Siskiyou County, California

County of Siskiyou
—  County  —
Mount Shasta presides over much of Siskiyou County
Seal
Location in the state of California
California's location in the United States
Coordinates: 41°35′N 122°30′W
Country	United States
State	California
Region	Shasta Cascade
Incorporated	1852
County seat	Yreka
Largest city	Yreka
Area
• Total	16,440 km2 (6,347 sq mi)
• Land	16,280 km2 (6,287 sq mi)
• Water	200 km2 (60 sq mi)
Population (2010)
• Total	44,900
• Density	Bad rounding here2.7/km2 (Bad rounding here7.1/sq mi)
Time zone	Pacific Standard Time (UTC-8)
• Summer (DST)	Pacific Daylight Time (UTC-7)
Website	www.co.siskiyou.ca.us

Siskiyou County pron.: /ˈsɪskjuː/ SISS-kew is a county located in the far northernmost part of the U.S. state of California, in the Shasta Cascade region on the Oregon border. Yreka is the county seat. Because of its substantial natural beauty, outdoor recreation opportunities, and Gold Rush era history, it is an important tourist destination within the state. The population was 44,900 at the 2010 census.

History

Siskiyou County was created on March 22, 1852, from parts of Shasta and Klamath Counties, and named after the Siskiyou mountain range. Parts of the county's territory were given to Modoc County in 1855.

The county is the site of the central section of the Siskiyou Trail, which ran between California's Central Valley and the Pacific Northwest. The Siskiyou Trail was based on Native American footpaths, was expanded by Hudson's Bay Company trappers in the 1830s, and was expanded still further by "Forty-Niners" during the California Gold Rush.

In 1851, after the discovery of an important gold strike near today’s Yreka, California, thousands of prospectors flooded the area. This era and setting was described in detail in the semi-autobiographical novel, Life Amongst the Modocs, written by poet and novelist Joaquin Miller.

The construction of the Central Pacific Railroad along the path of the Siskiyou Trail in the mid-1880s led to a first wave of tourism, as visitors came to “take the waters” at the county’s many summer resorts, and to enjoy the hunting, fishing and other outdoor recreation activities. The Southern Pacific railroad (successor to the Central Pacific) promoted the scenic beauty of the area by calling its rail line through the area “The Road of A Thousand Wonders.”

In the early 1940s, Siskiyou County was home to the semi-serious State of Jefferson movement, which sought to create a new state from several counties of northern California, and several counties of southern Oregon.

The origin of the word siskiyou is not known. One version is that it is the Chinook Jargon word for "bob-tailed horse." Another version, given in an argument before the State Senate in 1852, is that the French name Six Cailloux, meaning "six stones," was given to a ford on the Umpqua River by Michel LaFrambois and a party of Hudson's Bay Company trappers in 1832, because six large stones or rocks lay in the river where they crossed. According to some, the Six Cailloux name was appropriated to this region by Stephen Meek, another Hudson's Bay Company trapper who was known for his "discovery" of Scott Valley, in regard to a crossing on the Klamath River near Hornbrook.

The County is also home to the Black Bear Ranch, a commune started in 1968 with the slogan "Free Land for free people." The commune is still around today.

Geography

Mossbrae Falls, near Dunsmuir, California

Siskiyou County is geographically diverse. From towering Mount Shasta (elev. 14,179 ft/(4,322 m)) near the center of the county, to lakes and dense forests, as well as desert, chaparral, and memorable waterfalls, the county is home to world-famous trout-fishing rivers and streams, such as the Sacramento and McCloud Rivers. The county is dotted as well with lakes and reservoirs, such as Castle Lake and Lake Siskiyou. Mount Shasta itself has a winter sports center. Pastoral Scott Valley in the western part of the county has many wide, tree-lined meadows, supporting large cattle ranches. The basins of northeastern Siskiyou County, including Butte Valley, Lower Klamath and Tule Lake basins, have some of the deepest and richest soils in the state, producing alfalfa, potatoes, horseradish, and brewing barley. Butte Valley nurseries are the leading source of premium strawberry plants in North America. Much of the county is densely forested with pine, fir, incense-cedar, oak, and madrone; Siskiyou County is also home to the rare Baker's Cypress Tree, Cupressus bakeri, which grows in only eleven scattered locations in the world, five of which are in Siskiyou County. The county's natural resources are most often used these days for skiing, snowboarding, hiking, mountain biking, camping, and wilderness recreation, as historic logging practices have been largely discontinued due to Federal and State environmental regulations. The county’s water is viewed as sufficiently pure and abundant that the county is a source of significant amounts of bottled water, distributed throughout the country. A large Crystal Geyser plant is located at the base of Mt. Shasta, near Weed.

While it ranks fifth in area among California counties (and is larger than three U.S. states), with some 6,347 square miles (16,440 km²), it only ranked 44th in population among California’s 58 counties; as of 2000, the population was 44,301.

Cities over 5,000 population

Southern Pacific 4449 at Bray, en route to Railfair 1981.

