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

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

in the northern portion of the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the ...

. Its population is 182,155 as of the 2020 census, up from 177,223 from the 2010 census. The

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US ...

is Redding. Shasta County comprises the Redding, California

Metropolitan Statistical Area In the United States, a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) is a geographical region with a relatively high population density at its core and close economic ties throughout the area. Such regions are neither legally Incorporated town, incorporate ...

. The county occupies the northern reaches of the

Sacramento Valley , photo =Sacramento Riverfront.jpg , photo_caption= Sacramento , map_image=Map california central valley.jpg , map_caption= The Central Valley of California , location = California, United States , coordinates = , boundaries = Sierra Nevada (ea ...

, with portions extending into the southern reaches of the Cascade Range. Points of interest in Shasta County include Shasta Lake,

Lassen Peak Lassen Peak ( ), commonly referred to as Mount Lassen, is a lava dome volcano and the southernmost active volcano in the Cascade Range of the Western United States. Located in the Shasta Cascade region of Northern California, it is part of the ...

, and the

Sundial Bridge The Sundial Bridge (also known as the Sundial Bridge at Turtle Bay) is a cantilever spar cable-stayed bridge for bicycles and pedestrians that spans the Sacramento River in Redding, California, United States and forms a large sundial. It was de ...

History

Shasta County was one of the original counties of California, created in 1850 at the time of statehood. The county was named after

Mount Shasta Mount Shasta ( Shasta: ''Waka-nunee-Tuki-wuki''; Karuk: ''Úytaahkoo'') is a potentially active volcano at the southern end of the Cascade Range in Siskiyou County, California. At an elevation of , it is the second-highest peak in the Cascade ...

; the name is derived from the English equivalent for the

Shasta people The Shastan peoples are a group of linguistically related indigenous peoples from the Klamath Mountains. They traditionally inhabited portions of several regional waterways, including the Klamath, Salmon, Sacramento and McCloud rivers. Shastan ...

. Their population declined in the 1850s due to disease, low birth rates, starvation, killings, and massacres as white settlers moved in. The name of the tribe was spelled in various ways until the present version was used when the county was established. Originally Mt. Shasta was within the county, but it is now part of Siskiyou County, to the north. Its 14,179-foot (4,322 m) peak is visible throughout most of Shasta County. Parts of the county's territory were transferred to Siskiyou County in 1852, and to Tehama County in 1856.

Geography

According to the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), 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 Census Bureau is part of the ...

, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (1.9%) is water. Mountains line the county on the east, north and west. The

Sacramento River The Sacramento River ( es, Río Sacramento) is the principal river of Northern California in the United States and is the largest river in California. Rising in the Klamath Mountains, the river flows south for before reaching the Sacramento–S ...

flows out of the mountains to the north, through the center of the county, and toward the Sacramento Valley to the south.

Flora and fauna

According to

Willis Linn Jepson Willis Linn Jepson (August 19, 1867 – November 7, 1946) was an early California botanist, conservationist, and writer. Career Born at Little Oak Ranch near Vacaville, California, Jepson became interested in botany as a boy and explo ...

the biota of Shasta County were not explored in a scientific manner until just before the year 1900. Up until the 1920s the Southern Pacific Railroad Company owned vast tracts of natural grasslands; however, during the 1920s the railroad sold off much of its grassland holdings, leading to the rapid clearing of brush and large scale conversion from habitat to agricultural uses. Shasta County has extensive forests, which cover over one half the land area with commercially productive forest systems. Common forest alliances include mixed oak woodland and mixed conifer-oak woodland as well as douglas fir forest. Common trees found include White-bark pine, California Black Oak and California Buckeye.

Adjacent counties

* Siskiyou County – north * Modoc County – northeast * Lassen County – east *

Plumas County Plumas County () is a county in the Sierra Nevada of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 19,790. The county seat is Quincy, and the only incorporated city is Portola. The largest community in the county is ...

– southeast * Tehama County – south * Trinity County – west

National protected areas

* Shasta-Trinity National Forest (part) * Whiskeytown National Recreation Area (part)

Demographics

2011

Places by population, race, and income

2010

The 2010 United States Census reported that Shasta County had a population of 177,223. The racial makeup of Shasta County was 153,726 (86.7%)

White White is the lightness, lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully diffuse reflection, reflect and scattering, scatter all the ...

, 1,548 (0.9%)

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...

, 4,950 (2.8%) Native American, 4,391 (2.5%) Asian, 271 (0.2%)

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of Ocea ...

, 4,501 (2.5%) from other races, and 7,836 (4.4%) from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties for ...

or Latino of any race were 14,878 persons (8.4%).

2000

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...

of 2000, there were 163,256 people, 63,426 households, and 44,017 families residing in the county. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: 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 geographical ...

was 43 people per square mile (17/km²). There were 68,810 housing units at an average density of 18 per square mile (7/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 89.3%

, 0.8%

Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ha ...

