Bonsall, California

Bonsall is a census-designated place (CDP) in San Diego County, California. The population was 4,546 at the 2020 census, up from 3,982 at the 2010 census.

The Bonsall area was heavily affected by the Lilac Fire in December 2017, which burned 4,100 acres.

Name

The area known as Bonsall was originally called Mount Fairview and had a post office by that name from December 28, 1871, to December 28, 1880. It received a post office in 1881 under the name Osgood, after California Southern Railroad chief engineer Joseph O. Osgood; the renaming was supposedly an unsuccessful attempt to convince Osgood to build the railroad through the San Luis Rey River Valley (the rail line eventually followed the Santa Margarita River instead). Following a contest, the town was renamed Bonsall in 1890, after local minister James A. Bonsall.

Geography

Bonsall is just east of Oceanside and Camp Pendleton, north of Vista and northwest of Hidden Meadows.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of . The is land whereas or (1.28%) is water.

Demographics

The 2020 United States census reported that Bonsall had a population of 4,546. The population density was . The racial makeup of Bonsall was 68.0% White, 2.0% African American, 1.0% Native American, 4.2% Asian, 0.3% Pacific Islander, 10.8% from other races, and 13.7% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 24.1% of the population.

The whole population lived in households. There were 1,645 households, out of which 28.8% included children under the age of 18, 60.4% were married-couple households, 6.7% were cohabiting couple households, 18.4% had a female householder with no partner present, and 14.5% had a male householder with no partner present. 19.2% of households were one person, and 9.7% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.76. There were 1,227 families (74.6% of all households).

The age distribution was 19.8% under the age of 18, 6.6% aged 18 to 24, 23.9% aged 25 to 44, 26.5% aged 45 to 64, and 23.1% who were 65years of age or older. The median age was 44.7years. For every 100 females, there were 98.6 males.

There were 1,789 housing units at an average density of , of which 1,645 (92.0%) were occupied. Of these, 73.4% were owner-occupied, and 26.6% were occupied by renters.

In 2023, the US Census Bureau estimated that the median household income was $110,316, and the per capita income was $59,884. About 9.9% of families and 15.4% of the population were below the poverty line.

Education

Bonsall is served by the Bonsall Unified School District. consisting of three elementary schools, a middle school, and a high school. Joseph Clevenger has served as superintendent since July 1, 2021.

Politics

In the California State Legislature, Bonsall is in , and in .

In the United States House of Representatives, Bonsall is in .

In June 1988, Bonsall-area voters defeated a ballot initiative to create a Community Services District ("CSD") after opponents argued that the boundaries included too many county taxpayers who more closely associated with neighboring cities Vista and Fallbrook rather than the unincorporated Bonsall community.June 1988 editions of ''Vista Press'' and ''Oceanside Blade-Tribune''

References

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Census-designated places in San Diego County, California
North County (San Diego County)
Census-designated places in California