Mendocino, California | |
|---|---|
 Mendocino, California | |
 Location inMendocino County and the state ofCalifornia | |
  Mendocino, California Location in the United States | |
| Coordinates:39°18′28″N123°47′58″W / 39.30778°N 123.79944°W /39.30778; -123.79944 | |
| Country | United States |
| State | California |
| County | Mendocino |
| Area | |
• Total | 3.032 sq mi (7.85 km2) |
| • Land | 2.257 sq mi (5.85 km2) |
| • Water | 0.775 sq mi (2.01 km2) 25.56% |
| Elevation | 154 ft (47 m) |
| Population (2020)[3] | |
• Total | 932 |
| • Density | 412.9/sq mi (159.4/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-8 (Pacific (PST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-7 (PDT) |
| ZIP code | 95460 |
| Area code | 707 |
| FIPS code | 06-46814 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1659106 |
Mendocino (Spanish for "ofMendoza")[4] is anunincorporated community inMendocino County, California, United States. The name comes fromCape Mendocino 85 miles (137 km) to the north, named by early Spanish navigators in honor ofAntonio de Mendoza, Viceroy ofNew Spain. Despite its small size, the town's scenic location on a headland surrounded by thePacific Ocean has made it extremely popular as anartists' colony and with vacationers.
Mendocino is located 10 miles (16 km) south ofFort Bragg[5] at an elevation of 154 feet (47 m).[2] For statistical purposes, the United States Census Bureau has defined Mendocino as acensus-designated place (CDP). The population of the CDP was 932 at the2020 census.[3]
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Prior to 1850, aPomo settlement namedBuldam was located near Mendocino on the north bank of theBig River. In 1850, the shipFrolic was wrecked a few miles north of Mendocino, atPoint Cabrillo, and the investigation of the wreck by agents ofHenry Meiggs sparked the development of the timber industry in the area.[6] Mendocino itself was founded in 1852 as a logging community for what became theMendocino Lumber Company, and was originally named "Meiggsville" after Meiggs. The town was also known as "Big River"[2] Meiggstown,[2] and "Mendocino City",[5] before the current name was settled on. The first post office opened in 1858.[5] Many of the town's early settlers wereNew Englanders, as was true of many older Northern California logging towns.Portuguese fishermen from theAzores also settled in the area, as didimmigrants from Canton Province inChina, who built theTaoistTemple of Kwan Tai in town.
Between 1940 and 1950, Mendocino's population grew by 3%.[7] In 2021, there was a water shortage which forced businesses to transport their own drinking water.[8]
California State Route 1 (Shoreline Highway) runs along the eastern edge of the downtown area; it leads north 10 miles (16 km) toFort Bragg and south 29 miles (47 km) toManchester. Comptche-Ukiah Road departs east from Route 1 just south of the town, leading across theCalifornia Coast Ranges 14 miles (23 km) toComptche, and 44 miles (71 km) toUkiah, the Mendocinocounty seat. TheBig River forms the southern edge of the community and joins the Pacific Ocean at Big River Beach withinMendocino Headlands State Park, a quarter mile south of the center of town.
The Census Bureau definition of the area may not precisely correspond to the local understanding of the community. According to theUnited States Census Bureau, the Mendocino CDP has a total area of 3.0 square miles (7.8 km2), of which 2.3 square miles (6.0 km2) are land and 0.8 square miles (2.1 km2), or 25.56%, are water.[1]
In 2021, someaquifers feeding the settlement's demand for water failed. Wells in the area are typically dug to a depth of 8 to 30 feet (2.4 to 9.1 m). One well was dug to a depth of 165 feet (50 m) without successfully tapping into an aquifer. Water is now brought in by tankers, and local businesses have fitted chemical toilets to conserve water.[9]
Summers are characterized by frequent fog and highs mostly in the upper sixties and lows in the fifties. Winters rarely, if ever, see frost or snow, due to closeproximity to thePacific Ocean. Mendocino averages about 43 inches (1,100 mm) of rain per year, concentrated mainly in fall, winter, spring, and early summer.
