San Martin or San Martín (

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

Saint Martin Saint Martin may refer to: People * Saint Martin of Tours (c. 316–397), Bishop of Tours, France * Saint Martin of Braga (c. 520–580), archbishop of Bracara Augusta in Gallaecia (now Braga in Portugal) * Pope Martin I (c. 595–655), bishop of R ...

) is a village 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 ...

(CDP) in

Santa Clara County Santa Clara County, officially the County of Santa Clara, is the sixth-most populous county in the U.S. state of California, with a population of 1,936,259 as of the 2020 census. Santa Clara County and neighboring San Benito County form the ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, in the southern

Santa Clara Valley The Santa Clara Valley (Spanish language, Spanish: ''Valle de Santa Clara'') is a geologic trough in Northern California that extends south–southeast from San Francisco to Hollister, California, Hollister. The longitudinal valley is bordered ...

. Located to the south of

Morgan Hill Morgan Hill is a city in Santa Clara County, California, at the southern tip of Silicon Valley in the San Francisco Bay Area. Morgan Hill is an affluent residential community, the seat of several high-tech companies, and a dining and recreation ...

and north of Gilroy, San Martin is characterized by ranches, wineries, and orchards, as well as large estates in the foothills of the

Santa Cruz Mountains The Santa Cruz Mountains ( Mutsun Ohlone: Mak-sah-re-jah, "Sharp Ridged Mountain of the Eagle" or "People of the Eagle Mountain") are a mountain range in central and Northern California, United States, constituting a part of the Pacific Coast R ...

History

San Martin was named after

St. Martin of Tours Martin of Tours (; 316/3368 November 397) was the third bishop of Tours. He is the patron saint of many communities and organizations across Europe, including France's Third Republic. A native of Pannonia (present-day Hungary), he converted to ...

, the patron

saint In Christianity, Christian belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of sanctification in Christianity, holiness, imitation of God, likeness, or closeness to God in Christianity, God. However, the use of the ...

by pioneer Martin Murphy Sr., an early settler and Mexican citizen who built the first Catholic church in the area. The community has considered incorporating as a city since 2004, but concerns over the community's small size and its ability to pay for municipal services have held efforts back. Other options considered include annexation by

Geography

San Martin is approximately south of

San Jose, California San Jose, officially the City of San José ( ; ), is a cultural, commercial, and political center within Silicon Valley and the San Francisco Bay Area. With a city population of 997,368 and a metropolitan area population of 1.95 million, it is ...

, north of

Gilroy, California Gilroy is a city in Santa Clara County, California, United States, south of the San Francisco Bay Area. It had a population of 59,520 as of the 2020 census. Gilroy's origins lie in the village of San Ysidro, which developed in the early 19th ...

, and inland from the

Pacific Coast Pacific coast may be used to reference any coastline that borders the Pacific Ocean. Geography Americas North America Countries on the western side of North America have a Pacific coast as their western or south-western border. One of th ...

. Lying in a roughly 6 km-wide (4-mi-wide) southern extension of the

, it is bounded by the

to the west and the

Diablo Range The Diablo Range is a mountain range in the California Coast Ranges subdivision of the Pacific Coast Ranges in northern California, United States. It stretches from the eastern San Francisco Bay Area at its northern end to the Salinas Valley a ...

to the east. 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 , all of it land.

Climate

Due to the moderating influence of the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...

, San Martin enjoys a warm, Mediterranean climate. Temperatures range from an average midsummer maximum of 90.2

°F The Fahrenheit scale () is a temperature scale based on one proposed in 1724 by the German-Polish physicist Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit (1686–1736). It uses the degree Fahrenheit (symbol: °F) as the unit. Several accounts of how he original ...

(32.3

°C The degree Celsius is the unit of temperature on the Celsius temperature scale "Celsius temperature scale, also called centigrade temperature scale, scale based on 0 ° for the melting point of water and 100 ° for the boiling point ...

) to an average midwinter low of 33.6 °F (0.9 °C). Average annual rainfall is 480 mm (18.9 in), and the summer months are typically dry. Snowfall is rare, about once every 20 years, and is light and short-lived when it occurs. Summer months are characterized by coastal fog which arrives from the ocean around 10 p.m. and dissipates the next morning by 10 a.m. Winter months have many sunny and partly cloudy days, with frequent breaks between rainstorms. The local terrain is inconducive to tornadoes, severe windstorms and thunderstorms. The local climate supports

chaparral Chaparral ( ) is a shrubland plant plant community, community found primarily in California, southern Oregon, and northern Baja California. It is shaped by a Mediterranean climate (mild wet winters and hot dry summers) and infrequent, high-intens ...

and grassland

biome A biome () is a distinct geographical region with specific climate, vegetation, and animal life. It consists of a biological community that has formed in response to its physical environment and regional climate. In 1935, Tansley added the ...

s, with stands of

live oak Live oak or evergreen oak is any of a number of oaks in several different sections of the genus ''Quercus'' that share the characteristic of evergreen foliage. These oaks are generally not more closely related to each other than they are to o ...

at higher elevations.

