Grass Valley, California

Grass Valley, California
City
Location in Nevada County and the state of California
Country	United States
State	California
County	Nevada
Area
• Total	4.1 sq mi (10.6 km2)
• Land	4.1 sq mi (10.6 km2)
• Water	0 sq mi (0 km2)
Elevation	2,411 ft (735 m)
Population  (2000)
• Total	10,922
• Density	2,663.9/sq mi (1,030.4/km2)
Time zone	UTC-8 (Pacific (PST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-7 (PDT)
ZIP codes	95945, 95949
Area code	530
FIPS code	06-30798
GNIS feature ID	0277525

Grass Valley is a city in Nevada County, California, United States. The population was 10,922 at the 2000 census.

Geography

Grass Valley is located at 39°13′9″N 121°3′30″W (39.219215, -121.058414)Template:GR.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 4.1 square miles (10.6 km²), all of it land.

Demographics

Note: Current estimates on population are ~11,100. (May 2007)

As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there were 10,922 people, 5,016 households, and 2,678 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,660.2 people per square mile (1,026.0/km²). There were 5,266 housing units at an average density of 1,282.6/sq mi (494.7/km²).

The racial makeup of the city was 91.91% White, 6.56% Hispanic, or Latino, 3.71% from two or more races, 0.27% Black or African American, 1.34% Native American, 1.05% Asian, 0.07% Pacific Islander, and 1.66% from other races

Grass Valley also has a strong connection to Cornish culture and ancestry, since many people from Cornwall in South-West England emigrated here in the 18th and 19th centuries (see Cornish emigration).

Out of the 5,016 households, 46.6% were non-families, 39.1% of all households were made up of individuals, 32.4% were married couples living together, 26.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 20.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older, and 16.3% had a female householder with no husband present The average household size was 2.13 and the average family size was 2.80 people.

The ages of the population were:

under age 18: 23.3%

ages 18 to 24: 9.3%

ages 25 to 44: 25.1%

ages 45 to 64: 20.3%

age 65 and older: 22.0%

The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 81.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 75.1 males.

The median income were:

$28,182 for a household in the city

$33,220 for a family

$32,568 for males

$21,915 for females

The per capita income for the city was $16,877. About 12.9% of families and 14.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.0% of those under age 18 and 6.3% of those age 65 or over.

Transportation

Grass Valley is at the intersection of State Route 49 and State Route 20. Public transportation is served by the Gold Country Stage[1] and is limited to the urban areas.

History

Grass Valley dates from the California Gold Rush, as does nearby Nevada City. It is the location of the Empire Mine, one of the richest mines in California.

Many of those who came to settle in Grass Valley were tin miners from Cornwall. They were attracted to the California gold fields because the same skills needed for deep tin mining were needed for hardrock (deep) gold mining. Many of them specialized in pumping the water out of very deep mining shafts. This coincided with a glut in Cornish tin mining.

Grass Valley still holds on to its Cornish heritage, with events such as its annual Cornish Christmas celebration. Pasties are a local favorite dish with a few restaurants in town specializing in recipes handed down from the original immigrant generation.

Notable residents

• Gallant Bess, a horse rescued by a U.S. Navy sailor during World War II, whose account was turned into a movie of the same name.
• Hunter Burgan bassist of the band AFI
• Lotta Crabtree 19th century actress
• Jonathan Dayton director Little Miss Sunshine
• Lyman Gilmore became the first person to fly a powered airplane (a steam-powered glider). Lyman Gilmore Middle School is located in Grass Valley and listed as a Historical site.
• Bill Hotchkiss, poet and novelist, author of Medicine Calf, based on the life of Jim Beckwourth.
• Lola Montez 19th century dancer
• Hans Ostrom, writer and professor.
• Jim Pagliaroni, former professional baseball player, catcher of a perfect game pitched by Jim "Catfish" Hunter (Oakland Athletics).
• John Rollin Ridge (1827-1867), Native American writer, is buried in Grass Valley.
• Josiah Royce philosopher
• Chris Senn professional skateboarder
• Jeremy Sisto actor
• Wallace Stegner (1903-1993) set his Pulitzer-Prize-winning novel Angle of Repose (1971) in Grass Valley.
• John Thomson author
• Jim Tucker, a guitarist for the group, The Turtles.
• Chuck Yeager, an ace fighter pilot and the first man to break the speed of sound in the Bell X-1.
• [[Mariee Sioux}}, singer/songwriter/poet/ international photographer. [Faces in The Rocks] voted best CD of 2007 by The Bay Guardian, The Boston Globe, Parade Magazine and Amsterdams Radio 6.

Economy

The Grass Valley Group is a research and development company founded in the city in 1958, specializing in video amplifiers and television switchers. Some of its technology appeared on-screen in the 1977 film Star Wars. The company is now a subsidiary of Thomson SA.

Gallery

• 
  The historic Holbrooke Hotel and Restaurant
• 
  The public library named for Josiah Royce
• 
  The inscription to Royce at the library

Town Twinning

• Bodmin, United Kingdom

References

{http://www.sierramountaininn.com}

External links

• The Union - Local newspaper
• City of Grass Valley Official Site
• Great Visitor's Guide to Grass Valley
• Live Grass Valley Web Cam
• Nevada County Gold Online, Grass Valley History and tourism info
• {http://www.sierramountaininn.com/ lodging in Grass Valley}