San Bernardino County, California


San Bernardino County, officially the County of San Bernardino, is a county located in the southern portion of the U.S. state of California, and is located within the Inland Empire area. As of the 2010 U.S. Census, the population was 2,035,210, making it the fifth-most populous county in California and the 14th-most populous in the United States. The county seat is San Bernardino.
While included within the Greater Los Angeles area, San Bernardino County is included in the Riverside–San Bernardino–Ontario metropolitan statistical area, as well as the Los Angeles–Long Beach combined statistical area.
With an area of, San Bernardino County is the largest county in the contiguous United States by area, although some of Alaska's boroughs and census areas are larger. The county is close to the size of West Virginia.
This vast county stretches from where the bulk of the county population resides in three Census County Divisions, counting 1,793,186 people as of the 2010 Census, covering the 1,730 square miles, across the thinly populated deserts and mountains. It spans an area from south of the San Bernardino Mountains in San Bernardino Valley, to the Nevada border and the Colorado River.

History

Spanish Missionaries from Mission San Gabriel Arcángel established a church at the village of Politania in 1810. Father Francisco Dumetz named the church San Bernardino on May 20, 1810, after the feast day of St. Bernardino of Siena. The Franciscans also gave the name San Bernardino to the snowcapped peak in Southern California, in honor of the saint and it is from him that the county derives its name. In 1819, they established the San Bernardino de Sena Estancia, a mission farm in what is now Redlands.
Following Mexican independence from Spain in 1821, Mexican citizens were granted land grants to establish ranchos in the area of the county. Rancho Jurupa in 1838, Rancho Cucamonga and El Rincon in 1839, Rancho Santa Ana del Chino in 1841, Rancho San Bernardino in 1842 and Rancho Muscupiabe in 1844.
Agua Mansa was the first town in what became San Bernardino County, settled by immigrants from New Mexico on land donated from the Rancho Jurupa in 1841.
Following the purchase of Rancho San Bernardino, and the establishment of the town of San Bernardino in 1851 by Mormon colonists, San Bernardino County was formed in 1853 from parts of Los Angeles County. Some of the southern parts of the county's territory were given to Riverside County in 1893.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of, of which is land and is water. It is the largest county by area in California and the largest in the United States. It is slightly larger than the states of New Jersey, Connecticut, Delaware and Rhode Island combined, and is also slightly larger than Switzerland in square miles. It borders both Nevada and Arizona.
The bulk of the population, nearly two million, live in the roughly 480 square miles south of the San Bernardino Mountains adjacent to Riverside and in the San Bernardino Valley in the southwestern portion of the county. About 390,000 others live just north of the San Bernardino Mountains, agglomerating around Victorville covering roughly 280 square miles in the Victor Valley. Roughly another 100,000 people live scattered across the rest of the sprawling county.
The Mojave National Preserve covers some of the eastern desert, especially between Interstate 15 and Interstate 40. The desert portion also includes the cities of Needles next to the Colorado River and Barstow at the junction in Interstate 15 and Interstate 40. Trona is at the northwestern part of the county, west of Death Valley. This national park, mostly within Inyo County, also has a small portion of land within San Bernardino County. The largest metropolitan area in the Mojave Desert part of the county is the Victor Valley, with the incorporated localities of Adelanto, Apple Valley, Hesperia, and Victorville. Further south, a portion of Joshua Tree National Park overlaps the county near the High Desert area, in the vicinity of Twentynine Palms. The remaining towns make up the remainder of the High Desert: Pioneertown, Yucca Valley, Joshua Tree, Landers, and Morongo Valley.
The mountains are home to the San Bernardino National Forest, and include the communities of Crestline, Lake Arrowhead, Running Springs, Big Bear City, Forest Falls, and Big Bear Lake.
The San Bernardino Valley is at the eastern end of the San Gabriel Valley. The San Bernardino Valley includes the cities of Ontario, Chino, Chino Hills, Upland, Fontana, Rialto, Colton, Grand Terrace, Montclair, Rancho Cucamonga, San Bernardino, Loma Linda, Highland, Redlands, and Yucaipa.

