Sonoma County () is a
county
A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers 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
U.S. state
In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...
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 ...
. As of the
2020 United States Census
The United States census of 2020 was the twenty-fourth decennial United States census. Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2020. Other than a pilot study during the 2000 census, this was the first U.S. census to of ...
, its population was 488,863. Its
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 ...
and largest city is
Santa Rosa
Santa Rosa is the Italian, Portuguese and Spanish name for Saint Rose.
Santa Rosa may also refer to:
Places Argentina
*Santa Rosa, Mendoza, a city
* Santa Rosa, Tinogasta, Catamarca
* Santa Rosa, Valle Viejo, Catamarca
*Santa Rosa, La Pampa
* Sa ...
.
It is to the north of
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 acros ...
and the south of
Mendocino County
Mendocino County (; ''Mendocino'', Spanish language, Spanish for "of Antonio de Mendoza, Mendoza) is a County (United States), county located on the North Coast (California), North Coast of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United Sta ...
. It is west of
Napa County
Napa County () is a county north of San Pablo Bay located in the northern portion of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 138,019. The county seat is the City of Napa. Napa County was one of the original co ...
and
Lake County.
Sonoma County comprises the Santa Rosa-Petaluma
Metropolitan Statistical Area
In the United States, a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) is a geographical region with a relatively high population density at its core and close economic ties throughout the area. Such regions are neither legally Incorporated town, incorporate ...
, which is part of the
San Jose-
San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...
-
Oakland
Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third largest city overall in the Bay A ...
, CA
Combined Statistical Area
Combined statistical area (CSA) is a United States Office of Management and Budget (OMB) term for a combination of adjacent metropolitan (MSA) and micropolitan statistical areas (µSA) across the 50 US states and the territory of Puerto Ric ...
. It is the northernmost county in the nine-county
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 Go ...
region.
In California's
Wine Country
Wine Country is the region of California, in the northern San Francisco Bay Area, known worldwide as a premier wine-growing region. The region is famed for its wineries, its cuisine, Michelin star restaurants, boutique hotels, luxury resorts, ...
region, which also includes Napa, Mendocino, and Lake counties, Sonoma County is the largest producer. It has thirteen approved
American Viticultural Area
An American Viticultural Area (AVA) is a designated wine grape-growing region in the United States, providing an official appellation for the mutual benefit of winery, wineries and consumers. Winemakers frequently want their consumers to know abo ...
s and more than 350 wineries. The voters have twice approved open space initiatives that have provided funding for public acquisition of natural areas, preserving forested areas, coastal
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 ...
, and other open space. More than 8.4 million tourists visit each year, spending more than $1 billion in 2016.
In 2012, Sonoma County ranked as the 22nd county in the United States in
agricultural
Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating Plant, plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of Sedentism, sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of Domestication, domesticated species created food ...
production. By 1920, Sonoma County was ranked as the eighth most agriculturally productive U.S. county and a leading producer of hops, grapes, prunes, apples, as well as dairy and poultry products, largely due to the extent of available, fertile agricultural land in addition to the abundance of high-quality water for irrigation. As of 2009, agriculture was largely divided between two nearly
monocultural
Monoculturalism is the policy or process of supporting, advocating, or allowing the expression of the culture of a single social or ethnic group. It generally stems from beliefs within the dominant group that their cultural practices are superior ...
uses:
grape
A grape is a fruit, botanically a berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus ''Vitis''. Grapes are a non- climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters.
The cultivation of grapes began perhaps 8,000 years ago, ...
s and pasturage.
History
The
Pomo
The Pomo are an Indigenous people of California. Historical Pomo territory in Northern California was large, bordered by the Pacific Coast to the west, extending inland to Clear Lake, and mainly between Cleone and Duncans Point. One small grou ...
,
Coast Miwok
Coast Miwok are an indigenous people that was the second-largest group of Miwok people. Coast Miwok inhabited the general area of modern Marin County and southern Sonoma County in Northern California, from the Golden Gate north to Duncans Point ...
and
Wappo
The Wappo (endonym: ''Micewal'') are an indigenous people of northern California. Their traditional homelands are in Napa Valley, the south shore of Clear Lake, Alexander Valley, and Russian River valley. They are distantly related to the Yuki ...
peoples were the earliest human settlers of Sonoma County, between 8000 and 5000 BC, effectively living within the natural carrying capacity of the land. Archaeological evidence of these First people includes a number of occurrences of
rock carving
A petroglyph is an image created by removing part of a rock surface by incising, picking, carving, or abrading, as a form of rock art. Outside North America, scholars often use terms such as "carving", "engraving", or other descriptions ...
s, especially in southern Sonoma County; these carvings often take the form of
pecked curvilinear nucleated
Pecked curvilinear nucleated (PCN), in archaeology, is a form of prehistoric rock carving. The term was originally proposed by Teresa Miller and Reed Haslam in 1976 to describe a widespread type of rock carving in western North America. The form ...
design.
Spaniards
Spaniards, or Spanish people, are a Romance peoples, Romance ethnic group native to Spain. Within Spain, there are a number of National and regional identity in Spain, national and regional ethnic identities that reflect the country's complex Hist ...
,
Russians
, native_name_lang = ru
, image =
, caption =
, population =
, popplace =
118 million Russians in the Russian Federation (2002 ''Winkler Prins'' estimate)
, region1 =
, pop1 ...
, and other
Europeans
Europeans are the focus of European ethnology, the field of anthropology related to the various ethnic groups that reside in the states of Europe. Groups may be defined by common genetic ancestry, common language, or both. Pan and Pfeil (2004) ...
claimed and settled in the county from the late 16th to mid-19th century, seeking timber, fur, and farmland.
The Russians were the first newcomers to establish a permanent foothold in Sonoma County, with the
Russian-American Company
The Russian-American Company Under the High Patronage of His Imperial Majesty (russian: Под высочайшим Его Императорского Величества покровительством Российская-Американс ...
establishing
Fort Ross
Fort Ross (Russian: Форт-Росс, Kashaya ''mé·ṭiʔni''), originally Fortress Ross ( pre-reformed Russian: Крѣпость Россъ, tr. ''Krepostʹ Ross''), is a former Russian establishment on the west coast of North America in ...
on the Sonoma Coast in 1812. This settlement and its outlying Russian settlements came to include a population of several hundred Russian and
Aleut
The Aleuts ( ; russian: Алеуты, Aleuty) are the indigenous people of the Aleutian Islands, which are located between the North Pacific Ocean and the Bering Sea. Both the Aleut people and the islands are politically divided between the U ...
settlers and a stockaded fort with artillery. However, the Russians abandoned it in 1841 and sold the fort to
John Sutter
John Augustus Sutter (February 23, 1803 – June 18, 1880), born Johann August Sutter and known in Spanish as Don Juan Sutter, was a Swiss immigrant of Mexican and American citizenship, known for establishing Sutter's Fort in the area th ...
, settler and Mexican
land grant
A land grant is a gift of real estate—land or its use privileges—made by a government or other authority as an incentive, means of enabling works, or as a reward for services to an individual, especially in return for military service. Grants ...
ee of
Sacramento
)
, image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg
, mapsize = 250x200px
, map_caption = Location within Sacramento ...
.
![Russian chapel at Fort Ross (2016)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9c/Russian_chapel_at_Fort_Ross_%282016%29.jpg)
The
Mission San Francisco Solano
Mission San Francisco Solano was the 21st, last, and northernmost mission in Alta California. It was named for Saint Francis Solanus. It was the only mission built in Alta California after Mexico gained independence from Spain. The difficulty of ...
, founded in 1823 as the last and northernmost of 21
California missions
The Spanish missions in California ( es, Misiones españolas en California) comprise a
series of 21 religious outposts or missions established between 1769 and 1833 in what is now the U.S. state of California. Founded by Catholic priests of ...
, is in the present
City of Sonoma, at the northern end of
El Camino Real.
El Presidio de Sonoma, or Sonoma Barracks (part of Spain's ''
Fourth Military District
The Fourth Military District of the U.S. Army was one of five temporary administrative units of the U.S. War Department that existed in the American South. The district was stipulated by the Reconstruction Acts during the Reconstruction period fo ...
''), was established in 1836 by Comandante General
Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo
Don Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo (4 July 1807 – 18 January 1890) was a Californio general, statesman, and public figure. He was born a subject of Spain, performed his military duties as an officer of the Republic of Mexico, and shaped the trans ...
. His duties included keeping an eye on the Russian traders at Fort Ross, secularizing the Mission, maintaining cooperation with the Native Americans of the entire region, and doling out the lands for large estates and ranches. The City of Sonoma was the site of the
Bear Flag Revolt
The California Republic ( es, La República de California), or Bear Flag Republic, was an unrecognized breakaway state from Mexico, that for 25 days in 1846 militarily controlled an area north of San Francisco, in and around what is now Son ...
in 1846.
Sonoma was one of the original counties when California became a state in 1850, with its
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 ...
originally the town (now city) of Sonoma. However, by the early 1850s, Sonoma had declined in importance in both commerce and population, its county buildings were crumbling, and it was relatively remote. As a result, elements in the newer, rapidly growing towns of
Petaluma
Petaluma (Miwok: ''Péta Lúuma'') is a city in Sonoma County, California, located in the North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. Its population was 59,776 according to the 2020 census.
Petaluma's name comes from the Miwok village nam ...
, Santa Rosa, and
Healdsburg
Healdsburg is a city located in Sonoma County, in California's Wine Country. At the 2010 census, the city had a population of 11,254. Owing to its three most important wine-producing regions (the Russian River, Dry Creek, and Alexander Valle ...
began vying to move the county seat to their towns. The dispute ultimately was between the bigger, richer commercial town of Petaluma and the more centrally located, growing agricultural center of Santa Rosa. The fate was decided following an election for the state legislature in which James Bennett of Santa Rosa defeated
Joseph Hooker
Joseph Hooker (November 13, 1814 – October 31, 1879) was an American Civil War general for the Union, chiefly remembered for his decisive defeat by Confederate General Robert E. Lee at the Battle of Chancellorsville in 1863.
Hooker had serv ...
of Sonoma and introduced a bill that resulted in Santa Rosa being confirmed as county seat in 1854. Allegedly, several Santa Rosans, not caring to wait, decided to take action and, one night, rode down the Sonoma Valley to Sonoma, took the county seals and records, and brought them to Santa Rosa. Some of the county's land was annexed from
Mendocino County
Mendocino County (; ''Mendocino'', Spanish language, Spanish for "of Antonio de Mendoza, Mendoza) is a County (United States), county located on the North Coast (California), North Coast of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United Sta ...
between 1850 and 1860.
