San Clemente Island
Encyclopedia
Channel Islands of California
The Channel Islands of California are a chain of eight islands located in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Southern California along the Santa Barbara Channel in the United States of America...
. It is owned and operated by the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
, and is a part of Los Angeles County
Los Angeles County, California
Los Angeles County is a county in the U.S. state of California. As of 2010 U.S. Census, the county had a population of 9,818,605, making it the most populous county in the United States. Los Angeles County alone is more populous than 42 individual U.S. states...
. Defined by the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
as Block Group
Census block group
A census block group is a geographical unit used by the United States Census Bureau which is between the census tract and the census block. It is the smallest geographical unit for which the bureau publishes sample data, i.e data which is only collected from a fraction of all households.Census...
2 of Census Tract
Census tract
A census tract, census area, or census district is a geographic region defined for the purpose of taking a census. Usually these coincide with the limits of cities, towns or other administrative areas and several tracts commonly exist within a county...
5991 of Los Angeles County, California
Los Angeles County, California
Los Angeles County is a county in the U.S. state of California. As of 2010 U.S. Census, the county had a population of 9,818,605, making it the most populous county in the United States. Los Angeles County alone is more populous than 42 individual U.S. states...
, it is 21 nautical miles (38.9 km) long and contains 147.13 km² (56.8 sq mi) of land. The island is officially uninhabited as of 2000 U.S. Census. The city of San Clemente
San Clemente, California
San Clemente is a city in Orange County, California. The population was 63,522 at the 2010 census. Located on the California Coast, midway between Los Angeles and San Diego at the southern tip of the county, it is known for its ocean, hill, and mountain views, a pleasant climate and its Spanish...
in Orange County, California
Orange County, California
Orange County is a county in the U.S. state of California. Its county seat is Santa Ana. As of the 2010 census, its population was 3,010,232, up from 2,846,293 at the 2000 census, making it the third most populous county in California, behind Los Angeles County and San Diego County...
is named after the island.
History
Archeologists have found traces of human occupation on San Clemente Island dating back 10,000 years.Later inhabitants left trade materials from the northern islands and from the mainland, including Coso
Coso Volcanic Field
The Coso Volcanic Field is located in Inyo County, California, at the western edge of the Basin and Range geologic province and northern region of the Mojave Desert. The Fossil Falls are part of the Coso Field, created by the prehistoric Owens River. They are currently within the Naval Air Weapons...
obsidian
Obsidian
Obsidian is a naturally occurring volcanic glass formed as an extrusive igneous rock.It is produced when felsic lava extruded from a volcano cools rapidly with minimum crystal growth...
from the California desert. It has not been established what tribe the recent inhabitants belonged to,
although the Tongva, who are well attested from Santa Catalina Island
Santa Catalina Island, California
Santa Catalina Island, often called Catalina Island, or just Catalina, is a rocky island off the coast of the U.S. state of California. The island is long and across at its greatest width. The island is located about south-southwest of Los Angeles, California. The highest point on the island is...
, are the most likely candidates. The Chumash, who occupied the northern Channel Islands, may have influenced the inhabitants.
The first Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an to sight the island was Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo
Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo
Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo was a Portuguese explorer noted for his exploration of the west coast of North America on behalf of Spain. Cabrillo was the first European explorer to navigate the coast of present day California in the United States...
in 1542, who named it Victoria. It was renamed by Spanish
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
explorer Sebastian Vizcaino
Sebastián Vizcaíno
Sebastián Vizcaíno was a Spanish soldier, entrepreneur, explorer, and diplomat whose varied roles took him to New Spain, the Philippines, the Baja California peninsula, the California coast and Japan.-Early career:...
, who spotted it on November 23, 1602, Saint Clement's feast day. It was used by ranchers, fishermen, and smugglers during the 19th century and into the 20th century.
In 1835, the whaleship
Whaler
A whaler is a specialized ship, designed for whaling, the catching and/or processing of whales. The former included the whale catcher, a steam or diesel-driven vessel with a harpoon gun mounted at its bows. The latter included such vessels as the sail or steam-driven whaleship of the 16th to early...
