Valley Ford, California

History

For millennia, the indigenous Coast Miwok and Pomo people have hunted, fished and gathered in the area. A Miwok village named Ewapalt has been documented in the Valley Ford area.

Europeans explored the coastline in the early 17th century but did not settle until 1812, when Russian fur traders came south from Alaska and built Fort Ross about 22 mi northwest of Valley Ford. The Russians remained until 1841, when the area came under Mexican rule. In September 1850, California became a US state, the area was made part of Sonoma County.

Valley Ford had a grain mill in the 1850s. Starting in the 1876, Valley Ford was a stop on the North Pacific Coast Railroad connecting Cazadero to the Sausalito ferry, enabling local ranchers and fishers to export produce to San Francisco.

In 1976, Christo and Jeanne-Claude's installation art piece Running Fence passed through Valley Ford on its way from Cotati to Bodega Bay.

Open from 1856 to 1967, Watson School once served as Valley Ford's school, and is located in a Sonoma County Regional Parks Department historic park about 3.5 miles north of Valley Ford.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP covers an area of 2.6 square miles (6.8 km), all of it land.

Demographics

|align-fn=center 2010

The population at the 2020 United States census was 148. The population density was 56.0 PD/sqmi. The racial makeup of Valley Ford was 102 (68.9%) White, 0 (0.0%) African American, 2 (1.4%) Native American, 2 (1.4%) Asian, 0 (0.0%) Pacific Islander, 23 (15.5%) from other races, and 19 (12.8%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 38 persons (25.7%).

The whole population lived in households. There were 53 households, out of which 12 (22.6%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 31 (58.5%) were married-couple households, 6 (11.3%) were cohabiting couple households, 8 (15.1%) had a female householder with no partner present, and 8 (15.1%) had a male householder with no partner present. 11 households (20.8%) were one person, and 4 (7.5%) were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.79.

The age distribution was 27 people (18.2%) under the age of 18, 5 people (3.4%) aged 18 to 24, 47 people (31.8%) aged 25 to 44, 40 people (27.0%) aged 45 to 64, and 29 people (19.6%) who were 65years of age or older. The median age was 42.0years. There were 74 males and 74 females.

There were 60 housing units at an average density of 22.7 /mi2, of which 53 (88.3%) were occupied. Of these, 46 (86.8%) were owner-occupied, and 7 (13.2%) were occupied by renters.

Nitrates in Groundwater

Warnings of high nitrate levels associated with surrounding dairy ranches have led some residents to drink, cook and even bathe with bottled water. Some dining establishments have resorted to relying on water delivered from Petaluma. In early 2017, the State Water Resources Control Board issued a warning that pregnant women and infants younger than 6 months should not consume the town's well water. The warning also cautioned against boiling, freezing or filtering the water.[7]

Businesses

Valley Ford is home to antique stores, art galleries, curio shops and restaurants:

• Valley Ford Hotel, one of the few remaining buildings dating from the 19th century, now houses Rocker Oysterfeller's Kitchen & Saloon and six guest rooms.
• West County Design, a gallery for wood tables, polished concrete and other products of Sonoma County artisans,. The Valley Ford Market features the regionally well-known Batemon's Meats.
• Valley Ford Construction Corporation, Valley Ford Construction Corporation, General Engineering.
• The headquarters of capo manufacturer Shubb is also in Valley Ford.
• Carolyn's Canvas manufactures a variety of canvas goods.

Education

It is in the Shoreline Unified School District.

References

7. Bucolic Valley Ford faces water problems linked to dairies

References

1. "2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau.
2. "Valley Ford CDP, California". United States Census Bureau.
3. {{Gnis. 236972. Valley Ford
4. (January 5, 2023). "Valley Ford, California Community Profile". Northwest Fisheries Science Center.
5. (July 9, 2011). "Access Genealogy: Miwok Indian Tribe".
6. (September 7, 2021). "It's time to celebrate California Admission Day! Wait, what's Admission Day?".
7. (1877). "Historical atlas map of Sonoma County, California". Mid-Cal Publishers.
8. "Running Fence".
9. "Decennial Census by Decade".
10. "2010 Census of Population - Population and Housing Unit Counts - California".
11. "Valley Ford CDP, California; DP1: Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics - 2020 Census of Population and Housing".
12. "Valley Ford CDP, California; P16: Household Type - 2020 Census of Population and Housing".
13. "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Sonoma County, CA". [[U.S. Census Bureau]].