Hillsborough, California


Hillsborough is an incorporated town in San Mateo County, California, in the San Francisco Bay Area. It is located south of San Francisco on the San Francisco Peninsula, bordered by Burlingame to the north, San Mateo to the east, Highlands-Baywood Park to the south, and Interstate 280 to the west. The population was 10,825 as of 2010.

History

Hillsborough is located on the Rancho San Mateo Mexican land grant which was purchased by William Davis Merry Howard, son of a wealthy Hillsborough, New Hampshire, shipping magnate, in 1846. Howard settled his family in this area, which attracted wealthy San Franciscans. In 1910, Hillsborough residents voted to incorporate. From the town’s foundation until 1963, it was an exclusive community for wealthy whites. That all changed in 1963 when Jack and Betty Ken, the first-generation children of Chinese Immigrants, purchased land in the town. This made them the first non-white people to own land in the town, which effectively desegregated Hillsborough.

Geography and environment

Hillsborough is located at.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of, all of it land. The area's considerably winding, hilly topography, and impossibility of a grid layout make Hillsborough notoriously challenging to navigate. Many lots include fairly steep slopes, particularly the western side of the town, with the landscape generally flattening to the east as it descends from the 280 freeway to El Camino Real and the towns of Burlingame and San Mateo.
3 prominent streams drain the mostly wooded slopes of Hillsborough: San Mateo Creek, Cherry Canyon Creek, and Sanchez Creek. In all 3 cases the upper watersheds are closed-canopy California oak woodlands, with dominant trees of Coast Live Oak, Pacific Madrone and California Bay.
The upper drainage area of San Mateo Creek in Hillsborough contains significant serpentinite outcrops, which are known habitats for several rare plant species including the San Mateo woolly sunflower. Other common plants include toyon, gooseberry, lupine, monkeyflower and coffeeberry. Commonly observed mammals include California mule deer, raccoons, opossum, coyotes, rabbits, squirrels, and skunks.
Hillsborough is bordered by Burlingame to the north, San Mateo to the east, Highlands-Baywood Park to the south, and Interstate 280 to the west.
Hillsborough's landscape is dominated by large homes; the town zoning and subdivision ordinances require a minimum house size and minimum lot size of. As a result, there are no apartments, condominiums or townhouses in the city limits.
The town has no commercial zoning and thus no businesses within the town limits; the only non-residential properties are the town's four public and three private schools, town and county government facilities, a golf course, a country club, and small parks.

Demographics

2010

At the 2010 census Hillsborough had a population of 10,825. The population density was 1,748.9 people per square mile. The racial makeup of Hillsborough was 7,178 White, 42 African American, 7 Native American, 3,044 Asian, 23 Pacific Islander, 109 from other races, and 422 from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 373 people.
The census reported that 10,825 people lived in households, as no other type of residence exists in Hillsborough.
There were 3,693 households, 1,445 had children under the age of 18 living in them, 2,804 were opposite-sex married couples living together, 220 had a female householder with no husband present, 114 had a male householder with no wife present. There were 66 unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 34 same-sex married couples or partnerships. 451 households were one person and 309 had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.93. There were 3,138 families ; the average family size was 3.18.
The age distribution was 2,877 people under the age of 18, 466 people aged 18 to 24, 1,600 people aged 25 to 44, 3,667 people aged 45 to 64, and 2,215 people who were 65 or older. The median age was 47.5 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.9 males.
There were 3,912 housing units at an average density of 632.0 per square mile, of the occupied units 3,490 were owner-occupied and 203 were rented. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.3%; the rental vacancy rate was 4.2%. 10,206 people lived in owner-occupied housing units and 619 people lived in rental housing units.
In 2019, a Bloomberg analysis ranked Hillsborough as the fifth richest town in the United States.

2000

At the 2000 census there were 10,825 people, 3,689 households, and 3,161 families in the town. The population density was 1,738.7 people per square mile. There were 3,804 housing units at an average density of 611.0 per square mile.
Of the 3,689 households 36.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 78.6% were married couples living together, 4.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 14.3% were non-families. 11.1% of households were one person and 7.3% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.93 and the average family size was 3.14.
The age distribution was 25.1% under the age of 18, 4.4% from 18 to 24, 19.7% from 25 to 44, 32.2% from 45 to 64, and 18.6% 65 or older. The median age was 46 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.6 males.
The median household income was $193,157 and the median family income was $200,000. Full-time male workers have a median income of $100,000+ versus $55,882 for full-time female workers. The per capita income for the town was $98,643. About 1.8% of families and 2.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.7% of those under age 18 and 0.8% of those age 65 or over. According to The Best Places to Live 2007 in Money Magazine, Hillsborough's $263,456 median household income is the highest in the country.

Politics

According to the California Secretary of State, on February 10, 2019, Hillsborough had 7,802 registered voters. Of those, 2,638 were registered Democrats, 2,337 were registered Republicans, and 2,522 had declined to state a political party.
In the state legislature, Hillsborough is in, and in.
In the United States House of Representatives, Hillsborough is in.

Schools

Hillsborough has its own highly regarded and -ranked public elementary and middle school system, but no public high school. High school-aged children can attend one of several schools in the San Mateo Union High School District, generally assigned by residential address. The town is also home to a small number of independent schools. The Hillsborough school district is ranked as the #1 school district in California and one of the top ten school districts in the country.
Primarily a residential suburb of San Francisco, Hillsborough has many mansions and other points of interest within the town's borders dating from the early 20th century.
December is the coolest month with an average high of 60 degrees, and September is the warmest month with an average high of 78 degrees. Hillsborough has a Mediterranean climate, with the vast majority of the precipitation from the months of November to April. On average, Hillsborough receives of rain. With coastal mountains to the west of Hillsborough, it is blocked in the winter from much of the rainfall over Half Moon Bay, and in the summer it is blocked from virtually all the fog of the coast. Hillsborough receives an average of 307 days of sunshine annually, with 52 days of recordable precipitation per year.

Notable people