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Weed is a city in
Siskiyou County Siskiyou County (, ) is a county in the northernmost part of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 44,076. Its county seat is Yreka and its highest point is Mount Shasta. It falls within the Cascadia bioregion ...
,
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. As of the 2020 Census, the city had a total population of 2,862, down from 2,967 in 2010. There are several unincorporated communities adjacent to, or just outside, Weed proper, including
Edgewood Edgewood may refer to: Places Canada *Edgewood, British Columbia South Africa *Edgewood, a University of KwaZulu-Natal campus in Pinetown, South Africa United States Cities and towns *Edgewood, California *Edgewood, Florida *Edgewood, Illinois, a ...
, Carrick, and Lake Shastina. These communities generally have mailing addresses that use Weed or its ZIP code. Weed is about west-northwest of
Mount Shasta Mount Shasta ( Shasta: ''Waka-nunee-Tuki-wuki''; Karuk: ''Úytaahkoo'') is a potentially active volcano at the southern end of the Cascade Range in Siskiyou County, California. At an elevation of , it is the second-highest peak in the Cascades ...
, a prominent northern California landmark, and the second-tallest volcano in the
Cascade Range The Cascade Range or Cascades is a major mountain range of western North America, extending from southern British Columbia through Washington and Oregon to Northern California. It includes both non-volcanic mountains, such as the North Cascades, ...
. Weed's city motto is "Weed like to welcome you". Weed has frequently been noted on lists of unusual place names.


History

The City of Weed derives its name from the founder of the local lumber
mill Mill may refer to: Science and technology * * Mill (grinding) * Milling (machining) * Millwork * Textile mill * Steel mill, a factory for the manufacture of steel * List of types of mill * Mill, the arithmetic unit of the Analytical Engine early ...
and pioneer
Abner Weed Abner Edward Weed (September 18, 1842 – June 14, 1917) was an American politician who served as a soldier in the American Civil War with Company C, 8th Maine Infantry Regiment, and was present at Appomattox, Virginia, to witness Lee's ...
, who discovered that the area's strong winds were helpful in drying lumber. In 1897, Abner Weed bought the Siskiyou Lumber and Mercantile Mill and of land in what is now the City of Weed, for $400. By the 1940s Weed boasted the world's largest sawmill.


Boles Fire

On September 15, 2014, the
Boles Fire The Boles Fire was a wildfire that burned in Siskiyou County during mid-September 2014. On September 15, at 1:38 p.m. PDT, the Boles Fire ignited near Weed, California. Later on the same day, at 10:30 p.m. PDT, the Boles Fire was reported at 350 a ...
spread through Weed, driven by 40-mph winds. The fire started behind the Boles Creek Apartments in the central part of Weed at approximately 1:30 p.m., and within four hours quickly spread to over . Evacuations were immediately ordered, and a shelter was first set up at
College of the Siskiyous College of the Siskiyous (COS) is a public community college with campuses in Weed and Yreka in Siskiyou County in Northern California. It is part of the California Community Colleges System, serving as the northernmost college in the state of ...
, but as fire headed towards the college, the evacuation center was relocated first to the Siskiyou Golden Fairgrounds in
Yreka Yreka ( ) is the county seat of Siskiyou County, California, United States, near the Shasta River; the city has an area of about , most of it land. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 7,807, reflecting a meager increase fro ...
, then to Yreka and Mount Shasta High Schools, then to the armory in Mt. Shasta. Over 200 structures were damaged or destroyed, including two churches, the elementary school,
high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...
, and Roseburg mill. The schools and mill sustained only minimal damage to outbuildings. About 7,678 Pacific Power customers in both Weed and Mt. Shasta lost power as a result of the fire.


Beaughan Spring

The City of Weed gets its water from the Beaughan Spring, with the water being piped directly to homes. In September 2016, ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' reported French billionaire Pierre Papillaud demanded that Weed give up its Beaughan Spring spring water source so that Papillaud's bottle water company could have more water to sell. Disconnecting from Beaughan Spring would leave Weed without public water. In March 2021, it was reported that the parties involved had reached a compromise which will allow Weed to continue to have access to water from Beaughan Spring in perpetuity.


