History of Riverside County, California
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Riverside County is a
county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...
located in the southern portion of the
U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...
of
California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
. As of the 2020 census, the population was 2,418,185, making it the fourth-most populous county in California and the 10th-most populous in the United States. The name was derived from the city of
Riverside Riverside may refer to: Places Australia * Riverside, Tasmania, a suburb of Launceston, Tasmania Canada * Riverside (electoral district), in the Yukon * Riverside, Calgary, a neighbourhood in Alberta * Riverside, Manitoba, a former rural m ...
, which is 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 ...
. Riverside County is included in the Riverside-
San Bernardino San Bernardino (; Spanish for "Saint Bernardino") is a city and county seat of San Bernardino County, California, United States. Located in the Inland Empire region of Southern California, the city had a population of 222,101 in the 2020 cen ...
-
Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...
Metropolitan Statistical Area In the United States, a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) is a geographical region with a relatively high population density at its core and close economic ties throughout the area. Such regions are neither legally incorporated as a city or tow ...
, also known as the Inland Empire. The county is also included in the
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...
-
Long Beach Long Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, California. It is the 42nd-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 466,742 as of 2020. A charter city, Long Beach is the seventh-most populous city in California. Incorporate ...
Combined Statistical Area Combined statistical area (CSA) is a United States Office of Management and Budget (OMB) term for a combination of adjacent metropolitan (MSA) and micropolitan statistical areas (µSA) across the 50 US states and the territory of Puerto Ric ...
. Roughly rectangular, Riverside County covers in
Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most populous urban a ...
, spanning from the greater Los Angeles area to the
Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...
border. Geographically, the county is mostly desert in the central and eastern portions, but has a
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 ...
in the western portion. Most of
Joshua Tree National Park Joshua Tree National Park is an American national park in southeastern California, east of San Bernardino and Los Angeles and north of Palm Springs. It is named after the Joshua trees (''Yucca brevifolia'') native to the Mojave Desert. Origin ...
is located in the county. The
resort cities A resort town, often called a resort city or resort destination, is an urban area where tourism or vacationing is the primary component of the local culture and economy. A typical resort town has one or more actual resorts in the surrounding ...
of
Palm Springs Palm Springs (Cahuilla: ''Séc-he'') is a desert resort city in Riverside County, California, United States, within the Colorado Desert's Coachella Valley. The city covers approximately , making it the largest city in Riverside County by land ...
,
Palm Desert Palm Desert is a city in Riverside County, California, United States, in the Coachella Valley, approximately east of Palm Springs, northeast of San Diego and east of Los Angeles. The population was 48,445 at the 2010 census. The city has been ...
, Indian Wells,
La Quinta La Quinta (Spanish language, Spanish for "The Fifth") is a desert resort town, resort city in Riverside County, California, United States. Located between Indian Wells, California, Indian Wells and Indio, California, Indio, it is one of the nin ...
,
Rancho Mirage Rancho Mirage is a city in Riverside County, California, United States. The population was 17,218 at the 2010 census, up from 13,249 at the 2000 census, but the seasonal (part-time) population can exceed 20,000. Incorporated in 1973 and locate ...
, and Desert Hot Springs are all located in the Coachella Valley region of central Riverside County. Between 2007 and 2011, large numbers of
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...
-area workers moved to the county to take advantage of more affordable housing. Along with neighboring San Bernardino County, it was one of the fastest-growing regions in the state prior to the recent changes in the regional economy. In addition, smaller, but significant, numbers of people have been moving into southwest Riverside County from the San Diego metropolitan area. The cities of
Temecula Temecula (; es, Temécula, ; Luiseño: ''Temeekunga'') is a city in southwestern Riverside County, California, United States. The city had a population of 110,003 as of the 2020 census and was incorporated on December 1, 1989. The city is a ...
and
Murrieta Murrieta is a city in southwestern Riverside County, California, United States. The population of Murrieta was 110,949 as of the 2020 census. Murrieta experienced a 133.7% population increase between 2000 and 2010, making Murrieta one of the ...
accounted for 20% of the increase in population of the county between 2000 and 2007.


History


Etymology

When Riverside County was formed in 1893 it was named for the city of Riverside, the county seat. The city, founded in 1870, received its name for its location beside the Santa Ana River.