This region experiences warm (but not hot) and dry summers, with no average monthly temperatures above 71.6 °F (22 °C). According to theKöppen Climate Classification system, Mendocino has awarm-summer Mediterranean climate, abbreviated "Csb" on climate maps.[10]
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 824 | — | |
| 2010 | 894 | 8.5% | |
| 2020 | 932 | 4.3% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census[11] 1860–1870[12][13] 1880-1890[14] 1900[15] 1910[16] 1920[17] 1930[18] 1940[19] 1950[20] 1960[21] 1970[22] 1980[23] 1990[24]2000[25] 2010[26] | |||
Mendocino first appeared as acensus designated place in the2000 U.S. census.[25]
The2020 United States census reported that Mendocino had a population of 932. The population density was 412.9 inhabitants per square mile (159.4/km2). The racial makeup of Mendocino was 798 (85.6%)White, 4 (0.4%)African American, 2 (0.2%)Native American, 9 (1.0%)Asian, 0 (0.0%)Pacific Islander, 21 (2.3%) fromother races, and 98 (10.5%) from two or more races.Hispanic or Latino of any race were 73 persons (7.8%).[27]
The census reported that 96.2% of the population lived in households, 3.8% lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and no one was institutionalized.[27]
There were 459 households, out of which 84 (18.3%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 177 (38.6%) were married-couple households, 59 (12.9%) werecohabiting couple households, 145 (31.6%) had a female householder with no partner present, and 78 (17.0%) had a male householder with no partner present. 150 households (32.7%) were one person, and 84 (18.3%) were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 1.95.[27] There were 252families (54.9% of all households).[28]
The age distribution was 113 people (12.1%) under the age of 18, 33 people (3.5%) aged 18 to 24, 147 people (15.8%) aged 25 to 44, 256 people (27.5%) aged 45 to 64, and 383 people (41.1%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 61.2 years. For every 100 females, there were 86.4 males.[27]
There were 584 housing units at an average density of 258.8 units per square mile (99.9 units/km2), of which 459 (78.6%) were occupied. Of these, 281 (61.2%) were owner-occupied, and 178 (38.8%) were occupied by renters.[27]
At the2010 census Mendocino had a population of 894. The population density was 120.5 inhabitants per square mile (46.5/km2). The racial makeup of Mendocino was 834 (93.3%) White, 5 (0.6%) African American, 8 (0.9%) Native American, 13 (1.5%) Asian, 1 (0.1%) Pacific Islander, 6 (0.7%) from other races, and 27 (3.0%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 42 people (4.7%).[29]
The census reported that 830 people (92.8% of the population) lived in households, 64 (7.2%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and no one was institutionalized.
There were 447 households, 62 (13.9%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 177 (39.6%) wereopposite-sex married couples living together, 22 (4.9%) had a female householder with no husband present, 15 (3.4%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 29 (6.5%)unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 6 (1.3%)same-sex married couples or partnerships. 178 households (39.8%) were one person and 83 (18.6%) had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 1.86. There were 214 families (47.9% of households); the average family size was 2.41.
The age distribution was 93 people (10.4%) under the age of 18, 58 people (6.5%) aged 18 to 24, 166 people (18.6%) aged 25 to 44, 333 people (37.2%) aged 45 to 64, and 244 people (27.3%) who were 65 or older. The median age was 56.1 years. For every 100 females, there were 89.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.7 males.
There were 617 housing units at an average density of 83.1 per square mile, of the occupied units 271 (60.6%) were owner-occupied and 176 (39.4%) were rented. The homeowner vacancy rate was 3.9%; the rental vacancy rate was 9.2%. 520 people (58.2% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 310 people (34.7%) lived in rental housing units.
At the2000 census, the median household income was $44,107 and the median family income was $59,167. Males had a median income of $41,667 versus $29,875 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $29,348. About 6.3% of families and 13.3% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 7.3% of those under age 18 and 17.8% of those age 65 or over.[30]
Mendocino is home to a large number of hotels andbed and breakfasts. It has a downtown commercial district facing the ocean, with a number of art galleries, retail shops, lodging and restaurants.
Mendocino is one of the many small California towns facing severewater scarcity. Many of the region's wells, the town's primary water source, have run dry, so water is being brought in by truck at a cost of 20 to 45 cents per gallon. There are concerns that towns and cities in the county will stop selling water to Mendocino altogether: Fort Bragg, a city 10 miles (16 km) to the north, took this step in July 2021 because of concerns about their own water shortage.[31]
After the Mendocino Art Center was formed in 1959, Mendocino experienced a forty-year art renaissance, led by artist and real estate developerBill Zacha.
