Santa Clara County, California
| Santa Clara County, California | |
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| Map | |
 Location in the state of California |
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 California's location in the USA |
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| Statistics | |
| Founded | 1850 |
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| Seat | San Jose |
| Largest City | San Jose |
| Area - Total - Land - Water |
3,377 km² 3,343 km² (1,291 mi²) 34 km², |
| Population - (2000) - Density |
1,682,585 503/km² |
| Time zone | Pacific: UTC-8/-7 |
| Website: www.sccgov.org | |
Santa Clara County is a county located in the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California. It is the primary site of Silicon Valley. As of 2000 it had a population of 1,682,585. The county seat is San Jose.
History
Santa Clara County was one of the original counties of California, formed in 1850 at the time of statehood. The original inhabitants included the Ohlone, residing on Coyote Creek and Calaveras Creek. Part of the county's territory was given to Alameda County in 1853.
The county is named after Mission Santa Clara, which was established in 1777, and named for Saint Clare of Assisi, Italy. The name "Clare" or "Clara" means "clear" or "bright."
In 1882, Santa Clara County tried to levy taxes upon property of the Southern Pacific Railroad within county boundaries. The result was the U.S. Supreme Court case of Santa Clara County v. Southern Pacific Railroad, 118 U.S. 394 (1886), in which the Court extended Due Process rights to artificial legal entities.
After two centuries of an agricultural economy started by the Spanish missionaries, the focus has shifted to technology. This trend is not new. Hewlett Packard was founded in 1939, and Fairchild Semiconductor along with other early innovators were located in the county by the late 1950s. The term "Silicon Valley" was itself coined in 1971. The trend accelerated in the 1980s and 1990s, and agriculture has been nearly eliminated from the northern part of the county. Today, Santa Clara County is the headquarters for such companies as Apple Computer, Hewlett Packard, Quest, Intel, Google, Yahoo, and many others. The county is the main area of the Silicon Valley, which includes several other counties both north and south of Santa Clara.
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 3,377 km² (1,304 mi²). 3,343 km² (1,291 mi²) of it is land and 34 km² (13 mi²) of it (1.02%) is water.
The San Andreas Fault runs along the Santa Cruz Mountains in the south of the county.
Adjacent Counties
- San Benito County, California - south
- Santa Cruz County, California - south, southwest
- San Mateo County, California - northwest
- Alameda County, California - north
- Stanislaus County, California - east
- Merced County, California - southeast
Demographics
| Historical populations | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1900 |
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| 1910 | 38.7% | ||
| 1920 | 20.5% | ||
| 1930 | 44.1% | ||
| 1940 | 20.6% | ||
| 1950 | 66.1% | ||
| 1960 | 121.1% | ||
| 1970 | 65.8% | ||
| 1980 | 21.6% | ||
| 1990 | 15.6% | ||
| 2000 | 12.4% | ||
As of the census² of 2000, there were 1,682,585 people, 565,863 households, and 395,538 families residing in the county. The population density was 503/km² (1,304/mi²). There were 579,329 housing units at an average density of 173/km² (449/mi²). The racial makeup of the county was 53.83% White, 2.80% Black or African American, 0.67% Native American, 25.56% Asian, 0.34% Pacific Islander, 12.13% from other races, and 4.66% from two or more races. 23.98% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 54.7% spoke English, 17.6% Spanish, 5.7% Vietnamese, 5.3% Chinese or Mandarin, 3.3% Tagalog and 1.2% Korean as their first language.
There were 565,863 households out of which 34.90% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.90% were married couples living together, 10.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.10% were non-families. 21.40% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.90% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.92 and the average family size was 3.41.
In the county the population was spread out with 24.70% under the age of 18, 9.30% from 18 to 24, 35.40% from 25 to 44, 21.00% from 45 to 64, and 9.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 102.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 101.90 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $74,335, and the median income for a family was $81,717. Males had a median income of $56,240 versus $40,574 for females. The per capita income for the county was $32,795. About 4.90% of families and 7.50% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.40% of those under age 18 and 6.40% of those age 65 or over.
Santa Clara County has the highest median household income of any county in California.
Politics
Santa Clara County is covered by California's 11th and 14th through 16th Congressional Districts. In the 110th United States Congress, all the Santa Clara districts are represented by Democrats.
