Phelan is an
unincorporated community
An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...
and
census-designated place
A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), 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 counte ...
in
San Bernardino County, California
San Bernardino County ( ), officially the County of San Bernardino and sometimes abbreviated as S.B. County, is a County (United States), county located in the Southern California, southern portion of the U.S. state of California, and is locat ...
, in the
Victor Valley
The Victor Valley is a valley in the Mojave Desert and subregion of the Inland Empire, in San Bernardino County in Southern California.
It is located east of the Mojave's Antelope Valley, north of the Cajon Pass and the San Bernardino Valley, n ...
of the
Mojave Desert
The Mojave Desert (; ; ) is a desert in the rain shadow of the southern Sierra Nevada mountains and Transverse Ranges in the Southwestern United States. Named for the Indigenous peoples of the Americas, indigenous Mohave people, it is located pr ...
, north of the
San Gabriel Mountains
The San Gabriel Mountains () are a mountain range located in Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties, California, United States. The mountain range is part of the Transverse Ranges and lies between the Los Angeles Basin and the Mojave Desert ...
. The population was 14,304 in the 2010 census.
History
Origin
Phelan's history dates back to the days of the
Mormon Trail
The Mormon Trail is the route from Illinois to Utah on which Mormon pioneers (members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) traveled from 1846 to 1869. Today, the Mormon Trail is a part of the United States National Trails Syst ...
, when settlers passed through the area on their way to San Bernardino and points beyond. Phelan was named after
Senator
A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or Legislative chamber, chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the Ancient Rome, ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior ...
James D. Phelan and his brother, John Thomas (J.T) Phelan.
Geography
Situated south of
State Route 18 and northeast of
State Route 138, the town is east of
Palmdale and west of
Victorville
Victorville is a city in Victor Valley in San Bernardino County, California. Its population as of the 2020 census was 134,810.
Victorville is the principal city of a Victor Valley–based urban area defined by the United States Census Bureau: ...
. The area around it is nearly flat
desert
A desert is a landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions create unique biomes and ecosystems. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About one-third of the la ...
country dotted with
joshua trees and heavy brush.
Southwestern areas of Phelan are in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains, reaching elevations of more than 4,900 feet above sea level. The
California Aqueduct
The Governor Edmund G. Brown California Aqueduct is a system of canals, tunnels, and pipelines that conveys water collected from the Sierra Nevada and valleys of Northern and Central California to Southern California. Named after California Gov ...
runs through the northern half of the town, from State Route 18 and from Phelan Road. Covering more than 60 square miles, Phelan has an elevation that varies from above sea level. The town center is at the corner of Phelan and Sheep Creek roads. Most businesses are situated in
strip malls dotted along the sides of Phelan Road.
In 2001, according to a feature in the ''Los Angeles Times,'' the town was a "wind-swept, tiny unincorporated town nestled in the shadow of a mountain ski resort, just above the vast expanse that is the Mojave Desert. ... There are no shopping malls here, and the closest movie theater is in
Victorville
Victorville is a city in Victor Valley in San Bernardino County, California. Its population as of the 2020 census was 134,810.
Victorville is the principal city of a Victor Valley–based urban area defined by the United States Census Bureau: ...
, about 15 miles away."
[ Another ''Times'' feature said in 1990:
]The town of Phelan is surrounded by wide open spaces. There's no mall, and a visit to the beach or Disneyland requires a day's planning. But there is Phelan's Sunshine Market, and when you don't want to drive 20 minutes to Victorville or the local ski areas, you can gaze at the snow-capped peaks through your picture window.
Phelan, along with Victorville, Hesperia, Apple Valley, and several other towns, is considered part of a region known as the High Desert.
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 covers an area of 60.1 square miles (155.7 km), all of it land.
Demographics
In May 2010, 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 ...
made Phelan its own separate CDP for statistical purposes.[
The 2020 United States census reported that Phelan had a population of 13,859. The population density was . The racial makeup of Phelan was 57.2% ]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 ...
, 1.6% 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 ...
, 1.6% Native American, 4.5% Asian, 0.3% 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 ...
, 21.9% from other races, and 12.9% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 38.7% of the population.
The census reported that 99.5% of the population lived in households, 60 people (0.4%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 4 people (0.0%) were institutionalized.[
There were 4,500 households, out of which 34.1% included children under the age of 18, 53.9% were married-couple households, 6.7% 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, 19.2% had a female householder with no partner present, and 20.2% had a male householder with no partner present. 18.9% of households were one person, and 8.6% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 3.07.[ There were 3,386 ]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 ...
(75.2% of all households).
