El Dorado County (; El Dorado, Spanish for "The Golden one"), officially the County of El Dorado, is a county located in the U.S. state of California, named after the mythical city of El Dorado. As of the 2020 census, the population was 191,185. The county seat is Placerville. The county is part of the Sacramento-Roseville-Arden-Arcade, CA Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is located entirely in the Sierra Nevada, from the historic Gold Country in the western foothills to the High Sierra in the east. El Dorado County's population has grown as Greater Sacramento has expanded into the region. Where the county line crosses US 50 at Clarksville, the distance to Sacramento is . In the county's high altitude eastern end at Lake Tahoe, environmental awareness and environmental protection initiatives have grown along with the population since the 1960 Winter Olympics, hosted at the former Squaw Valley Ski Resort in neighboring Placer County.

History

The Indigenous nations of the Maidu, Nisenan, Washoe, and Miwok have been located in El Dorado County for thousands of years. The region is notable for being the site of the 1848 discovery that started the California Gold Rush. As a result, the name "El Dorado" was derived from the Spanish word for, "The Gilded One". The County of El Dorado was one of California's original 27 counties created effective February 18, 1850 (the number has risen to 58 today).

The final segments of the Pony Express mail route ran through El Dorado County until its replacement with the telegraph service in 1861; U.S. Route 50 follows the Pony Express route today.

The Placerville Mountain Democrat, California's oldest surviving newspaper, serves El Dorado County.

The Caldor Fire started on August 14, 2021, near Little Mountain, south of Pollock Pines in El Dorado County, about east of Omo Ranch and south of Grizzly Flats. It initially burned slowly, but exploded in size on August 16 due to high winds. By the night of August 16, it was . On August 17, the fire grew to as it expanded rapidly north and east, crossing the North Fork Cosumnes River and approaching Sly Park Reservoir. By August 20, the fire had burned nearly to U.S. Route 50, forcing a closure of the highway. Over the next few days, the fire crossed Highway 50 in the vicinity of Kyburz. Starting on August 27, winds drove the fire rapidly east towards the Lake Tahoe Basin. By August 30, it had reached Echo Summit, less than from South Lake Tahoe.

There are only two municipalities in El Dorado County: Placerville and South Lake Tahoe.

Government and policing

Policing The El Dorado County Sheriff provides court protection, county jail administration, and coroner service for all of the county and provides patrol and detective services for the unincorporated areas of the county. Incorporated cities Placerville, population 11,000, and South Lake Tahoe, population 22,000, have municipal police departments.

Geography According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (4.4%) is water.

The county, owing to its location in the Sierra Nevada, consists of rolling hills and mountainous terrain. The northeast corner is in the Lake Tahoe Basin (part of the Great Basin), including a portion of the lake itself. Across the Sierra crest to the west lies the majority of the county, referred to as the "western slope." A portion of Folsom Lake is in the northwest corner of the county.

Much of the county is public land. The Eldorado National Forest comprises a significant portion (approximately 43%) of the county's land area, primarily on the western slope. The Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit, formerly part of the Eldorado and two other National Forests, manages much of the land east of the crest. The Pacific Crest Trail runs through the eastern part of the county, along or roughly paralleling the Sierra crest. The county is home to the Desolation Wilderness, a popular destination for hiking, backpacking, and fishing.

Adjacent counties Placer County – north Douglas County, Nevada – northeast Alpine County – southeast Amador County – south Sacramento County – southwest

Geographic features

American River Carson Range Crystal Range Echo Lake Fallen Leaf Lake Folsom Lake Francis Lake Freel Peak as its highest point at Gilmore Lake Green Springs Ranch Lake Tahoe Loon Lake Lost Lake Mount Price Mount Tallac Pyramid Lake Sierra Nevada Silver Peak Talking Mountain Union Valley Reservoir Waca Lake

Recreation

Local landmarks Fountain-Tallman Soda Works John Pearson Soda Works Combellack-Blair House Rubicon Point Light

Parks

D. L. Bliss State Park Desolation Wilderness Eagle Falls trailhead Eldorado National Forest Emerald Bay State Park Folsom Lake State Recreation Area Glen Alpine Springs trailhead Marshall Gold Discovery State Historic Park Pine Hill Ecological Reserve Tahoe National Forest

Skiing Heavenly Ski Resort Sierra-At-Tahoe Ski Resort

Racing Placerville Speedway

Wineries California Shenandoah Valley AVA El Dorado AVA Fair Play AVA Sierra Foothills AVA

Demographics The vast majority of the population lives in a narrow strip along U.S. Route 50, with the majority living between El Dorado Hills and Pollock Pines. The remainder resides in the South Lake Tahoe area, and in various dispersed rural communities.

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 191,185. The median age was 46.3 years. 20.5% of residents were under the age of 18 and 22.3% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 98.4 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 96.7 males age 18 and over.

