San Lucas ( Spanish for "

St. Luke Luke the Evangelist (Latin: '' Lucas''; grc, Λουκᾶς, '' Loukâs''; he, לוקאס, ''Lūqās''; arc, /ܠܘܩܐ לוקא, ''Lūqā’; Ge'ez: ሉቃስ'') is one of the Four Evangelists—the four traditionally ascribed authors of t ...

") is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

and

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 ...

(CDP) in

Monterey County Monterey County ( ), officially the County of Monterey, is a county located on the Pacific coast in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, its population was 439,035. The county's largest city and county seat is Salinas. Montere ...

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 ...

, United States. It was founded in 1886 and named after the Rancho San Lucas, which was granted in 1842. The post office was first established in 1892. San Lucas is located in the Salinas Valley, on the Salinas River southeast of King City, at an elevation of . The population was 324 at the 2020 census, up from 269 in 2010.

History

The

Southern Pacific Railroad The Southern Pacific (or Espee from the railroad initials- SP) was an American Class I railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States. The system was operated by various companies under the ...

reached the place in 1886 and named it for the Rancho San Lucas Mexican land grant. The San Lucas post office opened in 1887 (having been transferred from Griswold).

Geography

San Lucas is located in southeastern Monterey County at , on the east side of the Salinas Valley.

U.S. Route 101 U.S. Route 101, or U.S. Highway 101 (US 101), is a north–south United States Numbered Highway that runs through the states of California, Oregon, and Washington, on the West Coast of the United States. It is also known as (The Royal Roa ...

runs along the western edge of the community, leading northwest to King City and Salinas, 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 st ...

, while leading southeast to

Paso Robles Paso Robles ( ), officially El Paso de Robles (Spanish for "The Pass of Oaks"), is a city in San Luis Obispo County, California, United States. Located on the Salinas River approximately north of San Luis Obispo, the city is known for its hot ...

. California State Route 198 leads east from San Lucas across the San Andreas Rift Zone and the

Diablo Range The Diablo Range is a mountain range in the California Coast Ranges subdivision of the Pacific Coast Ranges in northern California, United States. It stretches from the eastern San Francisco Bay area at its northern end to the Salinas Valley are ...

to Coalinga. 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 ...

, the San Lucas CDP has a total area of , all of it land. The San Lucas AVA (American Viticultural Area) is located in the area.

Climate

This region experiences warm (but not hot) and dry summers, with no average monthly temperatures above 71.6 °F. According to the

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

system, San Lucas has a warm-summer Mediterranean climate, abbreviated "Csb" on climate maps.

Demographics

2010

The

2010 United States Census The United States census of 2010 was the twenty-third United States national census. National Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2010. The census was taken via mail-in citizen self-reporting, with enumerators servin ...

reported that San Lucas had a population of 269. The population density was . The racial makeup of San Lucas was 113 (42.0%)

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 ...

, 0 (0.0%)

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 4 (1.5%) Native American, 6 (2.2%)

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 (0.0%)

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 ...

, 127 (47.2%) from other races, and 19 (7.1%) from two or more races.

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 ...

of any race were 224 persons (83.3%). The Census reported that 269 people (100% of the population) lived in households, 0 (0%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 0 (0%) were institutionalized. There were 67 households, out of which 38 (56.7%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 46 (68.7%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 8 (11.9%) had a female householder with no husband present, 3 (4.5%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 4 (6.0%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 0 (0%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 7 households (10.4%) were made up of individuals, and 2 (3.0%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 4.01. There were 57

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. Ideall ...

(85.1% of all households); the average family size was 4.23. The population was spread out, with 87 people (32.3%) under the age of 18, 38 people (14.1%) aged 18 to 24, 74 people (27.5%) aged 25 to 44, 58 people (21.6%) aged 45 to 64, and 12 people (4.5%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 26.3 years. For every 100 females, there were 110.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 111.6 males. There were 76 housing units at an average density of , of which 36 (53.7%) were owner-occupied, and 31 (46.3%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 0%; the rental vacancy rate was 11.4%. 132 people (49.1% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 137 people (50.9%) 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 incl ...

of 2000, there were 419 people, 90 households, and 81 families residing in the CDP. The population density was . There were 97 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the CDP was 38.66%

, 0.24%

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 ...

, 1.19% Native American, 1.67%

, 55.37% from other races, and 2.86% from two or more races.

of any race were 86.16% of the population. There were 90 households, out of which 63.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 68.9% 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, 15.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 8.9% were non-families. 5.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 2.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 4.66 and the average family size was 4.71. In the CDP the population was spread out, with 44.2% under the age of 18, 10.0% from 18 to 24, 26.3% from 25 to 44, 12.4% from 45 to 64, and 7.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 22 years. For every 100 females, there were 118.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 116.7 males. The median income for a household in the CDP was $31,538, and the median income for a family was $30,536. Males had a median income of $27,000 versus $24,375 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 $7,834. About 23.3% of families and 29.7% 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 t ...

, including 38.2% of those under age 18 and 11.4% of those age 65 or over.

Government

San Lucas is served by the San Lucas Water District.

References

External links

{{authority control Census-designated places in Monterey County, California Salinas Valley Salinas River (California) Census-designated places in California