The age distribution was 23.8% under the age of 18, 8.9% aged 18 to 24, 23.4% aged 25 to 44, 28.1% aged 45 to 64, and 15.8% who were 65years of age or older. The median age was 39.6years. For every 100 females, there were 106.3 males.[
There were 5,033 housing units at an average density of , of which 4,500 (89.4%) were occupied. Of these, 78.2% were owner-occupied, and 21.8% were occupied by renters.][
In 2023, the US Census Bureau estimated that 11.6% of the population were foreign-born. Of all people aged 5 or older, 74.5% spoke only English at home, 23.1% spoke ]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
...
, 0.1% spoke other Indo-European languages
The Indo-European languages are a language family native to the northern Indian subcontinent, most of Europe, and the Iranian plateau with additional native branches found in regions such as Sri Lanka, the Maldives, parts of Central Asia (e. ...
, 1.8% spoke Asian or Pacific Islander languages, and 0.4% spoke other languages. Of those aged 25 or older, 89.7% were high school graduates and 13.9% had a bachelor's degree.
The median household income in 2023 was $83,759, 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 $28,310. About 10.5% of families and 14.5% of the population were below the poverty line.
Education
The CDP is in the Snowline Joint Unified School District, which also serves Wrightwood, Piñon Hills, a portion of Oak Hills,[ ]
Text list
/ref> Baldy Mesa, and the West Cajon Valley. The area's schools include Piñon Mesa Middle School, Serrano High School (named after the Serrano people
The Serrano are an Indigenous people of California. Their autonyms are Taaqtam meaning "people", Maarrênga'yam meaning "people from Morongo", and Yuhaaviatam meaning "people of the pines."
Today the Maarrênga'yam are enrolled in the Moron ...
), Quail Valley Middle School, Baldy Mesa Elementary, Piñon Hills Elementary, Wrightwood Elementary, Vista Verde Elementary, Heritage School, Chaparral High School, Desert View Independent School, Eagle Summit Community Day School, and Phelan Elementary.
In 1972, the town was a part of the Phelan School District, of mostly desert land, with 117 pupils in its elementary school
A primary school (in Ireland, India, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, South Africa, and Singapore), elementary school, or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ...
. In April of that year, aggrieved parents kept their children home for one day to protest a decision by the school trustees to bypass popular teacher and acting administrator Carl Rasmussen for appointment as full-time principal of the school.
Athletics
High school football
High school football, also known as prep football, is gridiron football played by High school (North America), high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular high school sports, interscholastic sports in both c ...
featuring the local team, the Diamondbacks, has been an important part of Phelan's social life. An active youth sports program has provided a "feeder system" for the high school athletes.[Mike Hiserman, "Desert High," ''Los Angeles Times,'' November 9, 2001, page D-1]
/ref>
Library
Phelan is served by two branch libraries of the San Bernardino County system. The first is a shared facility at Serrano High School, and the second, a -building at Lindero Street and Clovis Road, was opened in August 2009. The first memorial library in the county system, the facility is dedicated to local service veterans. Its collection was helped by donations through the Friends of the Library organization. The general contractor was Mark Forbes, with his partners, Robert Masseth and Bob Raymondo. Staffing was increased so that the branch would be open 48 hours a week, compared with just 27 hours at the Serrano branch.
In 2003 Lenore Coale, president of the Friends of the Serrano Library, noted that many patrons received government assistance and relied heavily on the library, which had just suffered a countywide cutback in funding. She said volunteers were using opened books or stuffed animals
A stuffed toy is a toy with an outer fabric sewn from a textile and stuffed with flexible material. They are known by many names, such as plush toys, plushies, lovies and stuffies; in Britain and Australia, they may also be called soft toys ...
to fill the gaps in the shelves.Hugo Martin, "Rise and Fall of a Library Budget," ''Los Angeles Times,'' September 17, 2003, Inland Empire edition, page B-1
Library card required
However, in recent years the County Library's budget for purchasing has increased and the library continues to thrive. More information about the library and the services it offers can be foun
here.
Communication
The ZIP Code is 92371 and 92329 and the community is inside area codes 442 and 760
Area codes 760 and 442 are telephone area codes in the North American Numbering Plan (NANP) for the U.S. state of California. These area codes serve an overlay complex that comprises much of the southeastern and southernmost portions of Californ ...
.
References
External links
Snowline Joint Unified School District
Serrano High School
Phelan Chamber of Commerce
{{authority control
Census-designated places in San Bernardino County, California
Populated places in the Mojave Desert
Unincorporated communities in San Bernardino County, California
Victor Valley
Census-designated places in California
Unincorporated communities in California