Calaveras County (), officially the County of Calaveras, is a

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

in both the

Gold Country The Gold Country (also known as Mother Lode Country) is a historic region in the northern portion of the U.S. state of California, that is primarily on the western slope of the Sierra Nevada. It is famed for the mineral deposits and gold mines t ...

and High Sierra regions of the U.S. state of

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 ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 45,292. 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 ...

is San Andreas. Angels Camp is the county's only incorporated city. ''Calaveras'' is Spanish for "skulls"; the county was reportedly named for the remains of Native Americans discovered by the Spanish explorer Captain

Gabriel Moraga Gabriel Moraga (1765 – June 14, 1823) was a Sonoran-born Californio soldier, administrator, and explorer. As an explorer in Alta California, Gabriel Moraga found and gave names to a number of rivers in the Central Valley. Gabriel's son Joaqu� ...

Calaveras Big Trees State Park Calaveras Big Trees State Park is a state park of California, United States, preserving two groves of Sequoiadendron giganteum, giant sequoia trees. Located 4 miles (6.4 km) northeast of Arnold, California in the middle elevations of the S ...

, a preserve of

giant sequoia ''Sequoiadendron giganteum'' (also known as the giant sequoia, giant redwood, Sierra redwood or Wellingtonia) is a species of coniferous tree, classified in the family Cupressaceae in the subfamily Sequoioideae. Giant sequoia specimens are the la ...

trees, is in the county several miles east of the town of

Arnold Arnold may refer to: People * Arnold (given name), a masculine given name * Arnold (surname), a German and English surname Places Australia * Arnold, Victoria, a small town in the Australian state of Victoria Canada * Arnold, Nova Scotia U ...

State Highway 4 Route 4, or Highway 4, may refer to several highways in the following countries: International * AH4, Asian Highway 4 * European route E04 * European route E004 * Cairo – Cape Town Highway Albania * SH-4 road in Albania from Durrës to Ka ...

. Credit for the discovery of giant sequoias there is given to Augustus T. Dowd, a trapper who made the discovery in 1852 while tracking a bear. When the bark from the " Discovery Tree" was removed and taken on tour around the world, the trees became a worldwide sensation and one of the county's first tourist attractions. The uncommon

gold telluride Gold chalcogenides are compounds formed between gold and one of the chalcogens, elements from group 16 of the periodic table: oxygen, sulfur, selenium, or tellurium. * Gold(III) oxide, Au2O3. Decomposes into gold and oxygen above 160 °C, and ...

mineral

calaverite Calaverite, or gold telluride, is an uncommon telluride (chemistry), telluride of gold, a metallic mineral with the chemical formula AuTe2, with approximately 3% of the gold Silver telluride, replaced by silver. It was first discovered in Calave ...

was discovered in the county in 1861 and is named for it.

Mark Twain Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910), known by the pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, and essayist. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has produced," with William Fau ...

set his story "

The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County" is an 1865 short story by Mark Twain. It was his first great success as a writer and brought him national attention. The story has also been published as "Jim Smiley and His Jumping Frog" (its ori ...

" in the county. The county hosts an annual fair and Jumping Frog Jubilee, featuring a frog-jumping contest, to celebrate the association with Twain's story. Each year's winner is commemorated with a brass plaque mounted in the sidewalk of downtown Historic Angels Camp and this feature is known as the Frog Hop of Fame.

Lukas Foss Lukas Foss (August 15, 1922 – February 1, 2009) was a German-American composer, pianist, and conductor. Career Born Lukas Fuchs in Berlin, Germany in 1922, Foss was soon recognized as a child prodigy. He began piano and theory lessons with J ...

used Twain's story for his 1950 opera ''

The Jumping Frog of Calaveras County ''The Jumping Frog of Calaveras County'' is an English language American comic opera in one act and two scenes. It was composed by Lukas Foss with a libretto by Jean Karsavina, based Mark Twain's 1865 short story "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of ...

''. In 2015, Calaveras County had the highest rate of suicide deaths in the United States, with 49.1 per 100,000 people.

Etymology

The Spanish word ''calaveras'' means "skulls." The county takes its name from the

Calaveras River Lead The Calaveras River is a river in the San Joaquin Valley of California. It flows roughly southwest for from the confluence of its north and south forks in Calaveras County to its confluence with the San Joaquin River in the city of St ...