Early post-1847 settlement and development focused primarily on the city of Sonoma, then the region's sole town and a common transit and resting point in overland travel between the region and Sacramento and the gold fields to the east. However, after 1850, a settlement that soon became the city of Petaluma began to grow naturally near the farthest navigable point inland up 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, ...
. Originally a hunting camp used to obtain game to sell in other markets, by 1854 Petaluma had grown into a bustling center of trade, taking advantage of its position on the river near a region of highly productive agricultural land that was being settled. Soon, other inland towns, notably Santa Rosa and Healdsburg began to develop similarly due to their locations along riparian areas in prime agricultural flatland. However, their development initially lagged behind Petaluma which, until the arrival of railroads in the 1860s, remained the primary commercial, transit, and break-of-bulk point for people and goods in the region. After the arrival of the
San Francisco and North Pacific Railroad
San Francisco and North Pacific Railroad (SF&NP) provided the first extensive standard gauge rail service to Sonoma County and became the southern end of the regional Northwestern Pacific Railroad. Although first conceived of by Asbury Harpend ...
in 1870, Santa Rosa began to boom, soon equalling and then surpassing Petaluma as the region's population and commercial center. The railroad bypassed Petaluma for southern connections to
ferries of San Francisco Bay
San Francisco Bay in California has been served by ferries of all types for over 150 years. John Reed established a sailboat ferry service in 1826. Although the construction of the Golden Gate Bridge and the San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge le ...
.
Six nations have claimed Sonoma County from 1542 to the present:
Sonoma County was severely shaken by the
1906 San Francisco earthquake
At 05:12 Pacific Standard Time on Wednesday, April 18, 1906, the coast of Northern California was struck by a major earthquake with an estimated moment magnitude of 7.9 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of XI (''Extreme''). High-intensity sha ...
. The displacements along the
fault averaged .
In October 2017, the county was greatly affected by the
Tubbs Fire
The Tubbs Fire was a wildfire in Northern California during October 2017. At the time, the Tubbs Fire was the most destructive wildfire in California history, burning parts of Napa, Sonoma, and Lake counties, inflicting its greatest losses in ...
and the
Nuns Fire. In late October and early November 2019, the
Kincade Fire
The Kincade Fire was a wildfire that burned in Sonoma County, California in the United States. The fire started northeast of Geyserville in The Geysers on 9:24 p.m. on October 23, 2019, and subsequently burned until the fire was fully c ...
burned , almost all in Sonoma County. In August and September 2020, the Walbridge Fire burned in the western part of the county; then in September–October the Glass fire affected the city of Santa Rosa and ultimately destroying 1,000+ buildings The county also had a wildfire in the 1870s that is compared to the Hanley fire and Tubbs fire because they burned in the same path.
The Sonoma County Landmarks Commission recognizes nearly 200 formal
historical landmarks and the Sonoma County Historical Society counts 380 landmarks recognized by several agencies.
Etymology
![Edward S](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a3/Edward_S._Curtis_Collection_People_100.jpg)
According to the book ''California Place Names'', "The name of the Indian tribe is mentioned in baptismal records of 1815 as ''Chucuines'' or ''Sonomas'', by Chamisso in 1816 as ''Sonomi'', and repeatedly in Mission records of the following years."
According to the Coast Miwok and the Pomo tribes that lived in the region, Sonoma translates as "valley of the moon" or "many moons". Their legends detail this as a land where the moon nestled, hence the names
Sonoma Valley
Sonoma Valley is a valley located in southeastern Sonoma County, California, in the North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. Known as the birthplace of the California wine industry, the valley is home to some of the earliest vineyards an ...
and the "Valley of the Moon."
This translation was first recorded in an 1850 report by General
Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo
Don Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo (4 July 1807 – 18 January 1890) was a Californio general, statesman, and public figure. He was born a subject of Spain, performed his military duties as an officer of the Republic of Mexico, and shaped the trans ...
to the California Legislature.
Jack London
John Griffith Chaney (January 12, 1876 – November 22, 1916), better known as Jack London, was an American novelist, journalist and activist. A pioneer of commercial fiction and American magazines, he was one of the first American authors to ...
popularized it in his 1913 novel ''
The Valley of the Moon''.
In the native languages there is also a constantly recurring ending ''tso-noma'', from ''tso'', the earth; and ''noma'', village; hence ''tsonoma'', "earth village." Other sources say Sonoma comes from the Patwin tribes west of the
Sacramento River
The Sacramento River ( es, Río Sacramento) is the principal river of Northern California in the United States and is the largest river in California. Rising in the Klamath Mountains, the river flows south for before reaching the Sacramento–S ...
, and their
Wintu
The Wintu (also Northern Wintun) are Native Americans who live in what is now Northern California. They are part of a loose association of peoples known collectively as the Wintun (or Wintuan). Others are the Nomlaki and the Patwin. The Wintu ...
word for "nose". Per ''California Place Names'', "the name is doubtless derived from a
Patwin
The Patwin (also Patween, Southern Wintu) are a band of Wintun people native to the area of Northern California. The Patwin comprise the southern branch of the Wintun group, native inhabitants of California since approximately 500 AD.
The Patwi ...
word for 'nose', which Padre Arroyo (Vocabularies, p. 22) gives as ''sonom'' (
Suisun)." Spaniards may have found an Indian chief with a prominent protuberance and applied the nickname of ''Chief Nose'' to the village and the territory. The name may have applied originally to a nose-shaped geographic feature.
Jesse Sawyer argues that it is from Wappo ''tso-noma'', meaning "redwood place."
Geography
![Hoodmtndown](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/52/Hoodmtndown.jpg)
According to the
U.S. 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 county has an area of , of which is land and (10.9%) is water.
The county lies in the
North Coast Ranges
The Coast Ranges of California span from Del Norte or Humboldt County, California, south to Santa Barbara County. The other three coastal California mountain ranges are the Transverse Ranges, Peninsular Ranges and the Klamath Mountains.
Phy ...
of northwestern California. Its ranges include the
Mayacamas and the
Sonoma Mountains
The Sonoma Mountains are a northwest–southeast trending mountain range of the Inner Coast Ranges in the California Coast Ranges System, located in Sonoma County, Northern California.
Geography
The Sonoma Mountains range is approximately long. ...
, the southern peak of the latter being the prominent landform
Sears Point
Sears Point is a prominent landform that juts into the San Pablo Bay in Sonoma County, California, United States. This hill is the southernmost peak of the Sonoma Mountains and forms the southwestern ridge above Tolay Lake. Starting with European ...
. The highest peak in the Mayacamas within the county and the highest peak in the County is
Mt. Saint Helena. It has uncommon occurrences of
pygmy forest
In anthropology, pygmy peoples are ethnic groups whose average height is unusually short. The term pygmyism is used to describe the phenotype of endemic short stature (as opposed to disproportionate dwarfism occurring in isolated cases in a po ...
, dominated by
Mendocino cypress
''Cupressus pigmaea'', the Mendocino cypress or pygmy cypress, is a taxon of disputed status in the genus ''Cupressus'' endemic to certain coastal terraces and coastal mountain ranges of Mendocino and Sonoma Counties in northwestern California. ...
. The highest peak of the Sonoma Mountains is
Sonoma Mountain
Sonoma Mountain is a prominent landform within the Sonoma Mountains of southern Sonoma County, California. At an elevation of , Sonoma Mountain offers expansive views of the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Sonoma Valley to the east. In fact, ...
itself, which boasts two significant public access properties:
Jack London State Historic Park
Jack London State Historic Park, also known as Jack London Home and Ranch, is a California State Historic Park near Glen Ellen, California, United States, situated on the eastern slope of Sonoma Mountain. It includes the ruins of a house burned ...
and
Fairfield Osborn Preserve
The Fairfield Osborn Preserve is a 450-acre nature reserve situated on the northwest flank of Sonoma Mountain in Sonoma County, California. There are eight plant communities within the property, oak woodland being the dominant type. Other commun ...
.
The county includes the City of Sonoma and the
Sonoma Valley
Sonoma Valley is a valley located in southeastern Sonoma County, California, in the North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. Known as the birthplace of the California wine industry, the valley is home to some of the earliest vineyards an ...
, in which the City of Sonoma is located. However, these are not synonymous. The City of Sonoma is merely one of nine incorporated cities in the county. The Sonoma Valley is just the southeastern portion of the county, which includes many other valleys and geographic zones, including the Petaluma Valley, the
Santa Rosa Plains
Santa Rosa (Spanish for " Saint Rose") is a city and the county seat of Sonoma County, in the North Bay region of the Bay Area in California. Its estimated 2019 population was 178,127. It is the largest city in California's Wine Country and R ...
, the
Russian River, the
Alexander Valley
The Alexander Valley (Wappo: Unutsawaholmanoma, "Toyon Bush Berry Place") is a Californian American Viticultural Area (AVA) just north of Healdsburg in Sonoma County. It is home to many wineries and vineyards, as well as the city of Cloverdale. ...
, and the
Dry Creek Valley.
Distinct habitat areas within the county include oak
woodland
A woodland () is, in the broad sense, land covered with trees, or in a narrow sense, synonymous with wood (or in the U.S., the ''plurale tantum'' woods), a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade (see ...
,
redwood
Sequoioideae, popularly known as redwoods, is a subfamily of coniferous trees within the family
Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affini ...
forest
A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...
,
northern coastal scrub
Northern coastal scrub is a scrubland plant community of California and Oregon. It occurs along the Pacific Coast from Point Sur on the Central California coast in Monterey County, California, to southern Oregon. It frequently forms a landscape mo ...
,
grassland
A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses (Poaceae). However, sedge (Cyperaceae) and rush (Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur natur ...
,
marsh
A marsh is a wetland that is dominated by herbaceous rather than woody plant species.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p Marshes can often be found at ...
land, oak
savanna
A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland-grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground to ...
and
riparian woodland
A riparian forest or riparian woodland is a forested or wooded area of land adjacent to a body of water such as a river, stream, pond, lake, marshland, estuary, canal, sink or reservoir.
Etymology
The term riparian comes from the Latin word ' ...