Early history

The indigenous peoples of what is now Riverside County are the
Luiseño The Luiseño or Payómkawichum are an indigenous people of California who, at the time of the first contacts with the Spanish in the 16th century, inhabited the coastal area of southern California, ranging from the present-day southern part of ...
,
Cupeño The Cupeño (or Kuupangaxwichem) are a Native American tribe of Southern California. They traditionally lived about inland and north of the modern day Mexico–United States border in the Peninsular Range of Southern California. Today their ...
and
Cahuilla The Cahuilla , also known as ʔívil̃uqaletem or Ivilyuqaletem, are a Native American people of the various tribes of the Cahuilla Nation, living in the inland areas of southern California.Elsinore Trough The Elsinore Trough is a graben rift valley in Riverside County, southern California. It is created by the Elsinore Fault Zone. It is located between the Santa Ana Mountains to the west, and the Temescal Mountains of the Perris Block and the T ...
and eastern
Santa Ana Mountains The Santa Ana Mountains are a short peninsular mountain range along the coast of Southern California in the United States. They extend for approximately southeast of the Los Angeles Basin largely along the border between Orange and Riverside c ...
and southward into
San Diego County San Diego County (), officially the County of San Diego, is a county in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 3,298,634, making it California's second-most populous county and the f ...
. The Cahuilla territory is to the east and north of the Luiseño in the inland valleys, in the
Santa Rosa Santa Rosa is the Italian, Portuguese and Spanish name for Saint Rose. Santa Rosa may also refer to: Places Argentina *Santa Rosa, Mendoza, a city * Santa Rosa, Tinogasta, Catamarca * Santa Rosa, Valle Viejo, Catamarca * Santa Rosa, La Pampa * S ...
and
San Jacinto Mountains The San Jacinto Mountains (''Avii Hanupach''Munro, P., et al. ''A Mojave Dictionary''. Los Angeles: UCLA. 1992. in Mojave) are a mountain range in Riverside County, located east of Los Angeles in southern California in the United States. The mo ...
and the desert of the
Salton Sink The Salton Sink is the low point of an endorheic basin, a closed drainage system with no outflows to other bodies of water, in the Colorado Desert sub-region of the Sonoran Desert. The sink falls within the larger Salton Trough and separates th ...
. The first European settlement in the county was a
Mission San Luis Rey de Francia Mission San Luis Rey de Francia ( es, Misión San Luis Rey de Francia) is a former Spanish mission in San Luis Rey, a neighborhood of Oceanside, California. This Mission lent its name to the Luiseño tribe of Mission Indians. At its prime, ...
estancia or farm at the Luiseño village of Temescal. In 1819, the Mission granted
Leandro Serrano Leandro may refer to: * Leandro (given name), a male name, including a list of people with the name * ''Ero e Leandro'', a 1707 cantata by George Frideric Handel * San Leandro, California * San Leandro Creek San Leandro Creek ( es, Arroyo de San L ...
permission to occupy the land for the purpose of grazing and farming, and Serrano established
Rancho Temescal Rancho Temescal was a Mexican land grant in present-day Ventura County and Los Angeles County, California given in 1843 by Governor Manuel Micheltorena to Francisco Lopez and José Arellanes. The word “temescal” is Spanish for "sweat bath ...
. Serrano was
mayordomo Mayordomo or Chocolate Mayordomo is a brand of Mexican (English: "table chocolate") produced by the company Chocolate Mayordomo De Oaxaca, S. De R.L. De C.V., and based in Oaxaca, Oaxaca, Oaxaca, Oaxaca, Mexico. The company manufactures Mole (s ...
of
San Antonio de Pala Asistencia The San Antonio de Pala Asistencia, or the "Pala Mission", was founded on June 13, 1816 as an asistencia or "sub-mission" to Mission San Luis Rey de Francia, some twenty miles inland upstream from the latter mission on the San Luis Rey River. ...
for the Mission of San Luis Rey. With the signing of the Treaty of Cordoba in 1821, Mexico gained its independence from Spain, but the San Gabriel Mission near what is now
Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
, continued to expand, and established Rancho San Gorgonio in 1824. The ranch was to be one of the Mission's principle ''rancherias'', and the most distant, and it occupied most of today's San Gorgonio Pass area. Following Mexico's confiscation of Mission lands in 1833, a series of rancho land grants were made throughout the state. In the Riverside County this included;
Rancho Jurupa Rancho Jurupa was a Mexican land grant in California, United States, that is divided by the present-day counties of Riverside and San Bernardino. The land was granted to Juan Bandini by Governor Juan B. Alvarado in 1838. Located along both ba ...
in 1838, El Rincon in 1839,
Rancho San Jacinto Viejo Rancho San Jacinto Viejo was a Ranchos of California, Mexican land grant in present-day Riverside County, California given in 1842 by Governor Pro-tem Manuel Jimeno to José Antonio Estudillo. At the time of the US Patent, Rancho San Jacinto Viej ...
in 1842,
Rancho San Jacinto y San Gorgonio Rancho San Jacinto y San Gorgonio (also called Rancho San Timoteo and Rancho Yucaipa) was a Mexican land grant in present day Riverside County, California given in 1843 by Governor Manuel Micheltorena to James (Santiago) Johnson.Ogden Hoffman, 1 ...
in 1843, Ranchos
La Laguna LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States. La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * La (musical note), or A, the sixth note * "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on ''Figure ...
, Pauba,
Temecula Temecula (; es, Temécula, ; Luiseño: ''Temeekunga'') is a city in southwestern Riverside County, California, United States. The city had a population of 110,003 as of the 2020 census and was incorporated on December 1, 1989. The city is a ...
in 1844, Ranchos Little Temecula, Potreros de San Juan Capistrano in 1845, Ranchos San Jacinto Sobrante, La Sierra (Sepulveda), La Sierra (Yorba),
Santa Rosa Santa Rosa is the Italian, Portuguese and Spanish name for Saint Rose. Santa Rosa may also refer to: Places Argentina *Santa Rosa, Mendoza, a city * Santa Rosa, Tinogasta, Catamarca * Santa Rosa, Valle Viejo, Catamarca * Santa Rosa, La Pampa * S ...
and San Jacinto Nuevo y Potrero in 1846. New Mexican colonists founded the town of La Placita on the east side of the Santa Ana River at the northern extremity of what is now the city of
Riverside Riverside may refer to: Places Australia * Riverside, Tasmania, a suburb of Launceston, Tasmania Canada * Riverside (electoral district), in the Yukon * Riverside, Calgary, a neighbourhood in Alberta * Riverside, Manitoba, a former rural m ...
in 1843. When the initial 27 California counties were established in 1850, the area today known as Riverside County was divided between Los Angeles County and
San Diego County San Diego County (), officially the County of San Diego, is a county in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 3,298,634, making it California's second-most populous county and the f ...
. In 1853, the eastern part of Los Angeles County was used to create
San Bernardino County San Bernardino County (), officially the County of San Bernardino, is a county located in the southern portion of the U.S. state of California, and is located within the Inland Empire area. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the population was 2,181, ...
. Between 1891 and 1893, several proposals and legislative attempts were put forth to form new counties in Southern California. These proposals included one for a Pomona County and one for a San Jacinto County. None of the proposals were adopted until a measure to create Riverside County was signed by Governor Henry H. Markham on March 11, 1893.Fitch, pages v–viii.