Most of the town was added to theNational Register of Historic Places in 1971 as theMendocino and Headlands Historic District.[32] The Gothic Revival–styleMendocino Presbyterian Church on Main Street, dedicated on July 5, 1868, is one of the oldest continuously used Protestant churches in California, and is designated asCalifornia Historical Landmark #714. In addition, theTemple of Kwan Tai on Albion Street, California Historical Landmark #927, may be as old as 1854 and is one of the oldest Chinese houses of worship in California.[33]
Since 1987, Mendocino has been the site of theMendocino Music Festival, a classically based but musically diverse series of concerts that is held annually in a huge circus-type performance tent on the town's Main Street in theMendocino Headlands State Park.[34]
TheKelley House Museum has a cannon from theFrolic, currently on long-term loan at the Point Cabrillo Lighthouse complex.[35]
TheMendocino Film Festival was first held in May 2006.[36] As the area is a haven for artists, the festival honors them with a special "artist category", in addition to the documentary, feature and short film categories.
In thestate legislature, Mendocino is inthe 2nd senatorial district, represented byDemocrat Mike McGuire,[37] andthe 2nd Assembly district, represented byDemocrat Chris Rogers.[38]
Federally, Mendocino is inCalifornia's 2nd congressional district, represented byDemocrat Jared Huffman.[39]
Friendship Park, a municipal sports playing field, was constructed by local volunteers and opened in April 1993.[40]
Mendocino is in theMendocino Unified School District.[41]
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Many films and movies have beenfilmed in and around Mendocino and Mendocino County, includingDying Young,The Russians Are Coming;Overboard;The Dunwich Horror;The Karate Kid Part III;Dead & Buried;Forever Young;Same Time Next Year;Racing with the Moon;Pontiac Moon; andThe Majestic. Mendocino was depicted as turn-of-the-20th-century Monterey in the James Dean classicEast of Eden, and it served as a New England resort town inSummer of '42 (the latter film featuring numerous local Mendocino High School students as extras).
TheSir Douglas Quintet had a number 27 hit with their song "Mendocino" (fromthe album of the same name) in early 1969.
The singersKate & Anna McGarrigle wrote and sang the 1976 song "Talk to Me of Mendocino" about someone returning to the happiness of the town after unhappy experiences in New York.
The TV seriesMurder, She Wrote has had perhaps the largest impact on the community in recent years.Murder, She Wrote was set in the fictional town ofCabot Cove,Maine. Nine episodes of the 264-episode program were filmed in Mendocino, while exterior shots throughout Mendocino were used in the remaining episodes. The program was broadcast for 12 seasons, from September 1984 until May 1996 on CBS. Local residents looked forward to the yearly filming, as over a hundred and fifty were chosen to play background parts. A few were cast for speaking roles. Poet, playwright and actor Lawrence Bullock cites being cast in a speaking role as a "Townsperson" in the episode "Indian Giver" as giving him eligibility to join the Screen Actors' Guild. Locals, including Linda Pack and James Henderson, were also cast in speaking roles. The residence of the main characterJessica Fletcher was an actual home in Mendocino and is now a bed and breakfast under the name "Blair House."
While scenes forMurder, She Wrote were being filmed in Mendocino, residents say that it was common to seeAngela Lansbury, who played Jessica Fletcher, stop to speak with a toddler, or forTom Bosley to sign his autograph on a Glad Bag box presented by a shopper stepping out of the local grocery store.Murder, She Wrote also brought in more money to the town due to increased tourism—by some estimates, around $2,000,000. The local high school band appeared in one of the episodes and received enough money from the appearance to go on a band trip.
Cliffs of Mendocino, a musical arrangement composed by Alan Lee Silva that is designed for developing middle and high school bands, was also inspired by and named after the community.
Mendocino is asister city withMiasa, Japan, a relationship formed due to the friendship of Mendocino artistBill Zacha and Japanese artistTōshi Yoshida that was formalized in 1980.[42] Every other year, Miasa students visit Mendocino middle school students.[43][44]
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Mendocino travel guide from WikivoyageMunicipalities and communities ofMendocino County, California,United States | ||
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| Cities |  | |
| CDPs | ||
| Unincorporated communities |
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| Indian reservations | ||
| Former settlements | ||
| Footnotes | ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties | |
| International | |
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| National | |
| Other | |