• Yreka (County Seat)

Cities over 1,000 population

• Dunsmuir
• Montague
• Mount Shasta
• Tulelake
• Weed

Cities under 1,000 population

• Dorris
• Etna
• Fort Jones

Unincorporated towns and CDPs

• Big Springs
• Callahan
• Carrick
• Clear Creek
• Edgewood
• Forks of Salmon
• Fort Goff
• Gazelle
• Greenview
• Grenada
• Hamburg
• Hatfield (partial)
• Happy Camp
• Hilt
• Hornbrook
• Horse Creek
• Klamath River
• Klamathon
• Lake Shastina
• Lake Siskiyou
• Macdoel
• McCloud
• Mount Hebron
• Mugginsville
• Sawyers Bar
• Seiad Valley
• Somes Bar
• Tennant
• Thompson Creek

Adjacent Counties

Del Norte County, California - west Humboldt County, California - southwest Trinity County, California - south Shasta County, California - south Modoc County, California - east Klamath County, Oregon - north Jackson County, Oregon - north Josephine County, Oregon - northwest

See also: List of counties bordering eight or more counties

National protected areas

Cristobalite on obsidian, found near Lava Beds National Monument.

• Butte Valley National Grassland
• Klamath National Forest (part)
• Lava Beds National Monument (part)
• Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuge (part)
• Modoc National Forest (part)
• Rogue River National Forest (part)
• Shasta National Forest (part)
• Six Rivers National Forest (part)
• Tule Lake National Wildlife Refuge (part)

Politics

Siskiyou County vote
by party in presidential elections

Year	GOP	DEM	Others
2012	56.2% 9,844	40.6% 7,110	3.1% 551
2008	53.7% 11,520	43.3% 9,292	3.5% 752
2004	60.6% 12,673	37.7% 7,880	1.7% 346
2000	61.6% 12,198	31.9% 6,323	6.6% 1,298
1996	47.3% 8,653	38.4% 7,022	14.3% 2,618
1992	32.2% 6,660	39.9% 8,254	27.9% 5,765
1988	50.9% 9,056	47.0% 8,365	2.1% 376
1984	58.3% 10,544	39.4% 7,130	2.4% 427
1980	55.8% 9,331	33.8% 5,664	10.4% 1,743
1976	48.4% 7,070	48.3% 7,060	3.3% 485
1972	51.5% 7,563	43.8% 6,434	4.8% 699
1968	46.1% 6,334	45.6% 6,260	8.3% 1,138
1964	36.2% 5,186	63.7% 9,126	0.2% 23
1960	43.0% 6,279	56.4% 8,245	0.7% 96
1956	49.8% 6,841	49.8% 6,837	0.5% 63
1952	55.7% 8,735	43.4% 6,800	1.0% 151
1948	42.5% 5,315	54.0% 6,749	3.5% 434
1944	42.2% 4,351	57.3% 5,914	0.6% 58
1940	35.9% 4,387	63.2% 7,714	0.9% 111
1936	29.5% 2,919	69.3% 6,865	1.3% 125
1932	26.8% 2,458	69.3% 6,367	3.9% 359
1928	55.5% 3,758	43.1% 2,916	1.5% 98
1924	40.6% 2,437	9.7% 584	49.7% 2,984
1920	60.1% 2,909	31.0% 1,502	8.9% 433

Siskiyou is a strongly Republican county in Presidential and congressional elections. The last Democrat to win a majority in the county was Lyndon Johnson in 1964.

Siskiyou County is in California's 1st congressional district, represented by Republican Doug LaMalfa.

In the state legislature Siskiyou is in the 1st Senate District, represented by Republican Ted Gaines, and the 1st Assembly District, represented by Republican Brian Dahle.

On Nov. 4, 2008 Siskiyou County voted 60.1% for Proposition 8 which amended the California Constitution to ban same-sex marriages.

Transportation Infrastructure

Public Transportation

Siskiyou Transit And General Express (STAGE) operates buses connecting the more populated areas of the county. Amtrak trains stop in Dunsmuir. Amtrak California motorcoaches operate from Sacramento and Medford, OR, with stops in Yreka, Weed, Mount Shasta, and Dunsmuir, for passengers connecting to and from Amtrak trains in Sacramento or Stockton.

Airports

Siskiyou County owns and operates Butte Valley Airport, Happy Camp Airport, Scott Valley Airport, Siskiyou County Airport and Weed Airport (all general aviation). Dunsmuir Municipal-Mott Airport and Montague-Yreka Rohrer Field are also located within the county.

The closest airports where commercial domestic planes depart from is Rogue Valley International-Medford Airport north of the county in Medford, Oregon, Klamath Falls International Airport, northeast of the county in Klamath Falls, Oregon,and Redding Municipal Airport south of the county in Redding, California.

Major Highways

• Interstate 5
• U.S. Route 97
• State Route 3
• State Route 89
• State Route 96
• State Route 139
• State Route 161
• State Route 263
• State Route 265

Demographics

2010

The 2010 United States Census reported that Siskiyou County had a population of 44,900. The racial makeup of Siskiyou County was 38,030 (84.7%) White, 571 (1.3%) African American, 1,814 (4.0%) Native American, 540 (1.2%) Asian, 80 (0.2%) Pacific Islander, 1,491 (3.3%) from other races, and 2,374 (5.3%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4,615 persons (10.3%).

