White Rock 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

Los Alamos County, New Mexico Los Alamos County (English: "The Poplars" or "Cottonwoods"; ) is a List of counties in New Mexico, county in the U.S. state of New Mexico. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 19,419. The List of counties in New ...

. It is one of two major population centers in the county; the other is Los Alamos (the

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 ...

). The population was 5,725 at the 2010 census. It is largely a

bedroom community A commuter town is a populated area that is primarily residential rather than commercial or industrial. Routine travel from home to work and back is called commuting, which is where the term comes from. A commuter town may be called by many o ...

for employees of

Los Alamos National Laboratory Los Alamos National Laboratory (often shortened as Los Alamos and LANL) is one of the sixteen research and development Laboratory, laboratories of the United States Department of Energy National Laboratories, United States Department of Energy ...

and their families. Access to White Rock from the town of Los Alamos and other cities and towns in New Mexico is via New Mexico State Road 4, which forms the northwestern boundary of the community. Administratively, White Rock is a neighborhood of Los Alamos; locals refer to Los Alamos (meaning not White Rock) as "the Townsite," or "the Hill".

History

In 1947 the

United States Atomic Energy Commission The United States Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) was an agency of the United States government established after World War II by the U.S. Congress to foster and control the peacetime development of atomic science and technology. President Harry ...

acquired about 100 acres from the

United States Forest Service The United States Forest Service (USFS) is an agency within the United States Department of Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture. It administers the nation's 154 United States National Forest, national forests and 20 United States Natio ...

to build a

company town A company town is a place where all or most of the stores and housing in the town are owned by the same company that is also the main employer. Company towns are often planned with a suite of amenities such as stores, houses of worship, schoo ...

to house construction and other contractors’ workers who did not qualify to reside within the secured city of Los Alamos. The town was erected quickly from early 1949, with the intent to provide accommodation for up to 1800 residents by mid-September of that year. This was accomplished with standard building designs, many

prefabricated Prefabrication is the practice of assembling components of a structure in a factory or other manufacturing site, and transporting complete assemblies or sub-assemblies to the construction site where the structure is to be located. Some research ...

, and included dormitories for 912 men and 32 women, 64 single-, 297 double- and 48 three-bedroom houses, all as rental properties, as well as provision for 217 mobile homes. A school, shopping center, post office and administration building were also included. By June 1950 the population was estimated 1000 to 1200 persons, including 325 families, but from 1952 steadily dropped with the decline in major construction projects. By 1953, 251 of the prefab dwelling units had been declared surplus and disposed of, and by 1957 only 9 houses and 20 mobile home spaces were rented. The town was officially closed on September 30, and the remaining structures disposed of by the end of that year. In early 1960 the site was offered as a housing development site to interested developers, for up to 200 houses, with purchase priority being given to people connected to LANL. Work on the second and present White Rock was begun in 1962.

Geography

White Rock is located in southeastern Los Alamos County and is bordered to the north and east by Santa Fe; the eastern border follows the

Rio Grande The Rio Grande ( or ) in the United States or the Río Bravo (del Norte) in Mexico (), also known as Tó Ba'áadi in Navajo language, Navajo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the Southwestern United States a ...

through White Rock Canyon. The elevation of the White Rock townsite is , above the river elevation in the canyon. The CDP includes the neighborhood of Pajarito Acres, directly south of and at the same elevation as the White Rock townsite. The center of the town of Los Alamos is northwest of White Rock, via New Mexico State Roads 4 and 502. A gated entrance to

is on Pajarito Road, accessed directly from White Rock. 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 White Rock CDP has a total area of , of which , or 0.59%, are water.

White Rock Canyon

Largely undeveloped White Rock Canyon, on the eastern edge of the community, provides a wilderness recreation area heavily used by residents of White Rock and Santa Fe. The canyon was carved through

basalt Basalt (; ) is an aphanite, aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the planetary surface, surface of a terrestrial ...

and

tuff Tuff is a type of rock made of volcanic ash ejected from a vent during a volcanic eruption. Following ejection and deposition, the ash is lithified into a solid rock. Rock that contains greater than 75% ash is considered tuff, while rock co ...

by the south-flowing

. The canyon runs from the Otowi Suspension Bridge in the north and to Cochiti Dam in the south, with many smaller tributary canyons such Los Alamos, Mortandad, Water, Ancho, Frijoles, and Capulin Canyon. White Rock is situated on a portion of the west side of the canyon along with Bandelier National Monument, a section of

San Ildefonso Pueblo San Ildefonso Pueblo (Tewa language, Tewa: Pʼohwhogeh Ówîngeh ’òhxʷógè ʔówîŋgè"where the water cuts through" ), also known as the Turquoise Clan, is a census-designated place (CDP) in Santa Fe County, New Mexico, Santa Fe Coun ...