, 2.8% Native American, 1.9% Asian, 0.1%

, 1.7% from other races, and 3.5% from two or more races. 5.5% of the population were

or Latino of any race. 15.7% were of

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

, 12.3% English, 11.2% Irish, 9.9% American and 5.2% Italian ancestry according to

Census 2000 The United States census of 2000, conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States on April 1, 2000, to be 281,421,906, an increase of 13.2 percent over the 248,709,873 people enumerated during the 1990 c ...

. 94.0% spoke English and 3.3%

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: ** Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Ca ...

as their first language. There were 63,426 households, out of which 31.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.0% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...

living together, 11.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.6% were non-families. 24.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.52 and the average family size was 2.98. In the county, the population was spread out, with 26.1% under the age of 18, 8.2% from 18 to 24, 25.3% from 25 to 44, 25.2% from 45 to 64, and 15.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 95.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.2 males. The median income for a household in the county was $34,335, and the median income for a family was $40,491. Males had a median income of $35,959 versus $24,773 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the county was $17,738. About 11.3% of families and 15.4% 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 21.0% of those under age 18 and 7.3% of those age 65 or over.

Annual events

* Kool April Nites (April): A classic car show * Rodeo Week Festivities (May) * Art Fair and Fiddler's Jamboree (May) * Whiskeytown Regatta (May) * Watershed Festival (May) * Strawberry Festival (May) * Shasta Dragonwood Celtic Faire (May) * Redding Exchange Club Air Show (June) * Shasta District Fair (June) * Fall River Valley Century Bike Ride (July) * Fourth of July Fireworks Celebration (July) * Burney Basin Days (July) * Fall River Valley Wild Rice Festival (Aug) * Intermountain Fair, Fall River Valley (September) The Shasta County Fair * Stillwater Pow Wow (September) * Walk To End Alzheimer's (September) * Big Bike Weekend (October) * Fall River Valley Lights of Christmas Parade (December) * Palo Cedro Honey Bee Festival (September)

Politics

Voter registration statistics

Cities by population and voter registration

Overview

Shasta at one time favored the Democratic Party in Presidential elections. It went Democratic in all but one presidential election from 1932 to 1976, and was one of the few counties in the state to be won by

George McGovern George Stanley McGovern (July 19, 1922 – October 21, 2012) was an American historian and South Dakota politician who was a U.S. representative and three-term U.S. senator, and the Democratic Party presidential nominee in the 1972 pre ...

. However, since 1980, it has become one of the most Republican counties in the state in

Presidential President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese fu ...

and

congressional A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

elections. The last Democrat to carry the county in a presidential race was

Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (born October 1, 1924) is an American politician who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 76th governor of Georgia from 19 ...

1976 Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 Phil ...

. In the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together the ...

, Shasta County is in . In the

California State Legislature The California State Legislature is a bicameral state legislature consisting of a lower house, the California State Assembly, with 80 members; and an upper house, the California State Senate, with 40 members. Both houses of the Legislatur ...

, Shasta County is in , and .

Transportation

Major highways

Interstate 5 Interstate 5 (I-5) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the West Coast of the United States, running largely parallel to the Pacific coast of the contiguous U.S. from Mexico to Canada. It travels through the states of Calif ...

State Route 36 The following highways are numbered 36: International * European route E36 Australia * City Road, Sydney * Domain Highway, Tasmania * Arnhem Highway Canada * Alberta Highway 36 * Ontario Highway 36 * Saskatchewan Highway 36 China * G ...

State Route 44 * California 89

State Route 89 The following highways are numbered 89: Canada * Manitoba Highway 89 * Highway 89 (Ontario) Israel * Highway 89 (Israel) United States * Interstate 89 ** Interstate 87 (North Carolina–Virginia) (former proposal) * U.S. Route 89 * Alabama Stat ...

State Route 151 * California 273

State Route 273 * California 299

State Route 299

Public transportation

Redding Area Bus Authority The Redding Area Bus Authority, or RABA, is the operator of public transportation in Shasta County, California. RABA was formerly known as The Ride. Ten local routes serve the cities of Redding, Anderson, and Shasta Lake and their surrounding r ...

(RABA) provides service in and around Redding. One route operates to Burney via State Route 299.

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous U.S. States and nine cities in Canada ...

's ''

Coast Starlight The ''Coast Starlight'' is a passenger train operated by Amtrak on the West Coast of the United States between Seattle and Los Angeles via Portland and the San Francisco Bay Area. The train, which has operated continuously since Amtrak's formati ...

'' serves Redding Station once a day in each direction.