The racial makeup of the county was 76.7% White, 0.8% Black or African American, 1.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 4.8% Asian, 0.2% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 5.0% from some other race, and 11.5% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 13.8% of the population.

63.3% of residents lived in urban areas, while 36.7% lived in rural areas.

There were 75,320 households in the county, of which 27.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 21.7% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 23.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 93,467 housing units, of which 19.4% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 74.9% were owner-occupied and 25.1% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.4% and the rental vacancy rate was 6.9%.

Racial and ethnic composition

+El Dorado County, California – Racial and ethnic composition Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic) Pop 1980Pop 1990Pop 2000Pop 2010 Pop 2020% 1980% 1990% 2000% 2010% 2020White alone (NH)79,692113,053132,725144,689140,14192.87%89.73%84.92%79.91%73.30%Black or African American alone (NH)2895797451,2961,4360.34%0.46%0.48%0.72%0.75%Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)7391,2041,2721,5531,2730.86%0.96%0.81%0.86%0.67%Asian alone (NH)1,0112,3183,2506,1439,0241.18%1.84%2.08%3.39%4.72%Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)x included in the Asian category in the 1980 Censusx included in the Asian category in the 1990 Census1692612760.11%0.14%0.11%0.14%0.14%Other race alone (NH)110642373181,2150.13%0.05%0.15%0.18%0.64%Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)x not an option in the 1980 Censusx not an option in the 1990 Census3,3354,92311,361xx2.13%2.72%5.94%Hispanic or Latino (any race)3,9718,77714,56621,87526,4594.63%6.97%9.32%12.08%13.84%Total85,812125,995156,299181,058191,185 100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%

2010 Census The 2010 United States census reported that El Dorado County had a population of 181,058. The racial makeup of El Dorado County was 156,793 (86.6%) White, 1,409 (0.8%) African American, 2,070 (1.1%) Native American, 6,297 (3.5%) Asian, 294 (0.2%) Pacific Islander, 7,278 (4.0%) from other races, and 6,917 (3.8%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 21,875 persons (12.1%). The largest growth in the county has come in El Dorado Hills where the population grew by 24,092 residents to a total of 42,108 since 2000.

Population reported at 2010 United States census El Dorado County181,058156,7931,4092,0706,2972947,2786,91721,875 Placerville10,3898,7168016298138674531,863South Lake Tahoe21,40315,7331822321,186393,2308016,665 Auburn Lake Trails3,4263,19062836545116208Cameron Park18,22816,242143194425364617272,056Camino1,7501,6047141845548197Cold Springs446413453015643Coloma5294624380153763Diamond Springs11,0379,7433917611065184451,377El Dorado Hills42,10835,0896151963,563716811,8933,802Georgetown2,3672,12847591824568177Grizzly Flats1,06695461472196496Pollock Pines6,8716,19518128563251220713Shingle Springs4,4323,91914108503132206469Tahoma‡7807362770111735 All others not CDPs (combined)56,22651,6692427447121109331,8164,111‡ Note: these numbers reflect only the portion of this CDP in El Dorado County

2000 census As of the censusU.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey, 2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, Table B02001. U.S. Census website . Retrieved October 26, 2013. of 2000, there were 156,299 people, 58,939 households, and 43,025 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 71,278 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 89.7% White, 0.5% Black or African American, 1.0% Native American, 2.1% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 3.6% from other races, and 3.0% from two or more races. 9.3% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 14.9% were of German, 13.4% English, 10.3% Irish, 6.6% Italian and 6.6% American ancestry according to Census 2000. 90.5% spoke English and 6.5% Spanish as their first language.

There were 58,939 households, out of which 34.2% had youngsters under the age of 18 living with them, 60.1% were married couples living together, 8.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.0% were non-families. 20.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.63 and the average family size was 3.04.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 26.1% under the age of 18, 6.8% from 18 to 24, 27.8% from 25 to 44, 26.9% from 45 to 64, and 12.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.3 males.

The 2000 census also states that the median income for a household in the county was $51,484, and the median income for a family was $60,250. Males had a median income of $46,373 versus $31,537 for females. The per capita income for the county was $25,560. About 5.0% of families and 7.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.6% of those under age 18 and 5.0% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

Voter registration statistics

Population and registered voters Total population 191,185   Registered votersCalifornia Secretary of State. October 21, 2024 - Report of Registration. Retrieved March 7, 2025.Percentage of registered voters with respect to total population. Percentages of party members with respect to registered voters follow. 135,300 70.77%     Democratic 41,030 30.33%     Republican 56,812 41.99%     Democratic–Republican spread -15,782 -11.66%     American Independent 7,780 5.75%     Green 633 0.47%     Libertarian 2,672 1.97%     Peace and Freedom 442 0.33%     Unknown 7 0.01%     Other 1,157 0.86%     No party preference 24,767 18.31%

Cities by population and voter registration