Mount Signal is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

located along State Route 98 about west of

Calexico Calexico () is a city in southern Imperial County, California. Situated on the Mexican border, it is linked economically with the much larger city of Mexicali, the capital of the Mexican state of Baja California. It is about east of San Dieg ...

in the southern part of the

Imperial Valley The Imperial Valley ( or ''Valle Imperial'') of Southern California lies in Imperial and Riverside counties, with an urban area centered on the city of El Centro. The Valley is bordered by the Colorado River to the east and, in part, the S ...

Imperial County, California Imperial County is a county located on the southeast border of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 179,702, ranking as the least populous county in Southern California. The county seat and largest city is ...

, United States. The area is south of

Interstate 8 Interstate 8 (I-8) is an Interstate Highway in the southwestern United States. It runs from the southern edge of Mission Bay at Sunset Cliffs Boulevard in San Diego, California, almost at the Pacific Ocean, to the junction with I-10, ...

and about north of the

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

border. It lies at an elevation of 13 feet (4 m) below sea level. This is an agricultural area. There are a few homes and businesses and many irrigation canals and green fields. The Centinela Solar Energy Project is located here. Other nearby communities include Heber,

El Centro El Centro ( Spanish for "The Center") is a city and county seat of Imperial County, California, United States. El Centro is the most populous city in the Imperial Valley, the east anchor of the Southern California Border Region, and the co ...

, and

Seeley Seeley may refer to: __NOTOC__ People and fictional characters * Seeley (surname) * Seeley Booth, a fictional character in the American television series ''Bones'' * Seeley G. Mudd (1895-1968), American physician, professor and philanthropist * See ...

. The ZIP Code for Mount Signal is 92231 and the area is in Calexico'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 ...

area. Its area code is 760. While not 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 ...

, the name is official and it does have a National Geographic Names Database feature ID of 1661068. The official

U.S. Geological Survey The United States Geological Survey (USGS), founded as the Geological Survey, is an agency of the U.S. Department of the Interior whose work spans the disciplines of biology, geography, geology, and hydrology. The agency was founded on March ...

coordinates are : this defines a spot near the intersection of State Route 98 (SR98) and Brockman Road.

Name

The community is named for Mount Signal, a summit about southwest, inside Mexico. It is also known as El Cerro Centinela, by the Mexicans, and Wi'Shspa, by the Kwapa: Cocopah people. Mount Signal was used by the early Pioneers and Native Americans as a landmark to help guide them through the desert. Most of the fields in the area are currently growing

alfalfa Alfalfa () (''Medicago sativa''), also called lucerne, is a perennial plant, perennial flowering plant in the legume family Fabaceae. It is cultivated as an important forage crop in many countries around the world. It is used for grazing, hay, ...

sugar beets A sugar beet is a plant whose root contains a high concentration of sucrose and that is grown commercially for sugar production. In plant breeding, it is known as the Altissima cultivar group of the common beet (''Beta vulgaris''). Together with ...

. Mount Signal Road takes you to the mountain and the International Border. Unfortunately, there is not a Port of Entry there. However, there is a limited access area for off-road vehicles. Even though Mount Signal appears to be in the United States, it is actually located on the Mexican side of the border. If one would like to climb all to the top, one must do so from the Mexican side. Climbers need to take care, there are no maintained trails. During the 1870s U.S. engineers climbed the mountain to record the elevation, so there should be a monument marker at the top.

History

A post office operated at Mount Signal from 1916 to 1934.

Points of interest

Other geographic features supporting the name include Mount Signal School, feature ID of 246276. It is believed the school no longer exists; its location was one mile (1.6 km) north of these coordinates on Brockman Road. At the intersection of SR98 and Brockman Road is the Mount Signal Café, currently closed. The business was shown on an episode of ''

California's Gold ''California's Gold'' was a public television human interest program that explores the natural, cultural, and historical features of California. The series ran for 24 seasons beginning in 1991, and was produced and hosted by Huell Howser in coll ...

''.

Politics

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 ...

Mount Signal is located in the 40th

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

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

Denise Moreno Ducheny Denise Moreno Ducheny (born March 21, 1952) is an American lawyer and former politician from California. She is a former California State Senator who represented Senate District 40, which includes southern San Diego County, part of Riverside Co ...

, and in the 80th Assembly District, represented by Republican

Bonnie Garcia Bonnie Garcia (born August 13, 1962) is a California politician. She was the representative for California's 80th State Assembly district, serving eastern Riverside County and all of Imperial County, from 2002 through 2008. In 2014 she was a cand ...

. Federally, Mount Signal is located in

California's 51st congressional district California's 51st congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of California. The district is currently represented by . The district currently includes central and eastern portions of San Diego, as well as eastern subu ...

, which is represented by Democrat

Juan Vargas Juan Carlos Vargas (born March 7, 1961) is an American businessman and politician who has been a U.S. representative for California since 2013. His district includes the southernmost portions of San Diego County. Vargas previously served as a ...

References

External links

Over One Hundred and One Views of Mount Signal
maintained by American Artist

Allan McCollum Allan McCollum (born 4 August 1944) is a contemporary American artist who lives and works in New York City. In 1975, his work was included in the Whitney Biennial, and he moved to New York City the same year. In the late 1970s, he became especial ...