Sunol ( es, Suñol) is an

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

and

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counterparts of incorporated places, such ...

in Alameda County,

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

. Located in the

Sunol Valley Sunol Valley ( es, Valle de Suñol) is located in Alameda County, California, United States. The small town of Sunol lies in the valley. It is largely rural, but is in proximity to the highly populated Bay Area suburbs of Fremont, Pleasanton, a ...

of the East Bay, the population was 913 at the 2010 census. It is best known as the location of the

Sunol Water Temple The Sunol Water Temple is located at 505 Paloma Way in Sunol, California. Designed by Willis Polk, the 59 foot high classical pavilion is made up of twelve concrete Corinthian order, Corinthian columns and a concrete ring girder that supports the ...

and for its historic tourist railroad system, the Niles Canyon Railway.

Etymology

Sunol, formerly Sunolglen, is named for Don

Antonio Suñol Don Antonio María Suñol was a Spanish-born Californio businessman, ranchero, and politician. Suñol served two terms as Alcalde of San José (mayor) and was one of the largest landowners in the Bay Area. He is the namesake of the town of Suno ...

. His adobe ranch house from the 1840s was located where the San Francisco water system's works are now located.

History

The first Sunol post office opened in 1871 and the name was changed to Sunolglen the same year. The name reverted to Sunol in 1920. The town's name is in honor of Antonio Suñol, first postmaster in nearby San Jose and part owner of the historical Rancho Valle de San Jose land grant that once contained the site of the town.

Geography

Sunol is located adjacent to two railroads and lies near the crossroads of Interstate 680 and State Route 84. These connect Sunol with Fremont to the south and west, Pleasanton to the north, and Livermore to the northeast. Sunol sits north of the center of San Jose and southeast of

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 ...

. The town lies near

Alameda Creek , name_etymology = Spanish , image = Bridgeatnilesrivercalifornia.JPG , image_caption = Alameda Creek at Niles, Fremont , map = , map_size = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = US ...

at the northwest edge of the

. The

San Antonio Reservoir San Antonio Reservoir is located in Alameda County, California, about three miles east-southeast of Sunol. It was built in 1964 by the City and County of San Francisco. Formed by the James H. Turner Dam across San Antonio Creek not far above whe ...

lies to Sunol's east, and the

Calaveras Reservoir Calaveras Reservoir is located primarily in Santa Clara County, California, with a small portion and its dam in Alameda County, California. In Spanish, Calaveras means "skulls". The reservoir is fed mainly by Arroyo Hondo and Calaveras Cree ...

lies south of the town. North of the town is Kilkare Woods, accessible only through Sunol. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

, the Sunol CDP has a total area of , of which 99.95% is land and 0.05% is water.

Demographics

2010 Census data

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 Sunol had a population of 913. The population density was . The racial makeup of Sunol was 780 (85.4%)

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 ...

, 1 (0.1%)

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 (0.7%) Native American, 48 (5.3%)

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 ...

, 7 (0.8%)

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 ...

, 19 (2.1%) from other races, and 52 (5.7%) from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...

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

of any race were 91 persons (10.0%). The Census reported that 100% of the population lived in households. There were 362 households, out of which 76 (21.0%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 228 (63.0%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 20 (5.5%) had a female householder with no husband present, 9 (2.5%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 16 (4.4%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 5 (1.4%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 81 households (22.4%) were made up of individuals, and 24 (6.6%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.52. There were 257

families Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Ideall ...

(71.0% of all households); the average family size was 2.90. The population was spread out, with 148 people (16.2%) under the age of 18, 74 people (8.1%) aged 18 to 24, 164 people (18.0%) aged 25 to 44, 377 people (41.3%) aged 45 to 64, and 150 people (16.4%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 49.3 years. For every 100 females, there were 101.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100.8 males. There were 394 housing units at an average density of 14.2 per square mile (5.5/km), of which 362 were occupied, of which 272 (75.1%) were owner-occupied, and 90 (24.9%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.1%; the rental vacancy rate was 4.1%. 708 people (77.5% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 205 people (22.5%) lived in rental housing units.