County history

The new county was created from parts of
San Bernardino County San Bernardino County (), officially the County of San Bernardino, is a county located in the southern portion of the U.S. state of California, and is located within the Inland Empire area. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the population was 2,181, ...
and
San Diego County San Diego County (), officially the County of San Diego, is a county in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 3,298,634, making it California's second-most populous county and the f ...
. On May 2, 1893, seventy percent of voters approved the formation of Riverside County. Voters chose the city of Riverside as the county seat, also by a large margin. Riverside County was officially formed on May 9, 1893, when the Board of Commissioners filed the final canvass of the votes. The county is also the location of the March Air Reserve Base, one of the oldest airfields continuously operated by the United States military. Established as the Alessandro Flying Training Field in February 1918, it was one of thirty-two U.S. Army Air Service training camps established after the United States entry into World War I in April 1917. The airfield was renamed March Field the following month for 2d Lieutenant Peyton C. March, Jr., the recently deceased son of the then-Army Chief of Staff, General Peyton C. March, who was killed in an air crash in Texas just fifteen days after being commissioned. March Field remained an active Army Air Service, then
U.S. Army Air Corps The United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) was the aerial warfare service component of the United States Army between 1926 and 1941. After World War I, as early aviation became an increasingly important part of modern warfare, a philosophical ri ...
installation throughout the interwar period, later becoming a major installation of the U.S. Army Air Forces during World War II. Renamed
March Air Force Base March Air Reserve Base (March ARB), previously known as March Air Force Base (March AFB) is located in Riverside County, California between the cities of Riverside, Moreno Valley, and Perris. It is the home to the Air Force Reserve Command's ...
in 1947 following the establishment of the U.S. Air Force, it was a major Strategic Air Command (SAC) installation throughout the Cold War. In 1996, it was transferred to the Air Force Reserve Command and gained its current name as a major base for the Air Force Reserve and the
California Air National Guard The California Air National Guard (CA ANG) is one of three components of the California National Guard, a reserve of the United States Air Force, and part of the National Guard of the United States. As militia units, the units in the California ...
. Riverside county was a major focal point of the
Civil Rights Movement The civil rights movement was a nonviolent social and political movement and campaign from 1954 to 1968 in the United States to abolish legalized institutional racial segregation, discrimination, and disenfranchisement throughout the Unite ...
s in the US, especially the African-American sections of Riverside and heavily Mexican-American communities of the Coachella Valley visited by Cesar Chavez of the farm labor union struggle. Riverside county has also been a focus of modern Native American
Gaming Gaming may refer to: Games and sports The act of playing games, as in: * Legalized gambling, playing games of chance for money, often referred to in law as "gaming" * Playing a role-playing game, in which players assume fictional roles * Playin ...
enterprises. In the early 1980s, the county government attempted to shut down small bingo halls operated by the
Morongo Band of Cahuilla Mission Indians The Morongo Band of Mission Indians is a federally recognized tribe in California, United States. The main tribal groups are Cahuilla and Serrano. Tribal members also include Cupeño, Luiseño, and Chemehuevi Indians. Although many tribes in C ...
and the Cabazon Band of Mission Indians. The tribes joined forces and fought the county all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, which ruled in the tribes' favor on February 25, 1987. In turn, Congress enacted the
Indian Gaming Regulatory Act The Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (, ''et seq.'') is a 1988 United States federal law that establishes the jurisdictional framework that governs Indian gaming. There was no federal gaming structure before this act. The stated purposes of the ac ...
in 1988 to establish a legal framework for the relationship between Indian gaming and state governments. Naturally, both tribes now operate large casinos in the county: the
Morongo Casino, Resort & Spa Morongo Casino, Resort & Spa is a Native American gaming casino, of the Morongo Band of Cahuilla Mission Indians, located in Cabazon, California, United States, near San Gorgonio Pass. The casino has 310 rooms and suites. A , 27-story resort, Mor ...
and the
Fantasy Springs Resort Casino Fantasy Springs Resort Casino is a casino and hotel located southeast of Palm Springs near I-10 in Indio, California. It is owned and operated by the Cabazon Band of Mission Indians, a federally recognized tribe. The hotel has 250 rooms and the c ...
adjacent to
Spotlight 29 Casino Spotlight 29 Casino is an Indian casino in Coachella, California, owned and operated by the Twenty-Nine Palms Band of Mission Indians of California. The casino is 250,000 square feet, with 1,600 slot machines and 22 table games. Amenities includ ...
. The county's population surpassed one million people in 1990 (year-round, would be 1980 with seasonal residents) when the current trend of high population growth as a major real estate destination began in the 1970s. Once strictly a place for long-distance commuters to L.A. and later Orange County, the county and city of Riverside started becoming more of a place to establish new or relocated offices, corporations and finance centers in the late 1990s and 2000s. More light industry, manufacturing and truck distribution centers became major regional employers in the county.


