History
Marin County is one
of the original counties of California, created in
1850 at the time of statehood.
The origin of the
county's name is not clear. One version is the
county was named for Chief Marin, of the Licatiut
tribe of Native Americans who inhabited that section
and waged fierce battle against the early Spanish
military explorers. The other version is that the
bay between San Pedro and San Quentin points was
named Bahia de Nuestra Senora del Rosario la
Marinera in 1775, and it is quite possible that
Marin is simply an abbreviation of this name.
Geography
According to the
U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area
of 2,145 km² (828 mi²). 1,346 km² (520 mi²) of it is
land and 799 km² (308 mi²) of it (37.24%) is water.
According to the records at the County
Assessor-Recoder's Office, as of June 2006,
Marin had 91,065 acres of taxable land, comprised of
79,086 parcels with a total tax basis of $39.8
billion. These parcels are divided into the
following classifications:
| Parcel Type |
Tax ID |
Quantity |
Value |
| Vacant |
10 |
6,900 |
$508.17
million |
| Single
Family Residential |
11 |
61,264 |
$30,137.02
million |
| Mobile Home |
12 |
210 |
$7.62
million |
| House Boat |
13 |
379 |
$61.83
million |
| Multi Family
Residential |
14 |
1,316 |
$3,973.51
million |
| Industrial
Unimproved |
40 |
113 |
$12.24
million |
| Industrial
Improved |
41 |
562 |
$482.83
million |
| Commercial
Unimproved |
50 |
431 |
$97.89
million |
| Commercial
Improved |
51 |
7,911 |
$4,519.64
million |
Geographically, the
county forms a large, southward-facing peninsula,
with the Pacific Ocean to the west,
San Pablo Bay and
San Francisco Bay to the east, and -- across the
Golden Gate -- the city of
San Francisco to the south. Marin County's
northern border is with
Sonoma County.
Most of the county's
population resides on the eastern side, with a
string of communities running along the Bay, from
Sausalito to
Tiburon to
Corte Madera to
San Rafael. The interior contains large areas of
agricultural and open space;
West Marin, through which
California State Route 1 runs alongside the
California coast, contains many small unincorporated
communities dependent on agriculture and tourism for
their economies.
Major Highways
Scenic
Roads
-
Dillon Beach
Road
-
Paradise Drive
-
Tomales
Petaluma Road
-
Chileno Valley
Road: Connects Marshall Petaluma Road to Tomales
Petaluma Road
-
Marshall
Petaluma Road
-
Hicks Valley
Road: Connects Marshall Petaluma Road to Point
Reyes Petaluma Road
-
Point Reyes
Petaluma Road
-
Novato
Boulevard: Novato to Point Reyes Petaluma Road
-
Sir Francis
Drake Blvd:
Point Reyes Lighthouse to
California Park
-
Bolinas
Fairfax Road: Connects Sir Francis Drake Blvd to
California State Route 1 at Bolinas
-
Bolinas Ridge
Road: Connects Bolinas Fairfax Road to Panoramic
Highway and
Muir Woods Road
Adjacent Counties
Ecology
Marin county is
considered in the
California Floristic Province, a zone of
extremely high biodiversity. There are numerous
ecosystems present, including
coastal strand,
oak woodland,
chaparral and
riparian zones. There are also a considerable
number of protected plant and animal species
present, including the Northern Red-legged Frog.
Demographics
As of the
census²
of 2000, there were 247,289 people, 100,650
households, and 60,691 families residing in the
county. The population density was 184/km²
(476/mi²). There were 104,990 housing units at an
average density of 78/km² (202/mi²). The racial
makeup of the county was 84.03% White, 2.89% Black
or African American, 0.43% Native American, 4.53%
Asian, 0.16% Pacific Islander, 4.50% from other
races, and 3.47% from two or more races. 11.06% of
the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 100,650
households out of which 27.50% had children under
the age of 18 living with them, 48.40% were married
couples living together, 8.50% had a female
householder with no husband present, and 39.70% were
non-families. 29.80% of all households were made up
of individuals and 9.60% had someone living alone
who was 65 years of age or older. The average
household size was 2.34 and the average family size
was 2.90.
In the county the
population was spread out with 20.30% under the age
of 18, 5.50% from 18 to 24, 31.00% from 25 to 44,
29.70% from 45 to 64, and 13.50% who were 65 years
of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For
every 100 females there were 98.20 males. For every
100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.40 males.
The median income for
a household in the county was $71,306, and the
median income for a family was $88,934. Males had a
median income of $61,282 versus $45,448 for females.
The per capita income for the county was $44,962.
About 3.70% of families and 6.60% of the population
were below the poverty line, including 6.90% of
those under age 18 and 4.50% of those age 65 or
over.
Marin County has the
highest per capita income of any county in the
United States. This is driven in particular by
expensive enclaves in
Belvedere,
Kentfield,
Larkspur,
Ross,
Tiburon,
Mill Valley,
Sausalito,
San Anselmo and portions of
San Rafael and
Novato.
