Buck Meadows (formerly Hamilton's and Hamilton's Station) is a

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 ...

in Mariposa County,

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, United States. The community is located east-northeast of

Smith Peak Smith Peak, in Yosemite National Park Yosemite National Park ( ) is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States in California. It is bordered on the southeast by Sierra National Forest and on the nor ...

, at an elevation of . The population was 21 at the 2020 census. Buck Meadows lies just south of the

Tuolumne County Tuolumne County (), officially the County of Tuolumne, is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 55,620. The county seat and only incorporated city is Sonora. Tuolumne County comprises the ...

line. It is on State Route 120, east of Groveland. The ZIP Code for this community is shared with Groveland (95321), and wired telephones work out of Groveland's

telephone exchange A telephone exchange, telephone switch, or central office is a central component of a telecommunications system in the public switched telephone network (PSTN) or in large enterprises. It facilitates the establishment of communication circuits ...

with numbers following the format ( 209) 962-xxxx. The area is named for Buck's Meadow which lies at the corner of SR120 and Smith Station Road. According to ''The Big Oak Flat Road'', a variant name for the area was Hamilton's Station. This may have referred to the name of a stagecoach stop. east of U.S.F.S. Buck Meadows Fire Station, "Rim of the World" overlooks the canyon containing the South Fork of the Tuolumne River.

History

Buck Meadows started as a stage stop called Hamilton's established by Alva Hamilton in the 1870s. A post office operated at Buck Meadows from 1915 to 1925.

Geography

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 CDP covers , all land.

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, Buck Meadows has a

warm-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.

Demographics

The 2010 United States census reported that Buck Meadows had a population of 31. The population density was . The racial makeup of Buck Meadows was 23 (74.2%)

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 ...

, no

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 ...

, no Native American, no Asian, no

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 ...

, 5 (16.1%) from other races, and 3 (9.7%) 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 7 persons (22.6%). The census reported that 100% of the population lived in households. There were 15 households, out of which 2 (13.3%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 6 (40.0%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, none had a female householder with no husband present, 1 (6.7%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were no unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and no same-sex married couples or partnerships. 8 households (53.3%) were made up of individuals, and 4 (26.7%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.07. There were 7

families Family (from ) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictability, structure, and safety as ...

(46.7% of all households); the average family size was 3.29. The population was spread out, with 7 people (22.6%) under the age of 18, none aged 18 to 24, 9 people (29.0%) aged 25 to 44, 8 people (25.8%) aged 45 to 64, and 7 people (22.6%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44.5 years. For every 10 females, there were 21 males. For every 1 female age 18 and over, there were 2 males. There were 37 housing units at an average density of , of which 4 (26.7%) were owner-occupied, and 11 (73.3%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 0%; the rental vacancy rate was 63.3%. 5 people (16.1% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 26 people (83.9%) lived in rental housing units.

Politics

(Update needed) In the

state legislature A state legislature is a Legislature, legislative branch or body of a State (country subdivision), political subdivision in a Federalism, federal system. Two federations literally use the term "state legislature": * The legislative branches of ...

Buck Meadows is located in the 14th

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

District, represented by Republican

Tom Berryhill Thomas Charles Berryhill (August 27, 1953 – August 29, 2020) was an American Republican politician. He was a member of the Stanislaus County Board of Supervisors from January 7, 2019, until his death. He previously represented the 8th distr ...

, and in the 25th Assembly District, represented by Republican

Kristin Olsen Kristin Olsen (born January 19, 1974) is an American business owner and politician. She served on the Stanislaus County Board of Supervisors from 2017 to 2021. From 2010 to 2016 she served in the California State Assembly representing the ...

. In the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

, Buck Meadows is in .

References

Sources

* Map: "Jawbone Ridge, California," 7.5-minute quadrangle, U.S. Geological Survey. * Map: "Stanislaus National Forest, California," U.S. Forest Service, 1979. * U.S. Bureau of the Census {{authority control Census-designated places in California Census-designated places in Mariposa County, California Populated places in the Sierra Nevada (United States)