Black Point-Green Point is a

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counterparts of incorporated places, su ...

(CDP) in

Marin County Marin County is a county located in the northwestern part of the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 262,231. Its county seat and largest city is San Rafael. Marin County is a ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the ...

, United States. It is unincorporated, sitting between the city of

Novato Novato (Spanish for "Novatus") is a city in Marin County, California, in the North Bay region of the Bay Area. At the 2020 census, Novato had a population of 53,225. History What is now Novato was originally the site of several Coast Miwok ...

to the southwest and the

Petaluma River The Petaluma River is a river in the California counties of Sonoma and Marin that becomes a tidal slough for most of its length. The headwaters are in the area southwest of Cotati. The flow is generally southward through Petaluma's old town, ...

and

San Pablo Bay San Pablo Bay is a tidal estuary that forms the northern extension of San Francisco Bay in the East Bay and North Bay regions of the San Francisco Bay Area in northern California. Most of the Bay is shallow; however, there is a deep water c ...

to the northeast. The population was 1,431 at the 2020 census.

History

Black Point was part of the Rancho de Novato land grant. The ''1880 History of Marin County'' by Alley, Bowen and Co. mentions "a man by name of Day" who "settled on an island in Novato township which has since borne his name" in 1851. This island is still known as Day Island. According to the book, several more settlers moved into the area in 1853. Some of them owned land there, while others were

squatter Squatting is the action of occupying an abandoned or unoccupied area of land or a building, usually residential, that the squatter does not own, rent or otherwise have lawful permission to use. The United Nations estimated in 2003 that there ...

s, a problem common across the county. Lumber that came from Black Point was used to build part of the USS ''Saginaw'', a steamer built at the

Mare Island Naval Shipyard The Mare Island Naval Shipyard (MINSY) was the first United States Navy base established on the Pacific Ocean. It is located northeast of San Francisco in Vallejo, California. The Napa River goes through the Mare Island Strait and separates ...

. It served in the navy until 1870, when it ran aground on a reef not far from Ocean island. Deer Island, a former island east of Olive Avenue, actually was an island in the early 1900s. The house on the island, owned by Antonio DeBorba, whose shop on Grant Avenue is still intact, was completely encompassed by water, and his house was only accessible by boat. When both the county and the state refused to build a

levee A levee (), dike (American English), dyke (Commonwealth English), embankment, floodbank, or stop bank is a structure that is usually earthen and that often runs parallel to the course of a river in its floodplain or along low-lying coastl ...

, he spent a small fortune deepening the creek and taking water out of the marsh. Once that was done, he donated the land that is now Highway 37. The first Black Point post office operated from 1865 to 1891. The Grandview post office opened in 1905, changed its name to Black Point in 1944, and closed in 1952. Black Point-Green Point is located along the Brazos Railroad Subdivision, with Northwestern Pacific running trains through twice a week. Trains passing through Black Point-Green Point cross the

Black Point Railroad Bridge The Black Point Railroad Bridge is a truss swing bridge spanning the Petaluma River, located in Black Point-Green Point, California. History A span over the Petaluma River at Black Point was first constructed by Peter Donahue and his San F ...

, built in 1911. The fields to the south of Black Point were used for the location of the

Black Point Communications Annex The Black Point Communications Annex was an antenna array and off-site radio communications annex located in Novato, California, 1.5 miles from Black Point, from which it gained its name. It is located 4 miles north of Hamilton Field, a p ...

, an

antenna array An antenna array (or array antenna) is a set of multiple connected antennas which work together as a single antenna, to transmit or receive radio waves. The individual antennas (called ''elements'') are usually connected to a single receiver o ...

that was used to communicate with the

Hamilton Air Force Base Hamilton may refer to: People * Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname ** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland ** Lord Hamilto ...

