West Sacramento (also known as West Sac) is a city in
Yolo County, California, United States. The city is separated from
Sacramento
Sacramento ( or ; ; ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the seat of Sacramento County. Located at the confluence of the Sacramento and American Rivers in Northern California's Sacramento Valley, Sacramento's 2020 p ...
by the
Sacramento River, which also separates
Sacramento
Sacramento ( or ; ; ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the seat of Sacramento County. Located at the confluence of the Sacramento and American Rivers in Northern California's Sacramento Valley, Sacramento's 2020 p ...
and Yolo counties. The population was 53,915 at the
2020 census, up from 48,744 at the
2010 census. The traditional industrial center of the region since the
California gold rush
The California gold rush (1848–1855) began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The news of gold brought approximately 300,000 people to California from the rest of the U ...
era, West Sacramento is home to a diverse economy and is one of the area's top four employment centers.
The
United States Conference of Mayors
The United States Conference of Mayors (USCM) is the official non-partisan organization of cities with populations of 30,000 or more. The cities are each represented by their mayors or other chief elected officials. The organization was founded ...
named West Sacramento as the Most Livable City in America in 2014 in the category of cities with fewer than 100,000 residents.
West Sacramento is part of the
Sacramento–Arden Arcade–Roseville Metropolitan Statistical Area which has a population (2000) of approximately 1,796,857 (July 1, 2016, estimate placed the population at 2,296,418). Major industries to the region include agriculture, government, and transportation.
History
Gold Rush era
In 1844, John Schwartz, a Flemish traveler, was the first Euro-American to permanently settle in the area of West Sacramento, which at that time was part of Mexico. He built a shack on the west bank of the Sacramento River south of its connection with the American River. John, with the help of his brother George, founded a salmon fishery along the river. In addition to the fishery, they also found the soil to be fertile and began farming and raising livestock. The announcement of the discovery of gold at
Sutter's Mill
Sutter's Mill was a water-powered sawmill on the bank of the South Fork American River in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada in California. It was named after its owner John Sutter. A worker constructing the mill, James W. Marshall, found go ...
in 1848 brought a multitude of miners to the region. This also coincided with the end of the
Mexican–American War
The Mexican–American War (Spanish language, Spanish: ''guerra de Estados Unidos-México, guerra mexicano-estadounidense''), also known in the United States as the Mexican War, and in Mexico as the United States intervention in Mexico, ...
.
In 1846, a man named James McDowell bought from John Schwartz. With his wife, Margaret, and their three daughters, McDowell settled in the area we know today as
Broderick. The McDowell family experienced first-hand the violence that the gold rush era brought with it. In May 1849, James McDowell was shot and killed in a barroom argument that he had supposedly started. With the loss of the sole supporter of the McDowell family, Margaret needed to find a way to provide for her family.
In October 1849, Margaret hired a land surveyor to map out , which was then divided into forty one blocks. She sold individual lots within this platted area which she named the "Town of Washington". The first lot was sold to August W. Kaye for $500. During its first ten years, the rural Town of Washington went through a significant increase in business development and shipping activity. One of the first businesses to be established in the town was the
California Steam Navigation Company, which was attracted to the area in 1859 by how close the Sacramento River is to it. Other businesses in early Washington included hotels, saloons, and restaurants catering to the needs of people passing through. Many of the travelers making the treacherous journey through the marshlands on their way to Sacramento were appreciative of the rest stop at the Town of Washington.
While Sacramento began to urbanize on the other side of the river, early West Sacramento found its hand at agricultural development. Salmon, sturgeon, catfish, eel, crayfish, and clams proved to be lucrative in this region as fisherman soon found. The river settlement was flourishing, stocking fish markets not only in Sacramento, but in San Francisco as well. In addition, the rich soil of the valley produced abundant crops of corn, melons, cucumbers, and sweet potatoes. The dairy industry also established roots in West Sacramento around this time.
