Pittsburg

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Coordinates: 38°01′41″N 121°53′05″W / 38.02806°N 121.88472°W / 38.02806; -121.88472

Pittsburg, California
—  City  —
Location in Contra Costa County and the state of California
Coordinates: 38°01′41″N 121°53′05″W / 38.02806°N 121.88472°W / 38.02806; -121.88472
Country	United States
State	California
County	Contra Costa
Area [1]
- Total	16.82 sq mi (43.6 km2)
- Land	15.60 sq mi (40.4 km2)
- Water	1.22 sq mi (3.2 km2)  7.25%
Elevation [2]	26 ft (8 m)
Population (2000)[1]
- Total	56,769
- Density	3,639.0/sq mi (1,405/km2)
Time zone	PST (UTC-8)
- Summer (DST)	PDT (UTC-7)
ZIP code	94565
Area code(s)	925
FIPS code	06-57456
GNIS feature ID	1659783
Website	http://www.ci.pittsburg.ca.us/

Pittsburg (formerly, Black Diamond, City of New York of the Pacific, New York of the Pacific, and Pittsburgh)^[3] is a city located in eastern Contra Costa County, California, the outer portion of the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. It has one BART station, the Pittsburg/Bay Point Station located in Bay Point.^[4] The current zip code is 94565 for both Pittsburg and Bay Point, and the area code is 925.

History

In 1849, Colonel Jonathan D. Stevenson (from New York) bought the Rancho Los Medanos land grant, and laid out a town he called New York of the Pacific.^[5] By 1850, this venture failed.^[5] With the discovery of coal nearby, the place became a port for coaling, and adopted the name Black Diamond, after the mining firm.^[5] Due to the industrial potential of the site, the name Pittsburg was proposed in 1909.^[5]

Pittsburg, founded in 1839, was called first "New York Landing", then "Black Diamond", before citizens voted on "Pittsburg" on February 11, 1911, in honor of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, with the "H" dropped. The current name was chosen due to the city's relations with the steel building industry, first established by the Columbia Geneva Steel Company.^[6] The original town site fronts on the Sacramento River Delta, reflecting its origins as a deep water channel river port. (As of January 1, 2007, new state legislation will enable the city to manage its own riverfront for commercial development and subsequent port operations).^{[citation needed]}

Since the early 1900s, the city has grown inland to the south, then spread east and west along State Route 4, now a freeway carrying resident commuters to jobs in the San Francisco Bay-Oakland Region. The city has enjoyed continued residential redevelopment growth to the north, as well as ongoing construction of major subdivisions in the southwest hills.^{[citation needed]} As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 56,769.^[7]

The city has an extensive history of coal mining and industrial development since the late 1800s, with USS-POSCO Industries (a joint venture between US Steel and POSCO of South Korea) and Dow Chemical Company maintaining substantial plants in Pittsburg.^{[citation needed]}

Camp Stoneman, located in the area, was a major staging area for the United States Army during World War II and the Korean War.

The post office first opened in 1868 as Black Diamond, and changed its name with the town's in 1911.^[5] Ramar International manufactures Magnolia Dairy Ice Cream, a Philippine specialty brand, in Pittsburg.^[8]

Education

Pittsburg is home to Los Medanos College^[9], a two-year community college that is part of the Contra Costa Community College District. The college's name is derived from that of the Rancho Los Medanos, one of the land grants made by the Mexican Government during its sovereignty over California from 1821 to 1846; Los Medanos, loosely translated from Spanish, means The Sand Dunes. Construction on Los Medanos College was completed in early 1979 and the campus opened its doors in the spring semester of 1979.^{[citation needed]}

Pittsburg has two public high schools, one a continuation school:^[10]

• Pittsburg High School
• Riverside Continuation High School

The public Junior high schools in Pittsburg are

• Hillview Junior High School
• Rancho Medanos Junior High School

The public elementary schools in Pittsburg are:

• Bel Air Elementary School
• Delta View Elementary School (part of Mt. Diablo Unified School District)
• Foothill Elementary School
• Heights Elementary School
• Highlands Elementary School
• Los Medanos Elementary School
• Marina Vista Elementary School
• Parkside Elementary School
• Stoneman Elementary School
• Willow Cove Elementary School

Private schools in Pittsburg include the Christian Center and School of Saint Peter Martyr.

Redevelopment projects

• The city is currently in the process of redeveloping the older downtown.^{[citation needed]}
• A new Marina Master Plan is under development along Pittsburg's waterfront which will include a pedestrian promenade with subsequent commercial and hotel construction and development planned in 2008.^{[citation needed]}
• An extension of the existing Bay Area Rapid Transit District (BART) rapid transit system, which includes a BART station at Railroad Avenue, designed for construction by 2010.^{[citation needed]}
• A Civic Center Master Plan by the city will promote transit-oriented and mixed-use development to coincide with the construction of the new BART station adjacent to the current Civic Center.^{[citation needed]}
• The Black Diamond Project will provide services to residents on the north side.

Recreation

The Pittsburg Delta View Golf Course, now a city-run facility, has a back nine designed by Alister MacKenzie, the architect who designed the course at the Augusta National Golf Club, home of The Masters.^{[citation needed]}

Demographics

As of the census^[1] of 2000, there were 56,769 people, 17,741 households, and 13,483 families residing in the city. The population density was 3,639.0/mi² (1,405.0/km²). There were 18,300 housing units at an average density of 1,173.1/mi² (452.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 36.53% White, 25.89% Black or African American, 0.75% Native American, 12.65% Asian, 0.86% Pacific Islander, 16.11% from other races, and 7.22% from two or more races. 32.21% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 17,741 households out of which 42.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.5% were married couples living together, 17.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.0% were non-families. 18.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.17 and the average family size was 3.59.

In the city the population was spread out with 30.8% under the age of 18, 10.4% from 18 to 24, 31.2% from 25 to 44, 19.4% from 45 to 64, and 8.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females there were 96.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.1 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $50,557, and the median income for a family was $54,472. Males had a median income of $39,111 versus $31,396 for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,241. About 8.7% of families and 11.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.1% of those under age 18 and 7.6% of those age 65 or over.

Sister cities

This section does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (May 2009)

• Isola delle Femmine, Italy
• Shimonoseki, Japan

References

• USGS GNIS: Pittsburg, California

External links

• City of Pittsburg official website
• Pittsburg Library's official website
• Pittsburg Events Spotlight

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	Bay Point		Antioch
		Pittsburg
	Concord	Clayton