Albion is a census-designated place in Mendocino County, California, United States. It is located south of

Fort Bragg Fort Bragg is a military installation of the United States Army in North Carolina, and is one of the largest military installations in the world by population, with around 54,000 military personnel. The military reservation is located within Cum ...

, at an elevation of . Albion had a population of 153 at the 2020 census.

Toponym

Albion was named in 1844, as a reference to when

Sir Francis Drake Sir Francis Drake ( – 28 January 1596) was an English explorer, sea captain, privateer, slave trader, naval officer, and politician. Drake is best known for his circumnavigation of the world in a single expedition, from 1577 to 1580 (t ...

landed on the northern California coast and called it "New Albion".

Albion Albion is an alternative name for Great Britain. The oldest attestation of the toponym comes from the Greek language. It is sometimes used poetically and generally to refer to the island, but is less common than 'Britain' today. The name for Scot ...

was an ancient name for Britain, from the Latin word ''albus'', meaning "white", a reference to the White Cliffs of Dover.

Geography

Albion lies directly on California's

State Route 1 The following highways are numbered 1. For roads numbered A1, see list of A1 roads. For roads numbered B1, see list of B1 roads. For roads numbered M1, see List of M1 roads. For roads numbered N1, see list of N1 roads. For roads numbered S ...

(Shoreline Highway) north of

Elk The elk (''Cervus canadensis''), also known as the wapiti, is one of the largest species within the deer family, Cervidae, and one of the largest terrestrial mammals in its native range of North America and Central and East Asia. The common ...

and south of Mendocino and Little River. It lies just north of the intersection of State Route 1 with State Route 128. Albion Ridge Road leads east from the town center. The side roads on Albion Ridge Road are labeled from B through Q. The nearest beaches include Navarro Beach to the south and Handley Beach at the head of Albion Ridge Road. Vegetation includes coastal headlands, with

California redwood ''Sequoia sempervirens'' ()''Sunset Western Garden Book,'' 1995:606–607 is the sole living species of the genus '' Sequoia'' in the cypress family Cupressaceae (formerly treated in Taxodiaceae). Common names include coast redwood, coastal ...

forests and pygmy forests nearby. Albion has two bridges, one spanning the

Albion River The Albion River is an river in Mendocino County, California. The river drains about on the Mendocino Coast and empties into the Pacific Ocean near the town of Albion, California, where California State Route 1 crosses it on the Albion River Br ...

and the other

Little Salmon Creek Little Salmon Creek is a westward-flowing stream in Mendocino County, California which empties into Big Salmon Creek near the town of Albion, California. See also * List of rivers of California * Salmon Creek (Sonoma County, California) Sa ...

. The

Albion River Bridge The Albion River Bridge is a wooden deck truss bridge crossing the Albion River in Mendocino County, California. It is the only remaining wooden bridge on California State Route 1;. dramatic views of the bridge are visible from the nearby town o ...

, built in 1944 when steel and concrete were in short supply, remains as the last wooden bridge still in use on State Route 1. The ZIP Code is 95410. The community is inside area code 707. According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP covers an area of , of which , or 2.0%, are water.

Schools

The town belongs to the Mendocino Unified School District and children attend Albion Elementary School or Mendocino K-8 School until third grade, then Mendocino K-8 School and Mendocino High School. The

Albion Biological Field Station The Albion Biological Field Station is a research and education facility near the Pacific coast of Mendocino County, California that is operated by Pacific Union College, a private liberal arts college affiliated with the Adventist Church and loc ...

, a facility of Pacific Union College (a private Seventh-day Adventist college) is located in Albion, on the south bank of the Albion River; it offers college biology courses to Pacific Union students as well as shorter courses for elementary and high school students and seniors.

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 servin ...

reported that Albion had a population of 168. The population density was . The racial makeup of Albion was 150 (89.3%) White, 1 (0.6%) African American, 4 (2.4%) Native American, 5 (3.0%)

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, 0 (0.0%) from other races, and 8 (4.8%) from two or more races. Hispanic 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 4 persons (2.4%). The Census reported that 156 people (92.9% of the population) lived in households, 12 (7.1%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 0 (0%) were institutionalized. There were 82 households, out of which 13 (15.9%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 20 (24.4%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 8 (9.8%) had a female householder with no husband present, 5 (6.1%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 8 (9.8%)

unmarried opposite-sex partnerships POSSLQ ( , plural POSSLQs) is an abbreviation (or acronym) for "Person of Opposite Sex Sharing Living Quarters", a term coined in the late 1970s by the United States Census Bureau as part of an effort to more accurately gauge the prevalence of ...

, and 1 (1.2%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 36 households (43.9%) were made up of individuals, and 15 (18.3%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.90. There were 33 families (40.2% of all households); the average family size was 2.55. The population was spread out, with 20 people (11.9%) under the age of 18, 10 people (6.0%) aged 18 to 24, 40 people (23.8%) aged 25 to 44, 64 people (38.1%) aged 45 to 64, and 34 people (20.2%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 50.3 years. For every 100 females, there were 115.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 108.5 males. There were 112 housing units at an average density of , of which 54 (65.9%) were owner-occupied, and 28 (34.1%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.8%; the rental vacancy rate was 17.6%. 105 people (62.5% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 51 people (30.4%) lived in rental housing units.

Politics

In the

state legislature A state legislature is a legislative branch or body of a political subdivision in a federal system. Two federations literally use the term "state legislature": * The legislative branches of each of the fifty state governments of the United Sta ...

, Albion is in , and . Federally, Albion is in .

References

External links

Albion California Travel Directory

{{Authority Control Populated coastal places in California Census-designated places in Mendocino County, California Census-designated places in California