New Cuyama, California

History

The area was considered territory of the Yokuts people, but Chumash Indians from the Pacific Coast are also known to have frequented the area. The imprint of an old Indian trail can still be seen leading over the hills of present-day Ventura County to the headwaters of Piru Creek. The name "Cuyama" comes from an Indian village named for the Chumash word kuyam, meaning "clam" or "freshwater mollusk".

The area's recorded history dates to 1822, when Mexico won independence from Spain and took over the Spanish colony of Alta California. Two Mexican land grants, the Rancho Cuyama (Lataillade) and Rancho Cuyama (Rojo), were granted in the 1840s by Governors Manuel Micheltorena and Pío Pico in the lower Cuyama Valley along the Cuyama River, where present-day New Cuyama is, privatizing ownership of the land.

Following the 1949 discovery of oil at the South Cuyama Oil Field, in 1952 the Atlantic Richfield Company (ARCO) settled and developed the town of New Cuyama, building housing and associated commercial business – including the New Cuyama Airport (L88), reopened in May 2015, which bears the distinction of being the only public-use paved airport within easy flying range of Los Angeles for more than 50 mi. Much of the infrastructure from ARCO's settling of the town still exists today and is used by town residents. The original ARCO-built gas processing plant is still in use and easily seen due south of New Cuyama, though ARCO has since sold off interest in the facility.

The town of New Cuyama, at its founding, was considered the pearl of eastern Santa Barbara County, due to the flow of oil that was coming out of the region. During this time ARCO built the town, funded schools and provided all the important utilities other than electricity. Now that oil and gas production have declined, the principal industry is once again agriculture.

In 2024, Santa Barbara County approved the construction of a mixed-use development project, including 33 residential units, in New Cuyama.

Geography

New Cuyama is located at (34.947933, -119.68915). It is situated in the Cuyama Valley.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP covers an area of 0.6 square miles (1.6 km), all of it land.

Climate

New Cuyama has a steppe climate (BSk). This region experiences hot and dry summers, with the warmest month having a daily mean of 75 degrees.

|Jan record high F = 88 |Feb record high F = 87 |Mar record high F = 90 |Apr record high F = 97 |May record high F = 106 |Jun record high F = 108 |Jul record high F = 110 |Aug record high F = 108 |Sep record high F = 108 |Oct record high F = 102 |Nov record high F = 92 |Dec record high F = 84

|Jan avg record high F = 75.7 |Feb avg record high F = 76.9 |Mar avg record high F = 80.6 |Apr avg record high F = 87.5 |May avg record high F = 94.6 |Jun avg record high F = 99.9 |Jul avg record high F = 103.6 |Aug avg record high F = 102.8 |Sep avg record high F = 99.3 |Oct avg record high F = 92.5 |Nov avg record high F = 83.8 |Dec avg record high F = 74.8 |year avg record high F = 105.2

|Jan avg record low F = 23.2 |Feb avg record low F = 24.8 |Mar avg record low F = 28.0 |Apr avg record low F = 30.0 |May avg record low F = 36.4 |Jun avg record low F = 41.5 |Jul avg record low F = 48.4 |Aug avg record low F = 47.4 |Sep avg record low F = 42.8 |Oct avg record low F = 33.2 |Nov avg record low F = 25.8 |Dec avg record low F = 22.3 |year avg record low F = 19.8

|Jan record low F = 9 |Feb record low F = 15 |Mar record low F = 20 |Apr record low F = 22 |May record low F = 25 |Jun record low F = 29 |Jul record low F = 35 |Aug record low F = 35 |Sep record low F = 35 |Oct record low F = 20 |Nov record low F = 17 |Dec record low F = 7

|access-date = May 7, 2023 |access-date = May 7, 2023

Demographics

|align-fn=center 1850–1870 1880-1890 1900 1910 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010

New Cuyama first appeared as a census designated place in the 2010 U.S. census.

The 2020 United States census reported that New Cuyama had a population of 542. The population density was 857.6 PD/sqmi. The racial makeup of New Cuyama was 252 (46.5%) White, 2 (0.4%) African American, 9 (1.7%) Native American, 1 (0.2%) Asian, 0 (0.0%) Pacific Islander, 209 (38.6%) from other races, and 69 (12.7%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 335 persons (61.8%).

The whole population lived in households. There were 200 households, out of which 54 (27.0%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 105 (52.5%) were married-couple households, 15 (7.5%) were cohabiting couple households, 39 (19.5%) had a female householder with no partner present, and 41 (20.5%) had a male householder with no partner present. 56 households (28.0%) were one person, and 25 (12.5%) were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.71.

The age distribution was 143 people (26.4%) under the age of 18, 43 people (7.9%) aged 18 to 24, 118 people (21.8%) aged 25 to 44, 144 people (26.6%) aged 45 to 64, and 94 people (17.3%) who were 65years of age or older. The median age was 39.9years. For every 100 females, there were 122.1 males.

There were 222 housing units at an average density of 351.3 /mi2, of which 200 (90.1%) were occupied. Of these, 140 (70.0%) were owner-occupied, and 60 (30.0%) were occupied by renters.

References

References

1. "2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau.
2. Bright, William. (1998). "1500 California Place Names: Their Origin and Meaning". [[University of California Press]].
3. "New Cuyama Airport reopens — General Aviation News".
4. "L88 New Cuyama {{!}} EAA Chapter 527 – KSBA".
5. [http://www.cohp.org/ca/San_Luis_Obispo_6.html San Luis Obispo County High Point Trip Report]
6. Scully, Janene {{!}} Noozhawk North County. (2024-08-31). "Mixed-Use Project in New Cuyama Gets Planning Commission Approval {{!}} Local News".
7. (2011-02-12). "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". [[United States Census Bureau]].
8. "Decennial Census by Decade".
9. "1870 Census of Population - Population of Civil Divisions less than Counties - California - Almeda County to Sutter County".
10. "1870 Census of Population - Population of Civil Divisions less than Counties - California - Tehama County to Yuba County".
11. "1890 Census of Population - Population of California by Minor Civil Divisions".
12. "1900 Census of Population - Population of California by Counties and Minor Civil Divisions".
13. "1910 Census of Population - Supplement for California".
14. "1920 Census of Population - Number of Inhabitants - California".
15. "1930 Census of Population - Number and Distribution of Inhabitants - California".
16. "1940 Census of Population - Number of Inhabitants - California".
17. "1950 Census of Population - Number of Inhabitants - California".
18. "1960 Census of Population - General population Characteristics - California".
19. "1970 Census of Population - Number of Inhabitants - California".
20. "1980 Census of Population - Number of Inhabitants - California".
21. "1990 Census of Population - Population and Housing Unit Counts - California".
22. "2000 Census of Population - Population and Housing Unit Counts - California".
23. "2010 Census of Population - Population and Housing Unit Counts - California".
24. "New Cuyama CDP, California; DP1: Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics - 2020 Census of Population and Housing".
25. "New Cuyama CDP, California; P16: Household Type - 2020 Census of Population and Housing".