. The
California oak woodland
California oak woodland is a plant community found throughout the California chaparral and woodlands ecoregion of California in the United States and northwestern Baja California in Mexico. Oak woodland is widespread at lower elevations in coasta ...
in the upper
Yulupa Creek
Yulupa Creek is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed March 10, 2011 southeast-flowing perennial stream that rises on the southeastern flanks of the northern Sonoma Mountains ...
and
Spring Creek
A spring creek is a type of free flowing river whose name derives from its origin: an underground spring or set of springs which produces sufficient water to consistently feed a unique river. The water flowing in a spring creek may additionally be ...
watersheds in
Annadel State Park
Trione-Annadel State Park is a state park of California in the United States. It is situated at the northern edge of Sonoma Valley and is adjacent to Spring Lake Regional Park in Santa Rosa. It offers many recreational activities within its pro ...
is a relatively undisturbed ecosystem with considerable
biodiversity
Biodiversity or biological diversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is a measure of variation at the genetic (''genetic variability''), species (''species diversity''), and ecosystem (''ecosystem diversity'') l ...
. These forested areas have been characterized as some of the best examples of such woodlands. An unusual characteristic of these forests is the high content of undisturbed prehistoric
bunchgrass
Tussock grasses or bunch grasses are a group of grass species in the family Poaceae. They usually grow as singular plants in clumps, tufts, hummocks, or bunches, rather than forming a sod or lawn, in meadows, grasslands, and prairies. As perennial ...
understory
In forestry and ecology, understory (American English), or understorey (Commonwealth English), also known as underbrush or undergrowth, includes plant life growing beneath the forest canopy without penetrating it to any great extent, but abov ...
, testifying to the absence of historic
grazing
In agriculture, grazing is a method of animal husbandry whereby domestic livestock are allowed outdoors to roam around and consume wild vegetations in order to convert the otherwise indigestible (by human gut) cellulose within grass and other ...
or other
agriculture
Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...
.
Trees of the oak woodland habitat include
Pacific madrone
''Arbutus menziesii'' or Pacific madrone (commonly madrone or madrona in the United States and arbutus in Canada), is a species of broadleaf evergreen tree in the family Ericaceae, native to the western coastal areas of North America, from Bri ...
,
Douglas fir
The Douglas fir (''Pseudotsuga menziesii'') is an evergreen conifer species in the pine family, Pinaceae. It is native to western North America and is also known as Douglas-fir, Douglas spruce, Oregon pine, and Columbian pine. There are three va ...
,
coast live oak
''Quercus agrifolia'', the California live oak, or coast live oak, is a highly variable, often evergreen oak tree, a type of live oak, native to the California Floristic Province. It may be shrubby, depending on age and growing location, but is g ...
,
Garry oak
''Quercus garryana'' is an oak tree species of the Pacific Northwest, with a range stretching from southern California to southwestern British Columbia. It is commonly known as the Oregon white oak or Oregon oak or, in Canada, the Garry oak. It ...
, and
California laurel
''Umbellularia californica'' is a large hardwood tree native to coastal forests and the Sierra foothills of California, and to coastal forests extending into Oregon. It is endemic to the California Floristic Province. It is the sole species in th ...
. Common understory plants are
toyon
''Heteromeles arbutifolia'' (; more commonly by Californian botanists), commonly known as toyon, is a common perennial shrub native to extreme southwest Oregon, California, and the Baja California Peninsula. It is the sole species in the genus ...
,
poison oak Poison oak refers to two plant species in the genus ''Toxicodendron,'' both of which can cause skin irritation:
*''Toxicodendron diversilobum'' or Western poison oak, found in western North America
*''Toxicodendron pubescens
''Toxicodendron pub ...
, and, at the fringes,
coast silk-tassel.
Climate
![DryCreekValley](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/00/DryCreekValley.jpg)
Sonoma County, as is often the case with coastal counties in California, has a great degree of climatic variation and numerous, often very different, microclimates.
Key determining factors for local climate are proximity to the ocean, elevation, and the presence and elevation of hills or mountains to the east and west. This is in large part due to the fact that, as throughout California, the prevailing weather systems and wind come normally from the Pacific Ocean, blowing in from the west and southwest, so that places closer to the ocean and on the windward side of higher elevations tend to receive more rain from autumn through spring and more summer wind and fog. This itself is partly a result of the presence of high and low pressures in inland California, with persistent high summer temperatures in the
Central Valley, in particular, leading to low pressures, drawing in moist air from the Pacific, cooling into damp cool breezes and fog over the cold coastal water. Those places further inland and particularly in the lee of significant elevations tend to receive less rain and less, in some cases no, fog in the summer.
The coast itself is typically cool and moist throughout summer, often foggy, with fog generally blowing in during the late afternoon and evening until it clears in the later morning becoming sunny, before repeating. Coastal summer highs are typically in the mid to high 60s, warming to the low 70s further from the ocean.
Certain inland areas, including the Petaluma area and the Santa Rosa Plain, are also prone to this normal fog pattern in general.
However, they tend to receive the fog later in the evening, the fog tends to be more short-lived, and mid-day temperatures are significantly higher than they are on the coast, typically in the low 80s F. This is particularly true for Petaluma,
Cotati, and
Rohnert Park
Rohnert Park is a city in Sonoma County, California, United States, located approximately north of San Francisco. The population at the 2020 United States Census was 44,390. It is an early planned city and is the sister city of Hashimoto in ...
, and, only slightly less so, Santa Rosa,
Windsor
Windsor may refer to:
Places Australia
* Windsor, New South Wales
** Municipality of Windsor, a former local government area
* Windsor, Queensland, a suburb of Brisbane, Queensland
**Shire of Windsor, a former local government authority around Wi ...
, and
Sebastopol
Sevastopol (; uk, Севасто́поль, Sevastópolʹ, ; gkm, Σεβαστούπολις, Sevastoúpolis, ; crh, Акъя́р, Aqyár, ), sometimes written Sebastopol, is the largest city in Crimea, and a major port on the Black Sea ...
. In large part, this results from lower elevations and the prominent
Petaluma Gap The Petaluma Gap is a geographical region in Sonoma County, California which extends in a band from the Pacific Ocean to San Pablo Bay. It is an area of low land 22 to 31 miles (35 to 50 kilometers) wide in the coast ranges of the northern San Fran ...
in the hills between the ocean to the west and the Petaluma Valley and Santa Rosa Plain to the east.
Areas north of Santa Rosa and Windsor, with larger elevations to the west and further from the fog path, tend to receive less fog and less summer marine influence. Healdsburg, to the north of Windsor, is less foggy and much warmer, with summer highs typically in the higher 80s to about . Sonoma and the Sonoma Valley, east of Petaluma, are similar, with highs typically in the very high 70s F to . This is in part due to the presence of the Sonoma Mountains between Petaluma and Sonoma.
Cloverdale, far to the north and outside of the Santa Rosa Plain, is significantly hotter than any other city in the county, with rare evening-morning fog and highs often in the 90s, reaching much more frequently than the other cities. Notably, however, the temperature differences among the different areas of the county are greatest for the highs during mid-day, with the diurnal lows much more even throughout the entire county. The lows are closely tied to the evening-morning cooling marine influence, in addition to elevation, bringing similarly cool temperatures to much of region.
These weather patterns contribute to high diurnal temperature fluctuations in much of the county. In summer, daily lows and highs are typically 30–40 °F apart inland, with highs for Petaluma, Cotati, Rohnert Park, Santa Rosa, Windsor, and Sebastopol typically being in the very low 80s F and lows at or near . Healdsburg and the City of Sonoma, with similar lows, have even greater diurnal fluctuations due to their significantly warmer highs. On the other hand, the coast, with strong marine influence, tends to have low diurnal temperature fluctuation, with summer highs much cooler than the inland towns, typically 65–75 °F, yet lows in the high 40s to low 50s F, fairly comparable to most inland towns.
These microclimates are evident during the rainy seasons as well, with great variation in the amount of rainfall throughout the county. Generally, all of Sonoma County receives a fair amount of rain, with much of the county receiving between about , comparable to areas such as Sonoma and Petaluma, and roughly normal for Santa Rosa. However, certain areas, particularly in the north-west portion of the county around the Russian River, receive significantly more rainfall. The
Guerneville
Guerneville ( , ) is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in the Russian River Valley of Sonoma County, California, United States. The town is historically known for the logging community, formed in the late 1800s. Guerneville ...
area, for example, typically receives about of rain a year, with annual rain occasionally going as high as . Nearby Cazadero typically receives about of rain a year, many times has reached over a year, and sometimes over of rain in a year. The Cazadero region is the second wettest place in California after
Gasquet.
Snow is exceedingly rare in Sonoma County, except in the higher elevations on and around the
Mayacamas Mountains
The Mayacamas Mountains are located in northwestern California in the United States. The mountain range is part of the Northern Inner Coast Ranges, of the California Coast Ranges System.
Geography
The Mayacamas Mountains are located south of the ...
, particularly
Mount Saint Helena
Mount Saint Helena (Wappo: Kanamota, "Human Mountain") is a peak in the Mayacamas Mountains with flanks in Napa, Sonoma, and Lake counties of California. Composed of uplifted 2.4-million-year-old volcanic rocks from the Clear Lake Volcanic Fiel ...
, and
Cobb Mountain
Cobb Mountain is the tallest mountain in the Mayacamas Mountains of California.
Location
Cobb Mountain's main summit is located in Lake County, west of the town of Cobb. Like nearby Mount Saint Helena, Cobb Mountain is tall enough to receiv ...
, whose peak is in Lake County.
Ocean, bays, rivers and streams
![Sonoma coastline from Bodega Head-L1001155](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9e/Sonoma_coastline_from_Bodega_Head-L1001155.jpg)
Sonoma County is bounded on the west by the Pacific Ocean, and has of coastline. The major coastal hydrographic features are
Bodega Bay
Bodega Bay ( es, Bahía Bodega) is a shallow, rocky inlet of the Pacific Ocean on the coast of northern California in the United States. It is approximately across and is located approximately northwest of San Francisco and west of Santa Ros ...
, the mouth of the Russian River, and the mouth of the
Gualala River
The Gualala River is a river on the northern coast of California. Most of the river is in Sonoma County, but a portion is in Mendocino County. The headwaters of the river (measuring via its South Fork)U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography ...
, at the border with
Mendocino County
Mendocino County (; ''Mendocino'', Spanish language, Spanish for "of Antonio de Mendoza, Mendoza) is a County (United States), county located on the North Coast (California), North Coast of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United Sta ...
