Cayucos (

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

for "

Canoes A canoe is a lightweight, narrow water vessel, typically pointed at both ends and open on top, propelled by one or more seated or kneeling paddlers facing the direction of travel and using paddles. In British English, the term ''canoe'' ca ...

") is an unincorporated coastal town in

San Luis Obispo County, California San Luis Obispo County (), officially the County of San Luis Obispo, is a County (United States), county on the Central Coast of California. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 282,424. The county seat is San Luis Obispo ...

, along

California State Route 1 State Route 1 (SR 1) is a major north–south state highway A state highway, state road, or state route (and the equivalent provincial highway, provincial road, or provincial route) is usually a road that is either Route number, ...

between

Cambria Cambria is a name for Wales, being the Latinised form of the Welsh name for the country, . The term was not in use during the Roman period (when Wales had not come into existence as a distinct entity) or the early medieval period. After the ...

to the north and

Morro Bay Morro Bay (''Morro'', Spanish for "Hill") is a seaside city in San Luis Obispo County, California, United States. Located on the Central Coast of California, the city's population was 10,757 as of the 2020 census, up from 10,234 at the 2010 ...

to the south. The population was 2,505 at the 2020 census, down from 2,592 at the 2010 census.

History

The area was settled by the

Chumash people The Chumash are a Native Americans in the United States, Native American people of the central and southern coastal regions of California, in portions of what is now Kern County, California, Kern, San Luis Obispo County, California, San Luis O ...

approximately 11000 to 10000 BC. It included a large village to the south of Cayucos at Morro Creek. The first European land exploration of

Alta California Alta California (, ), also known as Nueva California () among other names, was a province of New Spain formally established in 1804. Along with the Baja California peninsula, it had previously comprised the province of , but was made a separat ...

, the Spanish Portolà expedition, camped in the vicinity of today's Cayucos on September 9, 1769. Coming from the previous campsite near Morro Bay,

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...

missionary and expedition member

Juan Crespi ''Juan'' is a given name, the Spanish and Manx versions of ''John''. The name is of Hebrew origin and has the meaning "God has been gracious." It is very common in Spain and in other Spanish-speaking countries around the world and in the Philipp ...

noted in his diary that "In the four hours that we traveled, making at the most three leagues, we encountered eight arroyos by which the water from the mountains runs to the sea, along whose edge we traveled. We halted at the eighth watering place in a moderately broad valley, into which enters an estuary fed by an arroyo of good water coming from the mountains." Crespi translator Herbert Bolton noted the camp location as Ellysley Creek (further along the coast to the northwest), but the description sounds more like Cayucos. Cayucos is named for the cayuco, a Spanish name for a small canoe. It was named after the canoes used by the Chumash people to fish in the bay, particularly in the rich kelp beds just north of the current Cayucos pier. The town took its name from the old Rancho Moro y Cayucos, a Mexican

land grant A land grant is a gift of real estate—land or its use privileges—made by a government or other authority as an incentive, means of enabling works, or as a reward for services to an individual, especially in return for military service. Grants ...

awarded in 1842 that includes the present area of the town. In 1867, Captain James Cass settled on of this land, and founded the town of Cayucos. Cass began developing the area with his business partner, Captain Ingals. Cass built a 900-foot pier and a warehouse to house cargo bound for San Francisco or Los Angeles. Eventually Cass returned to life on the sea and in 1875 real estate developer C.H. Phillips subdivided and sold the remaining portions of Rancho Moro y Cayucos. The original pier was swept away by a storm but has since been rebuilt. On December 7, 1987, Pacific Southwest Airlines Flight 1771, bound from

Los Angeles International Airport Los Angeles International Airport is the primary international airport serving Los Angeles and its Greater Los Angeles, surrounding metropolitan area, in the U.S. state of California. LAX is located in the Westchester, Los Angeles, Westcheste ...

to San Francisco, was cruising above the central California coast when a recently terminated disgruntled

USAir US Airways was a major airline in the United States. It was originally founded in Pittsburgh as a mail delivery airline called All American Aviation, which soon became a commercial passenger airline. In 1953, it was renamed Allegheny Airlines an ...

employee aboard the plane shot his ex-supervisor, both pilots, a flight attendant and presumably PSA's chief pilot, before deliberately inducing a steep nosedive with the aircraft. The aircraft slammed into a hillside just east of Cayucos at . All 43 passengers and crew aboard perished. In October 2009, Arthur Frommer's ''Budget Travel Magazine'' listed Cayucos as one of the "Coolest Small Towns in America".