Population reported at 2010 United States Census
The County	Total Population	White	African American	Native American	Asian	Pacific Islander	other races	two or more races	Hispanic or Latino (of any race)
Siskiyou County	44,900	38,030	571	1,814	540	80	1,491	2,374	4,615
Incorporated cities and towns	Total Population	White	African American	Native American	Asian	Pacific Islander	other races	two or more races	Hispanic or Latino (of any race)
Dorris	939	764	19	18	5	8	77	48	197
Dunsmuir	1,650	1,443	32	17	15	4	30	109	167
Etna	737	627	0	28	1	1	6	74	26
Fort Jones	839	650	33	61	8	0	23	64	103
Montague	1,443	1,251	4	67	8	1	17	95	107
Mount Shasta	3,394	3,041	61	19	56	2	51	164	277
Tulelake	1,010	563	1	15	1	0	365	65	601
Weed	2,967	2,221	206	70	121	27	132	190	475
Yreka	7,765	6,495	57	491	94	9	168	451	753
Census-designated places	Total Population	White	African American	Native American	Asian	Pacific Islander	other races	two or more races	Hispanic or Latino (of any race)
Carrick	131	110	7	2	2	0	1	9	8
Edgewood	43	41	0	0	0	0	1	1	2
Gazelle	70	65	0	4	0	0	1	0	5
Greenview	201	161	0	10	1	0	8	21	19
Grenada	367	307	2	35	1	0	3	19	12
Happy Camp	1,190	814	2	277	7	1	18	71	95
Hornbrook	248	195	0	15	0	0	10	28	19
Macdoel	133	57	0	6	0	0	69	1	78
McCloud	1,101	1,039	8	10	6	0	5	33	65
Mount Hebron	95	73	0	1	0	0	18	3	41
Tennant	41	36	0	2	0	0	1	2	4
Unincorporated communities	Total Population	White	African American	Native American	Asian	Pacific Islander	other races	two or more races	Hispanic or Latino (of any race)
All others not CDPs (combined)	20,536	18,077	139	666	214	27	487	926	1,561

2000

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1860	7,629		—
1870	6,848		−10.2%
1880	8,610		25.7%
1890	12,163		41.3%
1900	16,962		39.5%
1910	18,801		10.8%
1920	18,545		−1.4%
1930	25,480		37.4%
1940	28,598		12.2%
1950	30,733		7.5%
1960	32,885		7.0%
1970	33,225		1.0%
1980	39,732		19.6%
1990	43,531		9.6%
2000	44,301		1.8%
2010	44,900		1.4%

As of the census of 2000, there were 44,301 people, 18,556 households, and 12,228 families residing in the county. The population density was 7/sq mi (3/km²). There were 21,947 housing units at an average density of 4/sq mi (1/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 87.1% White, 1.3% Black or African American, 3.9% Native American, 1.2% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 2.8% from other races, and 3.7% from two or more races. 7.6% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 13.5% were of German, 12.0% English, 9.8% Irish, 9.5% American and 7.1% Italian ancestry according to Census 2000. 91.7% spoke English and 5.7% Spanish as their first language. As of March 2012, the largest self-reported ancestry groups in Siskiyou County are 15% German, 13% English, 12% Irish and 6% Italian.

There were 18,556 households out of which 27.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.7% were married couples living together, 10.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.1% were non-families. 28.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 2.87.

In the county the population was spread out with 24.0% under the age of 18, 6.7% from 18 to 24, 22.7% from 25 to 44, 28.4% from 45 to 64, and 18.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females there were 96.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.1 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $29,530, and the median income for a family was $36,890. Males had a median income of $31,936 versus $22,650 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,570. About 14.0% of families and 18.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 26.6% of those under age 18 and 7.3% of those age 65 or over.

Flora and fauna

Substantial amounts of the county are forested within the Siskiyou and Cascade Ranges, including significant oak woodland and mixed conifer forests. Siskiyou County is the northern extent of the range for California Buckeye, a widespread California endemic. The Klamath National Forest occupies 1,700,000 acres (6,900 km²) of land which includes elements in Siskiyou County as well as Jackson County, Oregon.

See also

• Hiking trails in Siskiyou County
• List of school districts in Siskiyou County, California
• List of museums in the Shasta Cascade (California)
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Siskiyou County, California
• Upper Soda Springs
• Shasta Springs
• Yreka Western Railroad

Further reading

• Harry L. Wells, History of Siskiyou County, California: Illustrated with Views of Residences, Business Buildings and Natural Scenery and Containing Portraits and Biographies of Its Leading Citizens and Pioneers. Oakland, CA: D.J. Stewart and Co., 1881.

External links

• County of Siskiyou Official Website
• Museum of the Siskiyou Trail
• Siskiyou County Visitors Bureau