Susanville (formerly known as Rooptown) is a town in and the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...

of Lassen 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 ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. Susanville is located on the Susan River in the southern part of the county, at an elevation of . Its population is 16,728 as of the 2020 census, down from 17,947 from the 2010 census. Susanville, a former logging and mining town, is the site of two state prisons: the California Correctional Center, a minimum-medium security facility, which opened in 1963; and the High Desert State Prison, California (not to be confused with High Desert State Prison, Nevada), which opened in 1995. The Federal Correctional Institution, Herlong is nearby, having opened in 2001. The prisons and their effects on the community, including the addition of local jobs, were explored in the documentary '' Prison Town, USA'' (2007), aired on PBS. Nearly half the adult population of Susanville works at the three prisons in the area, where 6,000 people are incarcerated.Taylor, Robert. "'Prison Town' a view from outside"
''Contra Costa Times'', 28 July 2007; hosted at ''The Mercury News''.

Etymology

It was originally known as Rooptown, named for Isaac Roop, a pioneer of the Honey Lake District. Roop later renamed the town Susanville in honor of his daughter in 1857.Capace, Nancy (1999). ''Encyclopedia of California''. North American Book Dist LLC. Pages 447-48. .

History

The Susanville US post office was established in 1860. Susanville was incorporated in 1900. Formerly the center of farming, mining and the lumber industry, Susanville suffered from the loss of jobs as these industries changed or declined in the 20th century. Since the late 20th century, the only area of growth in the economy has been associated with the construction and operation of two state prisons in the city and one federal prison in the area. In 2007, half of the adult population of Susanville worked in the prisons: the California Correctional Center, a minimum-medium security facility, which opened in 1963; the High Desert State Prison, California (not to be confused with High Desert State Prison, Nevada), which opened in 1995; and the Federal Correctional Institution, Herlong, which opened in 2007.

Geography

Susanville is located at the head of Honey Lake Valley, east of Lassen Peak, The elevation is approximately above sea level. It is considered a gateway city to

Reno Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada-California border, about north from Lake Tahoe, known as "The Biggest Little City in the World". Known for its casino and tourism industry, Reno is the c ...

U.S. Route 395 U.S. Route 395 (US 395) is a U.S. Route in the western United States. The southern terminus of the route is in the Mojave Desert at Interstate 15 near Hesperia. The northern terminus is at the Canada–US border near Laurier, where the road be ...

. 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 city has a total area of 8.03 square miles (20.8 km), of which 7.95 square miles (20.58 km) or 98.93% is land and 0.09 square miles (0.22 km) or 1.07% is water. Eagle Lake is located north of the town.

Geology

Susanville is underlain by

igneous rock Igneous rock (derived from the Latin word ''ignis'' meaning fire), or magmatic rock, is one of the three main The three types of rocks, rock types, the others being Sedimentary rock, sedimentary and metamorphic rock, metamorphic. Igneous rock ...

, which provides the parent material for its well-drained brown stony to gravelly sandy loams or loams. On the western outskirts under forest cover, the soils are often reddish brown. The most common soil series in Susanville's urban area is Springmeyer gravelly fine sandy loam.

Climate

Susanville has an

alpine climate Alpine climate is the typical weather (climate) for elevations above the tree line, where trees fail to grow due to cold. This climate is also referred to as a mountain climate or highland climate. Definition There are multiple definitions of ...

( Köppen ''Dsb'') with cool winters and hot, mostly dry summers, except for occasional afternoon thunderstorms. Records have been kept at several stations since 1893, including Susanville Airport and Susanville 2 SW, southwest of the town center, along with two other stations with shorter records. Average January temperatures are a high of and a low of .Station: Susanville 2 SW, CA
Climatography of the United States No. 20 1971-2000, U.S. Department of Commerce, National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration, Golden Gate Weather Services, accessed 22 April 2013. Average July temperatures are a high of and a low of . Temperatures reach or higher on an average of 36.9 days annually, and drop to or lower on an average of 164.6 days annually; freezing temperatures have been recorded in every month of the year and summer nighttime temperatures are usually cool, but extreme cold is rare and temperatures under are reached only on 2.9 days per winter. The highest recorded temperature in Susanville was in July 1931, and the lowest recorded temperature was on February 1, 1956.Monthly Averages for Susanville, CA (96130)
Weather.com, accessed 22 April 2013 Annual precipitation averaged from 1971 to 2000, with an average of 66 days with measurable precipitation. Susanville Airport has averaged a somewhat higher between 1893 and 2012. At the airport the wettest calendar year has been 1907 with and the driest 1976 with , though the wettest "rain year" was from July 1937 to June 1938 with as against between July 1906 and June 1907 and in the driest rain year from July 1975 to June 1976. The most precipitation in one month was in March 1907, and the most in 24 hours on January 31, 1897. Annual snowfall averages at Susanville 2 SW and at the airport, though the median at Susanville 2 SW is only .Susanville, California (048701) Period of Record Monthly Climate Summary
General Climate Summary Tables: Precipitation, Western Regional Climate Center, Desert Research Institute, accessed 22 April 2013. The most snowfall in one year was in 1937, with the most in one month being in January 1895.