Geography

According to the
U.S. 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 county has a total area of , of which is land and (1.3%) is water. It is the fourth-largest county in California by area. At roughly wide in the east–west dimension, the area of the county is massive. Riverside County, California is roughly the size of the State of New Jersey in total area. County government documents frequently cite the
Colorado River The Colorado River ( es, Río Colorado) is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and northern Mexico. The river drains an expansive, arid watershed that encompasses parts of seven U.S. s ...
town of
Blythe The name Blythe ( or ) derives from Old English ''bliþe'' ("joyous, kind, cheerful, pleasant"; modern ''blithe''), and further back from Proto-Germanic ''*blithiz'' ("gentle, kind"). People * Blythe (given name), including a list of people named ...
as being a "three-hour drive" from the county seat,
Riverside Riverside may refer to: Places Australia * Riverside, Tasmania, a suburb of Launceston, Tasmania Canada * Riverside (electoral district), in the Yukon * Riverside, Calgary, a neighbourhood in Alberta * Riverside, Manitoba, a former rural m ...
. Some view the areas west of San Gorgonio Pass as the Inland Empire portion of the county and the eastern part as either the
Mojave Desert The Mojave Desert ( ; mov, Hayikwiir Mat'aar; es, Desierto de Mojave) is a desert in the rain shadow of the Sierra Nevada mountains in the Southwestern United States. It is named for the indigenous Mojave people. It is located primarily ...
or Colorado Desert portion. There are probably at least three geomorphic provinces: the Inland Empire western portion, the Santa Rosa Mountains communities such as
Reinhardt Canyon Reinhardt Canyon is located in the Lakeview Mountains, just west of Hemet in Riverside County, California. The prehistoric petroglyph known as the Hemet Maze Stone, California Historical Landmark A California Historical Landmark (CHL) is ...
, and the desert region. Other possible subdivisions include tribal lands, the Colorado River communities, and the Salton Sea.


Flora and fauna

There is a diversity of flora and fauna within Riverside County. Vegetative plant associations feature many desert flora, but there are also forested areas within the county. The California endemic Blue oak, ''
Quercus douglasii ''Quercus douglasii'', known as blue oak, is a species of oak endemic to (and found only in) California, common in the Coast Ranges and the foothills of the Sierra Nevada. It is California's most drought-tolerant deciduous oak, and is a domina ...
'' is at the southernmost part of its range in Riverside County.


National protected areas

*
Cleveland National Forest Cleveland National Forest encompasses 460,000 acres (), mostly of chaparral, with a few riparian areas. A warm dry mediterranean climate prevails over the forest. It is the southernmost U.S. National Forest of California. It is administered by ...
(part) * Coachella Valley National Wildlife Refuge *
Dos Palmas Preserve Dos Palmas Preserve is a wildlife preserve in the Colorado Desert in Riverside County, California, in the United States. The preserve is within the Salt Creek Area of Critical Environmental Concern, and is managed by the Bureau of Land Management ...
*
Joshua Tree National Park Joshua Tree National Park is an American national park in southeastern California, east of San Bernardino and Los Angeles and north of Palm Springs. It is named after the Joshua trees (''Yucca brevifolia'') native to the Mojave Desert. Origin ...
(part) *
San Bernardino National Forest The San Bernardino National Forest is a United States National Forest in Southern California encompassing of which are federal. The forest is made up of two main divisions, the eastern portion of the San Gabriel Mountains and the San Bernard ...
(part) *
Sand to Snow National Monument Sand to Snow National Monument is a U.S. National Monument located in San Bernardino County and northern Riverside County, Southern California. It protects diverse montane and desert habitats of the San Bernardino Mountains, southern Mojave Des ...
(part) * Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains National Monument There are 19 official wilderness areas in Riverside County that are part of the National Wilderness Preservation System. Some are integral parts of the above protected areas, most (11 of the 19) are managed solely by the Bureau of Land Management, and some share management between the BLM and the relevant other agencies. Some extend into neighboring counties: * Agua Tibia Wilderness (part) * Beauty Mountain Wilderness * Big Maria Mountains Wilderness * Cahuilla Mountain Wilderness * Chuckwalla Mountains Wilderness * Joshua Tree Wilderness (part) * Little Chuckwalla Mountains Wilderness (part) * Mecca Hills Wilderness * Orocopia Mountains Wilderness * Palen/McCoy Wilderness * Palo Verde Mountains Wilderness (part) * Pinto Mountains Wilderness * Rice Valley Wilderness * Riverside Mountains Wilderness * San Gorgonio Wilderness (part) * San Jacinto Wilderness * San Mateo Canyon Wilderness (part) * Santa Rosa Wilderness * South Fork San Jacinto Wilderness


State parks

* California Citrus State Historic Park * Lake Perris State Recreation Area * Mount San Jacinto State Park


County parks and trails

* Hurkey Creek Park * Idyllwild Park * Indio Hills Palms * Jensen Alvarado Ranch * Lake Cahuilla Recreation Area * Lake Skinner Recreation Area * McCall Memorial Equestrian Park * Santa Rosa Plateau


Demographics


2020 census

''Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos can be of any race.''


