Bodfish is a census-designated place (CDP) in the southern Kern River Valley of the Southern Sierra Nevada, in Kern County, California, United States.
Bodfish is located east-northeast of Bakersfield, at an elevation of .
The population was 2,008 at the 2020 census, up from 1,956 at the 2010 census.
History
The place was named for George Homer Bodfish, who settled nearby in 1867.
The Bodfish post office first opened in 1892, closed in 1895, and re-opened in 1906. The Vaughn post office was moved to Bodfish in 1906.
Demographics
Bodfish first appeared as a census designated place in the 1980 United States census.
Racial and ethnic composition +Bodfish CDP, California – Racial and ethnic compositionRace / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)Pop 2000Pop 2010Pop 2020% 2000% 2010% 2020White alone (NH)1,6071,6431,60288.15%84.00%79.78%Black or African American alone (NH)34210.16%0.20%1.05%Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)4042322.19%2.15%1.59%Asian alone (NH)1113180.60%0.66%0.90%Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)1320.05%0.15%0.10%Other race alone (NH)05130.00%0.26%0.65%Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)62571083.40%2.91%5.38%Hispanic or Latino (any race)991892125.43%9.66%10.56%Total1,8231,9562,008 100.00%100.00%100.00%
2020 census As of the 2020 census, Bodfish had a population of 2,008 and a population density of .
The age distribution was 14.7% under the age of 18, 6.1% aged 18 to 24, 17.2% aged 25 to 44, 33.0% aged 45 to 64, and 29.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 55.4 years. For every 100 females, there were 111.8 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 109.2 males age 18 and over.
The whole population lived in households. There were 958 households, of which 15.4% had children under the age of 18, 34.4% were married-couple households, 8.9% were cohabiting couple households, 27.9% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present, and 28.8% had a male householder with no spouse or partner present. Of all households, 37.7% were one-person households, and 19.0% were one-person households with someone aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.10, and there were 511 families (53.3% of all households).
There were 1,215 housing units at an average density of , of which 958 (78.8%) were occupied and 21.2% were vacant. Of occupied units, 72.5% were owner-occupied and 27.5% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 5.3% and the rental vacancy rate was 4.0%.
In 2020, 27.6% of residents lived in urban areas, while 72.4% lived in rural areas.
Income and poverty In 2023, the US Census Bureau estimated that the median household income was $33,295, and the per capita income was $16,165. About 42.4% of families and 54.8% of the population were below the poverty line.
References