Porterville, California
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Porterville, California | |
| Motto: "The Good Life" | |
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| Coordinates: | |
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| Country | United States |
| State | California |
| County | Tulare |
| Settled | approx. 1826 |
| Incorperated | May 7, 1902 |
| Government | |
| - Type | Council-Manager |
| - City Manager | John Longley |
| - Mayor | Cameron J. Hamilton |
| - Mayor Pro Tempore | Felipe A. Martinez |
| Area | |
| - Total | 14.1 sq mi (36.5 km²) |
| - Land | 14 sq mi (36.3 km²) |
| - Water | 0.1 sq mi (0.2 km²) |
| Elevation | 456 ft (139 m) |
| Population (2000) | |
| - Total | 39,615 |
| - Density | 2,809.6/sq mi (1,085.3/km²) |
| Time zone | Pacific (PST) (UTC-8) |
| - Summer (DST) | PDT (UTC-7) |
| ZIP codes | 93257-93258 |
| Area code(s) | 559 |
| FIPS code | 06-58240 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1652779 |
Porterville is a city in Tulare County, California, United States. The population was 39,615 at the 2000 census. The city's population grew dramatically as the city annexed many properties and unincorporated areas in and around Porterville.
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[edit] Geography
Porterville is located at (36.068550, -119.027536)[1].
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 14.1 square miles (36.4 km²), of which, 14.0 square miles (36.3 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.2 km²) of it (0.50%) is water.
Porterville is located in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains, and many of the town's inhabitants are intimately familiar with the upper regions of the hills. There is also a large man-made body of water, Lake Success, which finds much use for recreation and revelry when in season.
[edit] Demographics
As of the census[2] of 2000, there were 39,615 people, 11,884 households, and 9,174 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,828.4 people per square mile (1,091.8/km²). There were 12,691 housing units at an average density of 906.1/sq mi (349.8/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 49.75% White, 1.28% African American, 1.73% Native American, 4.63% Asian, 0.15% Pacific Islander, 32.71% from other races, and 4.75% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 54.45% of the population.
There were 11,884 households out of which 47.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.1% were married couples living together, 17.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.8% were non-families. 19.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.3% 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 3.62.
In the city the population was spread out with 34.3% under the age of 18, 10.8% from 18 to 24, 28.0% from 25 to 44, 17.5% from 45 to 64, and 9.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 29 years. For every 100 females there were 96.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.0 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $32,046, and the median income for a family was $35,136. Males had a median income of $31,171 versus $23,737 for females. The per capita income for the city was $12,745. About 20.3% of families and 25.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 33.7% of those under age 18 and 6.4% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] Politics
In the state legislature Porterville is located in the 18th Senate District, represented by Republican Roy Ashburn, and in the 34th Assembly District, represented by Republican Bill Maze. Federally, Porterville is located in California's 21st congressional district, which has a Cook PVI of R +13[3] and is represented by Republican Devin Nunes.
[edit] Local Trivia
- The city gained some notoriety from the similarly-titled song by Creedence Clearwater Revival, included on the band's eponymous debut album in 1968 and was released as their first single and gained airplay at the #1 station in Central California Boss Radio, KYNO-Fresno.
- Porterville received the All-America City Award in 1994[4].
- Porterville is home to the oldest high school band in California: the Porterville Panther Band, started by Mr. Frank "Buck" Shaffer.
- Porterville's Granite Hills High School has won the County Academic Decathlon for 5 years straight, starting in 2003.
- Porterville's Granite Hills High School Online Newspaper, The Grizzly Gazette, has won the NSPA Online Pacemaker Award for its 2nd consecutive year, and has been a finalist for its 3rd consecutive year.
- Porterville's Monache High School was labeled as a bronze high school in a nation wide school ranking.
- Minor league sports (American football, baseball and basketball)have teams in Porterville and nearby cities of Tulare County.
- Porterville has 2,500 Southeast Asians, one of America's largest SE Asian communities. Mainly are Laotians, Cambodians and Thais, many arrived since the 1970's. There's also a fast-growing Vietnamese community and a large Filipino population.
[edit] Notable Locals
- Marv Acton - NASCAR driver
- Barbara Baxley - film, stage and television actress
- Dick Brooks- NASCAR driver
- Brant Brown - Fresno State and Chicago Cubs infielder
- Tex Clevenger - Boston Red Sox pitcher
- Steve Cox - former Major League baller
- Sim Iness - Oklahoma-born Olympic Gold Medalist (Discus)
- Monte Moore - Longtime Major League Baseball and Oakland Athletics broadcaster
- Rance Mulliniks - former Major League baller
- Rick Owens - fashion designer
- James Sanders (American football) - Fresno State and NFL Safety for the New England Patriots
- Bill Sharman - NBA Hall of Fame player and coach
- Tim Vanni - two-time Olympic Wrestler
- Jason Drake - MMA fighter, Sherdog keyboard warrior
[edit] Higher Education
- There is one junior college in Porterville, Porterville College (PC), located on South Main Street.
[edit] References
- ^ US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990. United States Census Bureau (2005-05-03). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ Will Gerrymandered Districts Stem the Wave of Voter Unrest?. Campaign Legal Center Blog. Retrieved on 2008-02-10.
- ^ http://www.ncl.org/aac/past_winners/past_winners.html All-America City: Past Winners]
[edit] External links
- Porterville, California is at coordinates Coordinates:
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