2011


Places by population, race, and income


2010

The 2010 United States Census reported that Riverside County had a population of 2,189,641. The racial makeup of Riverside County was 1,335,147 (61.0%) White (U.S. Census), White (40.7% Non-Hispanic White), 140,543 (6.4%) African American (U.S. Census), African American, 23,710 (1.1%) Native American (U.S. Census), Native American, 130,468 (6.0%) Asian (U.S. Census), Asian (2.3% Filipino, 0.8% Chinese, 0.7% Vietnamese, 0.6% Korean, 0.5% Indian, 0.2% Japanese, 0.1% Cambodian, 0.1% Laotian, 0.1% Pakistani), 6,874 (0.3%) Pacific Islander (U.S. Census), Pacific Islander, 448,235 (20.5%) from Race (United States Census), other races, and 104,664 (4.8%) from two or more races. Hispanic (U.S. Census), Hispanic or Latino (U.S. Census), Latino of any race were 995,257 persons (45.5%); 39.5% of Riverside County is Mexican, 0.8% Salvadoran, 0.7% Honduran, 0.6% Puerto Rican, 0.3% Cuban, and 0.2% Nicaraguan.


2000

As of the census of 2000, there were 1,545,387 people, 506,218 households, and 372,576 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 584,674 housing units at an average density of 81 per square mile (31/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 65.6% Race (United States Census), White, 6.2% Race (United States Census), Black or Race (United States Census), African American, 1.2% Race (United States Census), Native American, 3.7% Race (United States Census), Asian, 0.3% Race (United States Census), Pacific Islander, 18.7% from Race (United States Census), other races, and 4.4% from two or more races. 36.2% of the population were Race (United States Census), Hispanic or Race (United States Census), Latino of any race. 9.2% were of German, 6.9% English, 6.1% Irish and 5.0% American ancestry according to Census 2000. 67.2% spoke English and 27.7% Spanish as their first language. In 2006 the county had a population of 2,026,803, up 31.2% since 2000. In 2005 45.8% of the population was non-Hispanic whites. The percentages of African Americans, Asians and Native Americans remained relatively similar to their 2000 figures. The percentage of Pacific Islanders had majorly risen to 0.4. Hispanics now constituted 41% of the population. There were 506,218 households, out of which 38.90% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.5% were married couples living together, 12.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.4% were non-families. 20.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.0 and the average family size was 3.5. In the county, the population was spread out, with 30.3% under the age of 18, 9.2% from 18 to 24, 28.9% from 25 to 44, 18.9% from 45 to 64, and 12.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.8 males. The median income for a household in the county was $42,887, and the median income for a family was $48,409. Males had a median income of $38,639 versus $28,032 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,689. About 10.7% of families and 14.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.5% of those under age 18 and 7.6% of those age 65 or over.


Government and law enforcement


Government

Riverside County is organized as a General Law County under the provision of the California Government Code. The county has five supervisorial districts, and one supervisor is elected from each district every four years. In 1999, the County Board of Supervisors approved a multimillion-dollar planning effort to create the Riverside County Integrated Plan (RCIP) which was to encompass a completely new General Plan, regional transportation plan (CETAP) and Habitat Conservation Plan. The resultant General Plan adopted in 2003 was considered groundbreaking for its multidisciplinary approach to land use and conservation planning.


Courts

The Superior Courts of California, Riverside Superior Court is the state trial court for Riverside County with 14 courthouses: Riverside County Historic Courthouse, Riverside Historic Courthouse, Riverside Hall of Justice, Riverside Family Law Court, Riverside Juvenile Court, Southwest Justice Center – Murrieta, Moreno Valley Court, Banning Court, Hemet Court, Corona Court, Temecula Court, Larson Justice Center – Indio, Indio Juvenile Court, Palm Springs Court and Blythe Court. The main courthouse is the Riverside Historic Courthouse. This landmark, erected in 1903, was modeled after the Grand Palais, Grand and Petit Palais in Paris, France. The courthouse, designed by Los Angeles architects Burnham and Bliesner, has a classical design – including a great hall that connects all the departments (courtrooms). In 1994, the courthouse was closed for seismic retrofits due to the 1992 Landers earthquake, 1992 Landers and 1994 Northridge earthquakes. The courthouse was reopened and rededicated in September 1998. Riverside County hands down 1 in 6 death sentences in the US, in spite of it having less than 1% of the population.


