Placer County, California

Placer County (/ˈplæsər/ PLASS-ərr; Spanish for "sand deposit"), officially the County of Placer, is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 404,739.[4] The county seat is Auburn.[5]

Placer County, California
County
Images from top, left to right: The Auburn Courthouse, a panorama of a forested area, Lake Tahoe in Kings Beach
Flag of Placer County, California
Flag
Official seal of Placer County, California
Seal
Interactive map of Placer County
Location in the state of California
Location in the state of California
Coordinates: 39.06°N 120.73°W / 39.06; -120.73
CountryUnited States
StateCalifornia
RegionsSacramento Valley, Sierra Nevada
Metro areaGreater Sacramento
IncorporatedApril 25, 1851[1]
Named forPlacer mining, a reference to the area being a center of the California Gold Rush
County seatAuburn
Largest cityRoseville
Government
 • TypeCouncil–CEO
 • Body
Board of Supervisors[2]
  • Bonnie Gore
  • Shanti Landon
  • Jim Holmes
  • Suzanne Jones
  • Cindy Gustafson
 • ChairJim Holmes
 • Vice ChairSuzanne Jones
 • County Executive OfficerJane Christenson (Acting)
Area
 • Total1,502 sq mi (3,890 km2)
 • Land1,407 sq mi (3,640 km2)
 • Water95 sq mi (250 km2)
Highest elevation
[3]
9,044 ft (2,757 m)
Population
 (2020)
 • Total404,739
 • Density270/sq mi (100/km2)
Time zoneUTC−8 (Pacific Time Zone)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−7 (Pacific Daylight Time)
Area codes530, 916, 279
FIPS code06-061
GNIS feature ID277295
Congressional district3rd
Websitewww.placer.ca.gov
Gold specimen from the Eagle's Nest Mine, a source of specimen gold in Placer County

Placer County is included in the Greater Sacramento metropolitan area. It is in both the Sacramento Valley and Sierra Nevada regions, in what is known as the Gold Country. The county stretches roughly 65 miles (105 km) from Sacramento's suburbs at Roseville to the Nevada border and the shore of Lake Tahoe.

Etymology

The discovery of gold in 1848 brought tens of thousands of miners from around the world during the California Gold Rush. In addition, many more thousands came to provide goods and services to the miners. On April 25, 1851, the fast-growing county was formed from parts of Sutter and Yuba Counties with Auburn as the county seat. Placer County took its name from the Spanish word for sand or gravel deposits containing gold. Miners washed away the gravel, leaving the heavier gold, in a process known as "placer mining".

History

Gold mining was a major industry through the 1880s, but gradually the new residents turned to farming the fertile foothill soil, harvesting timber and working for the Southern Pacific Railroad. Auburn was settled when Claude Chana discovered gold in Auburn Ravine in May 1848, and it later became a shipping and supply center for the surrounding gold camps. The cornerstone of Placer's courthouse, which is clearly visible from Interstate 80 through Auburn, was laid on July 4, 1894. The building was renovated during the late 1980s and continues to serve the public with courtrooms, a sheriff's office and the Placer County Museum. Roseville, once a small agricultural center, became a major railroad center and grew to the county's most populous city after Southern Pacific Railroad moved its railroad switching yards there in 1908.

Loomis and Newcastle began as mining towns, but soon became centers of a booming fruit-growing industry, supporting many local packing houses. Penryn was founded by a Welsh miner, Griffith Griffith, who established a large granite quarry. Rocklin began as a railroad town and became home to a number of granite quarries. Lincoln and Sheridan continue to support ranching and farming. Lincoln also is the home of one of the county's oldest businesses, the Gladding, McBean terra cotta clay manufacturing plant, established in 1875.

The 1960 Winter Olympics were hosted in Squaw Valley, in Placer County.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has an area of 1,502 square miles (3,890 km2), of which 1,407 square miles (3,640 km2) is land and 95 square miles (250 km2) (6.4%) is water.[6] Watercourses in Placer County include the American River and Bunch Creek. 40.96% of Lake Tahoe's surface area is in Placer County, more than in any of the four other counties in which it lies.[7]

The county is typically divided into three regions; “South Placer” in the Central Valley and the Sierra Nevada foothills south of Auburn, “Gold Country” which consists of the Sierra Foothills around Auburn, Colfax, and Foresthill, and the Sierra Nevada which consists of all areas east of Foresthill and northeast of Colfax (including the Lake Tahoe region). Roughly 3/4ths of the population lives in South Placer, Roseville being the primary job and retail center of the county. Auburn and Lincoln are the main secondary commercial centers.

