California 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, such ...

and community in

St. Mary's County St. Mary's County may refer to: * St. Mary's County, Maryland *St. Mary's County, Utah Territory There are 29 counties in the U.S. state of Utah. There were originally seven counties established under the provisional State of Deseret in 1849: ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

, United States. The population was 11,857 at the 2010 census, an increase of 27.4% from the 2000 census. California has been growing with the spread of population from the older adjacent community of

Lexington Park Lexington Park was the name of a former minor league baseball park in St. Paul, Minnesota. It was the home of the St. Paul Saints from 1897 through 1956, when it was replaced by the first version of Midway Stadium. Lexington Park was commiss ...

and the growth in both technology-related and defense-related jobs at the

Patuxent River Naval Air Station Naval Air Station Patuxent River , also known as NAS Pax River, is a United States naval air station located in St. Mary’s County, Maryland, on the Chesapeake Bay near the mouth of the Patuxent River. It is home to Headquarters, Naval Air Sys ...

. There are department stores and numerous shopping centers situated along Maryland Highway 235 ("Three Notch Road").

Maryland Route 4 Maryland Route 4 (MD 4) is a state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. The highway runs from MD 5 in Leonardtown north to Southern Avenue in Suitland at the District of Columbia boundary, beyond which the highway continues into Washingto ...

crosses Highway 235 in California, providing access to the wide Governor Thomas Johnson Bridge and the popular weekend resort town of Solomons on its opposite side. Bridge-bound traffic is notorious for backing up during rush hour.

History

The community was named after the state of

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

before 1897. The exact origins are unknown, however one story is that a family from the state moved to the area, using materials from their home state to build their new house, called the “California

Farmstead A homestead is an isolated dwelling, especially a farmhouse, and adjacent outbuildings, typically on a large agricultural holding such as a ranch or station. In North America the word "homestead" historically referred to land claimed by a settle ...

.” Eventually, the name stuck.

Geography

California is located at . 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. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

, California has a total area of , of which is land and (12.64%) is water.

Demographics

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 incl ...

of 2010, there were 11,857 people residing in California in 4,327 households. The population density was . There were 4,697 housing units and a 71.8% home ownership rate. The racial makeup was 70.7%

White White is the 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 reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

, 18.3%

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 have o ...

, 5.7%

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, 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 Vic ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

, 4.6%

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

, 0.5% Indigenous American, and 0.1%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe the original p ...

. Of the 4,327 households, 42.7% had children under the age of 18 living in them, 57.2% had

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 ...

, 9.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.4% were non-families. 25.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 4.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.74 and the average family size was 3.31. The population consisted of 29.8% under the age of 20, 6.6% from 20 to 24, 17.7% from 25 to 34, 17.3% from 35 to 44, 11.4% from 45 to 54, 10.5% from 55 to 64, and 6.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32.5 years. The population was 49.1% male and 50.9% female. The median household income was $85,240 and the median family income was $91,935. Male full-time year-round workers had a median income of $63,657 versus $44,390 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 $35,386. Just 0.8% of families and 3.1% of people 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 t ...

, including 2.3% of people under age 18 and 4.8% of those age 65 or over. In 2017, California, Maryland was listed as the metropolitan area with the fourth highest number of households with investable assets above one million dollars. In 2019, Forbes Magazine listed California, Maryland as one of the best small places for business and careers in the nation with a ranking of 69.

References

{{authority control Census-designated places in St. Mary's County, Maryland Census-designated places in Maryland Maryland populated places on the Chesapeake Bay