Law enforcement


Sheriff

The Riverside County Sheriff provides court protection, jail administration, and coroner services for all of Riverside County. It provides patrol, detective, and other police services for the unincorporated areas of the county plus by contract to the cities and towns of Coachella, Eastvale, Indian Wells, Jurupa Valley, La Quinta, Lake Elsinore, Moreno Valley, Norco, Palm Desert, Perris, Rancho Mirage, San Jacinto, Temecula and Wildomar. The Morongo Indian Reservation also contracts with the Sheriff's Office to provide police services to the reservation.


Municipal Police

Municipal departments within the county are Banning, Beaumont, Blythe, Calimesa, Cathedral City, Corona, Desert Hot Springs, Hemet, Indio, Menifee, Murrieta, Palm Springs, Riverside, Riverside Community College.


Politics


Voter registration


Overview

Prior to 2008, Riverside County was historically a Republican Party (United States), Republican stronghold in President of the United States, presidential and United States Congress, congressional elections. Between its creation in 1893 and 2004, it voted for the Democratic presidential nominee only three times: Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1936 United States presidential election in California, 1936 (by a margin of 337 votes, or 0.99%), Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964 United States presidential election in California, 1964 (by a margin of 19,363 votes, or 13.65%) and Bill Clinton in 1992 United States presidential election in California, 1992 (by a margin of 6,784 votes, or 1.58%). In 1932 United States presidential election in California, 1932, it was one of only two counties on the entire West Coast of the United States, West Coast to vote for Republican president Herbert Hoover over Roosevelt. However, in 2008 United States presidential election in California, 2008, consistent with a trend in California and nationwide suburbs towards the Democratic Party, Barack Obama narrowly carried the county with 14,976 votes, a 2.32% margin over Republican John McCain. Mitt Romney lost the county in 2012 United States presidential election in California, 2012 in a plurality. Hillary Clinton continued the Democratic win streak in the 2016 United States presidential election in California, 2016 election, and became the first and only losing Democratic nominee to win the county. Former Democratic Vice President of the United States, Vice President Joe Biden won the county outright in 2020 United States presidential election in California, 2020 with a 79,196 lead over President Donald Trump, the largest ever raw vote margin for a Democrat. Despite the federal trend towards Democrats, Republicans have continued to win Riverside County at the state level. During the 2018 California gubernatorial election, 2018 gubernatorial election, Republican John H. Cox (50.2%) narrowly defeated Democrat Gavin Newsom (49.8%) in the county despite losing in a landslide statewide. During the 2021 California gubernatorial recall election, gubernatorial recall against Newsom held three years later, Riverside County narrowly voted in favor of recalling Newsom despite the recall failing in another landslide. In the United States House of Representatives, Riverside County is split between 4 congressional districts: * * * and * . In the California State Senate, the county is split between 3 legislative districts: * , * , and * . In the California State Assembly, the county is split between 7 legislative districts: * California's 42nd State Assembly district, the 42nd Assembly District, represented by Independent politician, Independent Chad Mayes, * , * , * , * , * , and * . Riverside County voted 64.8% in favor of California Proposition 8 (2008), Proposition 8 which amended the California Constitution to ban same-sex marriages. Only the city of
Palm Springs Palm Springs (Cahuilla: ''Séc-he'') is a desert resort city in Riverside County, California, United States, within the Colorado Desert's Coachella Valley. The city covers approximately , making it the largest city in Riverside County by land ...
voted against the measure.


Crime

The following table includes the number of incidents reported and the rate per 1,000 persons for each type of offense.


Cities by population and crime rates


Education


Universities and colleges

* Azusa Pacific University – Murrieta
Brandman University
part of the Chapman University#Colleges and programs, Chapman University System – Moreno Valley, Palm Desert, Riverside and Temecula * California Baptist University – Riverside * California Southern Law School – Riverside * California State University, San Bernardino, Palm Desert Campus – Palm Desert * California State University, San Marcos, Temecula Satellite Campus – Temecula * College of the Desert – Palm Desert and Indio * La Sierra University – Riverside * Mayfield College – Cathedral City * Mt. San Jacinto College – Banning, Menifee, San Jacinto, Temecula * Olivet University – Anza * Palo Verde Community College, Palo Verde College – Blythe * Riverside Community College District ** Riverside City College ** Moreno Valley College ** Norco College * Santa Barbara Business College – Palm Desert * University of California, Riverside – Palm Desert and Riverside * University of Phoenix – Murrieta and Palm Desert


K-12 schools

; Public school districts K-12 unified: * Alvord Unified School District * Banning Unified School District * Beaumont Unified School District * Coachella Valley Unified School District * Colton Joint Unified School District * Corona-Norco Unified School District * Desert Center Unified School District * Desert Sands Unified School District * Hemet Unified School District * Jurupa Unified School District * Lake Elsinore Unified School District * Moreno Valley Unified School District * Murrieta Valley Unified School District * Palm Springs Unified School District * Palo Verde Unified School District * Riverside Unified School District * San Jacinto Unified School District * Temecula Valley Unified School District * Val Verde Unified School District * Yucaipa-Calimesa Joint Unified School District Secondary: * Perris Union High School District Elementary: * Menifee Union School District * Nuview Union Elementary School District * Perris Elementary School District * Romoland Elementary School District ; State-operated schools * California School for the Deaf, Riverside ; Bureau of Indian Education-operated schools: * Sherman Indian High School