Demographics

2010

At the 2010 census Susanville had a population of 17,947. The population density was . The racial makeup of Susanville was 11,269 (62.8%) White, 2,249 (12.5%) African American, 212 (1.2%) Native American, 198 (1.1%) Asian, 111 (0.6%) Pacific Islander, 2,928 (16.3%) from other races, and 580 (3.2%) from two or more races. There were 4,259 people (23.7%) of Hispanic or Latino ancestry. The census reported that 9,439 people (52.6% of the population) lived in households, 108 (0.6%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 8,400 (46.8%) were institutionalized. There were 3,833 households, 1,357 (35.4%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 1,645 (42.9%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 499 (13.0%) had a female householder with no husband present, 233 (6.1%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 327 (8.5%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 16 (0.4%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 1,161 households (30.3%) were one person and 405 (10.6%) had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.46. There were 2,377 families (62.0% of households); the average family size was 3.05. The age distribution was 2,559 people (14.3%) under the age of 18, 2,547 people (14.2%) aged 18 to 24, 7,633 people (42.5%) aged 25 to 44, 4,024 people (22.4%) aged 45 to 64, and 1,184 people (6.6%) who were 65 or older. The median age was 33.6 years. For every 100 females, there were 273.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 327.3 males.

2000

As of the

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

of 2000, there were 13,541 people in 3,516 households, including 2,250 families, in the city. The population density was . There were 3,882 housing units at an average density of . The

racial makeup A race is a categorization of humans based on shared physical or social qualities into groups generally viewed as distinct within a given society. The term came into common usage during the 1500s, when it was used to refer to groups of variou ...

of the city was 76.0% White, 12.5% African American, 3.2% Native American, 1.1% Asian, 0.9% Pacific Islander, 3.5% from other races, and 2.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 15.6% of the population. Of the 3,516 households 37.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.4% were married couples living together, 13.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.0% were non-families. 29.9% of households were one person and 10.7% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 3.10. The age distribution was 20.0% under the age of 18, 13.6% from 18 to 24, 41.5% from 25 to 44, 17.1% from 45 to 64, and 7.7% 65 or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females, there were 198.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 231.6 males. The

median income The median income is the income amount that divides a population into two equal groups, half having an income above that amount, and half having an income below that amount. It may differ from the mean (or average) income. Both of these are ways of ...

for a household in the city was $35,675, and the median family income was $45,216. Males had a median income of $29,973 versus $27,044 for females. The per capita income for the city was $13,238. About 11.0% of families and 14.3% of the population were below the

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

, including 14.5% of those under age 18 and 9.1% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Local government

The current city council members are:

List of mayors

This is a list of Susanville mayors by year. * 1975 Jim Chapman * 2016 Kathie Garnier * 2018 Kevin Stafford * 2020 Mendy Schuster

State and federal representation

In the

California State Legislature The California State Legislature is a bicameral state legislature consisting of a lower house, the California State Assembly, with 80 members; and an upper house, the California State Senate, with 40 members. Both houses of the Legisla ...

, Susanville is in , and . In the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

, Susanville is in .

Transportation

Susanville lies at the junction of California State Routes 36 and

139 139 may refer to: * 139 (number), an integer * AD 139, a year of the Julian calendar * 139 BC, a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar * 139 (New Jersey bus) 139 may refer to: * 139 (number), an integer * AD 139, a year of the Julian calendar * 13 ...

. Highway 139 heads north to the

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 ...

border as a direct route to Klamath Falls. Highway 36 runs west to Red Bluff, then east to where it terminates with

just outside Susanville's city limits. U.S. 395 connects

Alturas Alturas (Spanish language, Spanish for "Heights"; Achumawi language, Achumawi: ''Kasalektawi'') is a city and the county seat of Modoc County, California. Located in the Shasta Cascade region of Northern California, the city had a population of ...

to the north and

to the south.

Susanville Municipal Airport Susanville Municipal Airport is a city-owned, public-use airport located five nautical miles (6 mi, 9 km) southeast of the central business district of Susanville, a city in Lassen County, California, United States. It is incl ...

, southeast of Susanville, serves as a public,

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 ...

airport.

Lassen Rural Bus Lassen is a Danish language, Danish and Norwegian language, Norwegian patronymic surname meaning "son of Lars" (equivalent of Laurentius), and thus a parallel form of the more common surname Larsen. Notable people with the surname include: * Ander ...

, operated by the Lassen County Transportation Commission, provided bus service within the city.

Sage Stage Sage or SAGE may refer to: Plants * ''Salvia officinalis'', common sage, a small evergreen subshrub used as a culinary herb ** Lamiaceae, a family of flowering plants commonly known as the mint or deadnettle or sage family ** ''Salvia'', a large ...