Geography

Black Point-Green Point is east of the center of

and north of

San Rafael San Rafael may refer to: Places Argentina * San Rafael, Mendoza * San Rafael Department, Mendoza Bolivia * San Rafael de Velasco, capital of San Rafael Municipality * San Rafael Municipality, Santa Cruz Chile * San Rafael, Chile, Maule ...

, the Marin

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US ...

. The

, which forms the northeast edge of the community, is the

Sonoma County Sonoma County () is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States Census, its population was 488,863. Its county seat and largest city is Santa Rosa. It is to the north of Marin County and the south of Mendocino ...

line. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy An economy is an area of th ...

, the CDP has a total area of , of which , or 2.42%, are water.

Commercial activity

There are several businesses in Black Point-Green Point, such as Rossi's Deli (an old gas station built in the 1930s), Penske Truck Rental, Kelleher Lumber, and two self-storages. There used to be an inn built during the 1890s, but it burned down in the spring of 1976. Black Point also used to have a train station and a freight depot near the lumberyard. The Northwestern Pacific Railroad also used to operate a quarry in Black Point to produce ballast and fills for the railroad. Several of the scars still remain visible from Harbor Drive.

Demographics

2010

The 2010 United States Census reported that Black Point-Green Point had a population of 1,306. The population density was . The racial makeup of Black Point-Green Point was 1,185 (90.7%)

White White is the lightness, lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully diffuse reflection, reflect and scattering, scatter all the ...

, 7 (0.5%)

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...

, 6 (0.5%) Native American, 45 (3.4%) Asian, 0 (0.0%)

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of Ocea ...

, 28 (2.1%) from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 35 (2.7%) from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties for ...

or Latino of any race were 112 persons (8.6%). The Census reported that 100% of the population lived in households. There were 578 households, out of which 109 (18.9%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 315 (54.5%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 30 (5.2%) had a female householder with no husband present, 22 (3.8%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 45 (7.8%)

unmarried opposite-sex partnerships POSSLQ ( , plural POSSLQs) is an abbreviation (or acronym) for "Person of Opposite Sex Sharing Living Quarters", a term coined in the late 1970s by the United States Census Bureau as part of an effort to more accurately gauge the prevalence of ...

, and 9 (1.6%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 148 households (25.6%) were made up of individuals, and 48 (8.3%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.26. There were 367

families Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

(63.5% of all households); the average family size was 2.70. The population was spread out, with 197 people (15.1%) under the age of 18, 69 people (5.3%) aged 18 to 24, 199 people (15.2%) aged 25 to 44, 550 people (42.1%) aged 45 to 64, and 291 people (22.3%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 53.2 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.9 males. There were 615 housing units at an average density of , of which 79.9% were owner-occupied and 20.1% were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 0.6%; the rental vacancy rate was 4.9%. 83.5% of the population lived in owner-occupied housing units and 16.5% lived in rental housing units.

2000

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...

of 2000, there were 1,143 people, 479 households, and 331 families residing in the CDP. The population density was . There were 503 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the CDP in 2010 was 85.5% non-Hispanic

, 0.5% non-Hispanic

Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ha ...

, 0.3% Native American, 3.4% Asian, 0.2% from

, and 1.6% from two or more races. 8.6% of the population were

or Latino of any race. There were 479 households, out of which 22.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.1% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...

living together, 7.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.7% were non-families. 21.5% 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 2.39 and the average family size was 2.77. In the CDP, the population was spread out, with 18.2% under the age of 18, 3.4% from 18 to 24, 22.6% from 25 to 44, 41.6% from 45 to 64, and 14.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 47 years. For every 100 females, there were 89.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.4 males. The median income for a household in the CDP was $92,729, and the median income for a family was $104,531. Males had a median income of $76,782 versus $50,769 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the CDP was $52,372. About 1.9% of families and 2.9% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 6.5% of those under age 18 and none of those age 65 or over.

References

{{authority control Census-designated places in Marin County, California Census-designated places in California Populated coastal places in California