Mill Fire

In early September 2022, the Mill Fire started in or near Weed, burning down the Lincoln Heights neighborhood.


Geography

Weed is off
Interstate 5 Interstate 5 (I-5) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the West Coast of the United States, running largely parallel to the Pacific coast of the contiguous U.S. from Mexico to Canada. It travels through the states of Califor ...
, south of the
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 ...
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. The next large settlement to the north on I-5 is
Yreka Yreka ( ) is the county seat of Siskiyou County, California, United States, near the Shasta River; the city has an area of about , most of it land. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 7,807, reflecting a meager increase fro ...
; to the south is the City of Mount Shasta.
U.S. Route 97 U.S. Route 97 (US 97) is a major north–south route of the United States Numbered Highway System in the Pacific Northwest region. It runs for approximately through the states of California, Oregon, and Washington, primarily serving in ...
runs to the northeast and
Klamath Falls, Oregon Klamath Falls ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Klamath County, Oregon, United States. The city was originally called ''Linkville'' when George Nurse founded the town in 1867. It was named after the Link River, on whose falls the city was ...
. 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 , of which 0.10% is covered by water. The closest cities with a population greater than 50,000 are
Redding, California Redding is the economic and cultural capital of the Shasta Cascade region of Northern California and the county seat of Shasta County. Redding lies along the Sacramento River, north of Sacramento, and south of California's northern border wi ...
(69 miles south) and
Medford, Oregon Medford is a city in and the county seat of Jackson County, Oregon, in the United States. As of the 2020 United States Census on April 1, 2020, the city had a total population of 85,824 and a metropolitan area population of 223,259, making the Me ...
(91 miles north).


Climate

Weed has a
warm-summer Mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate (also called a dry summer temperate climate ''Cs'') is a temperate climate sub-type, generally characterized by warm, dry summers and mild, fairly wet winters; these weather conditions are typically experienced in the ...
(''Csb'' according to the
Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...
system), featuring cool, wet winters with occasional snowfall, and hot, dry summers.Climate Summary for Weed, California
/ref> Its average annual precipitation is .Western Regional Climate Center: NCDC 1971-2000 monthly normals for Weed Fire Department, California
/ref> Its
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 ...
is 7b.ZipDataMaps: 96094 Weed, CA
/ref>


Transportation

Weed is at the intersection of
Interstate 5 Interstate 5 (I-5) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the West Coast of the United States, running largely parallel to the Pacific coast of the contiguous U.S. from Mexico to Canada. It travels through the states of Califor ...
and
U.S. Route 97 U.S. Route 97 (US 97) is a major north–south route of the United States Numbered Highway System in the Pacific Northwest region. It runs for approximately through the states of California, Oregon, and Washington, primarily serving in ...
. Interstate 5 is the primary north–south transportation corridor for the west coast of the United States running from the Mexico–US border to the Canada–US border. U.S. Route 97 is a major north-south U.S. highway continuing from Weed in a northeasterly direction toward
Klamath Falls, Oregon Klamath Falls ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Klamath County, Oregon, United States. The city was originally called ''Linkville'' when George Nurse founded the town in 1867. It was named after the Link River, on whose falls the city was ...
, thence through Oregon and Washington to the Canada–US border.
California State Route 265 State Route 265 (SR 265) is a state highway in the U.S. state of California that is part of both Business Loop 5 and Weed Boulevard in the Weed, California, City of Weed in Siskiyou County, California, Siskiyou County. SR 265 runs from U.S. Route ...
also runs through the City of Weed, locally known as North Weed Boulevard. Only two blocks long, it is the second-shortest state highway in California. Weed is served by Siskiyou County's public transportation bus lines, Siskiyou Transit and General Express, commonly called "The STAGE". The closest airports for commercial air travel are
Rogue Valley International-Medford Airport A rogue is a person or entity that flouts accepted norms of behavior. Rogue or rogues may also refer to: Companies * Rogue Ales, a microbrewery in Newport, Oregon * Rogue Arts, a film production company * Rogue Entertainment, a software comp ...
and
Redding Municipal Airport Redding Regional Airport is 6 miles (10 km) southeast of Redding in Shasta County, California, United States. It is one of two airports in Redding, along with Benton Airpark. In addition to general aviation, the airport has scheduled pass ...
. The Weed Airport serves general aviation and as a base of operations for search and rescue operations on Mount Shasta. Corporate visitors or geological researchers typically use this facility.
Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...
trains pass through Weed, but do not stop there. The Amtrak bus/shuttle has one stop in South Weed. The nearest depot for Amtrak train travel is in Dunsmuir, approximately to the south.
Greyhound Bus Lines Greyhound Lines, Inc. (commonly known as simply Greyhound) operates the largest intercity bus service in North America, including Greyhound Mexico. It also operates charter bus services, Amtrak Thruway services, commuter bus services, and pa ...
has a bus station, with both north and southbound buses making stops.