Transportation


Major highways


Public transportation

* Riverside Transit Agency serves the western third of Riverside County, as far east as Banning, California, Banning. * SunLine Transit Agency serves Palm Springs, California, Palm Springs and the Coachella Valley area. * List of small Southern California transit agencies#Palo Verde Valley Transit Agency, Palo Verde Valley Transit Agency provides service in Blythe, near the
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border. * Pass Transit serves the San Gorgonio Pass communities. * List of small Southern California transit agencies#Corona Cruiser, Corona Cruiser serves the city of Corona. * Riverside County is also served by Greyhound Lines, Greyhound buses. Amtrak trains stop in Riverside (Amtrak station), Riverside and Palm Springs (Amtrak station), Palm Springs, and Amtrak California provides bus connections to the San Joaquins in Riverside (Amtrak station), Riverside, Beaumont, California, Beaumont, Palm Springs Airport, Palm Springs, Thousand Palms, California, Thousand Palms, Indio, California, Indio, Moreno Valley, California, Moreno Valley, Perris, California, Perris, Sun City, California, Sun City, and Hemet, California, Hemet. Metrolink (Southern California), Metrolink trains serve nine stations in Riverside County: Riverside (Amtrak station), Riverside-Downtown, Riverside-La Sierra (Metrolink station), Riverside-La Sierra, North Main Corona (Metrolink station), North Main-Corona, West Corona (Metrolink station), West Corona, Jurupa Valley/Pedley station, Jurupa Valley/Pedley, Riverside-Hunter Park/UCR station, Hunter Park/UCR, Moreno Valley/March Field station, March Field-Moreno Valley, Perris-Downtown station, Perris-Downtown, and Perris-South station, Perris-South. These trains provide service to Orange, San Bernardino and Los Angeles counties seven days a week, with a primarily commuter-oriented schedule.


Airports


Military air bases

* March Air Reserve Base (former
March Air Force Base March Air Reserve Base (March ARB), previously known as March Air Force Base (March AFB) is located in Riverside County, California between the cities of Riverside, Moreno Valley, and Perris. It is the home to the Air Force Reserve Command's ...
)


Commercial airports

* Palm Springs International Airport


General aviation airports

* Banning Municipal Airport * Bermuda Dunes Airport * Blythe Airport * Corona Municipal Airport * Flabob Airport, Riverside * French Valley Airport (Temecula Valley) * Hemet-Ryan Airport (San Jacinto Valley) * Jacqueline Cochran Regional Airport, Thermal (Coachella Valley) * Perris Valley Airport * Riverside Municipal Airport


Military installations

* Active ** Chocolate Mountain Aerial Gunnery Range ** March Air Reserve Base ** Naval Weapons Station Seal Beach Detachment Norco *** Naval Surface Warfare Center, Corona Division * Historical ** Desert Training Center *** Blythe Airport#History, Blythe Army Airfield *** Desert Center Airport#World War II use, Desert Center Army Airfield *** California World War II Army Airfields#Major Airfields, Palm Springs Army Airfield *** Rice Army Airfield *** California World War II Army Airfields#Known Secondary Facilities, Shaver's Summit Army Airfield *** Jacqueline Cochran Regional Airport#History, Thermal Army Airfield (Also named Naval Air Facility Thermal (historical)) ** Hemet-Ryan Airport#History, Hemet Army Airfield


Points of interest

* Empire Polo Club, location of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, Coachella and Stagecoach Festival, Stagecoach music festivals * Gold Base, international headquarters of the Church of Scientology and Golden Era Productions * Indian Wells Tennis Garden *
Joshua Tree National Park Joshua Tree National Park is an American national park in southeastern California, east of San Bernardino and Los Angeles and north of Palm Springs. It is named after the Joshua trees (''Yucca brevifolia'') native to the Mojave Desert. Origin ...
* Living Desert Zoo and Gardens * March Field Air Museum * The Mission Inn Hotel & Spa, Mission Inn Hotel & Spa * Orange Empire Railway Museum * Orocopia Mountains Wilderness * Palm Springs Aerial Tramway and Mount San Jacinto State Park * Palm Springs Desert Museum * Ramona Bowl, Home of ''The Ramona Pageant'' * Riverside County fair grounds, location of the Riverside County Fair and National Date Festival * Riverside National Cemetery, including the Medal of Honor Memorial * Salton Sea State Recreation Area * Santa Rosa Plateau * Sunnylands Center & Gardens * Temecula Valley AVA Wine Region * Western Science Center


