Lake County is a

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

located in the north central portion of the U.S. state of

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 ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 68,163. The

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 ...

is Lakeport. The county takes its name from Clear Lake, the dominant geographic feature in the

and the largest non-extinct natural lake wholly within California. (

Lake Tahoe Lake Tahoe (; was, Dáʔaw, meaning "the lake") is a freshwater lake in the Sierra Nevada of the United States. Lying at , it straddles the state line between California and Nevada, west of Carson City. Lake Tahoe is the largest alpine lake ...

is partially in

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a state in the Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the 7th-most extensive, ...

; the

Salton Sea The Salton Sea is a shallow, landlocked, highly saline body of water in Riverside and Imperial counties at the southern end of the U.S. state of California. It lies on the San Andreas Fault within the Salton Trough that stretches to the Gu ...

was formed by flooding; Tulare Lake was drained by the agricultural industry.) Lake County forms the Clearlake, California micropolitan statistical area. It is directly north of the

San Francisco Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area Gov ...

. Lake County is part of California's Wine Country, which also includes Napa, Sonoma, and Mendocino counties. It includes five American Viticultural Areas and over 35 wineries.

History

Lake County has been inhabited by Pomo Native Americans for over ten thousand years. Pomos had been fishermen and hunters, known especially for their intricate basketry made from lakeshore tules and other native plants and feathers. Pomo people continue to live in Lake County. The area had European-American settlers from at least the 1840s. Lake County was created in 1861 from parts of Napa and Mendocino counties. The eastern boundary of Lake County, which was not clearly specified in the 1861 act, was clarified by legislative acts passed in 1864 and 1868. A major effect of the 1868 act was to include in Lake County the entire watershed of

North Fork Cache Creek Cache Creek is an U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed March 10, 2011 stream in Lake County, California, Lake, Colusa County, California, Colusa and Yolo County, California, ...

, which had previously been claimed by Colusa County. The 1911 ''California Blue Book'' lists the major crops as Bartlett pears and beans. Other crops include grain, alfalfa, hay, prunes, peaches, apples, grapes and walnuts. Stockraising included goats, hogs, turkeys and dairying. Some vineyards were planted in the 1870s by European Americans but the first in the state were established in the 18th century by Spanish missionaries. By the early 20th century, the area was earning a reputation for producing some of the world's greatest wines. However, in 1920, national

prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic ...

essentially ended Lake County's wine production. With authorized cultivation limited to sacramental purposes, most of the

vineyard A vineyard (; also ) is a plantation of grape-bearing vines, grown mainly for winemaking, but also raisins, table grapes and non-alcoholic grape juice. The science, practice and study of vineyard production is known as viticulture. Vine ...

s were ripped out and replanted with walnut and pear orchards.

Wine Country

A reemergence of Lake County's wine industry began in the 1960s when a few growers rediscovered the area's grape-growing potential and began planting vineyards. Several Lake County American Viticultural Areas, such as High Valley AVA and

Red Hills Lake County AVA The Red Hills Lake County AVA is an American Viticultural Area located in Lake County, California. The wine region lies along the southwestern shores of Clear Lake, separating Excelsior Valley to the east from Big Valley to the west. The hi ...

, have been recognized as having distinct character. The area has increased vineyard acreage from fewer than 100 acres in 1965 to more than 9,455 acres of vineyard in 2015 (a 7.6 percent increase over 2014). Lake County's grape prices, at $1,634 per ton overall, also reached an all-time high in 2015. In 2014, Lake County surpassed

Mendocino County Mendocino County (; ''Mendocino'', Spanish for "of Mendoza) is a county located on the North Coast of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 91,601. The county seat is Ukiah. Mendocino County consists wholly ...

in price paid per ton of grapes in the North Coast premium market. The number of wineries also continues to grow, with over 35 wineries now located in Lake County.

