The town takes its name from James Ross, a Scotsman who came to California during the Gold Rush , made a fortune selling wine in San Francisco, and bought the tract of land where the town now stands in 1857. Amoung the prominent institutions in town is the Marin Art and Garden Center, a hub for a variety of non-profit groups. The small downtown, bordering the soccer fields of Ross School, has a grocery store, post office, butcher, florist and a few small cafes. Ross features some of the oldest and most exclusive estates in the county, both in the hills and along Shady Lane, the tree lined road that connects it to neighboring San Anselmo Housing Prices are expensive in this exclusive area. Homes are older and smaller than those in nearby Ross.
Larger lots grace some hill areas.
Five roads converge through the The Hub, with Sir Francis Drake Blvd. San Anselmo offers mid-range housing prices. San Anselmo has about 6,000 housing units with 80 percent being single family homes. San Rafael became Marin 's first city in 1874. San Rafael's roots can be traced to December 1817, when Franciscans founded Mission San Rafael Archangel at the foot of San Rafael Hill, the 20th of California's 21 missions.