Adjacent counties

National protected areas

Demographics
Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
186013,270—
187011,357−14.4%
188014,23225.3%
189015,1016.1%
190015,7864.5%
191018,23715.5%
192018,5841.9%
193024,46831.7%
194028,10814.9%
195041,64948.2%
196056,99836.9%
197077,30635.6%
1980117,24751.7%
1990172,79647.4%
2000248,39943.8%
2010348,43240.3%
2020404,73916.2%
U.S. Decennial Census[8]
1790–1960[9] 1900–1990[10]
1990–2000[11] 2010[12] 2020[13]

2020 census
Placer County, California - Demographic Profile
(NH = Non-Hispanic)
Race / Ethnicity Pop 2010[12] Pop 2020[13] % 2010 % 2020
White alone (NH) 265,294 272,471 76.14% 67.32%
Black or African American alone (NH) 4,427 6,440 1.27% 1.59%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) 2,080 2,010 0.60% 0.50%
Asian alone (NH) 19,963 34,776 5.73% 8.59%
Pacific Islander alone (NH) 697 967 0.20% 0.24%
Some Other Race alone (NH) 603 2,091 0.17% 0.52%
Mixed Race/Multi-Racial (NH) 10,658 25,356 3.06% 6.26%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 44,710 60,628 12.83% 14.98%
Total 348,432 404,739 100.00% 100.00%

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 can be of any race.

2011

Places by population, race, and income

2010 Census

The 2010 United States Census reported that Placer County had a population of 348,432. The racial makeup of Placer County was 290,977 (83.5%) White, 4,751 (1.4%) African American, 3,011 (0.9%) Native American, 20,435 (5.9%) Asian, 778 (0.2%) Pacific Islander, 13,375 (3.8%) from other races, and 15,105 (4.3%) from two or more races. There were 4,710 Hispanics or Latinos of any race (12.8%).[22]

2000

As of the census[23] of 2000, there were 248,399 people, 93,382 households, and 67,701 families residing in the county. The population density was 177 inhabitants per square mile (68/km2). There were 107,302 housing units at an average density of 76 per square mile (29/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 88.6% White, 0.8% Black or African American, 0.9% Native American, 3.0% Asian, 0.2% Pacific Islander, 3.4% from other races, and 3.2% from two or more races. 9.7% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 15.5% were of German, 12.3% English, 10.6% Irish, 7.1% Italian and 7.0% American ancestry according to Census 2000. 89.7% spoke only English at home; 6.0% spoke Spanish.

There were 93,382 households, out of which 35.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.4% were married couples living together, 9.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.5% were non-families. 21.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.63 and the average family size was 3.06.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 26.5% under the age of 18, 6.9% from 18 to 24, 29.00% from 25 to 44, 24.5% from 45 to 64, and 13.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.9 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $57,535, and the median income for a family was $65,858 (these figures had risen to $68,463 and $80,987 respectively as of a 2007 estimate[24]). Males had a median income of $50,410 versus $33,763 for females. The per capita income for the county was $27,963. About 3.9% of families and 5.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.3% of those under age 18 and 3.8% of those age 65 or over. Unemployment in the county is just under 7% which is considerably lower than the state's average.

Politics, government, and policing

Government

County government is by a five-person four-year term elected board of supervisors with a board-appointed county manager and his/her department administrators.

Law enforcement

The Placer County Sheriff's Office provides court protection, jail administration, and coroner services for all of Placer County. It provides patrol, detective, and other police services for the unincorporated areas of the county plus by contract to the city of Colfax and the town of Loomis.

Voter registration

Cities by population and voter registration

Overview

In its early history Placer County was solidly Republican: it voted Republican in every election between 1860 and 1912, when Bull Moose nominee Theodore Roosevelt was California's official Republican nominee.[26] Between 1916 and 1976, however, the county voted Republican only in three landslide elections of 1920, 1952 and 1972 – in all of which its GOP margins were much smaller than for the state or nation. Since the “Reagan Revolution” Placer County has become and remained a stronghold of the Republican Party; it consistently elects Republican public officials and has voted for presidential candidates from the party in every election since 1980.

