In2008,Barack Obama won the county with 51.2 percent of the vote.[40] Prior to 2008, the lastDemocrat to win a majority in the county wasLyndon B. Johnson in1964, althoughBill Clinton won aplurality in1992. In2012, Obama again won the county, this time with a slim plurality of the vote.Hillary Clinton won with a larger plurality in2016; and in2020,Joe Biden won a solid 55% of the vote, the largest for any Democrat since Johnson.
United States presidential election results for San Luis Obispo County, California[41]
In April 2008, the California Secretary of State reported that there were 147,326 registered voters in San Luis Obispo County. Of those voters, 61,226 (41.6%) were registered Republicans, 52,586 (35.7%) were registered Democratic, 8,030 (5.4%) are registered with other political parties, and 25,484 (17.3%) declined to state a political preference. The cities of Grover Beach, Morro Bay, and San Luis Obispo had pluralities or majorities of registered Democratic voters, whereas the rest of the county's towns, cities, and the unincorporated areas have a plurality or majority of registered Republican voters.[citation needed]
In unincorporated parts of the county, fire protection and emergency response services have been provided by the San Luis Obispo County Fire Department, through a cooperative agreement withCAL FIRE, since 1930. The county fire department also servesLos Osos,Oceano, andAvila Beach.[47] The city of San Luis Obispo is served by theSan Luis Obispo City Fire Department.
In the future, SR 46 may be considered for a possible westward expansion ofInterstate 40 viaSR 58 from Barstow to Bakersfield, from Bakersfield to I-5 viaWestside Parkway, and then following SR 46 to Paso Robles.[49] SR 46 is slowly being upgraded to Interstate standards, minus overpasses between Interstate 5 and US Route 101.[clarification needed]
^"Find a County". National Association of Counties. RetrievedJune 7, 2011.
^abSettevendemie, Marty."2020 Crop Report"(PDF). San Luis Obispo County Department of Agriculture. Archived fromthe original(PDF) on August 8, 2022. RetrievedApril 26, 2022.
^Terry L. Jones and Kathryn Klar (2007)California Prehistory: Colonization, Culture, and Complexity, Published by Rowman AltamiraISBN0-7591-0872-2, 408 pages
^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.
Charles Montville Gidney, Benjamin Brooks, and Edwin M. Sheridan,History of Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo and Ventura Counties, California. In Two Volumes. Chicago: Lewis Publishing Co., 1917.Volume 1 |Volume 2
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