Bolinas, California
Bolinas | ||
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FIPS code 06-07316 | | |
GNIS feature IDs | 277476, 2407875 |
Bolinas is an unincorporated coastal community and census-designated place in Marin County, California, United States.[7] As of the 2020 census it had a population of 1,483. It is located on the California coast, approximately 13 miles (21 km) (straight line distance) northwest of San Francisco, and 27 miles (43 km) by road.
The community is known for its reclusive residents. It is only accessible via unmarked roads; any road sign along State Route 1 that points the way into town has been torn down by local residents,[8] to the point where county officials offered a ballot measure to which the voters responded by stating a preference for no more signs.[9]
History
Prior to the European colonization of California, the Coast Miwok lived in the area, possibly calling the area "Bali-N".[10]
Bolinas and present-day Stinson Beach were once encompassed by Rancho Las Baulines, a Mexican land grant given by Governor Pío Pico to Gregorio Briones in 1846.[11][12][13]
The first post office in the town of Bolinas opened in 1863.[11]
In 1927, a 300 acres (121 ha) former dairy farm on the Big Mesa was subdivided into a grid of streets and 5,336 lots measuring 20 ft × 100 ft (6.1 m × 30.5 m). Many of these lots were sold for $69.50 by the
The Bolinas beaches were hit hard by the 1971 San Francisco Bay oil spill, with the community coming together to clean the beach of crude oil.
The Bolinas Museum was founded in 1983. Today, it contains five galleries featuring contemporary art, historical information, and works from local artists.[16] Today, it puts on auctions and events for locals and visitors alike.
Geography
Bolinas sits at an elevation of 36 feet (11 m) above sea level.[5] It is bound on the northeast by Bolinas Lagoon and Kent Island, on the south by Bolinas Bay and Duxbury Point, on the southwest by the Pacific Ocean, and on the northwest by Point Reyes National Seashore.[5] According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 5.8 square miles (15 km2), all of it land.[4] The GNIS has cited archaic alternate town-names, including "Ballenas", "Baulenas", "Baulings", and "Bawlines".[5]
Bolinas' downtown is located on the eastern side of town along Wharf Road, which ends at Bolinas Lagoon. The downtown buildings were mostly built between 1850 and 1920. Brighton Avenue connects downtown to the south-facing Brighton Beach. In the southeast corner of town is the Little Mesa. The Big Mesa, also known as the Gridded Mesa, lies to the west, with Agate Beach at its western end.
By air, Bolinas is just 10 miles (16 km) west-southwest of San Rafael,[11] and 13 miles (21 km) northwest of San Francisco. While located just 2 miles (3.2 km) from State Route 1, the area is not very accessible by car. The driving time from San Rafael is roughly 52 minutes, and it takes over an hour to drive to downtown San Francisco.[17]
Bolinas lies west of the San Andreas Fault, which runs the length of Bolinas Lagoon and continues northward through Olema Valley and Tomales Bay. Bolinas and the Point Reyes peninsula are on the Pacific Plate, moving north relative to Stinson Beach and the North American Plate at an average rate of about 1 inch (2.5 cm) per year.[citation needed]
Point Reyes National Seashore borders Bolinas to the northwest. Duxbury Reef State Marine Conservation Area encompasses Bolinas' western shoreline.
Climate
Bolinas experiences warm (occasionally hot) and dry summers, with some average monthly days in summer months above 77.1 °F (25.1 °C). According to the
Climate data for Bolinas, California | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 55.2 (12.9) |
59.6 (15.3) |
63.0 (17.2) |
66.1 (18.9) |
69.8 (21.0) |
74.1 (23.4) |
76.7 (24.8) |
77.1 (25.1) |
77.0 (25.0) |
72.1 (22.3) |
62.6 (17.0) |
55.3 (12.9) |
67.4 (19.7) |
Daily mean °F (°C) | 48.8 (9.3) |
52.2 (11.2) |
54.5 (12.5) |
56.8 (13.8) |
55.8 (13.2) |
59.9 (15.5) |
65.4 (18.6) |
65.8 (18.8) |
65.4 (18.6) |
61.7 (16.5) |
54.8 (12.7) |
49.1 (9.5) |
57.5 (14.2) |
Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 42.3 (5.7) |
44.7 (7.1) |
45.9 (7.7) |
47.4 (8.6) |
50.0 (10.0) |
52.7 (11.5) |
54.0 (12.2) |
54.4 (12.4) |
53.8 (12.1) |
51.3 (10.7) |
47.0 (8.3) |
42.9 (6.1) |
48.9 (9.4) |
Average precipitation inches (mm) | 7.7 (200) |
7.8 (200) |
5.5 (140) |
2.2 (56) |
1.3 (33) |
0.3 (7.6) |
0 (0) |
0.1 (2.5) |
0.3 (7.6) |
1.9 (48) |
5.3 (130) |
8.3 (210) |
40.7 (1,034.7) |
Source: Bestplaces.net[18] |
Demographics
Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
---|---|---|---|
2000 | 1,246 | — | |
2010 | 1,620 | 30.0% | |
2020 | 1,483 | −8.5% | |
U.S. Decennial Census[19] |
2010
The
The census reported that 88.4% of the population lived in households and 11.6% lived in non-institutionalized group quarters.