Economy

From its founding in 1901, to as late as the 1980s, Weed was home to a thriving lumber industry. Roseburg Forest Products (plywood), International Paper Company, Morgan Products Ltd. (wooden door manufacturing), and J.H. Baxter (wood treatment) were all based in Weed. The historic industrial area at the northeast corner of Weed has been plagued with environmental concerns and clean-up efforts as a result of chemicals used for wood treatment, as well as chemical residue from glue used in the door factory. Although historically reliant on logging, wood processing and forest-related products, Weed's economy has become more reliant on tourism as a source of economic activity. Weed's microbrewery,
Mt. Shasta Brewing Company Mt. Shasta Brewing Company is a brewery in Weed, California. The company markets some brands as Weed Ales & Lagers. Owners Vaune and Barbara Dillmann began commercial production in 2003. Mount Shasta Brewing Company is licensed to distribute its ...
, relies on tourists for 92 percent of its business, according to co-owner Vaune Dillman. Today, most of the wood-product-related industry has been scaled back or ceased altogether, and new retail and light industrial activity is concentrated in the southeast corner of Weed. Retail at the south end of Weed, in the form of restaurants and hotels, caters primarily to tourist travel on the Interstate 5 corridor. Light manufacturing of bottled water from
Crystal Geyser Water Company Crystal Geyser Water Company, or just Crystal Geyser, is a private company founded in 1977 in Calistoga, California. They produce bottled sparkling water based on mineral water and spring water sources at their original facility in Calistoga. ...
has also added economic stability to the area. Weed is part of the Shasta Valley Enterprise Zone which provides tax breaks, fee reductions, and permit fast-tracking for employers locating in the area. As of 2007, the largest employers in Weed were: *
College of the Siskiyous College of the Siskiyous (COS) is a public community college with campuses in Weed and Yreka in Siskiyou County in Northern California. It is part of the California Community Colleges System, serving as the northernmost college in the state of ...
(100–249 employees) *
Roseburg Forest Products Roseburg Forest Products, based in Springfield, Oregon, US is a privately owned wood–products company. Founded in 1936, the company had approximately 3,000 employees and revenues of nearly US$1 billion in 2012. Roseburg Forest Products operate ...
(100–249 employees) * Crystal Geyser CG Roxane (25-99 employees) *Weed Union Elementary School District (25-99 employees) As a small community with few retail outlets, taxable sales within the city are somewhat limited, totaling $89 million in 2012. In the November 2014 General Election, the voters of Weed passed Measure J which raised the city's sales and use tax rate by 0.25 percent.