. All of the county's beaches were listed as among the cleanest in the state in 2010.
Six of the county's nine cities, from Healdsburg south through Santa Rosa to Rohnert Park and Cotati, are in the Santa Rosa Plain. The northern Plain drains directly to the Russian River, or to a tributary; the southern Plain drains to the Russian River via the
Laguna de Santa Rosa
The Laguna de Santa Rosa is a wetland complex that drains a watershed encompassing most of the Santa Rosa Plain in Sonoma County, California, United States.
The California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment has issued a safe eat ...
.
Russian River
![Russian River mouth on California coast](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b4/Russian_River_mouth_on_California_coast.jpeg)
Much of central and northern Sonoma County is in the watershed of the Russian River and its tributaries. The river rises in the coastal mountains of Mendocino County, north of the city of
Ukiah, and flows into
Lake Mendocino
Lake Mendocino is a large reservoir in Mendocino County, California, northeast of Ukiah. It covers and was formed by the construction of Coyote Valley Dam in 1958. The lake and dam provide flood control, water conservation, hydroelectric powe ...
, a major flood control reservoir. The river flows south from the lake through Mendocino to Sonoma County, paralleled by Highway 101. It turns west at Healdsburg, receiving water from
Lake Sonoma
Lake Sonoma is a reservoir west of Cloverdale in northern Sonoma County, California, created by the construction of Warm Springs Dam. Access from U.S. Route 101 is by way of Canyon Road (from the south) from Geyserville, or Dutcher Creek Road (fr ...
via
Dry Creek, and empties into the Pacific Ocean at
Jenner.
Laguna de Santa Rosa
The Laguna de Santa Rosa is the largest tributary of the Russian River. It is long, running north from Cotati to the Russian River near Forestville. Its flood plain is more than . It drains a watershed, including most of the Santa Rosa Plain.
The Laguna de Santa Rosa Foundation says:
The Laguna de Santa Rosa is Sonoma County's richest area of wildlife habitat, and the most biologically diverse region of Sonoma County (itself the second-most biologically diverse county in California)... It is a unique ecological system covering more than and a mosaic of creeks, open water, perennial marshes, seasonal wetlands, riparian forests, oak woodlands, and grasslands... As the receiving water of a watershed where most of the county's human population lives, it is a landscape feature of critical importance to Sonoma County's water quality, flood control, and biodiversity.
The Laguna's largest tributary is
Santa Rosa Creek
Santa Rosa Creek is a 22-mile-long (35 km) stream in Sonoma County, California, which rises on Hood Mountain and discharges to the Laguna de Santa Rosa by way of the Santa Rosa Flood Control Channel. This article covers both the creek and t ...
, which runs through Santa Rosa. Its major tributaries are
Brush Creek
A brush is a common tool with bristles, wire or other filaments. It generally consists of a handle or block to which filaments are affixed in either a parallel or perpendicular orientation, depending on the way the brush is to be gripped durin ...
, Mark West Creek,
Matanzas Creek
Matanzas Creek is an U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed March 9, 2011 year-round stream in Sonoma County, California, United States, a tributary of Santa Rosa Creek.
Cour ...
,
Spring Creek
A spring creek is a type of free flowing river whose name derives from its origin: an underground spring or set of springs which produces sufficient water to consistently feed a unique river. The water flowing in a spring creek may additionally be ...
, and
Piner Creek
Piner Creek is a stream in northeast Santa Rosa, California, United States () which originates as an outlet of Fountaingrove Lake. Piner Creek discharges to Santa Rosa Creek which in turn joins the Laguna de Santa Rosa. The upper reaches in t ...
. Santa Rosa Creek was shown to be polluted in Sonoma county first flush results.
Other water bodies
The boundary with
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 acros ...
runs from the mouth of the
Estero Americano at
Bodega Bay
Bodega Bay ( es, Bahía Bodega) is a shallow, rocky inlet of the Pacific Ocean on the coast of northern California in the United States. It is approximately across and is located approximately northwest of San Francisco and west of Santa Ros ...
, up Americano Creek, then overland to
San Antonio Creek and down the Petaluma River to its mouth at the northwest corner of
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 ch ...
, which adjoins
San Francisco Bay
San Francisco Bay is a large tidal estuary in the U.S. state of California, and gives its name to the San Francisco Bay Area. It is dominated by the big cities of San Francisco, San Jose, and Oakland.
San Francisco Bay drains water from a ...
. The southern edge of Sonoma County comprises the northern shore of San Pablo Bay between the Marin County border at the Petaluma River and the border with Solano County at
Sonoma Creek
, name_etymology =
, image = Beaver Dam Sonoma Creek, Sonoma Thanksgiving 2009.jpg
, image_caption = Beaver dam on Sonoma Creek at Maxwell Farms Regional Park in Sonoma, California, 2009
, image_size = 300
, ma ...
. Sonoma County has no incorporated communities directly on the shore of San Pablo Bay. At the present, there is only a private marina with related facilities called Port Sonoma near the mouth of 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, ...
. However, the Petaluma River, which flows into San Pablo Bay, is navigable up to the city of Petaluma.
The Petaluma River,
Tolay Creek
Tolay Creek is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed March 10, 2011 southward-flowing stream in southern Sonoma County, California, United States, which flows through Tolay La ...
, and Sonoma Creek enter the bay at the county's southernmost tip. The intertidal zone where they join the bay is the vast
Napa Sonoma Marsh
The Napa Sonoma Marsh is a wetland at the northern edge of San Pablo Bay, which is a northern arm of the San Francisco Bay in California, United States. This marsh has an area of 48,000 acres (194 km2), of which 13,000 acres (53 km2) are ...
.
Americano Creek
Americano Creek is a long westward-flowing stream in the California counties of Sonoma and Marin. It flows into the Estero Americano, a long estuary, and thence to the Pacific Ocean. This article covers both watercourses.
Course
Americano Cr ...
, the Petaluma River, Tolay Creek, and Sonoma Creek are the principal streams draining the southern portion of the county. The Sonoma Valley is drained by Sonoma Creek, whose major tributaries are
Yulupa Creek
Yulupa Creek is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed March 10, 2011 southeast-flowing perennial stream that rises on the southeastern flanks of the northern Sonoma Mountains ...
,
Graham Creek,
Calabazas Creek
Calabazas Creek is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed March 10, 2011 stream in the Sonoma Valley, California, United States, that rises in the southern Mayacamas Mounta ...
, Schell Creek, and
Carriger Creek
Carriger Creek is a stream Sonoma County, California. Southwest of the city of Sonoma, California, its name changes to Fowler Creek. This article covers both parts of the creek.
Carriger Creek springs from the eastern slope of Sonoma Mountain, ...
;
Arroyo Seco Creek
Arroyo Seco is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed March 10, 2011 tributary stream to Schell Creek in southern Sonoma County, California, United States. In Spanish ''ar ...
is tributary to Schell Creek. Other creeks include Foss, Felta, and Mill.
Lakes and reservoirs in the county include Lake Sonoma,
Tolay Lake
Tolay Lake is a shallow freshwater lake in southern Sonoma County, California, United States. The lake, nestled within the southern vestiges of the Sonoma Mountains, is the site of significant Native American prehistoric seasonal settlement. In ...
,
Lake Ilsanjo
Lake Ilsanjo is a man-made lake located in Annadel State Park east of Santa Rosa, California, Santa Rosa in Sonoma County, California, United States. It is a place for fishing and swimming, especially in the summer months. Entrepreneur Joe Coney or ...
,
Santa Rosa Creek Reservoir,
Lake Ralphine
Lake Ralphine is a reservoir in Howarth Memorial Park in the city of Santa Rosa, in the U.S. state of California.
Fishing
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife stocks the lake annually with trout of catchable size. Other fishes found i ...
, and
Fountaingrove Lake
Fountaingrove Lake is a reservoir in the city of Santa Rosa, California, United States. Formed by the Fountaingrove Dam, the lake is fed from the east by Piner Creek, which is also the lake's sole outlet.
Fountaingrove Dam is an earthen dam buil ...
.
Marine protected areas
Like underwater parks, these marine protected areas help conserve ocean wildlife and marine ecosystems.
*
Del Mar Landing State Marine Reserve
Del Mar Landing State Marine Reserve (SMR) is a marine protected area that lies onshore, about 2 miles (3 km) south of the town of Gualala and 3.5 miles north of Sea Ranch in Sonoma County on California’s north central coast. The marine p ...
*
*
Salt Point State Marine Conservation Area
Salt Point State Marine Conservation Area (SMCA) is a marine protected area that lies onshore from Fisk Mill Cove and south along Salt Point State Park in Sonoma County on California’s north central coast. The marine protected area covers 3. ...
*
Gerstle Cove State Marine Reserve
Gerstle Cove State Marine Reserve (SMR) is a marine protected area that lies onshore from Salt Point State Park, within the Salt Point State Marine Conservation Area, in Sonoma County on California’s north central coast. The marine protected a ...
*
*
*
Estero Americano State Marine Recreational Management Area Estero Americano State Marine Recreational Management Area (SMRMA) is a marine protected area that splits Sonoma and Marin counties on California’s north central coast. The marine protected area covers 0.15 square miles. Estero Americano SMRMA ...
Threatened/endangered species
A number of endangered plants and animals are found in Sonoma County, including the
California clapper rail
Ridgway's rail (''Rallus obsoletus'') is a near-threatened species of bird. It is found principally in California's San Francisco Bay to southern Baja California. A member of the rail family, Rallidae, it is a chicken-sized bird that rarely flie ...
(''Rallus longirostris obsoletus''),
salt marsh harvest mouse
The salt marsh harvest mouse (''Reithrodontomys raviventris''), also known as the red-bellied harvest mouse, is an endangered rodent endemic to the San Francisco Bay Area salt marshes in California. The two distinct subspecies are both endangere ...
(''Reithrodontomys raviventris''),
northern red-legged frog
The northern red-legged frog (''Rana aurora'') is a species of amphibian, whose range is the coastal region stretching from southwest British Columbia to southern Mendocino County in Northern California, and is protected in Oregon and Californ ...
(''Rana aurora''),
Sacramento splittail
The splittail (''Pogonichthys macrolepidotus''), also called Sacramento splittail, is a cyprinid fish native to the low-elevation waters of the Central Valley in California. It was first described by William O. Ayres in 1854. It is the sole li ...