Presidential elections results
| Year | GOP | Democrats |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 | 34.6% 209,094 | 63.9% 386,100 |
| 2000 | 34.4% 188,750 | 60.7% 332,490 |
| 1996 | 32.2% 168,291 | 56.9% 297,639 |
| 1992 | 28.4% 170,870 | 49.2% 296,265 |
| 1988 | 47.0% 254,442 | 51.3% 277,810 |
| 1984 | 54.8% 288,638 | 43.6% 229,865 |
| 1980 | 48.0% 299,048 | 35.0% 166,995 |
| 1976 | 49.5% 219,188 | 46.9% 208,023 |
| 1972 | 51.9% 237,334 | 45.6% 208,506 |
| 1968 | 45.6% 163,446 | 48.4% 173,511 |
| 1964 | 36.6% 117,420 | 63.1% 202,249 |
| 1960 | 52.7% 131,735 | 47.0% 117,667 |
Transportation
Freeways and expressways
The county has an extensive freeway system (now nearing completion) and a separate expressway system. Expressways in California are distinct from freeways; although access to adjoining properties is eliminated, at-grade intersections are allowed. However, unlike expressways virtually everywhere else in California, the Santa Clara County expressways were built, signed, and maintained as county roads; they are not maintained by Caltrans, although they are patrolled by the California Highway Patrol.
Many journalists and mapmakers from outside California do not understand the important difference between freeways and expressways, and incorrectly describe or depict Silicon Valley as criss-crossed by a "web" of freeways when many of the lines on the map are really expressways.[citation needed]
There is also a large street network dominated by four- and six-lane arterials. Some of the newer boulevards (primarily in the West Valley) are divided with landscaped medians.
Major highways
Interstate 280
Interstate 680
Interstate
880
U.S. Route 101
California State Route 9
California State Route 17
California State Route 82
California State Route 85
California State Route 87
California State Route 130
California State Route 237
Mass transit
Santa Clara County has consolidated its transportation services into the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority, which operates a rapidly expanding light rail system and a large system of bus routes. It also manages certain county-funded highway and expressway projects.
Besides SCVTA, the County is also served by Caltrain commuter rail service, and the ACE Train system, which runs between San Jose and Stockton.
County routes
- See also: List of county routes in California
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Ports
The county's main airport is Norman Y. Mineta San José International Airport (SJC). Moffett Federal Airfield (NUQ), a former Naval Air Station, is used by the Air National Guard, NASA, Lockheed Martin, and Google.[1] There are also smaller general aviation airports in Palo Alto (PAO), San Jose (RHV), and San Martin (E16).
The county has no seaports. Like all other Bay Area counties, it is dependent upon the Port of Oakland for transport of ocean cargo.
Cities, towns, and neighborhoods
Incorporated Places
There are 15 incorporated cities and towns in the county:
- Campbell
- Cupertino
- Gilroy
- Los Altos
- Los Altos Hills
- Los Gatos
- Milpitas
- Monte Sereno
- Morgan Hill
- Mountain View
- Palo Alto
- San Jose (incorporating the formerly independent unincorporated communities of Alum Rock, and Cambrian Park, as well as the formerly independent incorporated cities of Willow Glen, East San Jose, and Alviso)
- Santa Clara
- Saratoga
- Sunnyvale
Unincorporated communities
Census Designated Places
- Buena Vista
- Burbank
- East Foothills
- Fruitdale
- Lexington Hills
- Loyola also known as Loyola Corners
- San Martin
- Seven Trees
- Stanford
- Sunol-Midtown
Other unincorporated communities
- Bell Station also known as Bell's Station and Hollenbeck's Station.
- Chemeketa Park
- Casa Loma also known as Loma Chiquita.
- Redwood Estates (part of Lexington Hills CDP.)
- Rucker.
- San Antonio also known as Deforest circa 1892-1924.
Parks
Santa Clara County has an extensive park system, much of it founded in the major park expansion of the late 1970s. Some of the parks within the county are:
- Almaden Quicksilver County Park
- Grant Ranch Park
- Henry W. Coe State Park
- Sanborn Park
- Vasona Lake Park
See also
- Committee for Green Foothills
- Old Almaden Winery
- Santa Clara County expressway system
List of school districts in Santa Clara County, California
References
- ^ Verne Kopytoff. "Google founders pay NASA $1.3 million to land at Moffett Airfield", San Francisco Chronicle, September 13, 2007. Retrieved on 2007-09-23.
External links
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Municipalities and communities of Santa Clara County, California |
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| County seat: San Jose | ||
| Cities |
Campbell | Cupertino | Gilroy | Los Altos | Milpitas | Monte Sereno | Morgan Hill | Mountain View | Palo Alto | San Jose | Santa Clara | Saratoga | Sunnyvale |
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| Incorporated towns | ||
| CDPs |
Alum Rock | Buena Vista | Burbank | East Foothills | Fruitdale | Lexington Hills | Loyola | San Martin | Seven Trees | Stanford | Sunol-Midtown |
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| Unincorporated communities |
Bell Station | Casa Loma | Chemeketa Park | Holy City | Loma Chiquita | Redwood Estates | Rucker | San Antonio | Sargent | Sveadal |
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