, operated by Modoc County, connects

, Susanville, and

Reno, Nevada Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada-California border, about north from Lake Tahoe, known as "The Biggest Little City in the World". Known for its casino and tourism industry, Reno is the ...

, with connections to Redding, California and Klamath Falls, Oregon. The Quincy Railroad no longer serves Susanville on the former

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

line since 2004. A

Union Pacific Railroad The Union Pacific Railroad , legally Union Pacific Railroad Company and often called simply Union Pacific, is a freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Paci ...

caboose A caboose is a crewed North American railroad car coupled at the end of a freight train. Cabooses provide shelter for crew at the end of a train, who were formerly required in switching and shunting, keeping a lookout for load shifting, damag ...

has been placed on an intact section of track next to the rail depot.

Economy

Two California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation facilities, High Desert State Prison and California Correctional Center, are in Susanville.

Top employers

According to Susanville's 2014 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the top employers in the city are:

Notable people

Dugan Aguilar Dugan Aguilar (1947–2018) was a Native American photographer whose work has been exhibited by major museums. He is "among the first Native photographers to document Native life in Yosemite and California through his own vision." Early life Rob ...

(1947–2018), Maidu/Achomawi/Northern Paiute photographer *

Hardin Barry Hardin Barry (March 26, 1891 – November 5, 1969), nicknamed "Finn", was an American Major League Baseball pitcher for one season prior to a lifetime career in law. History Born in Susanville, California,

, baseball player and lawyer, returned to practice law after a one-season career in professional baseball *

Frank Cady Frank Randolph Cady (September 8, 1915 – June 8, 2012) was an American actor best known for his role as storekeeper Sam Drucker in three American television series during the 1960s – ''Petticoat Junction'', ''Green Acres'', and ' ...

, actor ('' Petticoat Junction'', ''

Green Acres ''Green Acres'' is an American television sitcom starring Eddie Albert and Eva Gabor as a couple who move from New York City to a country farm. Produced by Filmways as a sister show to ''Petticoat Junction'', the series was first broadcast on ...

'', and '' The Beverly Hillbillies''). *

Aaron Duran Aaron Duran (born 1976 in Susanville, California) is an American writer and media producer in Portland, Oregon, of Mexican and Italian descent. Duran currently hosts the weekly podcast ''Geek in the City Radio'' (FKA ''Film Fever Radio''), with ...

, writer, media producer grew up in Susanville. *

Jack Ellena Jack Duane Ellena (October 27, 1931 – March 23, 2012) was an American football player. Ellena played offensive tackle for coach Red Sanders at UCLA from 1952 to 1954. He was a member of the Bruins team that lost the 1954 Rose Bowl and was na ...

, former

Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division. The Rams play ...

player, born and raised in Susanville and ran a summer camp near town * Mike Leach, Mississippi State's head football coach was born in Susanville. *

Mitch Lively Mitchell David Lively (born September 7, 1985) is an American professional baseball pitcher for El Águila de Veracruz of the Mexican League. He previously played for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) and the ...

, former player for the

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Yor ...

, was born in Susanville *

Kevin Mangold Kevin Mangold is an American actor, stuntman, editor, producer and former horse jockey. He appeared most famously in the film ''Seabiscuit Seabiscuit (May 23, 1933 – May 17, 1947) was a champion thoroughbred racehorse in the United States ...

, professional jockey, stunt double, actor, author *

Freddy Nagel Freddy Nagel (February 25, 1908 – June 6, 1999) was an American bandleader. His band frequented dance halls throughout the United States during the big band era and reached a wide audience on national CBS and Mutual Radio big band remotes throu ...

, bandleader * Ryan O'Callaghan, NFL player (

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The tea ...

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East divisio ...

). *

Frank Shamrock Frank Shamrock (born Frank Alisio Juarez III; December 8, 1972) is an American former professional mixed martial artist. Shamrock was the first to hold the UFC Middleweight Championship (later renamed the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship) and ...

, mixed martial artistWoods, Michael
Brothers Ken, Frank Shamrock itching to fight
ESPN.go.com, October 12, 2008; accessed September 13, 2013. * Ken Shamrock, mixed martial artist and professional wrestler * Mike Skinner,

NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and hi ...

driver *

Benjamin "Coach" Wade Benjamin "Coach" Wade (born September 18, 1971) is an American reality television personality best known for being a contestant on '' Survivor: Tocantins'', '' Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains'', and '' Survivor: South Pacific''. He grew up in Kno ...

, reality television contestant

References

External links

*
SusanvilleStuff.comLassen County Chamber of CommerceImages of Susanville
from th
Eastman's Originals Collection

Special Collections Dept.
University of California, Davis. {{Authority control 1900 establishments in California Cities in Lassen County, California County seats in California Incorporated cities and towns in California Populated places established in 1900