One of the area's most well known dairy farmers was Mike Bryte. Bryte came to California in 1849 to try his hand at gold mining. He didn't make a fortune in gold, but was able to purchase a dairy farm with his findings. When the California Steam Navigation Company came to Washington, Bryte used the steamships to carry his dairy products to various markets within the region. Profits from this allowed Bryte to expand his holdings. Bryte was able to own several thousand acres of land in the area to farm on, as well as raise his many livestock on. Mike Bryte's influence in the community was marked by his election to the
Yolo County Board of Supervisors and later as sheriff. During the 20th century, Mike Bryte's property was divided and became known as the community of
Bryte.
Developing a city
In time, the region began to develop. The Town of Washington was renamed Broderick in honor of U. S. Senator
David C. Broderick. After 1900, the three communities known as
Bryte,
Broderick, and West Sacramento were cumulatively known as "East Yolo".
From 1900 to 1920, the population of this area doubled from 1,398 to 2,638. The West Sacramento post office opened in 1915.
These communities officially
incorporated as the City of West Sacramento in 1987.
Port of West Sacramento
In June 1963, the
Port of Sacramento was opened to deep sea traffic with the completion of the
Sacramento Deep Water Ship Channel. The project had been authorized by Congress in 1946 and construction commenced in 1949 on the west side of the river. It has since been renamed The Port of West Sacramento. The Port's main imports include cement and exports include rice.
Geography
West Sacramento is located at .
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 city has a total area of , of which, of it is land and of it (6.22%) is water.
West Sacramento, which lies in
Yolo County, is separated from the city of
Sacramento
Sacramento ( or ; ; ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the seat of Sacramento County. Located at the confluence of the Sacramento and American Rivers in Northern California's Sacramento Valley, Sacramento's 2020 p ...
and
Sacramento County by the
Sacramento River. West Sacramento, incorporated in 1987, consists of three communities that were originally distinct towns,
Broderick,
Bryte, and West Sacramento (originally just the community north of the port canal and south of the railroads), as well as the Southport area.
Southport, which comprises about half of the city's land area, originally consisted of rural homesteads and small neighborhoods in Arlington Oaks and Linden, but now has a considerable population that resulted from housing booms in the early 1990s and the early 2000s, adding new neighborhoods in Bridgeway, Gateway, River Ranch, and Newport.
Climate

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, West Sacramento has a
hot-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 "Csa" on climate maps.
Businesses
TV stations
West Sacramento is home to Sacramento-area
CBS television station
KOVR (channel 13) and
independent station
An independent station is a broadcast station, usually a television station, not affiliated with a larger broadcast television network, network. As such, it only broadcasts broadcast syndication, syndicated programs it has purchased; brokered pr ...
KMAX-TV (channel 31). Both stations, owned and operated by
CBS, are housed on KOVR Drive.
Newspapers
The ''News-Ledger'' and the West Sacramento Sun are weekly, printed newspapers that serve West Sacramento.
The Sacramento Bee has the largest circulation and readership in the city.
Sports
Sutter Health Park is the home of
Sacramento River Cats, and is also the temporary home of the
Athletics of
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...
before they
relocate to
Las Vegas
Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...
, Nevada. It was the home of the former
Sacramento Mountain Lions in the defunct
United Football League.
West Sacramento is also the home city for the
Sacramento Gold team of the
National Premier Soccer League
The National Premier Soccer League (NPSL) is an American men's association football, soccer league. The league is officially affiliated to the United States Adult Soccer Association (USASA) and has automatic qualification for the U.S. Open Cup. ...
.
California Highway Patrol
West Sacramento is the home of the
California Highway Patrol Academy, and the CHP Museum is housed on the same grounds.
In 2007–2008 there were efforts to move the California Highway Patrol official headquarters from
Sacramento
Sacramento ( or ; ; ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the seat of Sacramento County. Located at the confluence of the Sacramento and American Rivers in Northern California's Sacramento Valley, Sacramento's 2020 p ...
