Nevada County, California


Nevada County is a county in the Sierra Nevada of California. As of the 2010 census, the population was 98,764. The county seat is Nevada City.
Nevada County comprises the Truckee-Grass Valley, CA Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Sacramento-Roseville, CA Combined Statistical Area. It is in the Mother Lode Country.

History

Created in 1851, from portions of Yuba County, Nevada County was named after the mining town of Nevada City, a name derived from the Sierra Nevada Mountains. The word nevada is Spanish for "snowy" or "snow-covered."
Nevada City was the first to use the word "Nevada" in its name. In 1851 the newly formed Nevada County used the same name as the county seat. The bordering state of Nevada used the same name in 1861. The region came to life in the Gold Rush of 1849. Many historical sites remain to mark the birth of this important region in California's formative years. Among them are the Nevada Theatre in Nevada City, the oldest theater built in California in 1865. It operates to this day and once hosted Mark Twain among other historical figures. The Old 5 Mile House stagecoach stop built in 1890, also operates to this day as a provider of hospitality spanning three centuries. This historical site still features "The stagecoach safe" that is on display outside the present day restaurant and is the source of many legends of stagecoach robbers and notorious highwaymen in the California gold rush era. The gold industry in Nevada County thrived into the post-WWII days.
of about 6 troy ounces, from the Yuba River placers of Nevada County. Size: 8.3 x 2.8 x 2.3 cm.
The county had many firsts and historic technological moments. The first long-distance telephone in the world, built in 1877 by the Ridge Telephone Company, connected French Corral with French Lake, away. It was operated by the Milton Mining Company from a building on this site that had been erected about 1853. The Pelton wheel, designed to power gold mines, still drives hydro-electric generators today. Nevada City and Grass Valley were among the first California towns with electric lights. The Olympics, NASA, and virtually every television station around the country utilizes video/broadcasting equipment designed and manufactured by Grass Valley Group, founded in Grass Valley.
The Nevada County Narrow Gauge Railroad was built in 1876 and was the only railroad in the West that was never robbed, even though its primary freight was gold. The rail line closed in 1942 and was torn up for scrap.
In Grass Valley the historic Holbrooke Hotel opened in 1851 and housed Mark Twain, Bret Harte, and four U.S. presidents.
The Community of Rough and Ready seceded from the Union for a time and became the Great Republic of Rough and Ready.
Nevada County is home to the Empire Mine Historic State Park, which is the site of one of the oldest, deepest, and richest gold mines in California. The park is in Grass Valley at 10791 East Empire Street. In operation for more than 100 years, the mine extracted 5.8 million ounces of gold before it closed in 1956.
The 2001 Nevada County shootings occurred on January 10, 2001, in which Scott Harlan Thorpe murdered three people in a shooting spree. Two of the victims were murdered in Nevada City and a third victim was killed in Grass Valley. Thorpe was arrested and declared not guilty by reason of insanity. He currently resides in Napa State Hospital.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of, of which is land and is water. The county is drained by Middle and South Yuba rivers.
The western part of the county is defined by the course of several rivers and the irregular boundaries of adjoining counties. When the county was created, the founders wanted to include access to the transcontinental railroad, so a rectangular section was added that includes the railroad town of Truckee. What is remarkable about this is that the final shape of the county closely resembles the Deringer pocket pistol, a favorite at the time of the more urbane residents of this gold rush county.
Nevada County is one of four counties in the United States to border a state with which it shares the same name.

Ecology

The county has substantial areas of forest, grassland, savanna, riparian area and other ecosystems. Forests include both coniferous- and oak-dominated woodland types. There are also numerous understory forbs and wildflowers including the yellow mariposa lily.

Adjacent counties

2011

Places by population, race, and income

2010

The 2010 United States Census reported that Nevada County had a population of 98,764. The racial makeup of Nevada County was 90,233 White, 389 African American, 1,044 Native American, 1,187 Asian, 110 Pacific Islander, 2,678 from other races, and 3,123 from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 8,439 persons.