; it was said to have been named by Spanish explorer

, during his 1806–1808 expeditions, when he found many

skulls The skull, or cranium, is typically a bony enclosure around the brain of a vertebrate. In some fish, and amphibians, the skull is of cartilage. The skull is at the head end of the vertebrate. In the human, the skull comprises two prominent ...

of Native Americans along the banks of the stream. He believed they had either died of famine or been killed in tribal conflicts over hunting and fishing grounds. A more likely cause was a European epidemic disease, acquired from interacting with other tribes near the Missions on the coast. The

Stanislaus River The Stanislaus River is a tributary of the San Joaquin River in north-central California in the United States. The main stem of the river is long, and measured to its furthest headwaters it is about long. Originating as three forks in the h ...

, which forms the southern boundary, is named for

Estanislao Cucunuchi ( – 1838), baptized as Estanislao, was an indigenous ''alcalde'' of Mission San José (California), Mission San José and a member and leader of the Lakisamni tribe of the Yokuts people of northern California. He is famous for leadi ...

, a

Lakisamni The Lakisamni, or alternately Laquisimne, () are one of the divisions of the Yokuts people, indigenous to the Stanislaus River area in California. The Lakisamni probably inhabited the land in the San Joaquin Valley, from present-day Ripon in the ...

Yokuts The Yokuts (previously known as MariposasPowell, 1891:90–91.) are an ethnic group of Native Americans native to central California. Before European contact, the Yokuts consisted of up to 60 tribes speaking several related languages. Yokuts ...

who escaped from

Mission San José Mission San José may refer to: *Mission San José (California), a Spanish mission in Fremont, California *Mission San Jose, Fremont, California, a neighborhood *Mission San Jose High School, a high school in Fremont, California *Mission San José ( ...

in the late 1830s. He is reported to have raised a small group of men with crude weapons, hiding in the foothills when the Mexicans attacked. The natives were quickly decimated by Mexican firearms. In 1836, John Marsh, Jose Noriega, and a party of men went exploring in Northern California. They made camp along a river bed in the evening, and upon waking discovered that they had camped amid a great quantity of skulls and bones. They also gave the river the name Calaveras. Mark Twain spent 88 days in the county in 1865, during which he heard the story that became "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County" at the Angel Hotel. This story kicked off his career and put Calaveras County on the map.

History

Calaveras County was one of the original counties of the state of California, created in 1850 at the time of admission to the Union. Parts of the county's territory were reassigned to

Amador County Amador County () is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of California, in the Sierra Nevada. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 40,474. The county seat is Jackson, California, Jackson. Ama ...

in 1854 and to

Alpine County Alpine County is a county in the eastern part of the U.S. state of California located within the Sierra Nevada on the state border with Nevada. As of the 2020 census, the population was 1,204, making it California's least populous county. Th ...

in 1864. The county's geography includes landmarks, rolling hills, and giant valleys. It is also known for its friendly communities, and businesses such as agriculture management and construction engineering. It has numerous

caverns Caves or caverns are natural voids under the Earth's surface. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. Exogene caves are smaller openings that extend a relatively short distance underground (such as rock sh ...

, such as

Mercer Caverns Mercer Caverns is a show cave located one mile north of Murphys in Calaveras County California. It is named after the gold prospector Walter J. Mercer who discovered the caves around 1885 and filed a claim. The caverns have a large number of s ...

, California Cavern and Moaning Cavern that are national destinations for tourists from across the country. Other attractions include a thriving wine making industry, including the largest of the Calaveras wineries: Ironstone Vineyards, mountain sports recreation and the performing arts. Gold prospecting in Calaveras County began in late 1848 with a camp founded by Henry Angel. Angel may have first arrived in California as a soldier, serving under Colonel Frémont during the Mexican War. After the war's end, he found himself in Monterey where he heard of the fabulous finds in the gold fields. He joined the Carson-Robinson party of prospectors and set out for the mines. The company parted ways upon reaching what later became known as Angels Creek. Henry Angel tried placer mining but soon opened a trading post. By the end of the year, over one hundred tents were scattered about the creek and the settlement was referred to as Angels Trading Post, later shortened to Angels Camp.