(''Pogonichthys macrolepidotus''), California freshwater shrimp (''
Syncaris pacifica
''Syncaris pacifica'' is an endangered species of freshwater shrimp in the family Atyidae that occurs only in a limited range within the northern San Francisco Bay Area, California, USA. Specifically, this species occurs only in 17 stre ...
''), showy Indian clover (''
Trifolium amoenum
''Trifolium amoenum'', known by the common names showy Indian clover and two-fork clover, is endemic to California, and is an endangered annual herb that subsists in grassland areas of the San Francisco Bay Area and the northern California Coast ...
''), and Hickman's potentilla (''
Potentilla hickmanii
''Potentilla hickmanii'' (called Hickman's potentilla or Hickman's cinquefoil) is an endangered perennial herb of the rose family. This rare plant species is found in a narrowly restricted range in two locations in coastal northern California, ...
'').
Species of special local concern include the
California tiger salamander
The California tiger salamander (''Ambystoma californiense'') is a vulnerable amphibian native to California. It is a mole salamander. Previously considered to be a subspecies of the tiger salamander (''A. tigrinum)'', the California tiger salam ...
(''Ambystoma californiense'') and some endangered plants, including Burke's goldfields (''
Lasthenia burkei''), Sebastopol meadowfoam (''
Limnanthes vinculans
''Limnanthes vinculans'', the Sebastopol meadowfoam, is an endangered species of meadowfoam found only in the Laguna de Santa Rosa in Sonoma County, California, United States and an area slightly to the south in the Americano Creek and Washoe Cr ...
''), and Sonoma sunshine or Baker's stickyseed (''
Blennosperma bakeri'').
Endangered species that are
endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...
to Sonoma County include Sebastopol meadowfoam, Sonoma sunshine, and Pitkin Marsh lily (
''Lilium pardalinum'' subsp. ''pitkinense'').
The
Sonoma County Water Agency
Sonoma Water, formerly known as the Sonoma County Water Agency, maintains a water transmission system that provides naturally filtered Russian River water to more than 600,000 residents in portions of Sonoma County, California and Marin County, C ...
has had a Fisheries Enhancement Program since 1996. Its website says:
"The primary focus of the FEP is to enhance habitat for three salmonid
Salmonidae is a family of ray-finned fish that constitutes the only currently extant family in the order Salmoniformes . It includes salmon (both Atlantic and Pacific species), trout (both ocean-going and landlocked), chars, freshwater whitefis ...
s: Steelhead
Steelhead, or occasionally steelhead trout, is the common name of the anadromous form of the coastal rainbow trout or redband trout (O. m. gairdneri). Steelhead are native to cold-water tributaries of the Pacific basin in Northeast Asia and N ...
, Chinook salmon
The Chinook salmon (''Oncorhynchus tshawytscha'') is the largest and most valuable species of Pacific salmon in North America, as well as the largest in the genus ''Oncorhynchus''. Its common name is derived from the Chinookan peoples. Other ve ...
, and Coho salmon
The coho salmon (''Oncorhynchus kisutch;'' Karuk: achvuun) is a species of anadromous fish in the salmon family and one of the five Pacific salmon species. Coho salmon are also known as silver salmon or "silvers". The scientific species name i ...
. These three species are listed as threatened under the U.S. Endangered Species Act
The Endangered Species Act of 1973 (ESA or "The Act"; 16 U.S.C. § 1531 et seq.) is the primary law in the United States for protecting imperiled species. Designed to protect critically imperiled species from extinction as a "consequence of ec ...
. The California Department of Fish and Game considers the Coho salmon endangered."
Adjacent counties
*
Mendocino County, California
Mendocino County (; ''Mendocino'', Spanish language, Spanish for "of Antonio de Mendoza, Mendoza) is a County (United States), county located on the North Coast (California), North Coast of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United Sta ...
– north
*
Lake County, California
Lake County is a county located in the north central portion of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 68,163. The county seat is Lakeport. The county takes its name from Clear Lake, the dominant geographic fe ...
– northeast
*
Napa County, California
Napa County () is a county north of San Pablo Bay located in the northern portion of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 138,019. The county seat is the City of Napa. Napa County was one of the original co ...
– east
*
Solano County, California
Solano County () is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 453,491. The county seat is Fairfield.
Solano County comprises the Vallejo–Fairfield, CA Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is ...
– southeast
*
Marin County, California
Marin County is a County (United States), county located in the northwestern part of the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 262,231. Its county seat and ...
– south
*
Contra Costa County, California
) of the San Francisco Bay
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = United States
, subdivision_type1 = State
, subdivision_name1 = California
, subdivision_type2 ...
– south-southeast
National protected area
*
San Pablo Bay National Wildlife Refuge
San Pablo Bay National Wildlife Refuge is a National Wildlife Refuge in California established in 1970. It extends along the northern shore of San Pablo Bay, from the mouth of the Petaluma River, to Tolay Creek, Sonoma Creek, and ending at Mar ...
(part)
Transportation
Major highways
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 ...
U.S. Route 101 is the westernmost
Federal highway Federal Highways and Federal Routes can be found in:
*Australia: Federal Highway
*Brazil: Brazilian Federal Highway and Brazilian Highway System
*Germany: ''Bundesstraßen''
*Malaysia: Federal Highway and Malaysian Federal Roads System
*Mexico: ...
in the U.S.A. Running north/south through the states of California,
Oregon
Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...
, and Washington, it generally parallels the coastline from the
Mexico–US border to the
Canada–US border. Highway 101 links seven of the county's nine incorporated cities: Cloverdale, Healdsburg, Windsor, Santa Rosa, Rohnert Park, Cotati, and Petaluma. It is a freeway for its entire length within the county.
The four-lane sections of the highway have been heavily congested during peak commute hours for many years and work is being done to widen part of the highway to six lanes. The segment from north of Petaluma (at Old Redwood Highway/Petaluma Boulevard North exit) to Windsor has been fully widened, as has the segment from the Petaluma River bridge to the Marin County border. The two new inner lanes are designated for
vehicles with two or more occupants during commute hours. Work is being done around Petaluma to finish the widening within Sonoma County; the widening also involves upgrading the highway to
full freeway standards.
State Route 1
Within Sonoma County, Highway 1 follows the coastline from the Mendocino County border, at the mouth of the Gualala River, to the Marin County border, at the Estero Americano (
Americano Creek
Americano Creek is a long westward-flowing stream in the California counties of Sonoma and Marin. It flows into the Estero Americano, a long estuary, and thence to the Pacific Ocean. This article covers both watercourses.
Course
Americano Cr ...
), southeast of Bodega Bay.
State Route 12
![CA SR-12 Sonoma](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c6/CA_SR-12_Sonoma.jpg)
Highway 12 runs eastward from its intersection with Highway 116 in Sebastopol to Santa Rosa. There it turns south through the Valley of the Moon to Sonoma, then east into Napa County. The four-lane freeway section within Santa Rosa, between Fulton Road and Farmers Lane, is called the Luther Burbank Memorial Highway. That section, especially where it crosses Highway 101, is severely congested during peak commute hours.
The two-lane Bodega Highway runs west from the intersection of Highways 12 and 116 in Sebastopol, through the coastal hills to its intersection with Highway 1, east of Bodega Bay. East of Santa Rosa, Highway 12 is also called Sonoma Highway; and east of the City of Sonoma, Carneros Highway.
State Route 37
Highway 37 connects Highway 101 at Novato, in Marin County, with Interstate 80 in Vallejo, in Solano County, at the top of San Pablo Bay. Within Sonoma County, it is also called Sears Point Road.
State Route 116
Highway 116 is a winding, two-lane rural route that runs from Jenner, at the mouth of the Russian River on the coast, southeast to Arnold Drive near Sonoma. It is also called Guerneville Highway, between Guerneville and Forestville; Gravenstein Highway North, between Forestville and Sebastopol; and Gravenstein Highway South, between Sebastopol and Stony Point Road, west of Rohnert Park. East of Petaluma it is called Lakeville Highway, then Stage Gulch Road.
State Route 121
Highway 121 is a two-lane rural route running from Highway 37 near Sears Point Raceway to Highway 128 in
Lake Berryessa
Lake Berryessa is the largest lake in Napa County, California. This reservoir in the Vaca Mountains was formed following the construction of the Monticello Dam on Putah Creek in the 1950s. Since the early 1960s, this reservoir has provided water ...
, in Napa County.
State Route 128
The northernmost section of Highway 128 is a two-lane, rural route running southeast from Highway 101 at Geyserville, north of Healdsburg, through the Alexander Valley and into Napa County.
Public transportation
*
Sonoma County Transit
Sonoma County Transit is a public transportation system based in Sonoma County, California.
Cities and communities served
As the primary bus system in the county, Sonoma County Transit (SCT) operates to the following communities, listed by zone:
...
is the countywide transit operator, providing service to all cities in Sonoma County.
*CityBus operates within the city limits of Santa Rosa.
*The cities of Cloverdale and Petaluma also provide their own local bus service.
*
Golden Gate Transit
Golden Gate Transit (GGT) is a public transportation system serving the North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in California, United States. It primarily serves Marin County, Sonoma County, and San Francisco, and also provides limited ser ...
connects Santa Rosa and points south with Marin County and San Francisco.
*
Mendocino Transit Authority runs north from Santa Rosa to Ukiah (via US 101) and to the coast (via California Routes 12 and 1).
*
Sonoma–Marin Area Rail Transit
Sonoma–Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART) is a rail line and bicycle-pedestrian pathway project in Sonoma and Marin counties of the U.S. state of California. When completed, the entire system will serve a corridor between Cloverdale in north ...
(SMART) is a
commuter rail
Commuter rail, or suburban rail, is a passenger rail transport service that primarily operates within a metropolitan area, connecting commuters to a central city from adjacent suburbs or commuter towns. Generally commuter rail systems are con ...
line eventually planned to go between
Larkspur in Marin County and Cloverdale in Sonoma County. the line operates between Larkspur and the Sonoma County Airport.
Airports
The
Charles M. Schulz - Sonoma County Airport
Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English and French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''*karilaz'' (in Latin alphabet), whose meaning was "f ...
is at 2290 Airport Boulevard, west of Highway 101, between Santa Rosa and Windsor. Its main runway is long and wide, and can accommodate planes up to maximum gross takeoff weight. It offers fuel, major maintenance,
hangar
A hangar is a building or structure designed to hold aircraft or spacecraft. Hangars are built of metal, wood, or concrete. The word ''hangar'' comes from Middle French ''hanghart'' ("enclosure near a house"), of Germanic origin, from Frankish ...
space, and tie-downs for local and transient
aircraft
An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air. It counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engines ...