Airports

Redding Municipal Airport has scheduled passenger flights. Other (general aviation) airports within the county include Benton Field (near Redding), Fall River Mills Airport, and

Shingletown Airport Shingletown is a census-designated place (CDP) in Shasta County, California, United States. Its population is 2,442 as of the 2020 census, up from 2,283 from the 2010 census. Shingletown is a small town located along California State Route 44 i ...

Law enforcement

Shasta County Sheriff

The sheriff provides prison administration and coroner services for the entire county and patrol, investigative, and coroner services for the unincorporated portions of the county.

Municipal police

Redding and Anderson have municipal police departments.

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

School districts include: Unified: *

Fall River Joint Unified School District Autumn, also known as fall in American English and Canadian English, is one of the four temperate seasons on Earth. Outside the tropics, autumn marks the transition from summer to winter, in September (Northern Hemisphere) or March ( Southe ...

Gateway Unified School District Gateway Unified School District is a school district in the north side of Redding, California Redding is the economic and cultural capital of the Shasta Cascade region of Northern California and the county seat of Shasta County. Redding lie ...

Secondary: * Anderson Union High School District *

Dunsmuir Joint Union High School District Dunsmuir may refer to: * Dunsmuir, California, a city in the northern part of the state * Dunsmuir station, an Amtrak station in Dunsmuir, California * Dunsmuir station (British Columbia), a Via Rail station * Dola Dunsmuir, Canadian socialite * Jam ...

Red Bluff Joint Union High School District Red is the color at the long wavelength end of the visible spectrum of light, next to orange and opposite violet. It has a dominant wavelength of approximately 625–740 nanometres. It is a primary color in the RGB color model and a secondary ...

* Shasta Union High School District Elementary: *

Antelope Elementary School District The term antelope is used to refer to many species of even-toed ruminant that are indigenous to various regions in Africa and Eurasia. Antelope comprise a wastebasket taxon defined as any of numerous Old World grazing and browsing hoofed mammals ...

* Bella Vista Elementary School District *

Black Butte Union Elementary School District Black Butte Union School District is a public school district based in Shasta County, California. External links * School districts in Shasta County, California {{California-school-stub ...

* Cascade Union Elementary School District *

Castle Rock Union Elementary School District A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...

* Columbia Elementary School District *

Cottonwood Union Elementary School District Cottonwood may refer to: Plants * ''Celtis conferta'' subsp. ''amblyphylla'', a tree in the hemp and hackberry family * '' Hibiscus tiliaceus'', a flowering shrub or tree in the mallow family * In the genus ''Populus'', a number of difficult-to ...

Enterprise Elementary School District Enterprise Elementary School District is an elementary school district in Redding, California, United States. It covers a large portion of Redding's east side. The school district has eight elementary schools and one junior high school. Brian W ...

French Gulch-Whiskeytown Elementary School District French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Fran ...

* Grant Elementary School District;1;06089 * Happy Valley Union Elementary School District * Igo, Ono, Platina Union Elementary School District">Happy Valley Union Elementary School District">Grant Elementary School District;1;06089 * Happy Valley Union Elementary School District * Igo, Ono, Platina Union Elementary School District * Indian Springs Elementary School District * Junction Elementary School District * Millville Elementary School District * Mountain Union Elementary School District * North Cow Creek Elementary School District * Oak Run Elementary School District *

Pacheco Union Elementary School District Pacheco is a Portuguese and Spanish name which may refer to: General * Alex Pacheco (born 1958), animal rights activist, co-founder of PETA. *Ángel Pacheco (general) (1793-1869), was an Argentine military officer trained by José de San Martín ...

Redding Elementary School District Redding may refer to: People See: Redding (surname) Places in the United Kingdom *Redding, Falkirk, a village in the Falkirk council area *Reddingmuirhead, a village in Falkirk uphill from Redding * Reading, Berkshire, pronounced like Redding, a ...

Shasta Union Elementary School District The Shasta Union Elementary School District is a school district that operates one elementary school, the Shasta Montessori Elementary School, located in the town of Shasta, California. It is a K-8 school, with 114 students in the 2020–21 scho ...

* Whitmore Union Elementary School District

High schools and below

* 43 elementary schools * 10 junior high schools * 8 high schools * 35 private schools

Colleges and universities

Shasta County has four colleges and universities: * Shasta College, Redding: 2 year, fully accredited *

Simpson University Simpson University is a private, Christian university in Redding, California. Originally founded in 1921 in Seattle as Simpson Bible Institute, the institution relocated to San Francisco in 1955 and then to Redding in 1989. History Simpson Uni ...

, Redding: 4 year, fully accredited * National University, Redding: 4 year, fully accredited *

Shasta Bible College Shasta Bible College and Graduate School (SBC&GS) is a private Baptist college and graduate school in Redding, California. It is accredited by the Transnational Association of Christian Colleges and Schools (TRACS). SBC&GS has online and on-campus p ...

