# Sierra City, California

Sierra City (Sierra, Spanish for "mountain range") is a census-designated place in Sierra County, California, United States. The elevation of Sierra City is 4,147 feet (1,264 m), and the town is situated in the canyon of the North Yuba River on California State Route 49, twelve miles northeast of the county seat of Sierra County, Downieville. The population was 221 at the 2010 census.

## History

Before the California Gold Rush, only Native Americans had ventured into the area, which lies northwest of Lake Tahoe on the western slope of the Sierra Nevada, and which lay between areas inhabited by Maidu, Nisenan, and Washo peoples (Pre-Contact Tribal Map). The area is now part of the Tahoe National Forest.
A settlement was established in 1850 by Philo A. Haven and Joseph Zumwalt, who were also involved with the settling of Downieville (Sinnott). In the winter of 1852–1853, however, an avalanche of snow destroyed the settlement, which was not rebuilt for several years. Ferdinand, Gustav, and Christian Reis purchased several mining claims near the Sierra Buttes and began to resettle Sierra City, which had a peak population of 3,000 during the decade after gold was discovered in California (1849).
Numerous hard-rock gold mines were developed on both sides of the North Yuba River Canyon near Sierra City. These include the Colombo Mine, the Independence Mine, the Keystone Mine, the Monumental Mine, the Great Sierra Buttes Mine, and the William Tell Mine. The Monumental Nugget, weighing over 106 pounds avoirdupois, was recovered in September 1869.
Placer mining was also practiced and continues today on the banks of the North Yuba. On February 10, 1963, Alec M. Ostrom of Sierra City discovered a nugget weighing 8 troy ounces while placer mining (Sinnott.)

## Historic buildings

Historic buildings that remain in Sierra City, all on the town's main street, which is Highway 49, include the two-story brick Busch Building, which the Wells Fargo Company occupied in the 19th century, the Masonic Lodge #164, and the Old Sierra City Hotel, built in 1886 by John G. Rose, which was known as the Capitol Hotel and housed local miners and offered meals and lodging for 25 cents each. The former Sierra City School, built as a one-room schoolhouse in 1883, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in January 2024. The Bigelow House, a Victorian structure, is situated near the town's southwestern limits. The town hall, a log structure, was built after World War II, and a new post office, dedicated in 1969, features stone work in which antique mining implements, including an ore-car, are embedded. The cemetery contains gravestones dating back to the 1860s.

## Cultural attractions

The town-limit signs list Sierra City's population as 225. The main industry is tourism. None of the nearby hard-rock mines are in operation, but the Kentucky mine just outside the town limits now houses a mining museum. In the summer months, fishing in the North Yuba and its tributaries and in nearby alpine lakes is popular, as is mountain-biking, placer-mining, and hiking. A cluster of sheer rock peaks, known as the Sierra Buttes, 7,818-foot high (2,383 m), is 1.6 miles (2.6 km) from Sierra City and towers over the town. Many trails cross the area, and the Pacific Crest Trail crosses the flanks of the Sierra Buttes some 2,000 feet (610 m) above the town. Wild Plum Campground is a little more than a mile away on Haypress Creek.
The nearest public school is 12 miles (19 km) away in Downieville.

## Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP covers an area of 2.2 square miles (5.6 km$^2$), 99.99% of it land and 0.01% of it water.
Sierra City has a mediterranean continental climate (Koppen: Dsb). Summers are hot and dry, while winters are mild, wet and very snowy, with annual snowfall averaging 107 inches (272 cm).
Climate data for Sierra City, California :
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 45.9 (7.7) | 47.4 (8.6) | 52.3 (11.3) | 57.9 (14.4) | 66.5 (19.2) | 75.7 (24.3) | 84.0 (28.9) | 84.1 (28.9) | 77.9 (25.5) | 66.9 (19.4) | 53.1 (11.7) | 45.0 (7.2) | 63.1 (17.3) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 37.9 (3.3) | 39.0 (3.9) | 43.1 (6.2) | 46.8 (8.2) | 54.6 (12.6) | 62.2 (16.8) | 69.2 (20.7) | 69.0 (20.6) | 63.8 (17.7) | 54.6 (12.6) | 43.5 (6.4) | 37.8 (3.2) | 51.8 (11.0) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 29.9 (−1.2) | 30.6 (−0.8) | 33.8 (1.0) | 35.8 (2.1) | 42.7 (5.9) | 48.7 (9.3) | 54.5 (12.5) | 54.0 (12.2) | 49.7 (9.8) | 42.3 (5.7) | 33.9 (1.1) | 30.5 (−0.8) | 40.5 (4.7) |
| Average precipitation inches (mm) | 10.67 (271) | 13.12 (333) | 9.43 (240) | 4.55 (116) | 3.19 (81) | 0.92 (23) | 0.17 (4.3) | 0.32 (8.1) | 1.26 (32) | 4.95 (126) | 9.01 (229) | 11.79 (299) | 69.38 (1,762.4) |
| Average snowfall inches (cm) | 29.2 (74) | 22.4 (57) | 22.0 (56) | 7.1 (18) | 1.3 (3.3) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.6 (1.5) | 6.7 (17) | 17.3 (44) | 106.6 (270.8) |
| Source: WRCC, (1981-2000 normals, snowfall 1910-2000) ||||||||||||||

## Demographics

The 2010 United States Census reported that Sierra City had a population of 221. The population density was 102.8 inhabitants per square mile (39.7/km$^2$). The racial makeup of Sierra City was 200 (90.5%) White, 0 (0.0%) African American, 2 (0.9%) Native American, 3 (1.4%) Asian, 0 (0.0%) Pacific Islander, 12 (5.4%) from other races, and 4 (1.8%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 21 persons (9.5%).
The Census reported that 221 people (100% of the population) lived in households, 0 (0%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 0 (0%) were institutionalized.
There were 113 households, out of which 14 (12.4%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 54 (47.8%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 8 (7.1%) had a female householder with no husband present, 7 (6.2%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 12 (10.6%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 0 (0%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 34 households (30.1%) were made up of individuals, and 15 (13.3%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.96. There were 69 families (61.1% of all households); the average family size was 2.35.
The population was spread out, with 16 people (7.2%) under the age of 18, 14 people (6.3%) aged 18 to 24, 30 people (13.6%) aged 25 to 44, 104 people (47.1%) aged 45 to 64, and 57 people (25.8%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 56.6 years. For every 100 females, there were 102.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 101.0 males.
There were 280 housing units at an average density of 130.2 per square mile (50.3/km$^2$), of which 87 (77.0%) were owner-occupied, and 26 (23.0%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.1%; the rental vacancy rate was 21.2%. 170 people (76.9% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 51 people (23.1%) lived in rental housing units.

## Politics

In the state legislature, Sierra City is in the 1st Senate District, represented by Republican Megan Dahle, and the 1st Assembly District, represented by Republican Heather Hadwick.
Federally, Sierra City is in California's 1st congressional district, represented by Republican Doug LaMalfa.