Air quality

Lake County has been ranked by the American Lung Association as having the cleanest air in the nation, including in 2013, 2014 and 2015. Lake County has also been ranked 24 times as having the cleanest air in California. Currently, the American Lung Association's website gives Lake County air a "C" grade for high ozone days and an "A" grade for particle pollution.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (5.5%) is water. Two main watercourses drain the county: Cache Creek, which is the outlet of Clear Lake; and Putah Creek. Both of these flow to the Sacramento River. The main streams which flow into Clear Lake are Forbes Creek, Scotts Creek, Middle Creek, and Kelsey Creek. At the extreme north of the county Lake Pillsbury and the Van Arsdale Reservoir dam the Eel River, providing water and power to Ukiah in

. Clear Lake is believed to be the oldest warmwater lake in North America, due to a geological fluke. The lake sits on a huge block of stone which slowly tilts in the northern direction at the same rate as the lake fills in with

sediment Sediment is a naturally occurring material that is broken down by processes of weathering and erosion, and is subsequently transported by the action of wind, water, or ice or by the force of gravity acting on the particles. For example, sa ...

, thus keeping the water at roughly the same depth. The

geology Geology () is a branch of natural science concerned with Earth and other astronomical objects, the features or rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Ea ...

of the county is chaotic, being based on Franciscan Assemblage hills. Numerous small faults are present in the south end of the lake as well as many old

volcano A volcano is a rupture in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. On Earth, volcanoes are most often found where tectonic plates ...

es, the largest being Cobb Mountain. The geologic history of the county shows events of great violence, such as the eruption of Mount Konocti and Mount St. Helena and the collapse of

Cow Mountain Cow Mountain is a ridge in the Mayacamas Mountains in Lake County, California and Mendocino County, California. It is home to two large recreation areas. One is closed to off-road vehicles and the other is not. Erosion from the mountain, caused i ...

, which created the hills around the county seat of Lakeport.

Blue Lakes The Blue Lakes are a string of two or three lakes in Lake County, California, set in a deep canyon. At one time they seem to have been in the Russian River watershed, but a recent geological upheaval cut them off from that basin and they now drai ...

, Lake Pillsbury, and Indian Valley Reservoir are the county's other major bodies of water. Lake County has

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

s for a variety of

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of ...

of concern including the uncommon

herb In general use, herbs are a widely distributed and widespread group of plants, excluding vegetables and other plants consumed for macronutrients, with savory or aromatic properties that are used for flavoring and garnishing food, for medicina ...

, '' Legenere limosa'', the rare ''

Eryngium constancei ''Eryngium constancei'' is a species of flowering plant in the family Apiaceae known by the common name Loch Lomond button celery, or Loch Lomond coyote thistle. It is endemic to California, where it is known from only three occurrences north of ...

,'' and the tule elk. Waterfowl, bear, and other wildlife abound in the Clear Lake basin. Due to its surrounding hilly terrain, Lake is the only one of California's 58 counties never to have been served by a railroad line.

Adjacent counties

Glenn County Glenn County is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 28,917. The county seat is Willows. It is located in the Sacramento Valley, in the northern part of the California Central Valley. ...

- northeast * Colusa County - east * Yolo County - southeast * Napa County - southeast * Sonoma County - southwest *

- west

National protected areas

* Mendocino National Forest (part) * Cow Mountain Recreation Area * Cache Creek Wilderness and Cache Creek Wildlife Area In 2015 President

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, Obama was the first Af ...

created the

Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument is a national monument of the United States comprising of the California Coast Ranges in Napa, Yolo, Solano, Lake, Colusa, Glenn and Mendocino counties in northern California.Boggs Mountain Demonstration State Forest * Anderson Marsh State Historic Park * Loch Lomond Vernal Pool Ecological Reserve * Boggs Lake Ecological Reserve * Clear Lake State Park *

Rodman Slough Preserve Rodman Slough is a wetland that drains into Clear Lake in Lake County, California. It provides an important habitat for fish, amphibians, birds and other wildlife. It is fed by Scotts Creek and Middle Creek, which contribute about 70% of the ...