There were 698 households, 144 (20.6%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 259 (37.1%) were
The age distribution was 234 people (14.4%) under the age of 18, 76 people (4.7%) aged 18 to 24, 385 people (23.8%) aged 25 to 44, 642 people (39.6%) aged 45 to 64, and 283 people (17.5%) who were 65 or older. The median age was 49.3 years. For every 100 females, there were 115.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 113.6 males.
There were 986 housing units at an average density of 169.2 per square mile, of the occupied units 57.4% were owner-occupied and 42.6% were rented. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.7%; the rental vacancy rate was 2.6%. 54.1% of the population lived in owner-occupied housing units and 34.3% lived in rental housing units.
2000
At the
The age distribution was 21.0% under the age of 18, 4.7% from 18 to 24, 26.0% from 25 to 44, 40.3% from 45 to 64, and 8.0% who were 65 or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females, there were 110.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 102.1 males.
The median household income was $53,188 and the median family income was $56,111. Males had a median income of $48,281 versus $40,417 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $28,973. About 5.5% of families and 10.2% of the population were below the
The much larger area defined by the Census Bureau as Zip Code Tabulation Area 94924, which includes Horseshoe Hill, Dogtown, and Five Brooks, had a 2000 population of 1,560 people (see map).[22]
Education
Bolinas is in the
In 1951, Ford Times identified Bolinas as the first in its series of "Tom Sawyer Towns... a good place for boys and girls to live and grow... its school days, its summer vacations, its vast adventures in fishing, swimming, baseball, basking and dreaming in the sun. Such a place is Bolinas."[24]
Government
Bolinas is unincorporated, receiving general government services from
Bolinas Community Public Utility District
In 1967, the Bolinas Community Public Utility District was formed by the Marin County Board of Supervisors. It merged two local water districts, the Bolinas Beach Public Utility District which served the Big Mesa, and the Bolinas Public Utility District which served the Downtown and Little Mesa, with the Marin County Sanitary District #3, formed in 1908 to provide sewer service in the downtown. The BCPUD provides water service and solid waste pickup throughout Bolinas, and sewer service to the Downtown and Little Mesa.[15]
In November 1971, the Bolinas Community Public Utility District instituted a moratorium on new water permits, which halted the construction of new homes. The moratorium was based on the limited local water supply during the summer months and in drought years, and also serves to limit new development in Bolinas.[14] In 1990, the BCPUD enacted a moratorium on new sewer connections, to address the limited capacity of the sewage collection system.[15] Many lots, especially on the Big Mesa, remain undeveloped.
In 2003, Bolinas voters adopted Measure G, authored by Bolinas artist Jane "Dakar" Blethen.[27] The advisory measure called for the following language to be adopted as a policy of the Bolinas Community Public Utility District:
Vote for Bolinas to be a socially acknowledged nature-loving town because to like to drink the water out of the lakes to like to eat the blueberries to like the bears is not hatred to hotels and motor boats. Dakar. Temporary and way to save life, skunks and foxes (airplanes to go over the ocean) and to make it beautiful.[27][28]
Regional recreation and marine protected areas
Besides the public access beach near the downtown area, there is a
Duxbury Reef State Marine Conservation Area lies offshore from Bolinas. Like an underwater park, this marine protected area helps conserve ocean wildlife and marine ecosystems.
In popular culture
Bolinas and its reclusive reputation are featured in the 1981 novel Ecotopia Emerging by Ernest Callenbach.
Wildflowers, a 1999 film starring Daryl Hannah, was partly filmed in Bolinas.[29]
Stickers that say "Radio Free Bolinas" were subtly put on a couple of the
Notable people
See also
References
- County of Marin. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
- ^ a b "Statewide Database". Regents of the University of California. Archived from the original on February 1, 2015. Retrieved February 26, 2015.
- ^ "California's 2nd Congressional District - Representatives & District Map". Civic Impulse, LLC. Retrieved March 8, 2013.
- ^ a b "2021 U.S. Gazetteer Files: California". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 6, 2022.