(in
Sacramento County) to West Sacramento (in
Yolo County), but these were ultimately unsuccessful.
Education
Washington Unified School District
Public schools and programs operated by the
Washington Unified School District currently include:
Elementary schools
* Bridgeway Island
* Elkhorn
* Riverbank
* Southport
* Stonegate
* Westfield
* Westmore Oaks
High schools
* River City High School
Alternative programs
* Independent Study
* Preschool programs
* Washington Adult School
* Yolo Education Center
* Bryte Career and College Training
Charter schools
* Washington Middle College High School
Independent / private schools
* Sacramento Valley Charter School
* Heritage Peak Charter School
* Our Lady of Grace, WestSac
* Lighthouse Charter School
Colleges
*
Sacramento City College, WestSac Center
In 2017, West Sacramento launched the West Sacramento Home Run, an education initiative offering universal preschool, college savings accounts for preschool graduates enrolled in the Washington Unified School District, internship opportunities with local businesses/organizations and free first year of college tuition for all West Sacramento high school graduates.
Other businesses
Raley's, a major grocery store chain in Northern and Central California, has its corporate headquarters in West Sacramento.
The California State Teachers Retirement System pension fund
CalSTRS is based in West Sacramento and its headquarters tower on the riverfront is the city's tallest building.
In 2011, mayor Christopher Cabaldon launched an initiative to develop the city as a global food hub and center of food innovation, and several major international companies in the sector made West Sacramento their US or North American headquarters and manufacturing/research centers, including
Nippon Shokken, Shinmei Foods,
TOMRA, and
Bayer Crop Science.
Top employers
According to the city's 2015 "Comprehensive Annual Financial Report," the top employers in the city are:
Demographics
2020
The
2020 United States census reported that West Sacramento had a population of 53,915. The population density was . The racial makeup of West Sacramento was 47.3%
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 ...
, 5.0%
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 ...
, 1.8%
Native American, 13.6%
Asian, 1.2%
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 ...
, 14.6% from
other races, and 16.6% from two or more races.
Hispanic or Latino of any race were 32.0% of the population.
The census reported that 99.5% of the population lived in households, 0.3% lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 0.2% were institutionalized.
[
There were 19,550 households, out of which 35.8% included children under the age of 18, 45.0% were married-couple households, 8.6% were cohabiting couple households, 27.2% had a female householder with no partner present, and 19.2% had a male householder with no partner present. 25.3% of households were one person, and 9.0% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.74.][ There were 12,912 families (66.0% of all households).
The age distribution was 24.6% under the age of 18, 8.0% aged 18 to 24, 30.5% aged 25 to 44, 24.2% aged 45 to 64, and 12.7% who were 65years of age or older. The median age was 36.6years. For every 100 females, there were 95.6 males.][
There were 20,245 housing units at an average density of , of which 19,550 (96.6%) were occupied. Of these, 57.4% were owner-occupied, and 42.6% were occupied by renters.][
In 2023, the US Census Bureau estimated that the median household income was $90,791, 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 $41,653. About 9.9% of families and 13.4% of the population were below the poverty line.
2010
The 2010 United States Census reported that West Sacramento had a population of 48,744. The population density was . The racial makeup of West Sacramento was 29,521 (60.6%) 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 ...
, 2,344 (4.8%) 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 ...
, 798 (1.6%) Native American, 5,106 (10.5%) Asian, 534 (1.1%) 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 ...
, 6,709 (13.8%) from other races, and 3,732 (7.7%) 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 15,282 persons (31.4%).
The Census reported that 48,406 people (99.3% of the population) lived in households, 246 (0.5%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 92 (0.2%) were institutionalized.