Adjacent counties

National protected areas

More than 80% of the county is owned by the federal government. There are at least 35 official wilderness areas in the county that are part of the National Wilderness Preservation System. This is the largest number of any county in the United States. The majority are managed by the Bureau of Land Management, but some are integral components of the above listed national protected areas. Most of these wilderness areas lie entirely within the county, but a few are shared with neighboring counties.
Except as noted, these wilderness areas are managed solely by the Bureau of Land Management and lie within San Bernardino County:

2011

Places by population, race, and income

2010

The 2010 United States Census reported that San Bernardino County had a population of 2,035,210. The racial makeup of San Bernardino County was 1,153,161 White, 181,862 African American, 22,689 Native American, 128,603 Asian, 6,870 Pacific Islander, 439,661 from other races, and 102,364 from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1,001,145 persons.

2000

As of the census of 2000, there were 1,709,434 people, 528,594 households, and 404,374 families residing in the county. The population density was 85 people per square mile. There were 601,369 housing units at an average density of 30 per square mile. The racial makeup of the county was 58.9% White, 9.1% African American, 1.2% Native American, 4.7% Asian, 0.3% Pacific Islander, 20.8% from other races, and 5.0% from two or more races. 39.2% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 8.3% were of German, 5.5% English and 5.1% Irish ancestry. 66.1% spoke English, 27.7% Spanish and 1.1% Tagalog as their first language.
There were 528,594 households, out of which 43.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.8% were married couples living together, 14.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.5% were non-families. 18.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.6% had someone 65 years of age or older living alone. The average household size was 3.2 people, and the average family size was 3.6 people.
The number of homeless in San Bernardino County grew from 5,270 in 2002 to 7,331 in 2007, a 39% increase.
In the county, the population was spread out—with 32.3% under the age of 18, 10.3% from 18 to 24, 30.2% from 25 to 44, 18.7% from 45 to 64, and 8.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 30 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.2 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $42,066, and the median income for a family was $46,574. Males had a median income of $37,025 versus $27,993 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,856. About 12.6% of families and 15.80% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.6% of those under age 18 and 8.4% of those age 65 or over.

Government and policing

County government

The San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors has 5 members elected from their districts:
Other County of San Bernardino Elected Officials
*
In the United States House of Representatives, San Bernardino County is split between 5 congressional districts:
In the California State Assembly, San Bernardino County is split between 8 assembly districts:
In the California State Senate, San Bernardino County is split between 6 districts:

Sheriff

The San Bernardino County Sheriff provides court protection, jail administration, and coroner services for all of San Bernardino County. It provides police patrol, detective, and marshal services for the unincorporated areas of the county.

Municipal police

Municipal police departments in the county are: Fontana, San Bernardino, Rialto, Ontario, Upland, Montclair, chino, Redlands, Colton, and Barstow. The San Bernardino County Sheriff provides contract law enforcement services to 14 incorporated cities and towns: Adelanto, Apple Valley, Big Bear, Chino Hills, Grand Terrace, Hesperia, Highland, Loma Linda, Needles, Rancho Cucamonga, Twentynine Palms, Victorville, Yucaipa, and Yucca Valley. Also for the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians. The Sheriff's Commanders assigned to these stations acts as each municipality's Chief of Police.

Politics

Voter registration

Cities by population and voter registration

Overview

San Bernardino County is a county in which candidates from both major political parties have won in recent elections. Democrat Hillary Clinton carried the county by a majority and by double digits in 2016. The Democratic Party also carried the county in 2008 and 2012, when Barack Obama won majorities of the county's votes, and in 1992 and 1996, when Bill Clinton won pluralities. Republican George W. Bush took the county in 2000 by a plurality and in 2004 by a majority. The county is split between heavily Latino, middle-class, and Democratic areas and more wealthy conservative areas. The heavily Latino cities of Ontario and San Bernardino went for John Kerry in 2004, but with a relatively low voter turnout. In 2006, San Bernardino's population exceeded 201,000, and in 2004, only 42,520 votes were cast in the city; in 2006, strongly Republican Rancho Cucamonga had over 145,000 residents, of whom 53,054 voted.
According to the California Secretary of State, as of February 2020, there were 1,016,190 registered voters in San Bernardino County. Of those, 410,197 were registered Democrats, 298,234 were registered Republicans, with the remainder belonging to minor political parties or declining to state.
On November 4, 2008, San Bernardino County voted 67% for Proposition 8, which amended the California Constitution to ban same-sex marriages.

Public safety

Law enforcement

The current district attorney is Jason Anderson, who was elected in March 2018 and took office on January 1, 2019.
The county's primary law enforcement agency is the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department. The department provides law enforcement services in the unincorporated areas of the county and in 14 contract cities, operates the county jail system, provides marshal services in the county superior courts, and has numerous other divisions to serve the residents of the county.
Sergeant Phil Brown of the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department has said that gangs are growing more violent in the farthest reaches of the county, including the High Desert. Racial tensions among Chicano gangs and African-American gangs have increased dramatically in the Inland Empire, affecting even the most rural areas. "It's getting out in more remote areas," Brown said. "They go gang against gang. There's more gang violence to the general public and it's becoming more random..."