Demographics

2020

The 2020 United States census reported that San Martin had a population of 7,008. The population density was . The racial makeup of San Martin was 46.2%

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 ...

, 0.6%

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 ...

, 2.9% Native American, 6.5% 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 ...

, 26.6% from other races, and 17.0% from two or more races.

Hispanic or Latino ''Hispanic'' and '' Latino'' are ethnonyms used to refer collectively to the inhabitants of the United States who are of Spanish or Latin American ancestry (). While many use the terms interchangeably, for example, the United States Census Bureau ...

of any race were 48.0% of the population. The census reported that 97.3% of the population lived in households, 2.4% lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 0.4% were institutionalized. There were 1,980 households, out of which 32.5% included children under the age of 18, 61.1% were married-couple households, 5.0% 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, 15.8% had a female householder with no partner present, and 18.1% had a male householder with no partner present. 15.7% of households were one person, and 7.7% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 3.44. There were 1,553

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 ...

(78.4% of all households). The age distribution was 20.7% under the age of 18, 8.4% aged 18 to 24, 23.1% aged 25 to 44, 28.9% aged 45 to 64, and 18.9% who were 65years of age or older. The median age was 43.2years. For every 100 females, there were 110.6 males. There were 2,092 housing units at an average density of , of which 1,980 (94.6%) were occupied. Of these, 71.8% were owner-occupied, and 28.2% were occupied by renters. In 2023, the US Census Bureau estimated that the median household income was $156,292, 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 $60,388. About 1.9% of families and 6.5% of the population were below the poverty line.

2010

The 2010 United States Census reported that San Martin had a population of 7,027. The population density was . The racial makeup of San Martin was 4,329 (61.6%)

, 27 (0.4%)

, 71 (1.0%) Native American, 470 (6.7%) Asian, 18 (0.3%)

, 1,752 (24.9%) from other races, and 360 (5.1%) 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 3,249 persons (46.2%). The Census reported that 6,896 people (98.1% of the population) lived in households, 114 (1.6%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 17 (0.2%) were institutionalized. There were 1,993 households, out of which 812 (40.7%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 1,267 (63.6%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 199 (10.0%) had a female householder with no husband present, 124 (6.2%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 131 (6.6%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 14 (0.7%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 279 households (14.0%) were made up of individuals, and 98 (4.9%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.46. There were 1,590

(79.8% of all households); the average family size was 3.70. The population was spread out, with 1,780 people (25.3%) under the age of 18, 713 people (10.1%) aged 18 to 24, 1,613 people (23.0%) aged 25 to 44, 2,098 people (29.9%) aged 45 to 64, and 823 people (11.7%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38.5 years. For every 100 females, there were 103.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 106.9 males. There were 2,122 housing units at an average density of , of which 1,309 (65.7%) were owner-occupied, and 684 (34.3%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.9%; the rental vacancy rate was 1.7%. 4,491 people (63.9% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 2,405 people (34.2%) lived in rental housing units. According to ''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine founded by B. C. Forbes in 1917. It has been owned by the Hong Kong–based investment group Integrated Whale Media Investments since 2014. Its chairman and editor-in-chief is Steve Forbes. The co ...

'' Magazine, San Martin is rated as one of the country's most expensive ZIP codes with a median home price of $824,390 in 2010, despite a drop in home value of almost 20% from 2008.

Economy

San Martin Airport San Martin is a large producer of garlic, table mushrooms, and wine. The

Wings of History Museum A wing is a type of fin that produces both lift and drag while moving through air. Wings are defined by two shape characteristics, an airfoil section and a planform. Wing efficiency is expressed as lift-to-drag ratio, which compares the bene ...

, an aviation museum, is located next to

San Martin Airport San Martin Airport (formerly ''South County Airport of Santa Clara County'', colloquially ''South County Airport'') — formerly Q99 — is a public non-towered airport located east of San Martin, serving Santa Clara County, California, United ...

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). ...

, San Martin is in , and in . 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 ...

, San Martin is in .

Infrastructure

Transportation

San Martin is adjacent to a

freeway A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway, and expressway. Other similar terms ...

U.S. Route 101 U.S. Route 101, or U.S. Highway 101 (US 101), is a major north–south highway that traverses the states of California, Oregon, and Washington on the West Coast of the United States. It is part of the United States Numbered Highway Syst ...

, and is the location of an uncontrolled airport,

(E16), operated by Santa Clara County. Public transportation needs are provided by

Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority The Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority, more commonly known simply as the Valley Transportation Authority (VTA), is a Special district (United States), special district responsible for public transit services, Congestion management agen ...

(VTA) buses and a commuter rail station served by

Caltrain Caltrain (reporting mark JPBX) is a commuter rail line in California, serving the San Francisco Peninsula and Santa Clara Valley (Silicon Valley). The southern terminus is in San Jose, California, San Jose at the Tamien station with weekday r ...

References

External links

*
How San Martin Came to Be
" ''Gilroy Dispatch'', September 16, 2006 {{authority control Census-designated places in Santa Clara County, California Census-designated places in California