There were 17,421 households, out of which 6,626 (38.0%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 8,073 (46.3%) were Heterosexual-sex married couples living together, 2,574 (14.8%) had a female householder with no husband present, 1,016 (5.8%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 1,307 (7.5%) unmarried Heterosexual partnerships, and 186 (1.1%) Homosexual married couples or partnerships. 4,264 households (24.5%) were made up of individuals, and 1,314 (7.5%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.78. There were 11,663 families (66.9% of all households); the average family size was 3.37.
The population was spread out, with 13,036 people (26.7%) under the age of 18, 4,435 people (9.1%) aged 18 to 24, 15,129 people (31.0%) aged 25 to 44, 11,363 people (23.3%) aged 45 to 64, and 4,781 people (9.8%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33.6 years. For every 100 females, there were 97.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.0 males.
There were 18,681 housing units at an average density of , of which 10,234 (58.7%) were owner-occupied, and 7,187 (41.3%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 3.0%; the rental vacancy rate was 7.0%. 28,012 people (57.5% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 20,394 people (41.8%) lived in rental housing units.
Transportation
Public transportation
Local and regional transit
West Sacramento, CA falls within the service area of several transportation providers that offer local and regional transit, as well as commuter rail services. The Yolo County Transportation District administers Yolobus, which operates local and intercity bus service 365 days a year in Yolo County and neighboring areas. Yolobus serves Davis, West Sacramento, Winters, Woodland, downtown Sacramento, Sacramento International Airport, Cache Creek Casino Resort, Esparto, Madison, Dunnigan, and Knights Landing. The Sacramento Regional Transit District (SacRT) provides fixed-route bus, light rail, paratransit, and dial-a-ride services throughout the City and County of Sacramento.
West Sacramento On-Demand
In May 2018, the City of West Sacramento partnered with Via Transportation
Via Transportation, Inc. is a technology company that provides software as a service (SaaS) and operations to improve public transportation networks for cities, transit agencies, schools and universities, healthcare providers, and corporations a ...
to launch an on-demand microtransit service. The service, called West Sacramento On-Demand, offers trips anywhere in the city for a flat fare. As of April 2020, rides cost $1.75 for seniors and riders with disabilities and $3.50 for the general population. Companions can accompany riders for a "plus one" $1 fare, which encourages pooled trips. A $15 weekly pass ($7.50 for seniors and riders with disabilities) covers up to four rides per day. Passengers can request a ride by using a smartphone app or by calling a dispatcher.
Notable people
* Christopher Cabaldon, longest serving Mayor
In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...
of West Sacramento from 1998 to 2020
* Malcom Floyd, NFL Wide Receiver
* Eugene Garin, contemporary seascape artist
* Willie Jorrín, former World Boxing Council
The World Boxing Council (WBC) is an international professional boxing organization. It is among the four major organizations which sanction professional boxing bouts, alongside the World Boxing Association (WBA), International Boxing Federation ...
super bantamweight champion
* Burney Lamar, NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. It is considered to be one of the top ranked motorsports organizations in ...
driver
* Oleg Maskaev, former World Boxing Council
The World Boxing Council (WBC) is an international professional boxing organization. It is among the four major organizations which sanction professional boxing bouts, alongside the World Boxing Association (WBA), International Boxing Federation ...
heavyweight
Heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports and professional wrestling.
Boxing Professional
Male boxers who weigh over are considered heavyweights by 2 of the 4 major professional boxing organizations: the International Boxing Federation an ...
champion
* Steve Sax, former LA Dodgers 2nd baseman
* Jamil Jan Kochai, Author
See also
* List of municipalities in California
California is a U.S. state, state located in the Western United States. It is the List of U.S. states and territories by population, most populous state and the List of U.S. states and territories by area, third largest by area after Alaska an ...
References
External links
*
{{authority control
Cities in Yolo County, California
Cities in Sacramento metropolitan area
Populated places on the Sacramento River
Sacramento Valley
Populated places established in 1987
1987 establishments in California
Incorporated cities and towns in California