: 4 year

Healthcare

The board of supervisors issued a declaration opposing state vaccine mandates and fired the health officer after an election brought changes to the board.

Housing

* Median price for a house is about $365,000 as reported by USA Today April 12, 2022. * Median rental rate for a 2 bedroom apartment is $1,255/month.

Points of interest

Shasta Dam Shasta Dam (called Kennett Dam before its construction) is a concrete arch-gravity dam across the Sacramento River in Northern California in the United States. At high, it is the eighth-tallest dam in the United States. Located at the north e ...

2nd largest dam in US *

Lassen Volcanic National Park Lassen Volcanic National Park is an American national park in northeastern California. The dominant feature of the park is Lassen Peak, the largest plug dome volcano in the world and the southernmost volcano in the Cascade Range. Lassen Vol ...

* Shasta Lake * Turtle Bay Exploration Park *

Hat Creek Radio Observatory The Hat Creek Radio Observatory (HCRO) is operated by SRI International in the Western United States. The observatory is home to the Allen Telescope Array designed and owned by the SETI Institute in Mountain View, CA. Location Hat Creek Radio ...

* Iron Mountain Mine, one of the nation's most toxic waste sites *

/Turtle Bay, an architectural beauty and a natural habitat area surrounded by urbanization. * Burney Falls * Whiskeytown Dam and Lake, with John F. Kennedy Memorial

Communities

Cities

* Anderson * Redding * Shasta Lake

Census-designated places

* Bella Vista * Big Bend *

Burney Burney may refer to: __NOTOC__ Places * Burney, California, United States, an unincorporated town and census-designated place * Burney, Indiana, United States, an unincorporated community * Burney Falls, a waterfall in California * Burney (hill), ...

* Cassel * Castella * Centerville * Cottonwood * Fall River Mills * French Gulch * Happy Valley * Hat Creek *

Igo Igo or IGO may refer to: * Intergovernmental organization * Igo language, a Kwa language of Togo * Igo, California, a small town in the United States * iGO (software), a satellite navigation software package * iGo Inc, an American technology comp ...

* Johnson Park * Jones Valley * Keswick * Lakehead * McArthur * Millville * Montgomery Creek * Mountain Gate * Oak Run * Old Station *

Ono ONO, Ono or Ōno may refer to: Places Fiji * Ono Island (Fiji) Israel * Kiryat Ono * Ono, Benjamin, ancient site Italy * Ono San Pietro Ivory Coast * Ono, Ivory Coast, a village in Comoé District Japan * Ōno Castle, Fukuoka * Ō ...

Palo Cedro Palo Cedro (Spanish for "Cedar Wood") is a census-designated place (CDP) in Shasta County, California, United States. It is 8 miles (13 km) east of Redding, California. Its population is 2,931 as of the 2020 census, up from 1,269 from the 201 ...

Platina Platina is a municipality ''( município)'' in the state of São Paulo in Brazil. The population is 3,578 (2020 est.) in an area of 326.73 km². The elevation is 466 m. References Municipalities in São Paulo (state) {{SaoPauloState-geo ...

* Round Mountain * Shasta * Shingletown * Whitmore

Other unincorporated communities

* Beegum * Dana *

Enterprise Enterprise (or the archaic spelling Enterprize) may refer to: Business and economics Brands and enterprises * Enterprise GP Holdings, an energy holding company * Enterprise plc, a UK civil engineering and maintenance company * Enterprise ...

Ingot An ingot is a piece of relatively pure material, usually metal, that is cast into a shape suitable for further processing. In steelmaking, it is the first step among semi-finished casting products. Ingots usually require a second procedure of s ...

Motion In physics, motion is the phenomenon in which an object changes its position with respect to time. Motion is mathematically described in terms of displacement, distance, velocity, acceleration, speed and frame of reference to an observer and mea ...

* O'Brien * Pollard Flat *

Viola ; german: Bratsche , alt=Viola shown from the front and the side , image=Bratsche.jpg , caption= , background=string , hornbostel_sachs=321.322-71 , hornbostel_sachs_desc=Composite chordophone sounded by a bow , range= , related= *Violin family ...

Whiskeytown Whiskeytown was an American alternative country band formed in 1994 from Raleigh, North Carolina. Fronted by Ryan Adams, the group included members Caitlin Cary, Phil Wandscher, Eric "Skillet" Gilmore, and Mike Daly. They disbanded in 2000 wi ...

Population ranking

The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2020 census of Shasta County. † ''county seat''

Notes

References

External links

*
Shasta Historical Society
– large database of historical Shasta County photographs
Shastasearch.com: Shasta Regional Travel and Resource Guide
* Hiking trails in Shasta County {{authority control 1850 establishments in California California counties Populated places established in 1850 Sacramento Valley Shasta Cascade