Geography

Cayucos is located at (35.438390, -120.890647). According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the CDP has a total area of , of which, of it is land and of it (10.85%) is water. Cayucos is home to Cayucos State Beach.

Demographics

2020

The 2020 United States census reported that Cayucos had a population of 2,505. The population density was . The racial makeup of Cayucos was 83.6%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 0.5%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.4% Native American, 2.0% Asian, 0.0%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, 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 th ...

, 3.1% from other races, and 10.3% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 10.9% of the population. The whole population lived in households. There were 1,244 households, out of which 15.1% included children under the age of 18, 44.9% were married-couple households, 5.4% were

cohabiting Cohabitation is an arrangement where people who are not legally married live together as a couple. They are often involved in a romantic or sexually intimate relationship on a long-term or permanent basis. Such arrangements have become incr ...

couple households, 31.3% had a female householder with no partner present, and 18.5% had a male householder with no partner present. 36.3% of households were one person, and 19.7% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.01. There were 695

families Family (from ) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictability, structure, and safety as ...

(55.9% of all households). The age distribution was 12.5% under the age of 18, 5.7% aged 18 to 24, 17.8% aged 25 to 44, 27.6% aged 45 to 64, and 36.4% who were 65years of age or older. The median age was 57.8years. For every 100 females, there were 88.3 males. There were 2,382 housing units at an average density of , of which 1,244 (52.2%) were occupied. Of these, 62.9% were owner-occupied, and 37.1% were occupied by renters. In 2023, the US Census Bureau estimated that the median household income was $82,778, and the

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

was $56,928. About 1.9% of families and 6.0% of the population were below the poverty line.

2010

The 2010 United States Census reported that Cayucos had a population of 2,592. The population density was . The racial makeup of Cayucos was 2,366 (91.3%)

, 6 (0.2%)

, 12 (0.5%) Native American, 54 (2.1%) Asian, 8 (0.3%)

, 57 (2.2%) from other races, and 89 (3.4%) from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 207 persons (8.0%). The Census reported that 2,592 people (100% of the population) lived in households, 0 (0%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 0 (0%) were institutionalized. There were 1,314 households, out of which 214 (16.3%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 578 (44.0%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 105 (8.0%) had a female householder with no husband present, 45 (3.4%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 76 (5.8%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 10 (0.8%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 471 households (35.8%) were made up of individuals, and 195 (14.8%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.97. There were 728

(55.4% of all households); the average family size was 2.53. The age of the population was spread out, with 337 people (13.0%) under the age of 18, 169 people (6.5%) aged 18 to 24, 488 people (18.8%) aged 25 to 44, 946 people (36.5%) aged 45 to 64, and 652 people (25.2%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 53.0 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.2 males. There were 2,354 housing units at an average density of , of which 781 (59.4%) were owner-occupied, and 533 (40.6%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 4.6%; the rental vacancy rate was 12.8%. 1,555 people (60.0% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 1,037 people (40.0%) lived in rental housing units.

Government

In the

California State Legislature The California State Legislature is the bicameral state legislature of the U.S. state of California, consisting of the California State Assembly (lower house with 80 members) and the California State Senate (upper house with 40 members). ...

, Cayucos is in the 17th

State Senate In the United States, the state legislature is the legislative branch in each of the 50 U.S. states. A legislature generally performs state duties for a state in the same way that the United States Congress performs national duties at ...

District and the 35th Assembly District. In the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

, Cayucos is in .

Economy and Culture

Tourism plays a big role in the downtown Cayucos economy. Composer Stefan Podell has even celebrated the beauty of Cayucos with an orchestral piece called "Cayucos by the Sea

The Cayucos Pier is a popular surf spot and one of the best in the county, attracting many beachgoers. Cayucos has its own Chamber of Commerce an
website

Education

Almost all of it is within the Cayucos Elementary School District, and the Coast Unified School District for grades 9-12 only. A small piece is in the San Luis Coastal Unified School District.
Text list
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References

External links

Cayucos Chamber of CommerceConcerned Citizens of CayucosCayucos Community GroupsVisit Cayucos
{{authority control Census-designated places in San Luis Obispo County, California Morro Bay Populated coastal places in California Census-designated places in California Populated places established in 1867 1867 establishments in California