San Andreas (Californio Spanish for "St. Andrew") is an unincorporated census-designated place in, and the county seat of, Calaveras County, California, United States. The population was 2,994 at the 2020 census, up from 2,783 at the 2010 census. Like most towns in the region, it was founded during the California Gold Rush. The town is located on State Route 49 and is registered as California Historical Landmark #252.
Contents
History
Settled by Mexican gold miners in 1848 and named after the Catholic parish St. Andrew, the town has been a noted mining camp since early days. It existed as a tent city for the first few years, and even included a tent church. A few miles outside of town is the Pioneer Cemetery, established in c. 1851.
In August 1852, a nugget of gold was found here and was sold to Wells Fargo & Co. for US$12,000. The gold from the initially discovered placers gave out after a few years, but the discovery of gold in an underground river channel in 1853 revitalized the camp and it soon became a town. Mining of the channels was lucrative enough for the town to completely rebuild after fires in 1858 and 1863. The gold discovered here contributed greatly to the success of the Union during the Civil War.
In 1866, San Andreas became the seat of Calaveras County. It was said to be a rendezvous location for Joaquin Murrieta. Notorious highwayman Black Bart was tried here and sent to prison.
The post office was established in 1854.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 8.4 square miles (22 km2), of which 99.81% is land and 0.19% is water.
Climate
San Andreas has a Mediterranean climate typical of the Sierra Nevada foothills. Winters are cool and wet with mild days, chilly nights, and substantial rainfall. Summers are hot and dry with very hot days, cool nights, and minimal rainfall. Due to the orographic effect, rainfall in all seasons is significantly greater than on the valley floor to the west.
Demographics
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, San Andreas had a population of 2,994 and a population density of 356.9 inhabitants per square mile (137.8/km2). The median age was 46.2 years.
For every 100 females, there were 97.5 males; for every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.3 males age 18 and over. The age distribution was 20.2% under age 18, 5.9% from 18 to 24, 22.6% from 25 to 44, 25.6% from 45 to 64, and 25.7% age 65 or older.
The census reported that 92.4% of the population lived in households, 1.0% lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 6.6% were institutionalized. Of residents, 0.0% lived in urban areas and 100.0% lived in rural areas.
There were 1,172 households, of which 24.7% included children under age 18. Of all households, 37.3% were married-couple households, 8.6% were cohabiting couple households, 34.9% had a female householder with no partner present, and 19.2% had a male householder with no partner present. About 33.7% of households were one person, and 20.0% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.36, and there were 671 families (57.3% of all households).
There were 1,296 housing units at an average density of 154.5 units per square mile (59.7 units/km2). Of all housing units, 9.6% were vacant. Of the 1,172 occupied units, 59.0% were owner-occupied and 41.0% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 3.5%, and the rental vacancy rate was 7.0%.
Politics
In the state legislature, San Andreas is in the 4th senatorial district, represented by Republican Marie Alvarado-Gil, and the 8th Assembly district, represented by Republican David Tangipa. Federally, San Andreas is in California's 5th congressional district, represented by Republican Tom McClintock.