Sierra County () is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 3,236, making it California's second-least populous county. The county seat is Downieville; the sole incorporated city is Loyalton. The county is in the Sierra Nevada, northeast of Sacramento on the border with Nevada.
History Sierra County was formed from parts of Yuba County in 1852. The county derives its name from the Sierra Nevada.
Prior to the California Gold Rush, the area was home to both the Maidu and the Washoe peoples. They generally summered in the higher elevations to hunt and fish, and returned to lower elevations for the winter months.Sierra County History, 2008, The Online Guide to Sierra County, accessed April 2, 2013 After the discovery of gold in the Sierra foothills sparked the California Gold Rush, more than 16,000 miners settled in Sierra County between 1848 and 1860. Most mining settlements in the county sprung up along the North and Middle Forks of the Yuba River, both of which had rich deposits of gold. While some of the mining boom towns faded away once gold fever died down, other settlements such as Downieville and Sierra City have remained.Sierra Valley, Sierra County History , 2012, East Sierra Valley Chamber of Commerce, accessed April 2, 2013
Notable gold nuggets found in the county include a 26.5 pound specimen, avoirdupois, found by a group of sailors at Sailor Ravine, two miles above Downieville. A 51-pound specimen was found in 1853 by a group of Frenchmen in French Ravine. The 106 pound Monumental Nugget was found in Sept. 1869 at Sierra City.
The Bald Mountain drift mine in Forest City was founded in Aug. 1864, and was the largest of its kind in the state at the time. The Bald Mountain Extension was located in 1874 east of Forest. The Monte Cristo Mine was located in 1854. The largest quartz mine is the Sierra Buttes Gold Mine, located in 1850 near Sierra City. The Gold Bluff Mine was located near Downieville in 1854. By 1880 the county was crushing 70,000 tons of quartz and had 266 miles of mining ditches.
Boundary dispute with Nevada County Since the enactment of the statute in which the California State Legislature defined the common boundary between Nevada and Sierra Counties in 1874, no survey was conducted to determine where the straight line segment of the common boundary between the two counties ran. In particular, the statute, at the time codified as Section 3921 of the California Political Code, at the time stated:
Since the line was not surveyed and the legislature never defined where the "point east of the source of the South Fork of the Middle Yuba River" was, the location of the straight air line between the state line and this point was unknown. As such, both counties claimed that the point east of the source, which itself was also unknown, was located in different places. This created a situation where a strip of land averaging 1.22 miles in width and around 31.29 square miles were under dispute, with Sierra County claiming that Nevada County was encroaching on their jurisdiction when attempting to levy property taxes. The trial court, that of Plumas County, sided with Sierra County, declaring that the disputed area had always belonged to Sierra County since the legislature defined the boundary in dispute by referencing Public Land Survey System lines. It also determined that the source of South Fork of the Middle Yuba River was that of several springs in the Sierra Nevada, contrary to the artificial English Lake, which ceased to exist after the failure of its dam in 1883, which is where the source of said waterway was in the eyes of Nevada County. The California Supreme Court affirmed the trial courts decision on December 28, 1908.
Geography
Sierra County, California covers 962 square miles according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The county comprises 953 square miles of land and 9 square miles of water. The county is located in the Sierra Nevada. The county has a diverse range of landscapes, from mountains to forests, with numerous lakes and streams. The area offers hiking, fishing, and hunting.
Adjacent counties Nevada County - south Yuba County - west Plumas County - north Lassen County - northeast Washoe County, Nevada - east
National protected areas Plumas National Forest (part) Tahoe National Forest (part) Toiyabe National Forest (part)
Government Because Loyalton is Sierra County's most populous community and its only incorporated city, generally half of the meetings of the county's board of supervisors are held in Downieville and the other half are held in Loyalton. The county is governed by the five-member Sierra County Board of Supervisors, consisting of the following members as of August 2021.
District One (Downieville, Goodyears' Bar, Pike, Alleghany): Lee Adams, chairman District Two (Sierra City, Bassetts, Verdi): Peter W. Huebner District Three (Calpine, Sattley, Sierraville): Paul Roen District Four (Loyalton): Terry LeBlanc District Five (Sierra Brooks): Sharon Dryden
Law enforcement is provided by the Sierra County Sheriff's Department, headed by current Sierra County Sheriff-Coroner Michael "Mike" Fisher. Due to the county's sparse population and geographical obstacles, the Sheriff's Department operates a substation in Loyalton in addition to their main headquarters in Downieville.