Elbe of Poughkeepsie, New York, under Captain Josiah B. Whippey (or Whipple), hunted sperm whale
Sperm Whale
The sperm whale, Physeter macrocephalus, is a marine mammal species, order Cetacea, a toothed whale having the largest brain of any animal. The name comes from the milky-white waxy substance, spermaceti, found in the animal's head. The sperm whale is the only living member of genus Physeter...
s as far north as "St. Clements Island" (San Clemente Island). The American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
steamship Lansing, as well as the steam-schooner
Schooner
A schooner is a type of sailing vessel characterized by the use of fore-and-aft sails on two or more masts with the forward mast being no taller than the rear masts....
California, both anchored in Pyramid Cove, on the south side of San Clemente Island, to process blue
Blue Whale
The blue whale is a marine mammal belonging to the suborder of baleen whales . At in length and or more in weight, it is the largest known animal to have ever existed....
, fin
Fin Whale
The fin whale , also called the finback whale, razorback, or common rorqual, is a marine mammal belonging to the suborder of baleen whales. It is the second longest whale and the sixth largest living animal after the blue whale, bowhead whale, and right whales, growing to nearly 27 metres long...
and humpback whale
Humpback Whale
The humpback whale is a species of baleen whale. One of the larger rorqual species, adults range in length from and weigh approximately . The humpback has a distinctive body shape, with unusually long pectoral fins and a knobbly head. It is an acrobatic animal, often breaching and slapping the...
s caught by their "killer boats" (steam-driven whale catchers)—the former between 1926 and 1930, and the latter between 1933 and 1937. In 1935, the Norwegian
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
factory ship Esperanza caught blue whales as far north as San Clemente Island.
Navy base
The U.S. Navy acquired the island in 1934. It is the Navy's only remaining ship-to-shore live firing range and is the center of the integrated air/land/sea San Clemente Island Range Complex covering 2,620 nm² (8,990 km2).During World War II, the island was also used as a training ground for amphibious landing craft. These small to mid-sized ships were crucial to the island hopping that would be required to attack any of the islands occupied by the Japanese.
It is an active sonar
Sonar
Sonar is a technique that uses sound propagation to navigate, communicate with or detect other vessels...
base and has a $21 million simulated embassy for commando
Commando
In English, the term commando means a specific kind of individual soldier or military unit. In contemporary usage, commando usually means elite light infantry and/or special operations forces units, specializing in amphibious landings, parachuting, rappelling and similar techniques, to conduct and...
training.
There is also a U.S. Navy rocket
Rocket
A rocket is a missile, spacecraft, aircraft or other vehicle which obtains thrust from a rocket engine. In all rockets, the exhaust is formed entirely from propellants carried within the rocket before use. Rocket engines work by action and reaction...
-test facility on San Clemente. Some Polaris
UGM-27 Polaris
The Polaris missile was a two-stage solid-fuel nuclear-armed submarine-launched ballistic missile built during the Cold War by Lockheed Corporation of California for the United States Navy....
-program test rockets were launched from San Clemente between 1957 and 1960. The aborted SEALAB III
SEALAB (United States Navy)
SEALAB I, II, and III were experimental underwater habitats developed by the United States Navy to prove the viability of saturation diving and humans living in isolation for extended periods of time...
project took place off San Clemente in February 1969.
The U.S. Navy also uses the island as an auxiliary naval airfield: Naval Auxiliary Landing Field San Clemente Island
Naval Auxiliary Landing Field San Clemente Island
Naval Auxiliary Landing Field San Clemente Island , also known as Frederick Sherman Field, is a military airport located on San Clemente Island, in Los Angeles County, California, USA. It has been owned by the United States Navy since 1937, but came into its current importance during the past...
. The main runway 23/05 is used for carrier training by the Navy. Other branches also use this airfield, including the United States Coast Guard
United States Coast Guard
The United States Coast Guard is a branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven U.S. uniformed services. The Coast Guard is a maritime, military, multi-mission service unique among the military branches for having a maritime law enforcement mission and a federal regulatory agency...