Communities


Cities


Unincorporated communities

* Aguanga, California, Aguanga * Alberhill, California, Alberhill * Alessandro, California, Alessandro * Anza, California, Anza * Arnold Heights, California, Arnold Heights * Bermuda Dunes, California, Bermuda Dunes * Bonnie Bell, California, Bonnie Bell * Box Springs, California, Box Springs * Cabazon, California, Cabazon * Cactus City, California, Cactus City * Cahuilla, California, Cahuilla * Cahuilla Hills, California, Cahuilla Hills * Cherry Valley, California, Cherry Valley * Chiriaco Summit, California, Chiriaco Summit * Coronita, California, Coronita * Desert Beach, California, Desert Beach * Desert Center, California, Desert Center * Desert Edge, California, Desert Edge * Desert Palms, California, Desert Palms * East Hemet, California, East Hemet * Edgemont, Riverside County, California, Edgemont * El Cariso, California, El Cariso * El Cerrito, Riverside County, California, El Cerrito * El Sobrante, Riverside County, California, El Sobrante * Idyllwild-Pine Cove, California, Fern Valley * French Valley, California, French Valley * Garnet, California, Garnet * Gilman Hot Springs, California, Gilman Hot Springs * Good Hope, California, Good Hope * Green Acres, California, Green Acres * Highgrove, California, Highgrove * Home Gardens, California, Home Gardens * Homeland, California, Homeland * Idyllwild-Pine Cove, California, Idyllwild * Indio Hills, California, Indio Hills * La Cresta, Riverside County, California, La Cresta * Lake Mathews, California, Lake Mathews * Lake Riverside, California, Lake Riverside * Lake Tamarisk, California, Lake Tamarisk * Lakeland Village, California, Lakeland Village * Lakeview, California, Lakeview * March ARB, California, March ARB * Mead Valley, California, Mead Valley * Meadowbrook, California, Meadowbrook * Mecca, California, Mecca * Mesa Verde, California, Mesa Verde * Mountain Center, California, Mountain Center * North Palm Springs, California, North Palm Springs * North Shore, California, North Shore * Nuevo, California, Nuevo * Oasis, Riverside County, California, Oasis * Idyllwild-Pine Cove, California, Pine Cove * Pinyon Pines, California, Pinyon Pines * Radec, California, Radec * Rancho Capistrano * Ripley, California, Ripley * Romoland, California, Romoland * Sage, Riverside County, California, Sage * Sky Valley, California, Sky Valley * Snow Creek, California, Snow Creek * Temescal Valley, California, Temescal Valley * Thermal, California, Thermal * Thomas Mountain, California, Thomas Mountain * Thousand Palms, California, Thousand Palms * Valerie, California, Valerie * Valle Vista, California, Valle Vista * Vista Santa Rosa, California, Vista Santa Rosa * Warm Springs, California, Warm Springs * Whitewater, California, Whitewater * Winchester, California, Winchester * Woodcrest, California, Woodcrest


Ghost towns

* Bergman, California, Bergman * Dos Palmas Spring, Dos Palmas * Eagle Mountain, California, Eagle Mountain * Eden * List of Riverside County, California, placename etymologies#Fertilla, Fertilla * Hell, California, Hell * La Placita * Leon, California, Leon * Midland, California, Midland * Pinacate, California, Pinacate * Saahatpa, California, Saahatpa * Rancho Temescal (Serrano)#Temescal Butterfield Stage Station and Temescal, Temescal * Terra Cotta, California, Terra Cotta * Willow Springs Station


Indian reservations

Riverside County has 12 federally recognized Indian reservations, which ties it with Sandoval County, New Mexico, for second most of any county in the United States. (Sandoval County, however, has two additional joint-use areas, shared between reservations. San Diego County, California has the most, with 18 reservations.) * Agua Caliente Indian Reservation * Augustine Indian Reservation * Cabazon Indian Reservation * Cahuilla Indian Reservation * Colorado River Indian Reservation (partly in La Paz County, Arizona and San Bernardino County, California) * Morongo Indian Reservation * Pechanga Indian Reservation * Ramona Band of Cahuilla, Ramona Village * Santa Rosa Indian Reservation * Soboba Band of Mission Indians * Torres-Martinez Indian Reservation (partly in Imperial County, California) * Twenty-Nine Palms Indian Reservation (partly in San Bernardino County, California)


Population ranking

The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2020 United States census, 2020 census of Riverside County. † ''county seat''


Climate


See also

* USS Riverside (APA-102), USS ''Riverside'' (APA-102), a World War II attack transport * List of cemeteries in Riverside County, California *National Register of Historic Places listings in Riverside County, California * KPRO (California), a radio station that served the county


Notes


References


Bibliography

* Fitch, Robert J. (1993). ''Profile of a Century: Riverside County, California, 1893–1993''. Riverside County Historical Commission Press. pp. 300. * Gunther, Jane Davies. ''Riverside County, California, Place Names; Their Origins and Their Stories'', Riverside, CA, 1984. LOC catalog number: 84–72920. * * ** (a reprint of the first three chapters of ''Along the Old Roads''.)


Further reading

* * Gunther, Jane Davies (1984). ''Riverside County, California, Place Names. Their Origins and Their Stories:'' Rubidoux Printing Co. 1984. LCCN 84-72920
''History of San Bernardino and Riverside Counties, Volume 1''.

''History of San Bernardino and Riverside Counties, Volume 2''.

''History of San Bernardino and Riverside Counties Volume 3''.
*


External links

*
Official Riverside County, Department of Information Technology website

Official Riverside County Sheriff website

Official Riverside County Fire Dept. website

Official Riverside County District Attorney's Office website

Official Riverside County Regional Parks District website
* {{Authority control Riverside County, California, California counties Inland Empire Greater Los Angeles Counties in Southern California 1893 establishments in California Populated places established in 1893 Majority-minority counties in California