Stirling City is a
census-designated place
A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only.
CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the count ...
in
Butte County,
California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
, located on Paradise Ridge in the western foothills of the
Sierra Nevada. Contrary to its name, Stirling City is not a city. Its
ZIP Code is 95978 and
area code 530
Area code 530 is a California telephone area code in northeastern and Northern California.
Regions within it include the Sacramento Valley (including some outer suburbs of Sacramento), Shasta Cascade, and the northern Sierra Nevada. Area code 53 ...
. It lies at an elevation of 3570 feet (1088 m). Stirling City had a population of 295 at the 2010 census.
Stirling City is located at , around 32 miles (45 km) northeast of
Chico, California
Chico ( ; Spanish for "little") is the most populous city in Butte County, California. Located in the Sacramento Valley region of Northern California, the city had a population of 101,475 in the 2020 census, reflecting an increase from 86,18 ...
. It is built around a loop (which terminates a winding spur line) of the
Southern Pacific Railroad, built to collect lumber from the
Lassen National Forest
Lassen National Forest is a United States national forest of 1,700 square miles (4,300 km2) in northeastern California. It is named after pioneer Peter Lassen, who mined, ranched and promoted the area to emigrant parties in the 1850s.
Wildl ...
.
History
It was founded in 1903 by the
Diamond Match Company
The Diamond Match Company has its roots in several nineteenth century companies. In the early 1850s, Edward Tatnall of Wilmington, Delaware was given an English recipe for making matches by a business acquaintance, William R. Smith. In 1853, Tatn ...
of
Barberton, Ohio
Barberton is a city in Summit County, Ohio, United States. The population was 26,550 at the 2010 census. Lying directly southwest of Akron, it is a suburb of the Akron metropolitan area.
History
Barberton was founded in 1891 by industrialist O ...
, as a center for processing cut lumber from the surrounding forests. Diamond Match official Fred Clough named the city, taking the name from the boiler used at Diamond's Baberton plant, made by the Stirling Boiler Company.
The sawmill closed in the early 1970s. The land surrounding Stirling City is still harvested for timber, and the cleared area is farmed for cattle, fruit, and nuts.
A post office opened in 1903.
[
]
Demographics
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 servi ...
reported that Stirling City had a population of 295. The population density was . The racial makeup of Stirling City was 264 (89.5%) 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 o ...
, 1 (0.3%) 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 ...
, 11 (3.7%) Native American, 0 (0.0%) Asian
Asian may refer to:
* Items from or related to the continent of Asia:
** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia
** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia
** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...
, 0 (0.0%) Pacific Islander
Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...
, 1 (0.3%) 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 18 (6.1%) from two or more races. Hispanic
The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad.
The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties forme ...
or Latino
Latino or Latinos most often refers to:
* Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America
* Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States
* The people or cultures of Latin America;
** Latin A ...
of any race were 17 persons (5.8%).
The Census reported that 295 people (100% of the population) lived in households, 0 (0%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 0 (0%) were institutionalized.
There were 117 households, out of which 34 (29.1%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 49 (41.9%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 14 (12.0%) had a female householder with no husband present, 12 (10.3%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 11 (9.4%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 0 (0%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 34 households (29.1%) were made up of individuals, and 8 (6.8%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.52. There were 75 families
Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Ideal ...
(64.1% of all households); the average family size was 3.07.
The population was spread out, with 76 people (25.8%) under the age of 18, 19 people (6.4%) aged 18 to 24, 62 people (21.0%) aged 25 to 44, 94 people (31.9%) aged 45 to 64, and 44 people (14.9%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41.1 years. For every 100 females, there were 107.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 104.7 males.
There were 151 housing units at an average density of , of which 117 were occupied, of which 71 (60.7%) were owner-occupied, and 46 (39.3%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.7%; the rental vacancy rate was 6.1%. 164 people (55.6% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 131 people (44.4%) lived in rental housing units.
Climate
Stirling City is categorized as being within the 8a USDA hardiness zone
A hardiness zone is a geographic area defined as having a certain average annual minimum temperature, a factor relevant to the survival of many plants. In some systems other statistics are included in the calculations. The original and most wide ...
, meaning temperatures can get as low as 10 to 15 °F.
On average, there are 4 days each year where the temperature goes above 100 F.[ Retrieved on June 30, 2013.] There are also 2 days each year where the temperature drops below 20 F.
In popular culture
* Stirling City, CA, is depicted as a location in early stories of the Slender Man
Slender Man (also spelled Slenderman) is a fictional supernatural character that originated as a creepypasta Internet meme created by Something Awful forum user Eric Knudsen (also known as "Victor Surge") in 2009. He is depicted as a thin, unna ...
internet mythology
See also
References
External links
Stirling City community website
Stirling City Historical Society website
{{authority control
Census-designated places in Butte County, California
Populated places in the Sierra Nevada (United States)
Populated places established in 1903
1903 establishments in California
Census-designated places in California