Healdsburg, California

Healdsburg is a city located in Sonoma County, California, United States. At the 2020 census, the city had a population of 11,340.

Healdsburg is centered on a 19th-century plaza.

History

Early inhabitants of the local area included the Pomo people, who constructed villages in open areas along the Russian River. Anglo-American and Russian settlement may have commenced in the mid-19th century, with a settlement nearby, established downstream along the Russian River near Graton, in 1836, and later the Rancho Sotoyome land grant, in 1844.

In 1857, Harmon Heald, an Ohio businessman who had been squatting on Rancho Sotoyome since 1850, purchased part of the rancho—giving the city its official founding date. In 1867, Heald's eponymous small town was incorporated. Healdsburg is located within the former township of Mendocino. The San Francisco and North Pacific Railroad reached Healdsburg in 1872.

Farming, especially orchards and truck farms, was common within the present city limits from at least the 1890s to 1940s.

The first commercial development of the seasoning lemon pepper was in Healdsburg in 1967.

Geography

The city has a total area of , of which is land and is water. The total area is 0.15% water.
It lies on the Russian River, near a point used as a crossing of the river since the 1850s that is now the site of the Healdsburg Memorial Bridge.

Foss Creek traverses the city from north to south, flowing into Dry Creek near the U.S. 101 Central Healdsburg interchange.

Climate

Healdsburg has cool, wet winters and warm to hot, dry summers. In January, the average high temperature is and the average low is . In July, the average high temperature is and the average low is . There are an average of 54.6 days with highs of or higher and an average of 20.1 days with lows of or lower. The record high temperature was on September 6, 2022, and the record low temperature was on December 22, 1990.

Annual precipitation averages . There are an average of 73 days annually with measurable precipitation. The wettest year was 1983 with and the driest year was 1976 with . The most precipitation in one month was in January 1995. The most precipitation in 24 hours was on December 3, 1980. Snow is relatively rare, with none in most years. The highest yearly snowfall totaled in 1976.

Environment

An intrinsic element of the city's natural environment is the riparian zone associated with the Russian River that flows through Healdsburg. The city owns two open space reserves stewarded by LandPaths. The Healdsburg Ridge Open Space Preserve has of wetlands, oak woodlands, chaparral, and grasslands, while the Fitch Mountain Open Space Preserve has . City residents support recycling by use of the Healdsburg Transfer Station. The city has shown an interest in creating a quiet environment by creating a Noise Element of the General Plan, which defines baseline sound level contours and sets forth standards of quiet for each land use category.

Demographics

2020

The 2020 United States census reported that Healdsburg had a population of 11,340. The population density was . The racial makeup of Healdsburg was 63.4% White, 0.6% African American, 2.0% Native American, 1.5% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 18.3% from other races, and 14.1% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 34.6% of the population.

The census reported that 99.3% of the population lived in households, 25 people (0.2%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 54 people (0.5%) were institutionalized.

There were 4,519 households, out of which 27.4% included children under the age of 18, 49.3% were married-couple households, 7.1% were cohabiting couple households, 28.0% had a female householder with no partner present, and 15.6% had a male householder with no partner present. 26.6% of households were one person, and 14.7% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.49. There were 2,955 families (65.4% of all households).

The age distribution was 19.0% under the age of 18, 7.1% aged 18 to 24, 23.3% aged 25 to 44, 27.1% aged 45 to 64, and 23.4% who were 65years of age or older. The median age was 45.4years. For every 100 females, there were 94.7 males.

There were 5,051 housing units at an average density of , of which 4,519 (89.5%) were occupied. Of these, 58.0% were owner-occupied, and 42.0% were occupied by renters.

In 2023, the US Census Bureau estimated that 18.5% of the population were foreign-born. Of all people aged 5 or older, 71.7% spoke only English at home, 25.8% spoke Spanish, 1.8% spoke other Indo-European languages, 0.6% spoke Asian or Pacific Islander languages, and 0.1% spoke other languages. Of those aged 25 or older, 85.7% were high school graduates and 39.5% had a bachelor's degree.

The median household income in 2023 was $100,082, and the per capita income was $60,189. About 7.1% of families and 11.3% of the population were below the poverty line.

2010

At the 2010 census Healdsburg had a population of 11,254. The population density was . The racial makeup of Healdsburg was 8,334 (74.1%) White, 56 (0.5%) African American, 205 (1.8%) Native American, 125 (1.1%) Asian, 18 (0.2%) Pacific Islander, 2,133 (19.0%) from other races, and 383 (3.4%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3,820 persons (33.9%).