, Cochiti Pueblo, and

Santa Fe National Forest The Santa Fe National Forest is a protected national forest in northern New Mexico in the Southwestern United States. It was established in 1915 and covers . Elevations range from 5,300 feet (1600 m) to 13,103 feet (4000 m) at the su ...

. Across the river to the east rises the

Caja del Rio Caja del Rio (Spanish language, Spanish: "canyon#Box canyon, box of the river") is a dissected plateau, of volcanic origin, which covers approximately of land in northern Santa Fe County, New Mexico, United States. The region is also known as t ...

. For a few decades the

Chili Line The Chili Line, officially known as the Santa Fe Branch, was a narrow-gauge branch of the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad (D&RGW). It ran from Antonito, Colorado, to Santa Fe, New Mexico. The Denver and Rio Grande Railway (D&RG) began ...

, a narrow gauge railroad, ran on the east bank of the river as far south as the mouth of Diablo Canyon; some day the Rio Grande Trail may occupy the abandoned

right of way A right of way (also right-of-way) is a specific route that people, animals, vehicles, watercraft, or utility lines travel, or the legal status that gives them the right to do so. Rights-of-way in the physical sense include controlled-access h ...

. Averaging deep, the canyon provides spectacular vistas, rugged terrain and home to rare plant species as well as endangered animal species. Along the rim of the canyon are many basalt cliffs that are used by rock climbers.

White Rock Canyon Rim Trail

* Distance: one way * Elevation: 6,300 to * Elevation Change: * Fitness Level: Easy * Seasons: All seasons * Trail Surface: Rocks and packed dirt * Hazards: Cliffs, rattlesnakes

Blue Dot Trail

The trailhead begins about 100 yards southwest of the overlook viewing platform, and is accessible from a small parking lot at the end of the last side road branching east off Overlook Road. Partway to the river a meadow lies on top of a large Toreva block bench (a large piece of terrain which has moved downhill as a unit). At the midway point, the material underfoot changes from dark sharp

ic rocks to light rounded

granitic A granitoid is a broad term referring to a diverse group of coarse-grained igneous rocks that are widely distributed across the globe, covering a significant portion of the Earth's exposed surface and constituting a large part of the continental ...

stones. The trail passes a large spring seeping from

scree Scree is a collection of broken rock fragments at the base of a cliff or other steep rocky mass that has accumulated through periodic rockfall. Landforms associated with these materials are often called talus deposits. The term ''scree'' is ap ...

as the trail nears the

. This water and water from the river are not safe to drink. * Distance: one way * Elevation: 5,450 to * Elevation Change: * Fitness Level: Strenuous, but short * Seasons: All seasons, except after heavy snow * Trail Surface: Rocky and steep trail * Hazards: Cliffs, loose footing, swift river

Red Dot Trail

This trail, also known as ''Pajarito Springs Trail'', is accessible from Piedra Loop in La Senda. Numerous

petroglyphs A petroglyph is an image created by removing part of a rock surface by incising, picking, carving, or abrading, as a form of rock art. Outside North America, scholars often use terms such as "carving", "engraving", or other descriptions ...

appear along the way, unseen by many hikers concentrating on their footing on this very steep and challenging trail. The rock drawings are varied in style, from Kokopelli to abstract and geometric designs. The local

Tewa The Tewa are a linguistic group of Pueblo people, Pueblo Native Americans in the United States, Native Americans who speak the Tewa language and share the Pueblo culture. Their homelands are on or near the Rio Grande in New Mexico north of San ...

may have imported some designs from Native Americans of the

Great Plains The Great Plains is a broad expanse of plain, flatland in North America. The region stretches east of the Rocky Mountains, much of it covered in prairie, steppe, and grassland. They are the western part of the Interior Plains, which include th ...

. The ''Pajarito Springs'' are several in number and combine to form a small creek flowing into a pool via a small waterfall. The trail continues to the

. * Distance: one way * Elevation: 5,500 to * Elevation Change: * Fitness Level: Strenuous, but short * Seasons: All seasons, except after heavy snow * Trail Surface: Very rocky trail * Hazards: Cliffs, loose footing, swift river

River Trail

* Distance: one way * Elevation: 5,400 to * Elevation Change: * Fitness Level: Easy * Skill Level: Sections of the trail require route-finding ability * Seasons: All seasons, except after heavy snow * Trail Surface: Sand, river cobbles and rocks * Hazards: Swift river

Demographics

2020 census

The 2020 United States census counted 5,852 people, 2,322 households, and 1,748 families in White Rock. The population density was . There were 2,409 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup was 79.17% (4,633)

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 ...

European American European Americans are Americans of European ancestry. This term includes both people who descend from the first European settlers in the area of the present-day United States and people who descend from more recent European arrivals. Since th ...