2000 Census data

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...

of 2000, there were 1,332 people, 483 households, and 368 families residing in the CDP. The population density was . There were 503 housing units at an average density of 15.3 per square mile (5.9/km). The racial makeup of the CDP was 84.46%

, 0.98% Native American, 4.80%

, 0.23%

, 4.13% from other races, and 5.41% from two or more races. 8.71% of the population were

of any race. There were 483 households, out of which 32.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 66.3% were married couples living together, 5.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.8% were non-families. 17.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 4.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.76 and the average family size was 3.12. In the CDP, the population was 22.7% under the age of 18, 8.2% from 18 to 24, 25.5% from 25 to 44, 33.0% from 45 to 64, and 10.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females, there were 106.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 104.4 males. The median income for a household in the CDP was $88,353, and the median income for a family was $96,121. Males had a median income of $77,666 versus $37,102 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the CDP was $45,773. None of the families and 1.4% of the population were living below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...

, including no under eighteens and none of those over 64.

Area attractions

*The

is an unusual Roman-inspired structure that marks the confluence of three sources of water that flow into the Sunol Valley. *Elliston Vineyards. Offers wine tasting on the weekends, and is a popular wedding destination. * Nella Terra Cellars. A vineyard and wedding destination with wine tastings, open once a month or by appointment. *The Niles Canyon Railway Sunol Depot was built in 1884, and is the last surviving example of a

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 ...

standard design known as a "One-Story Combination Depot #7." The building has been restored and is operated by the

Pacific Locomotive Association The Pacific Locomotive Association, Inc. (PLA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation of the physical aspects and atmosphere of Pacific Coast railroading during the period from 1910 to 1960. The Pacific Locomotive Association ...

. *Niles Canyon Road runs westward from Sunol and is a scenic drive to Fremont. * A statue of

Bosco Bosco may refer to: People Given name Bosco * Bosco (drag queen) (born 1993), Drag Queen * Bosco Lin Chi-nan (born 1943), Taiwanese bishop * Bosco Frontán (born 1984), Uruguayan soccer player * Bosco Hogan (born 1949), Irish actor * Bosco Lo ...

, the dog elected mayor, sits in front of the Post Office. Bosco achieved a degree of international notoriety in 1990 when the Chinese newspaper ''

People's Daily The ''People's Daily'' () is the official newspaper of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The newspaper provides direct information on the policies and viewpoints of the CCP. In addition to its main Chinese-language ...

'' reported on his tenure as an alleged example of the failings of the American electoral process. *In 2007, songwriter

Will Stratton Will Stratton (born April 10, 1987) is an American singer-songwriter and composer. He released his first album during the summer after graduating from high school and has gone on to release a total of seven albums. Early life Stratton was born ...

released a song named after the town on his first album. * Sunol Regional Wilderness

School district

The majority of Sunol is in the

Sunol Glen Unified School District Sunol may refer to: * Sunol, California * Sunol-Midtown, California * Sunol, Nebraska * Sunol Regional Wilderness The Sunol Regional Wilderness is a regional park in Alameda County, the eastern San Francisco Bay Area, Northern California. It i ...

Castro Valley Unified School District The Castro Valley Unified School District (CVUSD) is located in Castro Valley, California, United States. It is a public preschool through adult school district. Overall, the district contains almost 9,000 students. It was created in 1965. The C ...

and

Pleasanton Unified School District The Pleasanton Unified School District (PUSD) is a public primary and secondary education school district located in Pleasanton, California, United States, a suburban town east of San Francisco. It consists of nine elementary schools, three midd ...

have small portions of Sunol. The Sunol Glen School, a K–8 public school, is the sole school of Sunol Glen USD. High school students are served by Foothill High School in nearby Pleasanton.

References

External links

{{authority control Census-designated places in Alameda County, California Populated places established in 1871 1871 establishments in California Census-designated places in California