The traditionally
middle class towns of Corte Madera, Fairfax, Novato
and San Rafael (where per capita incomes typically
paralleled the California state average as late as
1985) also have experienced especially sharp rises
in real estate values, due in part to their
proximity to the "prestige" address areas. The
county's resistance to urban sprawl and its
preservation of open space have also had an upward
impact on housing prices by reducing the number of
new subdivisions built in the area since 1970. As a
result of these factors, many lower-income middle
class families have moved, often to
Sonoma County, California, for cheaper housing.
The trend of
increased affluence has not held true for two
neighborhoods in particular, populated almost
exclusively by low-income persons of color: Marin
City (which shares a zip code with Sausalito) and
the Canal Neighborhood in San Rafael.
-
Marin City has a
population of 2,500 and is ethnically diverse
with large East Asian, Hispanic, and African
American populations. Many families live in
public housing apartment buildings that are now
approaching 50 years old.
San Rafael has
asserted to the Federal Government that this
population is significantly undercounted by the U.S.
Census due to the high percentage of illegal
immigrants, depriving the city of tax funds for
improved social services. They assert that the 6.6%
of the county-wide population listed as below the
poverty line is both under-reported, and heavily
concentrated in The Canal.
Notable current and former residents
-
Andre Agassi,
tennis player.
-
Isabel Allende,
writer.
-
Melba Beale,
civil rights activist.
-
Barbara Boxer,
current
United States Senator.
-
Pete Carroll,
head
football
coach at
USC.
-
Edwin Catmull,
President of the
Disney-Pixar
Studios.
-
Brenda Chapman,
animation director.
-
Sam Chapman,
baseball player.
-
Julia Child,
host of "The French Chef"
-
Peter Coyote,
actor.
-
Ram Dass,
author of
Be Here Now.
-
Dana Carvey,
actor and comedian.
-
Gary Fisher,
mountain biking pioneer.
-
Booker T. Jones,
musician.
-
John Lennon,
musician.
-
Klaus Kinski,
actor.
-
Anne Lamott,
writer.
-
Sammy Hagar,
singer.
-
Janis Joplin,
singer.
-
John Lasseter,
film director and Disney executive.
-
Barry Levinson,
film director.
-
Huey Lewis,
singer.
-
Kevin Lima,
film director.
-
John Walker Lindh,
American who fought for the
Taliban.
-
George Lucas,
film director and founder of
Lucasfilm.
-
Marin Timmy,
musician.
-
Van Morrison,
singer and songwriter.
-
Jonny Moseley,
gold medal winning
Olympic skier.
-
Gavin Newsom,
current
mayor of
San Francisco.
-
Sean Penn,
actor.
-
Robin Wright Penn,
actress.
-
Kathleen Quinlan,
actress.
-
Bonnie Raitt,
singer.
-
Carlos Santana,
musician.
-
Michael Savage (commentator),
conservative radio host
-
Charles Schwab,
investor.
-
Tupac Shakur,
rapper, poet, and actor.
-
Tom Snyder,
newsman and talk show host.
-
Peter Tork,
musician. Member of
The Monkees
-
Robin Williams,
actor and comedian.
-
Tony Williams,
drummer.
-
Brad Pitt,
actor.
-
Jennifer Aniston,
actress.
-
James Hetfield,
musician
-
Lars Ulrich,
musician
- Most members of
The
Grateful Dead
Government
Presidential elections
results
Presidential election results
| Year |
Republican |
Democratic |
|
2004 |
25.4% 34,378 |
73.2% 99,070 |
|
2000 |
28.3% 34,872 |
64.3% 79,135 |
|
1996 |
28.2% 32,714 |
58.0% 67,406 |
|
1992 |
23.3% 30,479 |
58.3% 76,158 |
|
1988 |
39.7% 46,855 |
58.8% 69,394 |
|
1984 |
49.0% 56,887 |
49.6% 57,533 |
|
1980 |
45.8% 49,678 |
42.9% 39,231 |
|
1976 |
52.5% 53,425 |
42.9% 43,590 |
|
1972 |
52.1% 54,123 |
45.6% 47,414 |
|
1968 |
50.1% 41,422 |
43.8% 36,278 |
|
1964 |
38.1% 28,682 |
61.7% 46,462 |
|
1960 |
57.3% 37,620 |
42.5%
27,888 |
Though the county is
marked by its fiscal conservatism and isolationism,
it tends to support liberal positions on social
issues, and it (like much of the rest of the San
Francisco Bay Area) has become a stronghold of the
Democratic Party in recent decades. Marin County
presidential election returns since 1960 can be seen
in the adjoining table.
| Board
of Supervisors
District
One
District Two
District Three
District Four
District Five |
Susan Adams
Harold Brown
Charles McGlashan
Steve Kinsey
Cynthia Murray
|
| Formed |
March 11,
1889 |
| |
|
|
Geographical
characteristics |
|
Area |
2,145 km² |
|
Land |
1,346 km² |
|
Water |
799 km² |
|
Population |
|
Total (2000) |
247,289 |
|
Density |
184/km²
|
|
Time zone |
Pacific (UTC−8) |
|
Summer (DST) |
Pacific (UTC−7) |
Cities, Towns and Unincorporated Districts
-
-
-
-
-
-
.svg){kind=small}