.
Alaska Airlines
Alaska Airlines is a major American airline headquartered in SeaTac, Washington, within the Seattle metropolitan area. It is the sixth largest airline in North America when measured by fleet size, scheduled passengers carried, and the numb ...
,
American Airlines
American Airlines is a major airlines of the United States, major US-based airline headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, within the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is the Largest airlines in the world, largest airline in the world when measured ...
, and
United Airlines
United Airlines, Inc. (commonly referred to as United), is a major American airline headquartered at the Willis Tower in Chicago, Illinois. offer regular daily commercial flights.
There are five
general aviation
General aviation (GA) is defined by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) as all civil aviation aircraft operations with the exception of commercial air transport or aerial work, which is defined as specialized aviation services ...
airports within the county:
*
Cloverdale Municipal Airport
Cloverdale Municipal Airport is a public airport located three miles (4.8 km) southeast of Cloverdale, serving Sonoma County, California, United States. It is mostly used for general aviation. Other activities at the airport include skydivi ...
*
Healdsburg Municipal Airport
*
Petaluma Municipal Airport
*
Sonoma Skypark
*
Sonoma Valley Airport
Railroads
![PostcardMesaGrandeCARailroadStationCirca1910](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3d/PostcardMesaGrandeCARailroadStationCirca1910.jpg)
In 1864, the Petaluma and Haystack Railroad connected the city of Petaluma to a
ferry
A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water taxi ...
landing at the head of navigation on the Petaluma River.
In 1870, the
San Francisco and North Pacific Railroad
San Francisco and North Pacific Railroad (SF&NP) provided the first extensive standard gauge rail service to Sonoma County and became the southern end of the regional Northwestern Pacific Railroad. Although first conceived of by Asbury Harpend ...
(SF&NP) connected the City of Santa Rosa to ferry connections at Donahue landing on the Petaluma River. Rail service was extended north to Healdsburg in 1871 and Cloverdale in 1872. In 1884 the railroad was extended south to an alternate ferry connection in
Tiburon. This rail line serves as the primary route of Sonoma–Marin Area Rail Transit.
The
3-foot-gauge North Pacific Coast Railroad
The North Pacific Coast Railroad (NPC) was a common carrier narrow-gauge steam railroad begun in 1874 and sold in 1902 to new owners who renamed it the North Shore Railroad (California) (NSR) and which rebuilt the southern section into a standar ...
extended northward in 1876 from a ferry connection at Sausalito through Valley Ford, Freestone, and Occidental to Monte Rio on the lower Russian River. Service was extended to Duncans Mills in 1877 and Cazadero in 1885. The
standard gauge
A standard-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge of . The standard gauge is also called Stephenson gauge (after George Stephenson), International gauge, UIC gauge, uniform gauge, normal gauge and European gauge in Europe, and SGR in Ea ...
Fulton and Guerneville Railroad left the SF&NP at Fulton to reach
Korbel
Korbel may refer to:
Companies
*Korbel Champagne Cellars
Places
* Korbel, Humboldt County, California
* Korbel, Sonoma County, California
People
*Daniel Korbel, Canadian bridge player.
*Jan O. Korbel (born 1975), German biologist
*Josef Korbel ( ...
in 1876 and Guerneville in 1877. Standard-gauge rails were extended down-river to
Duncan Mills in 1909 after the
Northwestern Pacific Railroad
The Northwestern Pacific Railroad is a regional shortline railroad utilizing a stretch of the 271 mile mainline between Schellville and Windsor with freight and Sonoma–Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART) commuter trains. Formerly, it was a regi ...
merger, and narrow-gauge service was discontinued in 1930. The standard-gauge route became River Road after tracks were removed in 1935.
The unique Sonoma Valley Prismoidal Railway linked the city of Sonoma to bay ferries in 1876 and was replaced in 1879 by the -gauge Sonoma Valley Railroad to a ferry landing near the mouth of the Petaluma River. Service was extended from Sonoma to
Glen Ellen
Glen Ellen is a census-designated place (CDP) in Sonoma Valley, Sonoma County, California, United States. The population was 784 at the 2010 census, down from 992 at the 2000 census. Glen Ellen is the location of Jack London State Historic Par ...
in 1882. The southern end of the line was extended westward in 1888 to a connection with the SF&NP at
Ignacio
Ignacio is a male Spanish language, Spanish and Galician Language, Galician name originating either from the Roman family name Egnatius (disambiguation), Egnatius, meaning born from the fire, of Etruscan origin, or from the Latin name "Ignatius" ...
. This line was converted to standard-gauge in 1890 and remains (in 2018) as Sonoma County's connection to the national rail system at
Schellville.
Southern Pacific
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 ...
subsidiary
Santa Rosa and Carquinez Railroad
The Santa Rosa and Carquinez Railroad was completed in 1888 from a terminal rail yard in Santa Rosa, California, through the Valley of the Moon to Sonoma, and then south through Schellville and east across the northern San Francisco Bay wetlands ...
extended eastward in 1888 to link Santa Rosa with the national rail system. The portion between Sonoma and Santa Rosa was dismantled in the 1940s after interchange shifted to the former Sonoma Valley line.
A SF&NP branch line from Santa Rosa brought rail service to Sebastopol in 1890. The
Petaluma and Santa Rosa Railroad
Petaluma and Santa Rosa Railroad was a 600 volt DC electric interurban railway in Sonoma County, California, United States. It operated between the cities of Petaluma, Sebastopol, Forestville, and Santa Rosa. Company-owned steamboats provided ...
extended
interurban
The Interurban (or radial railway in Europe and Canada) is a type of electric railway, with streetcar-like electric self-propelled rail cars which run within and between cities or towns. They were very prevalent in North America between 1900 a ...
service north from a ferry connection in Petaluma to reach Sebastopol in 1904, Santa Rosa in 1905, and Forestville in 1906. Portions of this line were converted to the
Joe Rodota Trail
The Joe Rodota Trail is a 8.5-mile (13.7 km) paved rail trail in Sonoma County, California that spans from near the intersection of Mill Station Road and Highway 116 in Sebastopol to the area of West 3rd Street and Roberts Avenue in Santa Rosa. T ...
after tracks were removed in the 1980s.
The
Sonoma–Marin Area Rail Transit
Sonoma–Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART) is a rail line and bicycle-pedestrian pathway project in Sonoma and Marin counties of the U.S. state of California. When completed, the entire system will serve a corridor between Cloverdale in north ...
commuter rail
Commuter rail, or suburban rail, is a passenger rail transport service that primarily operates within a metropolitan area, connecting commuters to a central city from adjacent suburbs or commuter towns. Generally commuter rail systems are con ...
line inaugurated passenger service on August 25, 2017,
utilizing the Northwestern Pacific Railroad
right-of-way
Right of way is the legal right, established by grant from a landowner or long usage (i.e. by prescription), to pass along a specific route through property belonging to another.
A similar ''right of access'' also exists on land held by a gov ...
from
Sonoma County Airport station
Sonoma County Airport station is a Sonoma–Marin Area Rail Transit train station in Santa Rosa, east of Charles M. Schulz–Sonoma County Airport. It opened to preview service on July 1, 2017; full commuter service commenced on August 25, 2017. ...
to
Larkspur Landing
Larkspur Landing, also known as Larkspur Ferry Terminal, is the main Golden Gate Ferry terminal in Larkspur, California, in Marin County, north of San Francisco. The terminal is a regional hub receiving heavy service from throughout the North Bay ...
in Marin. The system is planned to extend to
Cloverdale Depot.
Crime
The following table includes the number of incidents reported and the rate per 1,000 persons for each type of offense in the year of 2009.
Cities by population and crime rates
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
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 Sonoma County had a population of 483,878. The racial makeup of Sonoma County was 371,412 (76.8%)
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 ...
, 7,610 (1.6%)
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 ...
, 6,489 (1.3%)
Native American, 18,341 (3.8%)
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 ...
, 1,558 (0.3%)
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 ...
, 56,966 (11.8%) 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 21,502 (4.4%) from two or more races. Hispanic (U.S. Census), Hispanic or Latino (U.S. Census), Latino of any race were 120,430 persons (24.9%).
2000
At the 2000 United States census,
there were 458,614 people, 172,403 households, and 112,406 families in Sonoma County. The population density was 291/sq mi (112/km
2). There were 183,153 housing units at an average density of 116/sq mi (45/km
2).
Of the 172,403 households, 50.3% were married couples living together, 34.8% were non-families, and 10.4% had a female householder with no husband present. 31.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 25.7% were individuals, and 10.0% were 65 years of age or older living alone. The average household size was 2.60, and the average family size was 3.12.
The median age was 38 years. 24.5% were under 18, 8.8% from 18 to 24, 29.2% from 25 to 44, 24.9% from 45 to 64, and 12.6% were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 97 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94 males.
The median household income was $53,076, and the median family income was $61,921. Males had a median income of $42,035, females $32,022. The per capita income for the county was $25,724. About 4.7% of families and 8.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.4% of those under age 18 and 5.7% of those age 65 or over.
Metropolitan Statistical Area
The United States Office of Management and Budget has designated Sonoma County as the Santa Rosa, CA Metropolitan Statistical Area, Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA Metropolitan Statistical Area.
The United States Census Bureau ranked the Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA Metropolitan Statistical Area as the List of Metropolitan Statistical Areas, 105th most populous Metropolitan Statistical Area, metropolitan statistical area of the United States as of July 1, 2012.
The Office of Management and Budget has further designated the Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA Metropolitan Statistical Area as a component of the more extensive San Jose-San Francisco-Oakland, CA Combined Statistical Area,
[ the List of Combined Statistical Areas, 5th most populous combined statistical area and United States primary statistical area, primary statistical area of the United States as of July 1, 2012.]
Government
Sonoma County's governing board and legislative body is the five-member Sonoma County Board of Supervisors. Supervisors are elected by district at the Consolidated Primary Election, and serve for four years. The Supervisors also sit as directors of several local jurisdictions, such as Sonoma Water, and the Agricultural Preservation & Open Space District.
The current supervisors (as of January 2021) are:
* District 1: Susan Gorin,
* District 2: David Rabbitt,
* District 3: Chris Coursey,
* District 4: James Gore, and
* District 5: Lynda Hopkins.