(108 acres managed by California Department of Fish and Game)

Mineral springs

In the late 19th century, the worldwide popularity of mineral water for the relief of myriad physical ailments resulted in the development of mineral resorts around Clear Lake. * Greene Bartlett discovered

Bartlett Bartlett may refer to: Places *Bartlett Bay, Canada, Arctic waterway * Wharerata, New Zealand, also known as Bartletts United States * Bartlett, Illinois ** Bartlett station, a commuter railroad station * Bartlett, Iowa Bartlett is an uninc ...

hot springs A hot spring, hydrothermal spring, or geothermal spring is a spring produced by the emergence of geothermally heated groundwater onto the surface of the Earth. The groundwater is heated either by shallow bodies of magma (molten rock) or by c ...

in 1870. The springs were developed into a resort and by 1900 included a mineral water bottling plant. The resort burned down in 1934. * Harbin Hot Springs was developed by settlers in the 1860s. Harbin burned to the ground in the Valley Fire of 2015. In January 2019 it partially reopened, including the main pools and sauna, and a limited cafetaria service.https://www.sfgate.com/weather/article/Harbin-Hot-Springs-opening-pools-reservations-fire-13535539.php Clothing optional resort Harbin Hot Springs reopens its pools 3 years after wildfire * Highland Springs opened in 1891, and was destroyed by fire in 1945. During its time, Highland had an elegant dining room and a spacious hotel. * Saratoga Springs Resort was opened by J. J. Liebert in 1873 with several cabins, and within two decades had room for 350 guests. * Witter Springs Resort opened in 1873 with a hotel and guest cottages.

Climate

Lake County has a

mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate (also called a dry summer temperate climate ''Cs'') is a temperate climate sub-type, generally characterized by warm, dry summers and mild, fairly wet winters; these weather conditions are typically experienced in the ...

with hot summer daytime temperatures in its lower elevations. Nighttime temperatures remain cool year-round, somewhat moderating average temperatures and relieving the summer heat.

Demographics

2020 census

''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 Lake County had a population of 64,665. The racial makeup of Lake County was 52,033 (80.5%)

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 ...

, 1,232 (1.9%)

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 ...

, 2,049 (3.2%) Native American, 724 (1.1%) Asian, 108 (0.2%)

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 ...

, 5,455 (8.4%) from other races, and 3,064 (4.7%) 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 11,088 persons (17.1%).

2005

There were a total of 34,031 homes in Lake County in 2005. This county has gone through a growth in housing units, adding a sum of 1,414 residential structures since 2001, a change of 4.3 percent. Lake County ranks 978 of 3,141, compared to change in residential structure growth in counties throughout the Unities States. Lake County had a median home value in the year 2005 of $255,300, according to the American Community Survey. This median is less than the overall California 2005 home median value of $477,700 and greater than median home value of $167,500 for the rest of the nation in that year. In 2005, the American Community Survey reported that 14.4% of Lake County's owner-occupied dwellings are valued over a half a million dollars. In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.1% under the age of 18, 6.0% from 18 to 24, 23.6% from 25 to 44, 26.8% from 45 to 64, and 19.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females there were 97.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.7 males. The median income for a household in the county was $49,627, and the median income for a family was $55,818. Males had a median income of $45,771 versus $44,026 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 county was $43,825. About 6.9% of families and 4.6% 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 22.8% of those under age 18 and 7.3% of those age 65 or over. (Source: U.S. Census Bureau) Within Lake County are two incorporated cities, the county seat of Lakeport and Clearlake, the largest city, and the communities of

Kelseyville Kelseyville is a census-designated place (CDP) in Lake County, California, United States. Kelseyville is located southeast of Lakeport, at an elevation of . The population was 3,353 at the 2010 census, up from 2,928 at the 2000 census. Etymo ...