Politics Voter registration statistics
Population and registered voters Total populationU.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey, 2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, Table B02001. U.S. Census website. Retrieved October 26, 2013. 3,277 Registered votersCalifornia Secretary of State. February 10, 2013 - Report of Registration . Retrieved October 31, 2013.Percentage of registered voters with respect to total population. Percentages of party members with respect to registered voters follow. 2,223 67.8% Democratic 631 28.4% Republican 939 42.2% Democratic–Republican spread -308 -13.8% American Independent 126 5.7% Green 24 1.1% Libertarian 30 1.3% Peace and Freedom 4 0.2% Americans Elect 0 0.0% Other 42 1.9% No party preference 427 19.2%
Cities by population and voter registration
Cities by population and voter registration City Population Registered voters Democratic Republican D–R spread Other No party preference Loyalton 890 49.1% 32.3% 38.7% -6.4% 14.6% 19.9%
Overview Sierra County at one time had favored the Democratic party in presidential elections and was one of few counties in California to be won by George McGovern. In more recent times it is a strongly Republican county in presidential and congressional elections. The last Democrat to win a majority in the county was Jimmy Carter in 1976.
On November 4, 2008, Sierra County voted 64.2% for Proposition 8, which amended the California Constitution to ban same-sex marriages.
In the 2009 special statewide election, Sierra County had the highest voter turnout of any county in California and almost double the average statewide, with 53.6% of registered voters participating, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Transportation The only traffic light in the county is a flashing red light at the intersection of highways 49 and 89 in Sierraville. , the sheriff's department has also erected a radar speed sign in Sierraville.
Major highways
U.S. Route 395 Interstate 80 State Route 49 State Route 89
Public transportation Public transportation in Sierra County is limited to vans run by senior citizen agencies in Downieville and Loyalton, which the general public may ride on a space-available basis.
Airport Sierraville-Dearwater Field Airport is a general aviation airport located near Sierraville. The closest major airport is in Reno.
Crime
The following table includes the number of incidents reported and the rate per 1,000 persons for each type of offense.
Population and crime rates Population 3,277 Violent crimeOffice of the Attorney General, Department of Justice, State of California. Table 11: Crimes – 2009 . Retrieved November 14, 2013. 13 3.97 Homicide 0 0.00 Forcible rape 0 0.00 Robbery 0 0.00 Aggravated assault 13 3.97 Property crime 33 10.07 Burglary 15 4.58 Larceny-theftOnly larceny-theft cases involving property over $400 in value are reported as property crimes. 28 8.54 Motor vehicle theft 0 0.00 Arson 1 0.31
Demographics
2020 census As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 3,236. The median age was 53.9 years; 16.6% of residents were under the age of 18 and 30.9% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 102.1 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 101.0 males age 18 and over.
The racial makeup of the county was 83.5% White, 0.2% Black or African American, 0.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% Asian, 0.0% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 3.3% from some other race, and 12.0% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 11.7% of the population.
1.2% of residents lived in urban areas, while 98.8% lived in rural areas.
There were 1,456 households in the county, of which 23.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 24.9% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 31.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 18.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 2,127 housing units, of which 31.5% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 74.0% were owner-occupied and 26.0% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.4% and the rental vacancy rate was 7.1%.
Racial and ethnic composition
+Sierra County, California – Racial and ethnic compositionRace / ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)Pop 1980Pop 1990Pop 2000Pop 2010 Pop 2020% 1980% 1990% 2000% 2010% 2020White alone (NH)2,8213,0603,2102,8552,61591.80%92.22%90.30%88.12%80.81%Black or African American alone (NH)366570.10%0.18%0.17%0.15%0.22%Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)46595641181.50%1.78%1.58%1.27%0.56%Asian alone (NH)7851270.23%0.24%0.14%0.37%0.22%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 Census321xx0.08%0.06%0.03%Other race alone (NH)0121250.00%0.03%0.06%0.03%0.77%Mixed-race or multiracial (NH)x not an option in the 1980 Censusx not an option in the 1990 Census6055186xx1.69%1.70%5.75%Hispanic or Latino (any race)1961842132693776.38%5.55%5.99%8.30%11.65%Total3,0733,3183,5553,2403,236 100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%
2015 As of 2015 the largest self-reported ancestry groups in Sierra County, California are:
Largest ancestries (2015) Percent English 19.0% German 18.2% "American" 16.1% Scottish 6.4% Italian 5.9% Polish 4.6% Portuguese 4.0% Swiss 3.6% Swedish 3.2% French 3.1%
2010 The 2010 United States census reported that Sierra County had a population of 3,240. The racial makeup of Sierra County was 3,022 (93.3%) White, 6 (0.2%) African American, 44 (1.4%) Native American, 12 (0.4%) Asian, 2 (0.1%) Pacific Islander, 75 (2.3%) from other races, and 79 (2.4%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 269 persons (8.3%).
Population reported at 2010 United States census Sierra County3,2403,0226441227579269 Loyalton769701221002025108 Alleghany58580000001Calpine2051840001101026Downieville28226904200712Goodyears Bar68640400001Pike1341300120012Sattley49480100001Sierra Brooks47846604110622Sierra City221200023012421Sierraville200187200010116Verdi16215300105310 All others not CDPs (combined)6145622730182249
2000