The Supervisors appoint the members of 59 boards, commissions, and committees.
The County Administrator is the county's chief executive officer, reporting to the Board of Supervisors. The administrator manages the county's departments, such as the regional parks department.
On December 15, 2009, the Board announced the appointment of Veronica Ferguson to be the first woman County Administrator. She assumed office on February 1, 2010.
On May 1, 2014, the county launched a public utility named Community Choice Aggregation#Sonoma Clean Power, Sonoma Clean Power. This utility was created under the guidelines of Community Choice Aggregation.
State and federal representation
Sonoma County is split between California's California's 2nd congressional district, 2nd and California's 5th congressional district, 5th congressional districts, represented by and , respectively.
In the California State Assembly, Sonoma County is split between the California's 2nd State Assembly district, 2nd, California's 4th State Assembly district, 4th, and California's 10th State Assembly district, 10th districts, which are held by , , and , respectively. In the California State Senate, the county is split between , and .
Law enforcement
The Sonoma County Sheriff's Department is the law enforcement agency for the unincorporated area of the county. It also contracts to provide the police forces of the City of Sonoma and the Town of Windsor. The department has more than 1,000 employees, including more than 275 Deputy Sheriffs, in four bureaus. More than 300 Correctional Officers and staff work in two jail facilities; Main Area Detention Facility and the North County Detention Facility, with a total daily population of nearly 1,200 inmates. Police shootings in 2007 led to calls for an independent civilian police review board; which was established in 2015.
Economy
Agriculture has long played a critical role in Sonoma County's economy, and it makes up a major component of California's Wine Country. Just over 2% of the population works in agriculture, nearly twice the state average. Similar to other regions of the state, the county's mild climate and fertile soil allow for the cultivation of a wide variety of crops, ornamentals, and for the raising of livestock. Beyond the production of grapes, the county's agricultural heartland is primarily located in the west and southwest, and near the cities of Petaluma
Petaluma (Miwok: ''Péta Lúuma'') is a city in Sonoma County, California, located in the North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. Its population was 59,776 according to the 2020 census.
Petaluma's name comes from the Miwok village nam ...
and Sebastopol
Sevastopol (; uk, Севасто́поль, Sevastópolʹ, ; gkm, Σεβαστούπολις, Sevastoúpolis, ; crh, Акъя́р, Aqyár, ), sometimes written Sebastopol, is the largest city in Crimea, and a major port on the Black Sea ...
. The renowned horticulturalist Luther Burbank, who created hundreds of new varieties of plants and crops, lived and worked in Sonoma County for much of his life.
* Sonoma County wine, Winemaking— Both the growing of the grapes and their vinting—is an important part of the economic and cultural life of Sonoma County, and by far its most valuable industry. First established in 1850 by a Franciscans, Franciscan priest named Fr. Jose Altimira of the Mission San Francisco Solano
Mission San Francisco Solano was the 21st, last, and northernmost mission in Alta California. It was named for Saint Francis Solanus. It was the only mission built in Alta California after Mexico gained independence from Spain. The difficulty of ...
, the production of wine has perhaps become Sonoma County's most well known feature. In 2004, growers harvested s) of wine grapes worth US$310 million. In 2006 the Sonoma County grape harvest amounted to over 185,000 tons, exceeding Napa County's harvest by more than 30 percent. About 80 percent of non-pasture agricultural land in the county is for growing wine grapes— in 2014 of vineyards, with over 1100 growers. In 2019 Sonoma County's wine industry had produced over $654,000,000 worth of wine grapes. The most common varieties planted are Chardonnay, Sauvignon blanc, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Pinot noir, though the area is also known for its Merlot and Zinfandel. Sonoma County is home to more than 425 wineries with sixteen distinct and two shared American Viticultural Area
An American Viticultural Area (AVA) is a designated wine grape-growing region in the United States, providing an official appellation for the mutual benefit of winery, wineries and consumers. Winemakers frequently want their consumers to know abo ...
s, including the Sonoma Valley AVA, Russian River Valley AVA, Alexander Valley AVA, Bennett Valley AVA and Dry Creek (Sonoma County, California), Dry Creek Valley AVA, the last of which is known for the production of high-quality Zinfandels.
* Dairy farming- Particularly prominent in the western reaches of the county and in the Petaluma Gap The Petaluma Gap is a geographical region in Sonoma County, California which extends in a band from the Pacific Ocean to San Pablo Bay. It is an area of low land 22 to 31 miles (35 to 50 kilometers) wide in the coast ranges of the northern San Fran ...
, dairy farming and milk production is another major agricultural sector in Sonoma. Worth nearly $140,000,000 in 2019, Sonoma County is home to nearly 65 registered dairies, including the locally prominent Clover Sonoma and recently the Straus Family Creamery. In addition to milk, the county is home to producers of cheese and yogurt. It was reported that in 2018, just over half of all of the county's dairies were certified as organic.
*Poultry farming and other livestock- The raising of livestock and poultry can be found throughout the county, but is particularly prominent near the city of Petaluma
Petaluma (Miwok: ''Péta Lúuma'') is a city in Sonoma County, California, located in the North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. Its population was 59,776 according to the 2020 census.
Petaluma's name comes from the Miwok village nam ...
. The raising of chickens (for eggs and as broilers), cattle, sheep, and to a lesser extent hogs comprised a $250,000,000 industry in 2019.
* Fishing industry, Fishing and Crab fisheries, Crabbing- Primarily concentrated on Bodega Bay
Bodega Bay ( es, Bahía Bodega) is a shallow, rocky inlet of the Pacific Ocean on the coast of northern California in the United States. It is approximately across and is located approximately northwest of San Francisco and west of Santa Ros ...
, Sonoma County's fishing industry was worth just over $9,300,000 in 2019. Although numerous species are fished and farmed, the most prominent include Dungeness crab and Chinook salmon
The Chinook salmon (''Oncorhynchus tshawytscha'') is the largest and most valuable species of Pacific salmon in North America, as well as the largest in the genus ''Oncorhynchus''. Its common name is derived from the Chinookan peoples. Other ve ...
.
* Apples- Behind grapes, apples are the second most common crop grown in Sonoma County, particularly near the city of Sebastopol
Sevastopol (; uk, Севасто́поль, Sevastópolʹ, ; gkm, Σεβαστούπολις, Sevastoúpolis, ; crh, Акъя́р, Aqyár, ), sometimes written Sebastopol, is the largest city in Crimea, and a major port on the Black Sea ...
, and is an industry worth nearly $2,000,000. Although several varieties are grown, the region is most well known for its renowned Gravenstein apples.
* Other crops- In addition to grapes and apples, Sonoma County is also home to farms producing olives, hay, rye, oats, and various vegetables (particularly tomatoes, carrots, green beans, and celery). There are also numerous nurseries producing flowers and other decorative Ornamental plant, ornamentals.
* Wood industry, Timber Industry- Although not as prominent as it once was, Sonoma County does retain a timber industry, particularly along its western and northwestern coastlines. The most common trees that are logged are Sequoia sempervirens, Redwoods, as well as various Pines and Oaks.
Similar to other Bay Area communities, Sonoma County is also home to several prominent players in the Tech Industry, such as Keysight (formerly a part of Agilent Technologies) in Santa Rosa. Although primarily known for wine, Sonoma County is home to several notable brewing and beverage companies including: Bear Republic Brewing Company, Guayakí (company), Guayakí, Lagunitas Brewing Company, and the Russian River Brewing Company. The clothing manufacturer Marmot (company), Marmot is based in Rohnert Park
Rohnert Park is a city in Sonoma County, California, United States, located approximately north of San Francisco. The population at the 2020 United States Census was 44,390. It is an early planned city and is the sister city of Hashimoto in ...
.
Politics
For most of the 20th century, Sonoma County was a Republican Party (United States), Republican stronghold in presidential elections. From 1880 until 1988, the only Democrats to carry Sonoma were Winfield Scott Hancock in 1880, Grover Cleveland in 1888 and 1892, Woodrow Wilson in 1912, Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1932 and 1936, and Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964.[Menendez, Albert J.; ''The Geography of Presidential Elections in the United States, 1868–2004'', pp. 152–155 ] Like the rest of the Bay Area, it has since become a Democratic stronghold.
The last Republican to win a majority in the county was Ronald Reagan in United States presidential election in California, 1984, 1984, and the last Republican to represent a significant part of the county in Congress was Representative Donald H. Clausen, who left office in January 1983.
On November 4, 2008, Sonoma County voted 66.4% against Proposition 8 which amended the California Constitution to ban same-sex marriages.
According to the California Secretary of State, as of February 2019, there are 277,665 registered voters in Sonoma County. Of those, 143,054 (51.5%) are registered Democratic, 49,386 (17.8%) are registered Republican, and 70,244 (25.3%) declined to state a political party. Every city, town, and the unincorporated areas of Sonoma County have more registered Democrats than Republicans.
Voter registration statistics
Cities by population and voter registration
Education
Higher education
*Empire College, Santa Rosa
*Golden Gate University (Rohnert Park satellite of Walnut Creek, California, Walnut Creek Campus)
*Santa Rosa Junior College
*Sonoma State University, Rohnert Park
*University of San Francisco (Santa Rosa Campus)
K-12 schools
The educational system of Sonoma County is similar to that of other counties in California, with a large number of independent school districts.
School districts include:
Unified:
* Calistoga Joint Unified School District
* Cloverdale Unified School District
* Cotati-Rohnert Park Unified School District
* Geyserville Unified School District
* Healdsburg Unified School District - Includes areas zoned for PK-12 and areas zoned only for 7-12
* Shoreline Unified School District
* Sonoma Valley Unified School District
* Windsor Unified School District
Secondary:
* Petaluma Joint Union High School District
* Point Arena Joint Union High School District
* Santa Rosa City School District
* West Sonoma County Union High School District
Elementary:
* Alexander Valley Union School District
* Bellevue Union School District
* Bennett Valley Union Elementary School District
* Cinnabar Elementary School District
* Dunham Elementary School District
* Forestville Union Elementary School District
* Fort Ross Elementary School District
* Gravenstein Union Elementary School District
* Guerneville Elementary School District
* Harmony Union School District
* Horicon Elementary School District
* Kashia Elementary School District
* Kenwood Elementary School District
* Laguna Joint Elementary School District
* Liberty Elementary School District (California), Liberty Elementary School District
* Mark West Union Elementary School District
* Monte Rio Union Elementary School District
* Montgomery Elementary School District
* Oak Grove Union Elementary School District
* Old Adobe Union Elementary School District
* Petaluma City Elementary School District
* Piner-Olivet Union Elementary School District
* Rincon Valley Union Elementary School District
* Roseland Public Schools
* Santa Rosa Elementary School District
* Sebastopol Union Elementary School District
* Twin Hills Union Elementary School District
* Two Rock Union Elementary School District
* Waugh Elementary School District
* West Side Union Elementary School District
* Wilmar Union Elementary School District
* Wright Elementary School District
Library system
The Sonoma County Library system offers a central library in downtown Santa Rosa plus 10 branch libraries and two rural stations. More than half of Sonoma County's residents have library cards and borrow more than 2.5 million items per year. The library's website and catalog]receive over 200,000 visits annually. Staff answer nearly half a million reference questions annually for individuals, businesses and government agencies. During a typical school year over 750 classes, more than half the county total, either visit a library or are visited by a children's librarian. The library operates an adult literacy program, and computer terminals are made available for free Internet access.