, Blue Lakes,

Clearlake Oaks Clearlake Oaks is a census-designated place (CDP) in Lake County, California, United States. It is located on the northeast of Clear Lake, 8 miles (13.8 km) northwest of the town of Clearlake, at an elevation of 1,335 feet (407 m). The pop ...

, Clearlake Park,

Cobb Cobb may refer to: People * Cobb (surname), a list of people and fictional characters with the surname Cobb * Cobb Rooney (1900–1973), American professional football running back Places New Zealand * Cobb River * Cobb Reservoir * Cobb Power ...

, Finley, Glenhaven, Hidden Valley Lake, Clearlake Riviera, Loch Lomond, Lower Lake, Lucerne, Middletown,

Nice Nice ( , ; Niçard: , classical norm, or , nonstandard, ; it, Nizza ; lij, Nissa; grc, Νίκαια; la, Nicaea) is the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative c ...

, Spring Valley, Upper Lake, Whispering Pines, and Witter Springs. The income of residents of the county varies widely. The county is the largest employer thus far, followed by large retailers such as

Wal-Mart Walmart Inc. (; formerly Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.) is an American multinational retail corporation that operates a chain of hypermarkets (also called supercenters), discount department stores, and grocery stores from the United States, headquarte ...

Safeway Safeway is an American supermarket chain founded by Marion Barton Skaggs in April 1915 in American Falls, Idaho. The chain provides grocery items, food and general merchandise and features a variety of specialty departments, such as bakery, de ...

, and Kmart. Lake County is mostly agricultural, with tourist facilities and some light industry. Major crops include pears,

walnut A walnut is the edible seed of a drupe of any tree of the genus '' Juglans'' (family Juglandaceae), particularly the Persian or English walnut, '' Juglans regia''. Although culinarily considered a "nut" and used as such, it is not a tru ...

s and, increasingly, wine

grape A grape is a fruit, botanically a berry (botany), berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus ''Vitis''. Grapes are a non-Climacteric (botany), climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters. The cultivation of ...

2000

According to official estimates based on the 2000 Census, 30% of housing units in Lake County were manufactured housing units. This was the highest percentage of any California county.

Politics

Voter registration

Cities by population and voter registration

Overview

In its early history, Lake County leaned

Democratic Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

Presidential President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese fu ...

and

congressional A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

elections. It supported every Democratic presidential candidate between 1864 and 1916 except Alton B. Parker in his 1904 landslide defeat.Menendez, Albert J.; ''The Geography of Presidential Elections in the United States, 1868-2004'', pp. 152-155 Nonetheless, between 1920 and 1984 Lake County tended towards being Republican and was won by just four Democratic nominees – Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1932 and 1936, Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964 and

Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (born October 1, 1924) is an American politician who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 76th governor of Georgia from 19 ...

in 1976. Ronald Reagan in 1984 remains the last Republican to win a majority in the county, which has reverted to leaning Democratic. Lake County is split between California's 3rd and

5th Fifth is the ordinal form of the number five. Fifth or The Fifth may refer to: * Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution, as in the expression "pleading the Fifth" * Fifth column, a political term * Fifth disease, a contagious rash tha ...

congressional districts, represented by and , respectively. In the

state legislature A state legislature is a legislative branch or body of a political subdivision in a federal system. Two federations literally use the term "state legislature": * The legislative branches of each of the fifty state governments of the United Sta ...

, Lake is part of the 4th Assembly district and the 2nd Senate district. On November 4, 2008, Lake County voted 52.6% for Proposition 8, which amended the California Constitution to ban same-sex marriages.

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

The main crops in 2011, 2014 and 2015 (in thousands of dollars) are:

Transportation

Major highways

State Route 20 Route 20, or Highway 20, may refer to: International * European route E20 Australia * Sturt Highway (NSW/VIC/SA) * Yarra Bank Highway Brazil * BR-020 Canada * Alberta Highway 20 * British Columbia Highway 20 * Manitoba Highway 20 *Ne ...