(73.67%

non-Hispanic white Non-Hispanic Whites, also referred to as White Anglo Americans or Non-Latino Whites, are White Americans who are classified by the United States census as "White" and not of Hispanic or Latino origin. According to annual estimates from the Unit ...

), 0.41% (24)

black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

African-American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. ...

, 0.91% (53) Native American or

Alaska Native Alaska Natives (also known as Native Alaskans, Alaskan Indians, or Indigenous Alaskans) are the Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous peoples of Alaska that encompass a diverse arena of cultural and linguistic groups, including the I ...

, 3.01% (176) Asian, 0.03% (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 ...

Native Hawaiian Native Hawaiians (also known as Indigenous Hawaiians, Kānaka Maoli, Aboriginal Hawaiians, or simply Hawaiians; , , , and ) are the Indigenous peoples of Oceania, Indigenous Polynesians, Polynesian people of the Hawaiian Islands. Hawaiʻi was set ...

, 2.77% (162) from other races, and 13.7% (802) 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 was 17.33% (1,014) of the population. Of the 2,322 households, 30.1% had children under the age of 18; 65.8% were married couples living together; 16.2% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. 21.1% of households consisted of individuals and 11.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.8 and the average family size was 3.3. The percent of those with a bachelor’s degree or higher was estimated to be 45.2% of the population. 21.9% of the population was under the age of 18, 5.6% from 18 to 24, 21.1% from 25 to 44, 29.6% from 45 to 64, and 21.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 46.5 years. For every 100 females, there were 97.7 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older, there were 100.9 males. The 2016-2020 5-year

American Community Survey The American Community Survey (ACS) is an annual demographics survey program conducted by the United States Census Bureau. It regularly gathers information previously contained only in the long form of the United States census, decennial census ...

estimates show that the median household income was $128,723 (with a margin of error of +/- $10,880) and the median family income was $146,228 (+/- $18,106). Males had a median income of $90,054 (+/- $24,391) versus $59,974 (+/- $11,185) for females. The median income for those above 16 years old was $66,250 (+/- $4,418). Approximately, 2.3% of families and 2.3% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 0.8% of those under the age of 18 and 3.2% of those ages 65 or over.

2000 census

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 6,045 people, 2,226 households, and 1,860 families residing in the CDP. The population density was . There were 2,282 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the CDP was 92.75%

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 ...

, 0.25%

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 ...

, 0.53% Native American, 2.68% Asian, 0.02%

, 1.87% from other races, and 1.90% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 10.59% of the population. There were 2,226 households, out of which 38.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 78.2% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 3.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 16.4% were non-families. 13.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 4.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.71 and the average family size was 2.99. In the CDP, the population was spread out, with 27.6% under the age of 18, 3.3% from 18 to 24, 24.1% from 25 to 44, 34.2% from 45 to 64, and 10.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 101.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 99.2 males. The median income for a household in the CDP was $92,813, and the median income for a family was $96,716. Males had a median income of $77,216 versus $44,145 for females. 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 ...

for the CDP was $36,288. About 1.1% of families and 1.3% of the population were below the

, including 0.4% of those under age 18 and 3.0% of those age 65 or over.

White Rock Master Plan

The commercial center of White Rock has been in decline since approximately 2008, due in part to loss of retail revenues to the Internet and to "big box" stores in nearby communities. Los Alamos County recently began a major effort to revitalize the White Rock commercial center by improving infrastructure and seeking to attract new businesses. Part of the motivation for this effort is the transfer to Los Alamos County of Department of Energy lands just north of State Road 4. The revitalization effort has emphasized community input and is presently being driven by the White Rock Master Plan Implementation Committee, with the support of the County Council.

Community parks and tot lots

Overlook Park

* playground * 1 youth baseball field (non-lighted) * 2 youth baseball fields (lighted) * 5 softball fields (non-lighted) * 1 softball field (lighted) * 4 soccer fields (non-lighted) *3 independent picnic areas *1 dog park *1 rc car track *1 area viewing platform (the overlook)

Piñon Park

* playground * 2 full basketball courts * 3 tennis courts * 1 skateboard park * Disc Golf Course

Rover Park

* playground * 1 full basketball court * 2 tennis courts * 1 soccer field (non-lighted)

Jeffrey Tot Lot

* playground

Mountain Meadows Tot Lot

* playground

Education

The whole county is a part of Los Alamos Public Schools.
Text list
/ref> Elementary schools in White Rock: * Piñon Elementary School * Chamisa Elementary School The district's middle school and comprehensive high school are Los Alamos Middle School and Los Alamos High School, respectively.

References

External links

Los Alamos County

White Rock Master Plan

White Rock Realtime Weather

LANL TA-54 weather tower adjacent to intersection of Grand Canyon and State Road 4

{{authority control Census-designated places in Los Alamos County, New Mexico Census-designated places in New Mexico