The census reported that 99.5% of the population lived in households and 0.5% were institutionalized.

There were 4,378 households, 1,335 (30.5%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 2,140 (48.9%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 465 (10.6%) had a female householder with no husband present, 222 (5.1%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 259 (5.9%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 54 (1.2%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. Of the households, 1,205 (27.5%) were one person and 542 (12.4%) had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.56. There were 2,827 families (64.6% of households); the average family size was 3.12.

The age distribution was 2,546 people (22.6%) under the age of 18, 925 people (8.2%) aged 18 to 24, 2,750 people (24.4%) aged 25 to 44, 3,349 people (29.8%) aged 45 to 64, and 1,684 people (15.0%) who were 65 or older. The median age was 40.8 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.0 males.

There were 4,794 housing units at an average density of , of which 57.6% were owner-occupied and 42.4% were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.7%; the rental vacancy rate was 4.2%. Of the population, 53.2% lived in owner-occupied housing units and 46.3% lived in rental housing units.

Arts and culture

The Healdsburg Carnegie Library, home of the Healdsburg Museum, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, as is the Healdsburg Memorial Bridge. A Cultural Resource Survey conducted in 1983 catalogued over 300 historic resources in the city. The city has designated eleven historic landmarks in Healdsburg and two locally designated Historic Districts which include the Johnson Street Historic District and the Matheson Historic District.

Government

State and federal

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

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

According to the California Secretary of State, as of February 10, 2019, Healdsburg has 6,913 registered voters. Of those, 3,624 (52.4%) are registered Democrats, 1,262 (18.3%) are registered Republicans, and 1,680 (24.3%) have declined to state a political party.

Education

The school district is Healdsburg Unified School District.
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Schools include Healdsburg Elementary School, Healdsburg Junior High School, Healdsburg High School, and Marce Becerra Academy.

Media

The 1943 film '' Happy Land'', and 1996 film '' Scream'', were filmed in and around Healdsburg.

Infrastructure

Emergency services

Emergency services are provided by the Healdsburg Police Department, and Healdsburg Fire Department. Emergency medical services are provided by Bell's Ambulance Service.

Transportation

Sonoma County Transit buses serve the Depot. Healdsburg is a proposed future stop on the Sonoma–Marin Area Rail Transit commuter rail line.

The Amtrak Thruway 7 bus provides daily connections to Healdsburg from Martinez to the south, and Arcata to the north.

Notable people

* Mary Ellen Bamford: author
* Kristen Barnhisel, winemaker
* Helen Beardsley: author
* Raymond Burr: actor
* Jim Cullom: professional football player
* L Peter Deutsch: creator of Ghostscript
* Richard Diebenkorn: artist
* Ron Elliott : oldies singer, the lead guitarist (and sometimes vocalist) for the band The Beau Brummels in the mid-1960s. Born in Healdsburg (in 1943), and partly raised there.
* Paul Erdman: business and financial writer
* Henry D. Fitch: early resident
* Jess Stonestreet Jackson Jr.: wine entrepreneur
* Roderick N. Matheson: early resident
* Patti McCarty: actress
* Mike McGuire: politician
* Heidi Newfield: country singer, formerly of Trick Pony
* Thomas C. Reed: former Secretary of the Air Force
* Ariana Richards: actress and painter
* Effie Robinson: social worker and public housing director
* Ralph Rose: track and field athlete, Olympic gold medalist and flagbearer
* Jack Sonni: former guitarist of Dire Straits
* John Udell: diarist of the American frontier
* John Carl Warnecke: architect
* Hazel Hotchkiss Wightman: tennis player, Wimbledon and Olympic champion
* Jim Wood: politician

See also

* List of cities and towns in California
* List of cities and towns in the San Francisco Bay Area
* Madrona Manor
* Honor Mansion
* Sonoma County wine
* Wine Country (California)

References

* Sonoma County Genealogical Society. Portraits of Early Sonoma County Settlers., pp. 71–87. Santa Rosa, California: Caiifornia Genealogical Society, 2016, ISBN 978-1-365-13126-4

External links

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1867 establishments in California
Cities in Sonoma County, California
Cities in the San Francisco Bay Area
Incorporated cities and towns in California
Populated places established in 1857
Populated places established in 1867