- ^ a b c d U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Bolinas, California
- ^ "P1. Race – Bolinas CDP, California: 2020 DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171)". U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved July 6, 2022.
- ^ "Marin County Local Coastal Program". Co.marin.ca.us. Retrieved December 20, 2011.
- ^ "Bolinas Journal; Welcome to Bolinas; Please Keep On Moving". The New York Times. July 9, 2000. Retrieved December 20, 2011.
- ^ "Road Signs? Bolinas Voters Say 'Read Our Lips' Instead". Los Angeles Times. November 9, 1989. Retrieved November 16, 2013.
- ^ Short, Steven. "Bolinas: a hidden town with history". www.kalw.org.
- ^ ISBN 1-884995-14-4.
- ^ Ogden Hoffman, 1862, Reports of Land Cases Determined in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California
- ^ "Marin County Free Library - My choice for leisure, learning, living". Co.marin.ca.us. Archived from the original on November 14, 2008. Retrieved August 27, 2018.
- ^ a b c "A Plan for the Bolinas Gridded Mesa", Bolinas Planning Council and The Marin County Planning Department, 1984. [1]
- ^ a b c "Sewer System Management Plan". Bolinas Community Public Utility District, April 2008. [2]
- ^ "Bolinas Museum". Bolinasmuseum.org. Archived from the original on December 22, 2017. Retrieved December 19, 2017.
- ^ "Google Maps". Google Maps. Retrieved August 27, 2018.
- ^ "Bolinas,CA". July 2020. Retrieved July 19, 2020.
- ^ "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2016.
- ^ "2010 Census Interactive Population Search: CA - Bolinas CDP". U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on July 15, 2014. Retrieved July 12, 2014.
- ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
- ^ "94924 - Fact Sheet - American FactFinder". Factfinder.census.gov. Archived from the original on February 16, 2020. Retrieved December 20, 2011.
- U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved April 28, 2023. - Text list
- ^ Corliss, J. Ray (March 1951). "Bolinas, California". Ford Times. 43 (3): 2–11.
- ^ "Bolinas Community Public Utility District". Bcpud.org. December 16, 2011. Retrieved December 20, 2011.
- ^ "Bolinas Fire Protection District | Home". Bolinasfire.org. Retrieved December 20, 2011.
- ^ a b Fimrite, Peter; Podger, Pamela J.; Writers, Chronicle Staff (October 30, 2003). "Bolinas puts good karma on the ballot". SFGate. Retrieved November 17, 2019.
- ^ "Measure G: Bolinas Socially Acknowledged Nature Loving Town". Smart Voter, November 20, 2003. Accessed January 20, 2015. [3]
- ^ Painter, Melissa (March 4, 2000), Wildflowers, Clea DuVall, Daryl Hannah, Tomas Arana, retrieved December 19, 2017
- ^ Harry L. Helms (January 1981). https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-DX/Miscellaneous/How%20To%20Tune%20The%20Secret%20Shortwave%20Spectrum-Helms.pdf, pg. 129. Retrieved July 8, 2022.
Further reading
- Bullis, Mabel Dodge (1974). Early Bolinas Memories. Berkeley, Calif.: Wesley Tanner. p. 20. OCLC 10328789.
- Dibblee, Harrison (1940). Epic of Bolinas. Dallas, Texas: The Kaleidograph Press. p. 22. OCLC 14635050.
- Frank, Phil; Kendrick Rand; Tamae Agnoli (2004). Bolinas and Stinson Beach. Images of America: California. Bolinas Museum and Stinson Beach Historical Society. Arcadia Publishing. p. 128. OCLC 57345826.
- Mason, Jack; Thomas J. Barfield (1973). Last Stage for Bolinas. Inverness, Calif.: North Shore Books. p. 168. OCLC 750529.
- Reich, Charles A. (1976). The Sorcerer of Bolinas Reef. New York: Random House. p. 266. OCLC 2388044.
- Schell, Orville (1976). The Town That Fought To Save Itself. Photos by Ilka Hartmann. New York: Pantheon Books. p. 200. OCLC 1976726.
External links
- Bolinas Beach from the air, 2005 (California Coastal Records Project)
- Bolinas Library
- Bolinas Community Land Trust (BCLT) (Affordable, community housing, preserving the human ecosystem, and the natural ecology of Bolinas.)
- Bolinas Museum
- The Coastal Post
- Bolinas Community Center
- New York Times article on Bolinas Culture
- Bolinas Literary History by Kevin Opstedal
- Dreaming As One: Poetry, Poets and Community in Bolinas, California, 1967-1980 by Kevin Opstedal
- Point Reyes National Seashore travel guide from Wikivoyage