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Felton, California facts for kids

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Felton
Downtown Felton
Downtown Felton
Location in Santa Cruz County and the state of California
Location in Santa Cruz County and the state of California
Felton, California is located in the United States
Felton, California
Felton, California
Location in the United States
Country United States
State California
County Santa Cruz
Area
 • Total 4.552 sq mi (11.790 km2)
 • Land 4.552 sq mi (11.790 km2)
 • Water 0 sq mi (0 km2)  0%
Elevation
285 ft (87 m)
Population
 (2020)
 • Total 4,489
 • Density 986.16/sq mi (380.75/km2)
Time zone UTC-8 (PST)
 • Summer (DST) UTC-7 (PDT)
ZIP code
95018
Area code(s) 831
FIPS code 06-23826
GNIS feature ID 0277512
Felton Library
Felton Museum on Gushee Street

Felton is a census-designated place (CDP) in Santa Cruz County, California, United States. The population was 4,489 as of 2020 census and according to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 4.6 square miles (12 km2), all of it land.

History

Named for John B. Felton, a former Oakland, California mayor, a judge and a San Francisco Bay Area investor in his day, the town is a historic logging community. Felton served as the lower terminus of the San Lorenzo Valley Logging Flume from Boulder Creek, which began construction in 1874 and when formally opened in October 1875 was augmented by a new rail line to transport logs to the wharf in Santa Cruz.

Shortly after the Santa Cruz & Felton Railroad began operation, a second rail line began operation in 1880 from Alameda, California and San Jose, California. A new depot was constructed at "New Felton" using salvaged materials from a dismantled portion of the San Lorenzo Valley Logging Flume from Boulder Creek. The railroads, limekilns and forest in this area provided a majority of the repair materials for the great 1906 San Francisco earthquake. The standard gauge railroad line came into Felton by 1909.

In 1927, the Felton community of Lompico, California, was established.

In 1963, the steam-powered Roaring Camp Railroad began tourist operations on the Big Trees Ranch out of the Old Felton Depot. The company later constructed a replica logging camp and another depot further down the property, and in 1985, took over operations on the old SPC/Southern Pacific standard gauge line to Santa Cruz. Roaring Camp is a re-creation of an 1880s logging camp and home to the original South Pacific Coast (later Southern Pacific) Felton depot and freight shed, as well as two unique railroads — the Roaring Camp and Big Trees Narrow Gauge Railroad, a steam-powered line up Bear Mountain, and the Santa Cruz, Big Trees and Pacific Railway.

Felton is home to the Felton Covered Bridge, an 80-foot-long covered bridge over the San Lorenzo River built in 1892 and placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973.

The Trout Farm Inn was located in Felton. It burned down on June 5, 2016.

Demographics

Historical population
Census Pop.
1880 271
1890 259 −4.4%
1960 1,380
1970 2,062 49.4%
1980 4,564 121.3%
1990 5,350 17.2%
2000 5,273 −1.4%
2010 4,057 −23.1%
2020 4,489 10.6%
source:

2010

The 2010 United States Census reported that Felton had a population of 4,057. The population density was 891.2 people per square mile (344.1/km2). The racial makeup of Felton was 3,691 (91.0%) White, 25 (0.6%) African American, 29 (0.7%) Native American, 69 (1.7%) Asian, 11 (0.3%) Pacific Islander, 60 (1.5%) from other races, and 172 (4.2%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 283 persons (7.0%).

The Census reported that 99.4% of the population lived in households and 0.6% lived in non-institutionalized group quarters.

There were 1,700 households, out of which 450 (26.5%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 795 (46.8%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 124 (7.3%) had a female householder with no husband present, 69 (4.1%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 154 (9.1%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 27 (1.6%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 474 households (27.9%) were made up of individuals, and 130 (7.6%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37. There were 988 families (58.1% of all households); the average family size was 2.89.

The population was spread out, with 738 people (18.2%) under the age of 18, 300 people (7.4%) aged 18 to 24, 1,048 people (25.8%) aged 25 to 44, 1,560 people (38.5%) aged 45 to 64, and 411 people (10.1%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44.0 years. For every 100 females, there were 101.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 99.5 males.

There were 1,895 housing units at an average density of 416.3 per square mile (160.7/km2), of which 69.5% were owner-occupied and 30.5% were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.1%; the rental vacancy rate was 3.0%. 72.8% of the population lived in owner-occupied housing units and 26.6% lived in rental housing units.

Covered Bridge Park
Felton Covered Bridge Park

2000

As of the census of 2000, there were 1051 people and 517 households in the CDP. The population density was 1,133.0 people per square mile (436.3/km2). There were 173 housing units at an average density of 189.3 per square mile (214.6/km2). The racial makeup of the CDP was 90.58% White, 0.67% African American, 0.57% Native American, 1.43% Asian, 0.10% Pacific Islander, 3.33% from other races, and 3.33% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 7.14% of the population.

There were 393 households, out of which 29.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.2% were married couples living together, 8.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.9% were non-families. 25.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 4.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.57 and the average family size was 3.06.

In the CDP, the population was spread out, with 26.5% under the age of 18, 10.8% from 18 to 24, 29.7% from 25 to 44, 23.3% from 45 to 64, and 9.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 104.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.4 males.

The median income for a household in the CDP was $48,102, and the median income for a family was $55,625. Males had a median income of $35,833 versus $26,346 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $21,488. About 8.3% of families and 15.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.0% of those under age 18 and none of those age 65 or over.

Economy

A Graniterock quarry is located in Felton. As well as a Granite Construction Quarry and Asphalt Plant

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Felton (California) para niños

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