Education

Primary education in Weed is conducted at Weed Elementary School (K-8th Grade). Butteville Elementary School (K-8th) is just outside the City of Weed, in the hamlet of
Edgewood Edgewood may refer to: Places Canada *Edgewood, British Columbia South Africa *Edgewood, a University of KwaZulu-Natal campus in Pinetown, South Africa United States Cities and towns *Edgewood, California *Edgewood, Florida *Edgewood, Illinois, a ...
, and has an enrollment similar to Weed Elementary. Secondary-level students are educated at
Weed High School Weed High School is a secondary school located in Weed, California and is part of the Siskiyou Union High School District. For the 2006–07 school year, the school had student enrollment of 196, an Academic Performance Index (API) of 727 which i ...
, (Grades 9-12) part of the
Siskiyou Union High School District The Siskiyou Union High School District is a public secondary education school district in Siskiyou County, California. There are presently five small rural high schools within the district, four of which are traditional secondary education facil ...
. Weed High School is known for its picturesque campus and diverse student body. The
College of the Siskiyous College of the Siskiyous (COS) is a public community college with campuses in Weed and Yreka in Siskiyou County in Northern California. It is part of the California Community Colleges System, serving as the northernmost college in the state of ...
, located in Weed, provides a steady source of employment for faculty and staff, a source of visitors for the local economy, and offers a two-year junior college education with various associate degree and vocational certificate programs.


Recreation and tourism

Visitors use Weed as a base to engage in trout fishing in the nearby
Klamath Klamath may refer to: Ethnic groups *Klamath people, a Native American people of California and Oregon **Klamath Tribes, a federally recognized group of tribes in Oregon *Klamath language, spoken by the Klamath people Places in the United States * ...
,Siskiyou County information site
accessed 2008-02-21.
Sacramento ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento ...
, p. 92. Excerpts of the text of this book are available her

courtesy of
Google Books Google Books (previously known as Google Book Search, Google Print, and by its code-name Project Ocean) is a service from Google Inc. that searches the full text of books and magazines that Google has scanned, converted to text using optical c ...
.
and McCloud Rivers, or come to see and climb
Mount Shasta Mount Shasta ( Shasta: ''Waka-nunee-Tuki-wuki''; Karuk: ''Úytaahkoo'') is a potentially active volcano at the southern end of the Cascade Range in Siskiyou County, California. At an elevation of , it is the second-highest peak in the Cascades ...
,
Castle Crags Castle Crags is a dramatic and well-known rock formation in Northern California. Elevations range from along the Sacramento River near the base of the crags, to over at the summit of the tallest crag. Located just west of Interstate 5, betwe ...
or the
Trinity Alps The Trinity Alps are a mountain range in Trinity County and Siskiyou County in Northern California. They are a subrange of the Klamath Mountains located to the north of Weaverville. Geography The Trinity Alps are within the Pacific Coast Ran ...
.Outdoor recreational activities in area
accessed 2008-02-24.
Visitors also engage in nearby skiing (both alpine and cross-country) and biking, or hike to the waterfalls, streams and lakes in the area, including nearby
Mossbrae Falls Mossbrae Falls is a waterfall flowing into the Sacramento River, in the Shasta Cascade area in Dunsmuir, California. The falls are located just south of the lower portion of Shasta Springs. Access to the falls is via a mile-long illegal hiking tr ...
,
Lake Siskiyou Lake Siskiyou is a reservoir formed by Box Canyon DamBox Canyon Dam
NPDP Da ...
, Castle Lake and
Shasta Lake Shasta Lake, also popularly known as Lake Shasta, is a reservoir in Shasta County, California, United States. It began to store water in 1944 due to the impounding of the Sacramento River by Shasta Dam, the ninth tallest dam in the United State ...
.