* State Route 29 * State Route 53 * State Route 175 * State Route 281 There are also several numbered county routes in Lake County.

Public transportation

Lake Transit Lake Transit is a bus agency providing fixed-route, flex-stop and curbside "Dial-a-Ride" bus service in Lake County, California. The agency also provides service to Ukiah in Mendocino County and St. Helena in northern Napa County Napa County ...

serves all areas around Clear Lake. Local routes serve Lakeport, Clearlake and Lower Lake. Connections are also provided to St. Helena (in Napa County) and Ukiah (in Mendocino County). Some routes operate on weekdays only; no service is provided on Sundays and observed public holidays.

Airports

Lampson Field Lampson Field is a public airport located three miles (4.8 km) south of the town of Lakeport, in Lake County, California, United States. Features of the airport include 4.0 degree precision approach path indicator (PAPI) lights on runway ...

is the county's public airport. There are also several private airstrips located throughout the county.

Historical railroads

In 1888 the Vaca Valley and Clear Lake Railroad reached Rumsey, but the planned line to Clear Lake was never built. The Clear Lake Railroad started work on a line from Hopland to Lakeport: "In November 1911 first ground was broken for the Hopland-Clear Lake railroad to Hopland. Mrs Harriet Lee Hammond, wife of the president of the road started construction. ... There were six miles of track out of Hopland ...", but this was also abandoned.

Communities

Cities

* Clearlake * Lakeport (county seat)

Census-designated places

* Clearlake Riviera *

* Hidden Valley Lake *

* Lower Lake * Lucerne * Middletown *

* North Lakeport *

Soda Bay Soda Bay is a census-designated place in Lake County, California. It is located on Clear Lake east-southeast of Lakeport, at an elevation of . The population was 1,016 at the 2010 census. A resort at the place, called Soda Bay Springs, could ...

* Spring Valley * Upper Lake

Unincorporated communities

* Finley * Glenhaven *

Loch Lomond Loch Lomond (; gd, Loch Laomainn - 'Lake of the Elms'Richens, R. J. (1984) ''Elm'', Cambridge University Press.) is a freshwater Scottish loch which crosses the Highland Boundary Fault, often considered the boundary between the lowlands of C ...

Parramore Springs Parramore Springs (formerly Paramore Spring) is a spring in Lake County, 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 r ...

* Whispering Pines

Population ranking

The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2010 census of Lake County. † ''county seat''

Notable people

Benjamin Dewell Benjamin Dewell (1821–1905) was an American early settler and rancher. Dewell and his wife, Celia H. Elliott, were the first white permanent settlers in Lake County, California. Dewell was a member of the "Bear Flag Party" and participated in the ...

, former Bear Flagger *

Ellis O. Knox Ellis O'Neal Knox (1900-1975) was the first African American to be awarded a PhD in California. Knox received his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1922 from the University of California, Berkeley and his doctorate in the history and philosophy of educati ...

, first African American to be awarded a Ph.D. on the West Coast of the United States. *

Lillie Langtry Emilie Charlotte, Lady de Bathe (née Le Breton, formerly Langtry; 13 October 1853 – 12 February 1929), known as Lillie (or Lily) Langtry and nicknamed "The Jersey Lily", was a British socialite, stage actress and producer. Born on the isl ...

, British actress and royal mistress *

Michael Berryman Michael John Berryman (born September 4, 1948) is an American character actor. Berryman was born with hypohidrotic ectodermal dysplasia, a rare condition characterized by the absence of sweat glands, hair, and fingernails; his unusual physical ...

, American actor

Notes

References

External links

*
Lake County visitor website

Lake County News

Lake County Record Bee Newspaper

Wine country moves north (San Francisco Chronicle)

The Ample Charms of a Well-Fed Lake, by Richerson & Richerson

{{authority control Lake County, California, California counties 1861 establishments in California Populated places established in 1861