2000

As of the census of 2000, there were 92,033 people, 36,894 households, and 25,936 families residing in the county. The population density was 96 people per square mile. There were 44,282 housing units at an average density of 46 per square mile. The racial makeup of the county was 93.4% White, 0.3% Black or African American, 0.9% Native American, 0.8% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 1.9% from other races, and 2.6% from two or more races. 5.7% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 16.4% were of German, 16.3% English, 11.1% Irish, 6.8% Italian and 6.6% American ancestry according to Census 2000. 94.0% spoke English and 4.2% Spanish as their first language.
There were 36,894 households, out of which 28.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.6% were married couples living together, 8.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.7% were non-families. 22.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.47 and the average family size was 2.88.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 23.1% under the age of 18, 6.1% from 18 to 24, 24.1% from 25 to 44, 29.3% from 45 to 64, and 17.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.7 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $45,864, and the median income for a family was $52,697. Males had a median income of $40,742 versus $27,173 for females. The per capita income for the county was $24,007. About 5.5% of families and 8.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.5% of those under age 18 and 4.9% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

Voter registration

Cities by population and voter registration

Overview

According to the California Secretary of State, as of February 10, 2019, Nevada County has 78,736 registered voters. Of those, 24,677 are registered Democrats, 22,252 are registered Republicans, 9,426 are registered to another party and 7,845 have declined to state a political party. In both 2000 and 2004, George W. Bush won a majority of the votes in the county. In 2008, Barack Obama carried the county with a 51.5%–46.2% margin. 2008 marked the first time Nevada County went for a Democrat since Lyndon Johnson in 1964. In 2012, Obama lost by a narrow margin to Mitt Romney, turning the county red once again, only for Hillary Clinton to win it back in 2016 over Donald Trump.
YearGOPDEMOthers
201642.53% 23,36547.43% 26,05310.05% 5,517
201248.35% 24,98647.73% 24,6633.92% 2,027
200846.12% 25,66351.43% 28,6172.46% 1,367
200453.39% 28,79044.92% 24,2201.69% 910
200054.76% 25,99837.22% 17,6708.02% 3,811
199650.40% 21,78435.56% 15,36914.03% 6,066
199239.24% 17,34334.92% 15,43325.85% 11,425
198857.76% 21,38340.46% 14,9801.78% 660
198462.36% 19,80935.25% 11,1982.40% 761
198057.91% 15,20728.96% 7,60513.13% 3,449
197648.40% 8,17046.95% 7,9264.65% 785
197254.68% 8,00438.89% 5,6936.43% 941
196851.39% 6,06139.06% 4,6079.55% 1,126
196443.29% 4,89956.52% 6,3970.19% 22
196053.44% 5,41945.69% 4,6330.88% 89
195659.69% 5,47539.98% 3,6670.34% 31
195264.04% 6,81935.08% 3,7350.88% 94
194847.05% 3,91747.01% 3,9145.95% 495
194444.42% 2,64854.79% 3,2660.79% 47
194032.69% 2,86366.01% 5,7821.30% 114
193626.83% 1,91371.91% 5,1281.26% 90
193232.92% 1,84263.33% 3,5443.75% 210
192852.00% 2,17346.88% 1,9591.12% 47
192442.23% 1,5138.57% 30749.20% 1,763
192064.97% 2,05523.62% 74711.41% 361
191635.22% 1,58656.58% 2,5488.19% 369
19120.57% 2346.11% 1,85153.31% 2,140
190850.86% 1,82538.13% 1,36811.01% 395
190458.72% 2,24930.47% 1,16710.81% 414
190055.91% 2,44940.14% 1,7583.95% 173
189644.76% 1,98553.21% 2,3602.03% 90
189242.84% 1,75739.84% 1,63417.31% 710

Nevada County is split between California's 1st and 4th congressional districts, which are represented by and, respectively.
In the state legislature, Nevada County is in and in the State Senate, the county is in.
On November 4, 2008, Nevada County voted for Proposition 8, which amended the California Constitution to ban same-sex marriages by 3 votes, the narrowest margin of any county in the state.

Crime

The following table includes the number of incidents reported and the rate per 1,000 persons for each type of offense.

Cities by population and crime rates

Transportation

Major highways

Gold Country Lift is the paratransit bus company providing door to door service for seniors and persons with disabilities in Grass Valley, Nevada City, and Penn Valley.

Airports

is a general aviation airport located just east of Grass Valley.
Truckee Tahoe Airport is a general aviation airport in Truckee, partially in Nevada County and partially in Placer County.

Communities

Cities

Rough and Ready

Census-designated places

The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2010 census of Nevada County.
† county seat
RankCity/Town/etc.Municipal typePopulation
1TruckeeTown16,180
2Grass ValleyCity12,860
3Alta SierraCDP6,911
4Lake WildwoodCDP4,991
5Lake of the PinesCDP3,917
6† Nevada CityCity3,068
7Penn ValleyCDP1,621
8Rough and ReadyCDP963
9North San JuanCDP269
10WashingtonCDP185
11Kingvale CDP143
12Soda SpringsCDP81
13FloristonCDP73
14GranitevilleCDP11

Notable residents