Recreation facilities and parks

Weed is near
Castle Crags State Park Castle Crags is a dramatic and well-known rock formation in Northern California. Elevations range from along the Sacramento River near the base of the crags, to over at the summit of the tallest crag. Located just west of Interstate 5, betwe ...
,
Lava Beds National Monument Lava Beds National Monument is located in northeastern California, in Siskiyou and Modoc counties. The monument lies on the northeastern flank of Medicine Lake Volcano and has the largest total area covered by a volcano in the Cascade Range. ...
, and
Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuge The Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuge is a National Wildlife Refuge of the United States on the border between California and Oregon. It is operated by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. The refuge was designated a National Histori ...
. In addition to these state and federal parks, there are numerous local recreation opportunities. *The Lake Shastina Golf Resort offers an 18-hole golf course, and a 9-hole Scottish links course in a scenic setting. *Local parks managed by the Weed Parks and Recreation District include: Lincoln Park (renamed Charles Byrd Community Park in 2004) which is an park with restrooms, a playground, basketball courts, and is the home to the Weed Skatepark; as well as Bel Air Park, adjacent to College of the Siskiyous and home of the community swimming pool. *Weed is on the
Volcanic Legacy Scenic Byway The Volcanic Legacy Scenic Byway is a scenic byway, scenic highway and All-American Road in the U.S. states of California and Oregon. It is roughly long and travels north–south along the Cascade Range past numerous volcanoes. It is composed o ...
, and is a short distance from the
Pacific Crest Trail The Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), officially designated as the Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail, is a long-distance hiking and equestrian trail closely aligned with the highest portion of the Cascade and Sierra Nevada mountain ranges, which lie ...
. *Nearby
Mount Shasta Ski Park Mount Shasta Ski Park is a ski resort located in northern California which has winter and summer operations. Winter operations include skiing & snowboarding, tubing, a backcountry cabin program, lessons, rentals, and events. In the summer they of ...
offers alpine and Nordic skiing in winter, as well as summertime mountain biking, rock climbing, and a concert series. *The same wind that prompted the founding of Weed, as it was used to dry wood products, makes nearby Lake Shastina a popular destination for short-board windsurfing. *The Deer Mountain Snowmobile Park, is northeast of Weed on US Highway 97 and offers of groomed trails.


Historic sites and museums

* The Weed Historic Lumber Town Museum is a small, seasonal, local museum in the heart of Weed. It features sawmill machinery and artifacts from Weed's early days * The Veterans' Living Memorial Sculpture Garden is northeast of Weed on US Highway 97, and consists of steel sculptures and other memorials honoring the service of U.S. veterans.


Demographics


2010

The
2010 United States Census The United States census of 2010 was the twenty-third United States national census. National Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2010. The census was taken via mail-in citizen self-reporting, with enumerators servin ...
reported that Weed had a population of 2,967. The population density was . The racial makeup of Weed was 2,221 (74.9 percent)
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 ...
, 206 (6.9 percent)
African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...
, 70 (2.4 percent) Native American, 121 (4.1 percent)
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 ...
, 27 (0.9 percent)
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 ...
, 132 (4.4 percent) 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 190 (6.4 percent) 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 ...
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 475 persons (16.0 percent). The census reported that 2,820 people (95.0 percent of the population) lived in households, 101 (3.4 percent) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 46 (1.6%) were institutionalized. There were 1,131 households, out of which 385 (34 percent) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 447 (39.5 percent) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 188 (16.6 percent) had a female householder with no husband present, 81 (7.2 percent) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 103 (9.1 percent) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 2 (0.2 percent) same-sex married couples or partnerships. Three hundred-eleven households (27.5 percent) were made up of individuals, and 125 (11.1 percent) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49. There were 716
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 ...
(63.3 percent of all households); the average family size was 3.02. The population was spread out, with 735 people (24.8 percent) under the age of 18, 460 people (15.5 percent) aged 18 to 24, 660 people (22.2 percent) aged 25 to 44, 698 people (23.5 percent) aged 45 to 64, and 414 people (14 percent) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32.7 years. For every 100 females, there were 100.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100 males. There were 1,273 housing units at an average density of , of which 543 (48 percent) were owner-occupied, and 588 (52 percent) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 3.3%; the rental vacancy rate was 8.8 percent. Forty-three percent of the population (1,275 persons) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 1,545 people (52.1 percent) lived in rental housing units.