Museums
* The Pacific Coast Air Museum is on the southeast corner of the Charles M. Schulz Sonoma County Airport, next to the airplane hangar used in the 1963 Hollywood movie ''It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World''.
* Charles M. Schulz Museum, Santa Rosa
* Sonoma County Museum, Santa Rosa
* Luther Burbank Home and Gardens, Santa Rosa
* Healdsburg Museum & Historical Society, Healdsburg
* Hand Fan Museum of Healdsburg, Healdsburg
* Petaluma Historical Library and Museum, Petaluma
* Petaluma Wildlife & Natural Science Museum, Petaluma
* Military Antiques & Museum, Petaluma
* Sonoma Valley Museum of Art, Sonoma
* Depot Park Museum, Sonoma
* West County Museum, Sebastopol
* Cloverdale History Museum (aka The Gould-Shaw House Museum), Cloverdale
* California Indian Museum and Cultural Center, Santa Rosa
* Cotati Museum, Cotati
Places of interest
*Mount Hood (California), Hood Mountain Sonoma County Regional Parks Department, Regional Park
*Safari West
* Sonoma Raceway
* Sonoma Coast State Beach, including Arched Rock Beach, Gleason Beach and Goat Rock Beach.
*Spring Lake Regional Park
*Sugarloaf Ridge State Park
* Bodega Bay
Bodega Bay ( es, Bahía Bodega) is a shallow, rocky inlet of the Pacific Ocean on the coast of northern California in the United States. It is approximately across and is located approximately northwest of San Francisco and west of Santa Ros ...
*Doran Regional Park
* Fort Ross, former Russian fur trade outpost
* Luther Burbank Center for the Arts
* Luther Burbank Home and Gardens
* Luther Burbank Luther Burbank's Gold Ridge Experiment Farm, Gold Ridge Experiment Farm
* Quarryhill Botanic Garden
* Lake Sonoma
Lake Sonoma is a reservoir west of Cloverdale in northern Sonoma County, California, created by the construction of Warm Springs Dam. Access from U.S. Route 101 is by way of Canyon Road (from the south) from Geyserville, or Dutcher Creek Road (fr ...
* Tolay Lake, Tolay Lake Regional Park
* Jack London State Historic Park
Jack London State Historic Park, also known as Jack London Home and Ranch, is a California State Historic Park near Glen Ellen, California, United States, situated on the eastern slope of Sonoma Mountain. It includes the ruins of a house burned ...
, author Jack London's ''Beauty Ranch'', in Glen Ellen
Glen Ellen is a census-designated place (CDP) in Sonoma Valley, Sonoma County, California, United States. The population was 784 at the 2010 census, down from 992 at the 2000 census. Glen Ellen is the location of Jack London State Historic Par ...
* Rancho Petaluma Adobe
* Mission San Francisco Solano
Mission San Francisco Solano was the 21st, last, and northernmost mission in Alta California. It was named for Saint Francis Solanus. It was the only mission built in Alta California after Mexico gained independence from Spain. The difficulty of ...
, across from Sonoma Plaza
* Armstrong Redwoods State Reserve
* Stillwater Cove
* Sonoma TrainTown Railroad
Populated places
Incorporated
Sonoma County has nine incorporated municipalities.
Unincorporated
The county also includes the following populated places which are not incorporated:
Census-designated places
*Bloomfield, California, Bloomfield
*Bodega, California, Bodega
*Bodega Bay, California, Bodega Bay
*Boyes Hot Springs, California, Boyes Hot Springs
*Carmet, California, Carmet
*Cazadero, California, Cazadero
*El Verano, California, El Verano
*Eldridge, California, Eldridge
*Fetters Hot Springs-Agua Caliente, California, Fetters Hot Springs-Agua Caliente
*Forestville, California, Forestville
*Fulton, California, Fulton
*Geyserville, California, Geyserville
*Glen Ellen
Glen Ellen is a census-designated place (CDP) in Sonoma Valley, Sonoma County, California, United States. The population was 784 at the 2010 census, down from 992 at the 2000 census. Glen Ellen is the location of Jack London State Historic Par ...
*Graton, California, Graton
*Guerneville
Guerneville ( , ) is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in the Russian River Valley of Sonoma County, California, United States. The town is historically known for the logging community, formed in the late 1800s. Guerneville ...
* Jenner
*Kenwood, California, Kenwood
*Larkfield-Wikiup, California, Larkfield-Wikiup
*Monte Rio, California, Monte Rio
*Occidental, California, Occidental
*Penngrove, California, Penngrove
*Roseland, California, Roseland
*Salmon Creek, California, Salmon Creek
*Sea Ranch, California, Sea Ranch
*Sereno del Mar, California, Sereno del Mar
*Sonoma State University, California (CDP), Sonoma State University
*Temelec, California, Temelec
*Timber Cove, California, Timber Cove
*Valley Ford, California, Valley Ford
Other unincorporated places
*Annapolis, California, Annapolis
*Asti, California, Asti
*Bodega Harbor, California, Bodega Harbor
*Bridgehaven, California, Bridgehaven
*Buena Vista, Sonoma County, California, Buena Vista
*Cadwell, California, Cadwell
*Camp Meeker, California, Camp Meeker
*Carneros
*Cozzens Corners, California, Cozzens Corners
*Cunningham, California, Cunningham
*Diamond A Ranch, California, Diamond A Ranch
*Duncans Mills, California, Duncans Mills
*El Bonita, California, El Bonita
*Forest Hills, California, Forest Hills
*Freestone, California, Freestone
*The Geysers
*Guernewood Park, California, Guernewood Park
*Hacienda, Sonoma County, California, Hacienda
*Hessel, California, Hessel
*Hilton, California, Hilton
*Hollydale, California, Hollydale
*Jimtown, California, Jimtown
*Kellogg, California, Kellogg
*Knowles Corner, California, Knowles Corner
*Korbel, Sonoma County, California, Korbel
*Lakeville, California, Lakeville
*Lytton, California, Lytton
*Mark West, California, Mark West
*Mark West Springs
*Mercuryville, California, Mercuryville
*Mesa Grande, California, Mesa Grande
*Mirabel Heights, California, Mirabel Heights
*Mirabel Park, California, Mirabel Park
*Mission Highlands, California, Mission Highlands
*Monte Cristo, California, Monte Cristo
*Montesano, California, Montesano
*Noel Heights, California, Noel Heights
*Northwood, California, Northwood
*Oakmont, California, Oakmont
*Odd Fellows Park, California, Odd Fellows Park
*Rancho Abajo, Sonoma County, California, Rancho Abajo
*Rio Dell, Sonoma County, California, Rio Dell
*Rio Nido, California, Rio Nido
*Rolands, California, Rolands
*Russian River Terrace, California, Russian River Terrace
* Schellville
*Soda Springs, Sonoma County, California, Soda Springs
*Stewarts Point, California, Stewarts Point
*Summerhome Park, California, Summerhome Park
*Two Rock, California, Two Rock
*Vacation Beach, California, Vacation Beach
*Venado, California, Venado
*Villa Grande, California, Villa Grande
*Vineburg, California, Vineburg
Former townships
At the time of its formation, the county comprised four civil townships. It was restructured several times, and by 1880 was made up of 14 townships:
* Analy
* Bodega
* Cloverdale
* Knight's Valley
* Mendocino
* Ocean
* Petaluma
* Redwood
* Russian River
* Salt Point
* Santa Rosa
* Sonoma
* Vallejo
* Washington
Population ranking
The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2010 United States census, 2010 census of Sonoma County.
† ''county seat''
In popular culture
Film
Due to the varied scenery in Sonoma County and proximity to the city of San Francisco, a large number of movies have been filmed using venues within the county. Some of the earliest U.S. filmmaking occurred in Sonoma County, including ''Salomy Jane'' (1914) and one of Broncho Billy Anderson's 1915 Westerns.
Other films include the 1947 film ''The Farmer's Daughter (1947 film), The Farmer's Daughter'' (starring Joseph Cotten and Loretta Young) as well as two Alfred Hitchcock films, ''Shadow of a Doubt'' of 1943, filmed and set in Santa Rosa, and ''The Birds (film), The Birds'' of 1963, filmed largely in Bodega Bay and Bodega. ''American Graffiti'' was filmed largely in Petaluma.
Other films produced partially in Sonoma County include:
Other
''Bliss (image), Bliss'', the default computer wallpaper of Microsoft's Windows XP operating system, is a photograph of a green hill and blue sky with clouds in Sonoma County. Taken in 1996 by Charles O'Rear, it is the most viewed photo in the world.
See also
* List of Sonoma County Regional Parks facilities
* National Register of Historic Places listings in Sonoma County, California
* Sonoma County Historic Landmarks and Districts
* Sonoma County Water Agency
Sonoma Water, formerly known as the Sonoma County Water Agency, maintains a water transmission system that provides naturally filtered Russian River water to more than 600,000 residents in portions of Sonoma County, California and Marin County, C ...
* Sonoma Mountain Zen Center
Notes
References
Further reading
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Volume one
Volume two
External links
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Sonoma.com
Sonoma Economic Development Board
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Parks and Recreation in Sonoma County
Sonoma County Historical Society
North Bay Regional Collection
a
Sonoma State University Library
{{Authority control
Sonoma County, California,
1850 establishments in California
Populated places established in 1850
California wine
Counties in the San Francisco Bay Area
California counties