Placer mining Placer mining () is the mining of stream bed deposits for minerals. This may be done by open-pit mining or by various surface excavating equipment or tunneling equipment. Placer mining is frequently used for precious metal deposits (particularly ...

soon gave out around the camp, but an extensive gold-bearing quartz vein of the area's Mother Lode was located by the Winter brothers during the mid-1850s, and this brought in the foundations of a permanent town. This vein followed Main Street from Angels Creek up to the southern edge of Altaville. Five major mines worked the rich vein: the Stickle, the Utica, the Lightner, the Angels, and the Sultana. These mines reached their peaks during the 1880s and 1890s, when over 200 stamp mills crushed quartz ore brought in by hand cars on track from the mines. By the time hard rock mining was done, the five mines had produced a total of over $20 million in gold. The telluride mineral

was first recognized and obtained in 1861 from the Stanislaus Mine, Carson Hill, Angels Camp, in Calaveras Co., California. It was named for the County of origin by chemist and mineralogist

Frederick Augustus Genth Frederick Augustus Ludwig Karl Wilhelm Genth (May 17, 1820 – February 2, 1893) was a German-American chemist, specializing in analytical chemistry and mineralogy. Biography Frederick Augustus Genth was born in Wächtersbach, Hesse-Cassel on M ...

who differentiated it from the known gold telluride mineral

sylvanite Sylvanite or silver gold telluride, chemical formula , is the most common telluride of gold. Properties The gold:silver ratio varies from 3:1 to 1:1. It is a metallic mineral with a color that ranges from a steely gray to almost white. It is c ...

, and formally reported it as a new gold mineral in 1868.

Geography

According to the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The U.S. Census Bureau is part of the U ...

, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (1.6%) is water. A California Department of Forestry report lists the county's area in acres as 663,000, although the exact figure would be . There are a number of caverns located in Calaveras County.

Adjacent counties

– north *

– northeast *

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 ...

– south *

Stanislaus County Stanislaus County ( ; ) is a county located in the San Joaquin Valley of the U.S. state of California. As of 2023, its estimated population is 564,404. The county seat is Modesto. Stanislaus County makes up the Modesto metropolitan statistic ...

– southwest *

San Joaquin County San Joaquin County ( ; , meaning " St. Joachim"), officially the County of San Joaquin, is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 779,233. The county seat is Stockton. San Jo ...

– west

National protected area

Stanislaus National Forest Stanislaus National Forest is a National forest (United States), U.S. national forest which manages of land in four counties in the Sierra Nevada in Northern California. It was established on February 22, 1897, making it one of the oldest natio ...

(part)

Demographics

2020 census

2011

Places by population, race, and income

2010 Census

The 2010 United States Census reported that Calaveras County had a population of 45,578. The racial makeup of Calaveras County was 40,522 (88.9%)

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 ...

, 383 (0.8%)

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 ...

, 689 (1.5%) Native American, 571 (1.3%) Asian, 79 (0.2%)

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 ...

, 1,534 (3.4%) from other races, and 1,800 (3.9%) 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 4,703 persons (10.3%).

2000

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 40,554 people, 16,469 households, and 11,742 families residing in the county. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was . There were 22,946 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 91.2%

, 0.8%

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 ...

, 1.7% Native American, 0.9% Asian, 0.1%

, 2.1% from other races, and 3.3% from two or more races. 6.8% of the population were

or Latino of any race. 15.7% were of

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

, 13.0%

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

, 10.7% Irish, 7.4%

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

and 7.0% American ancestry according to Census 2000. 94.5% spoke English and 4.0% Spanish as their first language. There were 16,469 households, out of which 26.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.9% 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, 8.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.7% were non-families. 23.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 2.85. In the county, the population was spread out, with 22.8% under the age of 18, 5.5% from 18 to 24, 22.4% from 25 to 44, 31.1% from 45 to 64, and 18.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females there were 98.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.7 males. The median income for a household in the county was $41,022, and the median income for a family was $47,379. Males had a median income of $41,827 versus $28,108 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 county was $21,420. About 8.7% of families and 11.80% 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 15.6% of those under age 18 and 6.2% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

The major Calaveras County employers include: 250–499 employees: * Calaveras County Government * Forestry & Fire Protection * Mark Twain St. Joseph's Hospital 100–249 employees: *

Bret Harte Union High School Bret Harte Union High School is a public high school serving Angels Camp, California, the only incorporated city in Calaveras County, California. History The school was established in 1905 and is named after American poet Bret Harte. Loca ...

* Ironstone Vineyards * Calaveras High School * Mark Twain Convalescent Hospital * Mountain Machinery

Government

Calaveras County is governed by a five-membe
Board of Supervisors
Supervisors are elected by district at the Consolidated Primary Election and serve for four years. Current Board of Supervisors: Gary Tofanelli (District 1); Autumn Andahl (District 2); Martin Huberty (District 3); Amanda Folendorf (District 4) and Benjamin Stopper (District 5). In January 2023 Gary Tofanelli was elected chair of the board and Jack Garamendi was elected Vice Chair. Teresa Hitchcock is the County Executive Officer and Sarah Edwards is the County Counsel. Both are appointed by and serve at the pleasure of the Board of Supervisors.