2000

As of the
census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...
of 2000, there were 2,978 people, 1,184 households, and 747 families residing in the city. The
population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopul ...
was 613.4 people per square mile (237.1 km2). There were 1,293 housing units at an average density of 266.3 per square mile (102.9 km2). The racial makeup of the city was 73.27 percent
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 ...
, 9.27 percent
Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have o ...
or
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 ...
, 1.95 percent Native American, 4.57 percent
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 ...
, 0.47 percent
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 ...
, 5.51 percent 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 4.97 percent 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 ...
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 made up 12.76 percent of the population. The number of violent crimes recorded by the FBI in 2003 was 25. The number of murders and homicides was one. The violent crime rate was 8.5 per 1,000 people. In the city, age distribution was spread out, with 25.6 percent under the age of 18, 14.4 percent from 18 to 24, 22.6 percent from 25 to 44, 20.2 percent from 45 to 64, and 17.2 percent who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.3 males. The median
income Income is the consumption and saving opportunity gained by an entity within a specified timeframe, which is generally expressed in monetary terms. Income is difficult to define conceptually and the definition may be different across fields. For ...
for a household in the city was $23,333, and the median income for a family was $32,197. Males had a median income of $29,052 versus $21,894 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 city was $12,434. 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 ...
: 23.9 percent of the population and 17.2 percent of families. Of the total population, 30.9 percent of those under the age of 18 and 4.9 percent of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line. Traffic: The average commute time for Weed workers is 12 minutes, compared with 26 minutes nationwide. Housing: Median rent in Weed, at the time of the 2000 Census, was $348. Monthly mortgages were $676. Average monthly rent in all of California is $1341. Education: seven percent of Weed residents age 25 and older have a bachelor's or advanced college degree. Of the population 84.97 percent spoke English as their primary language, while 15.02 percent did not; of those 9.87 percent speak Spanish, 2.90 speak Italian, and 2.23 percent speak Laotian. One hundred percent of the population speaks English.Census 2005
Weed, California, 01-15-09


Ethnic migration

Weed's historic
lumber Lumber is wood that has been processed into dimensional lumber, including beams and planks or boards, a stage in the process of wood production. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, wi ...
industry and manufacturing facilities made it a magnet for ethnic minority migration, that may not have otherwise been the case in this region of the country. A large number of Italian immigrants migrated to Weed, and other towns in southern Siskiyou County at the turn of the 20th century. While immigrants were a source of labor for the region, they were not always well treated, in fact in 1909 complaints from workers in the lumber industry reached the Italian consul. However, in time the Italian population came to be a cornerstone of Weed civic life. Many streets in the early Italian neighborhood bear names of Italian cities, such as Rome, Genoa, Como, and Venice. Annually since 1954, Weed has held the Weed Italian Carnevale in June or July, although recently dropping "Italian" from its name while maintaining the Italian spelling of carnival and the traditional
bocce (, or , ), sometimes anglicized as bocce ball, bocci or boccie, is a ball sport belonging to the boules family. Developed into its present form in Italy, it is closely related to British bowls and French , with a common ancestry from ancien ...
ball tournaments. A large number of black-Americans migrated to Weed as well, to work in
Long-Bell Lumber Company In 1887, Robert A. Long and Victor Bell formed the Long-Bell Lumber Company in Columbus, Kansas. The Long-Bell Lumber Company branched out using balanced vertical integration to control all aspects of lumber from the sawmills to the retail lumber ...
's Weed facility after the company closed two mills in Louisiana in 1922. The company promised to advance travel expenses and provide housing for workers relocating to Weed. Immigrants locating in Weed since the 1980s have come primarily from Mexico and Laos. As a result of these migrations, Weed has a much more ethnically diverse population than Siskiyou County as a whole. Netting the Hispanic or Latino population out of Census figures for white race, Weed's white population is 60.6 percent compared to Siskiyou County at 79.5 percent using the same metric.