Fire rescue

The county operates the San Bernardino County Consolidated Fire District. The department provides "all-risk" fire, rescue, and emergency medical services to all unincorporated areas in the county except for several areas served by independent fire protection districts, and several cities that chose to contract with the department.

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

Education

Colleges and universities

The San Bernardino County Library System consists of 33 branches across the county. The library system also has inter-library loan partnerships with libraries in College of the Desert, Moreno Valley, Murrieta, and Victorville. Library services offered vary from branch to branch, but include internet access, children's story times, adult literacy services, book clubs, classes, and special events. The library system also offers e-books, digital music and movie downloads, free access to online learning through Lynda.com, and many other digital services.
City-sponsored public libraries also exist in San Bernardino County, including A. K. Smiley Public Library in Redlands, California, which was built in 1898. Other public libraries in the County include: The San Bernardino City Public Library System, Rancho Cucamonga Public Library, Upland Public Library, Colton City Library, and the Ontario City Library. These libraries are separate from the county system and do not share circulation privileges.

Transportation

Major highways

Public transportation

California Attorney General Jerry Brown sued the county in April 2007 under the state's environmental quality act for failing to account for the impact of global warming in the county's 25-year growth plan, approved in March. The Center for Biological Diversity, the Sierra Club and the Audubon Society also sued in a separate case. According to Brendan Cummings, a senior attorney for the plaintiffs: "San Bernardino has never seen a project it didn't like. They rubber-stamp development. It's very much of a frontier mentality." The plaintiffs want the county to rewrite its growth plan's environmental impact statement to include methods to measure greenhouse gases and take steps to reduce them.
According to county spokesman David Wert, only 15% of the county is controlled by the county; the rest is cities and federal and state land. However, the county says it will make sure employment centers and housing are near transportation corridors to reduce traffic and do more to promote compact development and mass transit. The county budgeted $325,000 to fight the lawsuit.
The state and the county reached a settlement in August 2007. The county agreed to amend its general plan to include a Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reduction Plan, including an emissions inventory and reduction targets.

Climate

Communities

Cities

Census-designated places

The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2010 census of San Bernardino County.
† county seat
RankCity/Town/etc.Municipal typePopulation
1† San BernardinoCity209,924
2FontanaCity196,069
3Rancho CucamongaCity165,269
4OntarioCity163,924
5VictorvilleCity115,903
6RialtoCity99,171
7HesperiaCity90,173
8ChinoCity77,983
9Chino HillsCity74,799
10UplandCity73,732
11Apple ValleyTown69,134
12RedlandsCity68,747
13HighlandCity53,104
14ColtonCity52,154
15YucaipaCity51,367
16MontclairCity36,664
17AdelantoCity31,765
18Twentynine PalmsCity25,048
19BloomingtonCDP23,851
20Loma LindaCity23,261
21BarstowCity22,639
22Yucca ValleyTown20,700
23PhelanCDP14,304
24Lake ArrowheadCDP12,424
25Big Bear CityCDP12,304
26Grand TerraceCity12,040
27CrestlineCDP10,770
28MuscoyCDP10,644
29Oak HillsCDP8,879
30Fort IrwinCDP8,845
31MentoneCDP8,720
32Spring Valley LakeCDP8,220
33Joshua TreeCDP7,414
34Piñon HillsCDP7,272
35Lucerne ValleyCDP5,811
36Silver LakesCDP5,623
37Big Bear LakeCity5,019
38Running SpringsCDP4,862
39NeedlesCity4,844
40WrightwoodCDP4,525
41LandersTown3,910
42Morongo ValleyCDP3,552
43LenwoodCDP3,543
44San Antonio HeightsCDP3,371
45Mountain View AcresCDP3,130
46Homestead ValleyCDP3,032
47Searles ValleyCDP1,739
48Colorado River Indian ReservationAIAN1,687
49Big RiverCDP1,327
50BakerCDP735
51Lytle CreekCDP701
52Oak GlenCDP638
53Chemehuevi ReservationAIAN308
54Fort Mojave Indian ReservationAIAN250
55BluewaterCDP172
56San Manuel ReservationAIAN112
57Twenty-Nine Palms ReservationAIAN12

Places of interest