Elections and politics

Voter registration statistics

= Cities by population and voter registration

Overview

Calaveras County is in . In the

State Senate In the United States, the state legislature is the legislative branch in each of the 50 U.S. states. A legislature generally performs state duties for a state in the same way that the United States Congress performs national duties at ...

, Calaveras County is in . In the

State Assembly State Assembly is the name given to various legislatures, especially lower houses or full legislatures in states in federal systems of government. Channel Islands States Assembly is the name of the legislature of the Bailiwick of Jersey. The Baili ...

, it is in . Past presidential elections in Calaveras County have displayed preferences for Republican candidates; the last Democrat to win a majority in the county was

Lyndon Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), also known as LBJ, was the 36th president of the United States, serving from 1963 to 1969. He became president after assassination of John F. Kennedy, the assassination of John F. Ken ...

1964 Events January * January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved. * January 5 – In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patria ...

, although Democrat

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...

lost the county by only 17 votes in 1992. In 2020, Republicans won 60% of the vote for the first time since 2004.

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

State Route 4 * California 12

State Route 12 * California 26

State Route 26 * California 49

State Route 49

Public transportation

Calaveras Connect provides service in Angels Camp, San Andreas, and other communities in the county. Intercounty connections are available to Columbia (

Jackson Jackson may refer to: Places Australia * Jackson, Queensland, a town in the Maranoa Region * Jackson North, Queensland, a locality in the Maranoa Region * Jackson South, Queensland, a locality in the Maranoa Region * Jackson oil field in Durham, ...

(

)

Airports

Calaveras County Airport is a general aviation airport located just southeast of San Andreas.

Communities

Cities

Angels Camp is the only incorporated city located in Calaveras County.

Census-designated places

* Avery * Campo Seco * Copperopolis * Dorrington * Forest Meadows *

Mokelumne Hill Mokelumne Hill (''Mokelumne'', Miwok for "People of the Fish Net") is a census-designated place (CDP) in Calaveras County, California, United States. The population was 646 at the 2010 census, down from 774 at the 2000 census. It is commonly refer ...

* Mountain Ranch * Murphys * Rail Road Flat * Rancho Calaveras * San Andreas (county seat) * Vallecito *

Valley Springs Valley Springs may refer to some places in the United States: * Valley Springs, Arkansas, located in Boone County * Valley Springs, California, located in Calaveras County * Valley Springs, South Dakota Valley Springs is a city in Minnehaha Cou ...

Wallace Wallace may refer to: People * Clan Wallace in Scotland * Wallace (given name) * Wallace (surname) * Wallace (footballer, born 1986), full name Wallace Fernando Pereira, Brazilian football left-back * Wallace (footballer, born 1987), full name Wa ...

West Point The United States Military Academy (USMA), commonly known as West Point, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York that educates cadets for service as Officer_(armed_forces)#United_States, comm ...

Other communities

* Cave City * Douglas Flat * Glencoe * Sheep Ranch * Milton * Paloma * Sheep Ranch * Wilseyville

Former settlements

* Camanche * Poverty Bar

Special districts

* Altaville Cemetery District * Altaville-Melones Fire District * Angels Camp Fire District * Bret Harte Union High School District * Calaveras County Air Pollution Control District * Calaveras Unified School District * Central Calaveras Fire and Rescue Protection District * Copperopolis Fire Protection District * Ebbetts Pass Fire Protection District * Foothill Fire District * Jenny Lind Fire District * Mark Twain Health Care District * Mark Twain Union Elementary School District * Mokelumne Hill Fire District * Murphys Fire District * San Andreas Fire District * Vallecito Union Elementary School District * Valley Springs Public Utilities District * West Point Fire District.

Population ranking

The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2010 census of Calaveras County.2010 Census
/ref> † ''county seat''

Notes

References

External links

*
Calaveras County Visitors BureauAngels Camp, Calaveras County, weatherArnold, Calaveras County, weatherCalaveras County Superior CourtMap of fire stations in Calaveras County
{{coord, 38.21, -120.55, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-CA_source:UScensus1990 California counties 1850 establishments in California Populated places established in 1850