Politics

The city council of Weed is composed of five members who are elected at large and serve four-year terms. The Mayor and Mayor Pro Tem are elected each year from the five council members and serve a one-year term. Susan Tavalero is currently serving as Mayor of Weed until November 2020, with Stacey Green serving as Mayor Pro Tem. In the state legislature Weed is in , and . Federally, Weed is in . In Siskiyou County Supervisoral District 3, in which Weed is the core community, voter registration was 39.6 percent Democrat, 39.1 percent Republican, 16.2 percent decline to state, with remainder split among other political parties such as Green and Libertarian as of 2006.


Notable people

*
Mario Pastega Mario Pastega (1916–2012) was an American businessman. A soft-drink bottler in the state of Oregon for nearly six decades, Pastega was elected to the Beverage World Hall of Fame in 2002. Pastega is best remembered as a patron of education and as ...
(1916–2012), businessman and philanthropist, born in Weed.Ed Langlois
"Going Like a House on Fire,"
''The Catholic Sentinel,'' www.catholicsentinel.org/ August 19, 2011.
*
Pamela Courson Pamela Susan Courson (December 22, 1946 – April 25, 1974) was a long-term companion of Jim Morrison, singer of the Doors. Courson stated she discovered Morrison's body in the bathtub of a Paris apartment in 1971. She died three years after him ...
(1946–1974), long-term companion of
Jim Morrison James Douglas Morrison (December 8, 1943 – July 3, 1971) was an American singer, poet and songwriter who was the lead vocalist of the Rock music, rock band the Doors. Due to his wild personality, poetic lyrics, distinctive voice, unpredicta ...
, vocalist of
The Doors The Doors were an American Rock music, rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1965, with vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, guitarist Robby Krieger, and drummer John Densmore. They were among the most controversial and influential ro ...
, born in Weed. * Aaron Thomas (1937–present), NFL player, tight end for
San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...
and
New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...
, grew up in Weed, and graduated from Weed High School.


Local media

*
KHWA KHWA (102.3 FM broadcasting, FM) is a radio station based in Mount Shasta, California (city of license is Weed, California), owned by Southern Oregon University and operated by Jefferson Public Radio, which also owned KSYC-FM in Yreka, California, ...
99.3 Mount Shasta, 101.7 Yreka and 102.3 Weed * KZRO-FM 100.1 "z100 FM" Mount Shasta *
KKLC KKLC (107.9 FM) is a radio station broadcasting a Contemporary Christian format. Licensed to Fall River Mills, California, United States. The station is currently owned by Educational Media Foundation. History The station signed on the air in N ...
107.9 K-LOVE Fall River Mills * Northland Communications * MCTV 15 Mountain Community Television (at College of the Siskiyous) * Weed Press is the official newspaper of Weed.


In popular culture

John Steinbeck John Ernst Steinbeck Jr. (; February 27, 1902 – December 20, 1968) was an American writer and the 1962 Nobel Prize in Literature winner "for his realistic and imaginative writings, combining as they do sympathetic humor and keen social ...
's novella-play ''
Of Mice and Men ''Of Mice and Men'' is a novella written by John Steinbeck. Published in 1937, it narrates the experiences of George Milton and Lennie Small, two displaced migrant ranch workers, who move from place to place in California in search of new job o ...
'' begins with George and Lennie running away from Weed, where they got into trouble. Weed is the setting of a large subplot in
Harry Turtledove Harry Norman Turtledove (born June 14, 1949) is an American author who is best known for his work in the genres of alternate history, historical fiction, fantasy, science fiction, and mystery fiction. He is a student of history and completed ...
's
alternate history Alternate history (also alternative history, althist, AH) is a genre of speculative fiction of stories in which one or more historical events occur and are resolved differently than in real life. As conjecture based upon historical fact, altern ...
''
The Hot War ''The'' () is a grammatical Article (grammar), article in English language, English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite ...
''.


Footnotes


External links


Images of Weed
from th
Eastman’s Originals Collection

Special Collections Dept.
University of California, Davis. {{authority control Cities in Siskiyou County, California Mount Shasta Incorporated cities and towns in California Logging communities in the United States Company towns in California