Comptche (

Pomo The Pomo are an Indigenous people of California. Historical Pomo territory in Northern California was large, bordered by the Pacific Coast to the west, extending inland to Clear Lake, and mainly between Cleone and Duncans Point. One small grou ...

: ''Compatche'', meaning "In the valley among the hills") is an

unincorporated community 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 ...

(CDP) in

Mendocino County Mendocino County (; ''Mendocino'', Spanish language, Spanish for "of Antonio de Mendoza, Mendoza) is a County (United States), county located on the North Coast (California), North Coast of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United Sta ...

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. It is located southeast 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 . There is a K–3 primary school serving the town, as well as a small store with gas pump; a post office, and a church. The population was 167 at the 2020 census.

Geography

Comptche is located in west-central Mendocino County at (39.2648954, -123.5911224). It is in ZIP code 95427 and lies at the junction of three minor roads. Comptche–Ukiah Road extends west from Comptche to Mendocino on State Route 1, while to the east Orr Springs Road leads to Ukiah on

U.S. 101 U.S. Route 101, or U.S. Highway 101 (US 101), is a north–south United States Numbered Highway that runs through the states of California, Oregon, and Washington, on the West Coast of the United States. It is also known as (The Royal Roa ...

(passing through Montgomery Woods State Natural Reserve approximately halfway to Ukiah). Flynn Creek Road leads southward from Comptche to State Route 128 in

Navarro River Redwoods State Park Navarro River Redwoods State Park is a state park in Mendocino County, California, consisting of of second-growth redwood forest in a narrow stretch long on both banks of the Navarro River, from the town of Navarro to the river's confluence w ...

, near the town of Navarro. Flynn Creek Road and the western segment of Comptche–Ukiah Road provide an alternative route between Mendocino and the

Anderson Valley Anderson Valley is a sparsely populated region in western Mendocino County in Northern California. Located approximately north of San Francisco, the name "Anderson Valley" applies broadly to several rural, unincorporated communities in or near ...

, used in winter storms when the

Navarro River , name_native_lang = , name_other = , name_etymology = , image = Navarro_River.jpg , image_size = , image_caption = The Navarro River near its mouth. , map = , map_size ...

floods Route 128. 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 Comptche CDP covers an area of , all of it land. 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 ...

runs along the southern edge of the community, flowing west to the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

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 ...

History

The Comptche post office opened in 1877, closed later that same year, and reopened in 1879. Although the precise origin of the town's name is unknown, there was a village of the

Pomo people The Pomo are an Indigenous people of California. Historical Pomo territory in Northern California was large, bordered by the Pacific Coast to the west, extending inland to Clear Lake, and mainly between Cleone and Duncans Point. One small grou ...

named Komacho nearby.

CDP demographics

At the 2010 census the Comptche CDP had a population of 159. The population density was . The racial makeup of Comptche was 146 (91.8%) White, 0 (0.0%) African American, 1 (0.6%) Native American, 1 (0.6%) Asian, 0 (0.0%) Pacific Islander, 5 (3.1%) from other races, and 6 (3.8%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 10 people (6.3%). The whole population lived in households; no one lived in non-institutionalized group quarters and no one was institutionalized. There were 67 households, of which 18 (26.9%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 25 (37.3%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 9 (13.4%) had a female householder with no husband present, 5 (7.5%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 6 (9.0%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 0 (0%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 19 households (28.4%) were one person and 6 (9.0%) had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.37. There were 39 families (58.2% of households); the average family size was 2.90. The age distribution was 35 people (22.0%) under the age of 18, 9 people (5.7%) aged 18 to 24, 34 people (21.4%) aged 25 to 44, 59 people (37.1%) aged 45 to 64, and 22 people (13.8%) who were 65 or older. The median age was 47.3 years. For every 100 females, there were 127.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 110.2 males. There were 83 housing units at an average density of 72.0 per square mile; of the occupied units, 39 (58.2%) were owner-occupied and 28 (41.8%) were rented. The homeowner vacancy rate was 0%; the rental vacancy rate was 9.7%. 86 people (54.1% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 73 people (45.9%) lived in rental housing units.

Politics

In the state legislature, Comptche is in , and . Federally, Comptche is in .

References

* {{authority control Census-designated places in Mendocino County, California Census-designated places in California