United States presidential election results for Placer County, California[27]
Year Republican Democratic Third party
No. %No. %No. %
2020 122,488 52.10% 106,869 45.46% 5,727 2.44%
2016 95,138 51.14% 73,509 39.52% 17,377 9.34%
2012 99,921 58.19% 66,818 38.91% 4,972 2.90%
2008 94,647 54.45% 75,112 43.21% 4,053 2.33%
2004 95,969 62.61% 55,573 36.26% 1,736 1.13%
2000 69,835 59.28% 42,449 36.04% 5,515 4.68%
1996 49,808 52.75% 34,981 37.05% 9,638 10.21%
1992 38,298 41.92% 30,783 33.69% 22,285 24.39%
1988 42,096 59.59% 27,516 38.95% 1,030 1.46%
1984 38,035 62.94% 21,294 35.24% 1,098 1.82%
1980 28,179 54.78% 17,311 33.65% 5,950 11.57%
1976 18,154 45.03% 21,026 52.16% 1,131 2.81%
1972 18,597 50.34% 16,911 45.77% 1,437 3.89%
1968 12,427 42.64% 14,050 48.21% 2,667 9.15%
1964 9,389 33.92% 18,256 65.96% 31 0.11%
1960 10,439 43.75% 13,304 55.75% 120 0.50%
1956 9,059 45.89% 10,611 53.76% 69 0.35%
1952 9,841 50.59% 9,444 48.55% 168 0.86%
1948 5,570 36.87% 8,837 58.49% 702 4.65%
1944 4,196 36.78% 7,149 62.66% 64 0.56%
1940 3,887 31.26% 8,402 67.56% 147 1.18%
1936 2,321 22.34% 7,959 76.62% 108 1.04%
1932 2,242 25.82% 6,200 71.40% 241 2.78%
1928 3,669 49.25% 3,685 49.46% 96 1.29%
1924 2,192 36.63% 390 6.52% 3,402 56.85%
1920 2,894 59.44% 1,559 32.02% 416 8.54%
1916 1,954 33.74% 3,375 58.28% 462 7.98%
1912 15 0.34% 1,823 41.84% 2,519 57.82%
1908 1,865 51.45% 1,491 41.13% 269 7.42%
1904 2,050 62.61% 1,023 31.25% 201 6.14%
1900 2,009 54.64% 1,592 43.30% 76 2.07%
1896 1,890 51.41% 1,721 46.82% 65 1.77%
1892 1,743 49.27% 1,524 43.08% 271 7.66%
1888 1,761 52.35% 1,547 45.99% 56 1.66%
1884 1,749 52.89% 1,483 44.84% 75 2.27%
1880 1,643 52.71% 1,416 45.43% 58 1.86%

In the United States House of Representatives, Placer County is split between California's 1st and 4th congressional districts,[28] represented by Doug LaMalfa (R–Oroville) and Mike Thompson (D–St. Helena), respectively.[29]

In the California State Senate, Placer County is split between the 1st and 4th districts,[30] represented by Brian Dahle and Marie Alvarado-Gil, respectively.

In the California State Assembly, the county is split between the 1st, 5th, and 6th districts,[31] represented by Megan Dahle, Joe Patterson, and Kevin McCarty respectively.

Crime

The following table includes the number of incidents reported and the rate per 1,000 persons for each type of offense.

Cities by population and crime rates

Economy

Top employers

According to the county's 2010 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report,[35] the top employers in the county are:

# Employer # of Employees
1 Kaiser Permanente 3,064
2 Hewlett-Packard 2,500
3 Placer County 2,400
4 Union Pacific Railroad 2,000
5 Sutter Health 1,983
6 Northstar at Tahoe 1,500
7 Thunder Valley Casino Resort 1,412
8 City of Roseville 1,282
9 PRIDE Industries 1,135
10 Raley's Supermarkets 1,006

mPOWER Placer

mPOWER Placer is Placer County's Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) program. It provides financing to commercial, industrial, agricultural and multifamily property owners to install energy efficiency, water conservation and renewable energy retrofits. The program, administered by the Placer County Treasurer-Tax Collector’s Office, was approved by the Board of Supervisors on February 9, 2010, and launched on March 22, 2010, and is open to eligible Placer County property owners.

Transportation
See also: Transportation in the Sacramento metropolitan area

Major highways

Public transportation

Airports

There are three general aviation airports in Placer County:

The closest commercial airport is Sacramento International Airport in Sacramento.

