Topaz (also Topaz Post Office) 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 ...

(CDP) in

Mono County Mono County ( ) is a county located in the east central portion of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 13,195, making it the fourth-least populous county in California. The county seat is Bridg ...

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 ...

, United States. It is located north of Coleville. Topaz's ZIP Code is 96133. The population was 150 at the 2020 census.

History

The Topaz post office opened in 1885, closed in 1922, and re-opened in 1926. The name was transferred from the original site of the village, which developed on the ranch of T.B. Rickey. Mrs. Rickey named it based on the color of the local

quaking aspen ''Populus tremuloides'' is a deciduous tree native to cooler areas of North America, one of several species referred to by the common name aspen. It is commonly called quaking aspen,

trees. The post office is now located and has been operated by the Robert William Mckay Family Ranch since the 1920s.

Geography

Topaz is the northernmost community in Mono County.Report of the Mono County Planning Department regarding the Antelope Valley Fire Protection District
It is bordered to the south by the community of Coleville and to the northeast by the

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...

state line. The community of

Topaz Lake, Nevada Topaz Lake is a census-designated place (CDP) in Douglas County, Nevada, United States. The population was 157 at the 2010 census. Geography The CDP is located on the northwest shore of Topaz Lake just north of the California border. U.S. Ro ...

, touches the northernmost part of the Topaz border. According to the Mono County government,

Antelope Valley The Antelope Valley is a valley primarily located in northern Los Angeles County, California, United States and the southeast portion of Kern County, California, Kern County, and constitutes the western tip of the Mojave Desert. It is situated ...

, including Topaz, is expected to see significant population growth. U.S. Route 395 passes through Topaz, leading south to

Bridgeport Bridgeport is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Connecticut and the fifth-most populous city in New England, with a population of 148,654 in 2020. Located in eastern Fairfield County at the mouth of the Pequonnock River on Long Is ...

, the Mono

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

, and north to

Carson City, Nevada Carson City, officially the Carson City Consolidated Municipality, is an Independent city (United States), independent city and the capital of the U.S. state of Nevada. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 58,63 ...

. 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 Topaz CDP covers an area of , of which are land and , or 9.63%, are water. Topaz is drained by the

West Walker River The West Walker River is a tributary of the Walker River, approximately long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed March 17, 2011 in eastern California and western Nevada in ...

, which flows north into Nevada.

Topaz Lake Topaz Lake is a reservoir located on the California-Nevada border, about south of Reno. The census-designated place of Topaz Lake, Nevada, is located along its northwest shore. The modern reservoir was formed by diverting waters from the Wes ...

occupies the northwest corner of the Topaz CDP and extends north into Nevada.

Climate

This region experiences warm (but not hot) and dry summers, with no average monthly temperatures above . According to the

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

system, Topaz has a

warm-summer Mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate ( ), also called a dry summer climate, described by Köppen and Trewartha as ''Cs'', is a temperate climate type that occurs in the lower mid-latitudes (normally 30 to 44 north and south latitude). Such climates typic ...

, abbreviated "Csb" on climate maps.

Demographics

The 2020 United States census reported that Topaz had a population of 150. The population density was . The racial makeup of Topaz was 89 (59.3%)

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 (0.7%)

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 ...

, 5 (3.3%) Native American, 0 (0.0%) Asian, 0 (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 ...

, 20 (13.3%) from other races, and 35 (23.3%) 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 46 persons (30.7%). The whole population lived in households. There were 73 households, out of which 18 (24.7%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 30 (41.1%) were married-couple households, 3 (4.1%) 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 (26.0%) had a female householder with no partner present, and 21 (28.8%) had a male householder with no partner present. 26 households (35.6%) were one person, and 12 (16.4%) were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.05. There were 42

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 ...

(57.5% of all households). The age distribution was 24 people (16.0%) under the age of 18, 7 people (4.7%) aged 18 to 24, 37 people (24.7%) aged 25 to 44, 39 people (26.0%) aged 45 to 64, and 43 people (28.7%) who were 65years of age or older. The median age was 49.7years. There were 89 males and 61 females. There were 94 housing units at an average density of , of which 73 (77.7%) were occupied. Of these, 60 (82.2%) were owner-occupied, and 13 (17.8%) were occupied by renters.

Fire protection district

Topaz is served by the

Antelope Valley Fire Protection District The term antelope refers to numerous extant or recently extinct species of the ruminant artiodactyl family Bovidae that are indigenous to most of Africa, India, the Middle East, Central Asia, and a small area of Eastern Europe. Antelopes do not ...

, which was formed in 1947 and covers of the Antelope Valley. The District maintains a fire station in Topaz.

Water district

Topaz is served by the

Antelope Valley Water District The term antelope refers to numerous extant or recently extinct species of the ruminant artiodactyl family Bovidae that are indigenous to most of Africa, India, the Middle East, Central Asia, and a small area of Eastern Europe. Antelopes do not ...

, which was formed in 1961.Report of the Mono County Planning Department regarding the Antelope Valley Water District

References

{{authority control Census-designated places in Mono County, California Census-designated places in California 1885 establishments in California