Dos Palos, California

City of Dos Palos
—  City  —
Location in Merced County and the state of California
Coordinates: 36°59′10″N 120°37′36″W / 36.98611°N 120.62667°W / 36.98611; -120.62667Coordinates: 36°59′10″N 120°37′36″W / 36.98611°N 120.62667°W / 36.98611; -120.62667
Country	United States
State	California
County	Merced
Area[1]
– Total	1.350 sq mi (3.496 km2)
– Land	1.350 sq mi (3.496 km2)
– Water	0 sq mi (0 km2)  0%
Elevation[2]	118 ft (362 m)
Population (2010)
– Total	4,950
– Density	3,666.7/sq mi (1,415.9/km2)
Time zone	Pacific (PST) (UTC-8)
– Summer (DST)	PDT (UTC-7)
ZIP code	93620
Area code(s)	209
FIPS code	06-19612
GNIS feature ID	0277604

Dos Palos (formerly, Dospalos)^[3] is a city in Merced County, California, United States. Dos Palos is located 23 miles (37 km) south-southwest of Merced,^[3] at an elevation of 118 feet (36 m).^[2] The population was 4,950 at the 2010 census, up from 4,581 at the 2000 census. Also known as 'Two Sticks' because of a poor translation from Spanish to English.

Geography

Dos Palos is located at 36°59′10″N 120°37′36″W / 36.98611°N 120.62667°W / 36.98611; -120.62667.^[2]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP covers an area of 1.35 square miles (3.5 km²), all of it land.

History

The Dos Palos post office operated from 1891 to 1906.^[3] The Dos Palos post office opened in 1906.^[3] Dos Palos incorporated in 1935.^[3]

Demographics

2010

The 2010 United States Census^[4] reported that Dos Palos had a population of 4,950. The population density was 3,667.3 people per square mile (1,416.0/km²). The racial makeup of Dos Palos was 3,377 (68.2%) White, 167 (3.4%) African American, 62 (1.3%) Native American, 37 (0.7%) Asian, 4 (0.1%) Pacific Islander, 1,075 (21.7%) from other races, and 228 (4.6%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3,075 persons (62.1%).

The Census reported that 4,922 people (99.4% of the population) lived in households, 0 (0%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 28 (0.6%) were institutionalized.

There were 1,501 households, out of which 731 (48.7%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 816 (54.4%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 232 (15.5%) had a female householder with no husband present, 130 (8.7%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 119 (7.9%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 7 (0.5%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 261 households (17.4%) were made up of individuals and 116 (7.7%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.28. There were 1,178 families (78.5% of all households); the average family size was 3.69.

The population was spread out with 1,571 people (31.7%) under the age of 18, 532 people (10.7%) aged 18 to 24, 1,199 people (24.2%) aged 25 to 44, 1,114 people (22.5%) aged 45 to 64, and 534 people (10.8%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31.3 years. For every 100 females there were 96.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.1 males.

There were 1,700 housing units at an average density of 1,259.5 per square mile (486.3/km²), of which 929 (61.9%) were owner-occupied, and 572 (38.1%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 3.2%; the rental vacancy rate was 8.9%. 2,955 people (59.7% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 1,967 people (39.7%) lived in rental housing units.

2000

As of the census^[5] of 2000, there were 4,581 people, 1,424 households, and 1,116 families residing in the city. The population density was 3,075.7 people per square mile (1,187.1/km²). There were 1,491 housing units at an average density of 1,001.1 per square mile (386.4/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 39.80% White, 4.15% Black or African American, 1.38% Native American, 0.61% Asian.54.18% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 1,424 households out of which 45.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.5% were married couples living together, 14.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 21.6% were non-families. 18.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.20 and the average family size was 3.63.

In the city the population was spread out with 34.9% under the age of 18, 8.8% from 18 to 24, 26.8% from 25 to 44, 19.0% from 45 to 64, and 10.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 30 years. For every 100 females there were 97.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.4 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $29,147, and the median income for a family was $35,906. Males had a median income of $30,568 versus $20,960 for females. The per capita income for the city was $13,163. About 19.1% of families and 22.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 31.9% of those under age 18 and 10.9% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

In the state legislature Dos Palos is located in the 12th Senate District, represented by Republican Anthony Cannella, and in the 17th Assembly District, represented by Democrat Cathleen Galgiani. Federally, Dos Palos is located in California's 18th congressional district, which has a Cook PVI of D +4^[6] and is represented by Democrat Dennis Cardoza.

References

1. ^ U.S. Census
2. ^ ^{a b c} U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Dos Palos, California
3. ^ ^{a b c d e} Durham, David L. (1998). California's Geographic Names: A Gazetteer of Historic and Modern Names of the State. Quill Driver Books. p. 767. ISBN 9781884995149. 
4. ^ All data are derived from the United States Census Bureau reports from the 2010 United States Census, and are accessible on-line here. The data on unmarried partnerships and same-sex married couples are from the Census report DEC_10_SF1_PCT15. All other housing and population data are from Census report DEC_10_DP_DPDP1. Both reports are viewable online or downloadable in a zip file containing a comma-delimited data file. The area data, from which densities are calculated, are available on-line here. Percentage totals may not add to 100% due to rounding. The Census Bureau defines families as a household containing one or more people related to the householder by birth, opposite-sex marriage, or adoption. People living in group quarters are tabulated by the Census Bureau as neither owners nor renters. For further details, see the text files accompanying the data files containing the Census reports mentioned above.
5. ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
6. ^ "Will Gerrymandered Districts Stem the Wave of Voter Unrest?". Campaign Legal Center Blog. http://www.clcblog.org/blog_item-85.html. Retrieved 2007-10-20.