Communities

Cities

Towns

Census-designated places

Other communities

Ghost town

Population ranking

The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2020 census of Placer County.[36]

† county seat

Rank City/Town/etc. Municipal type Population (2020 Census)
1 Roseville City 147,773
2 Rocklin City 71,601
3 Lincoln City 49,757
4 Granite Bay CDP 21,247
5 † Auburn City 13,776
6 North Auburn CDP 13,452
7 Loomis Town 6,836
8 Kings Beach CDP 3,563
9 Meadow Vista CDP 3,263
10 Colfax City 1,995
11 Foresthill CDP 1,692
12 Sunnyside-Tahoe City CDP 1,555
13 Tahoe Vista CDP 1,392
14 Sheridan CDP 1,385
15 Newcastle CDP 1,321
16 Dollar Point CDP 1,261
17 Penryn CDP 1,150
18 Tahoma (partially in El Dorado County) CDP 1,034
19 Alta CDP 615
20 Carnelian Bay CDP 518
21 Dutch Flat CDP 183
22 Kingvale (mostly in Nevada County) CDP 128
23 Auburn Rancheria[37] AIAN 2

See also

Notes
  1. Other = Some other race + Two or more races
  2. Native American = Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander + American Indian or Alaska Native
  3. Percentage of registered voters with respect to total population. Percentages of party members with respect to registered voters follow.

References
  1. "Placer County". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved February 6, 2015.
  2. "Board of Supervisors | Placer County, CA".
  3. "Mount Baldy-West Ridge". Peakbagger.com. Retrieved February 6, 2015.
  4. "Placer County, California". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 30, 2022.
  5. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  6. "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Retrieved October 3, 2015.
  7. Bureau, U.S. Census. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 29, 2018.
  8. "Census of Population and Housing from 1790-2000". US Census Bureau. Retrieved January 24, 2022.
  9. "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved October 3, 2015.
  10. Forstall, Richard L., ed. (March 27, 1995). "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved October 3, 2015.
  11. "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. April 2, 2001. Retrieved October 3, 2015.
  12. "P2 HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE - 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) - Placer County, California". United States Census Bureau.
  13. "P2 HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE - 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) - Placer County, California". United States Census Bureau.
  14. U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey, 2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, Table B02001. U.S. Census website. Retrieved 2013-10-26.
  15. U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey, 2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, Table B03003. U.S. Census website. Retrieved 2013-10-26.
  16. U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey, 2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, Table B19301. U.S. Census website. Retrieved 2013-10-21.
  17. U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey, 2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, Table B19013. U.S. Census website. Retrieved 2013-10-21.
  18. U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey, 2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, Table B19113. U.S. Census website. Retrieved 2013-10-21.
  19. U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey, 2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. U.S. Census website. Retrieved 2013-10-21.
  20. U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey, 2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, Table B01003. U.S. Census website. Retrieved 2013-10-21.
  21. Data unavailable
  22. "2010 Census P.L. 94-171 Summary File Data". United States Census Bureau.
  23. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved May 14, 2011.
  24. "Placer County, California - Fact Sheet - American FactFinder". Factfinder.census.gov. Archived from the original on February 11, 2020. Retrieved July 22, 2010.
  25. California Secretary of State. February 10, 2013 - Report of Registration Archived July 27, 2013, at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2013-10-31.
  26. Menendez, Albert J.; The Geography of Presidential Elections in the United States, 1868-2004, pp. 153-156 ISBN 0786422173
  27. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org.
  28. "Counties by County and by District". California Citizens Redistricting Commission. Archived from the original on September 30, 2013. Retrieved September 24, 2014.
  29. "California's 4th Congressional District - Representatives & District Map". Civic Impulse, LLC. Retrieved March 1, 2013.
  30. "Communities of Interest — County". California Citizens Redistricting Commission. Archived from the original on October 23, 2015. Retrieved September 28, 2014.
  31. "Communities of Interest — County". California Citizens Redistricting Commission. Archived from the original on October 23, 2015. Retrieved September 28, 2014.
  32. Office of the Attorney General, Department of Justice, State of California. Table 11: Crimes – 2009 Archived 2013-12-02 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2013-11-14.
  33. Only larceny-theft cases involving property over $400 in value are reported as property crimes.
  34. United States Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation. Crime in the United States, 2012, Table 8 (California). Retrieved 2013-11-14.
  35. County of Placer CAFR
  36. "Explore Census Data". United States Census Bureau. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
  37. Staff, Website Services & Coordination. "2010 Census Interactive Population Map (Text Version) - U.S. Census Bureau". www.census.gov.
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