. Pilots that use this airfield find it to be one of the most demanding airbases in the United States; it is known for its high winds and dangerous terrain that surrounds the runway.
The airfield is also home to the United States Navy SEALs
United States Navy SEALs
The United States Navy's Sea, Air and Land Teams, commonly known as Navy SEALs, are the U.S. Navy's principal special operations force and a part of the Naval Special Warfare Command as well as the maritime component of the United States Special Operations Command.The acronym is derived from their...
training facilities located north of the runways.
Fauna and flora
The San Clemente Island Loggerhead ShrikeLoggerhead Shrike
The Loggerhead Shrike is a passerine bird. It is the only member of the shrike family endemic to North America; the related Northern Shrike occurs north of its range but also in the Palearctic....
is an endangered species
Endangered species
An endangered species is a population of organisms which is at risk of becoming extinct because it is either few in numbers, or threatened by changing environmental or predation parameters...
that the Navy is taking steps to protect. The San Clemente Island Fox is an indigenous
Endemic (ecology)
Endemism is the ecological state of being unique to a defined geographic location, such as an island, nation or other defined zone, or habitat type; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsewhere. For example, all species of lemur are endemic to the...
species. Feral
Feral
A feral organism is one that has changed from being domesticated to being wild or untamed. In the case of plants it is a movement from cultivated to uncultivated or controlled to volunteer. The introduction of feral animals or plants to their non-native regions, like any introduced species, may...
goats roamed the island for centuries, reaching a population of 11,000 in 1972, when their effect on indigenous species was realized. By 1980 the population had been reduced to 4,000. A plan for shooting remaining goats was blocked in court by the Fund for Animals, so the goats were removed with nets and helicopters. The San Clemente Goat is a recognized breed of domestic goat. The coves around the island are visited by snorklers attracted by the abundant sea life, including sea lion
Sea Lion
Sea lions are pinnipeds characterized by external ear-flaps, long fore-flippers, the ability to walk on all fours, and short thick hair. Together with the fur seal, they comprise the family Otariidae, or eared seals. There are six extant and one extinct species in five genera...
s, spiny lobsters
California spiny lobster
The California spiny lobster, Panulirus interruptus, is a species of spiny lobster found in the eastern Pacific Ocean from Monterey Bay, California to the Gulf of Tehuantepec, Mexico. It typically grows to a length of and is a reddish-brown color with stripes along the legs, and has a pair of...
, hydrocoral and kelp forest
Kelp forest
Kelp forests are underwater areas with a high density of kelp. They are recognized as one of the most productive and dynamic ecosystems on Earth. Smaller areas of anchored kelp are called kelp beds....
s.
The flora of the island includes some plant species found nowhere else in the world. These endemic species include the wildflowers San Clemente Island brodiaea
Brodiaea kinkiensis
Brodiaea kinkiensis is a species of Brodiaea also with the common name San Clemente Island brodiaea. This flower is endemic to San Clemente Island, one of the Channel Islands of California. It has one cylindrical leaf alongside a tall stem which bears an inflorescence of one to several bell-shaped...
, San Clemente Island triteleia
Triteleia clementina
Triteleia clementina is a rare species of flowering plant known by the common name San Clemente Island triteleia. It is endemic to San Clemente Island, one of the Channel Islands of California, where it is known from about twenty occurrences. Its habitat includes moist, rocky, seaside grassland. It...
, San Clemente Island woodland star
Lithophragma maximum
Lithophragma maximum, known by the common name San Clemente Island woodland star, is a rare species of flowering plant in the saxifrage family. It is endemic to San Clemente Island, one of the eight Channel Islands of California. It is known from only about four kilometers of rocky coastal cliffs...
, and San Clemente Island Indian paintbrush
Castilleja grisea
Castilleja grisea is a rare species of Indian paintbrush known by the common name San Clemente Island Indian paintbrush. It is endemic to San Clemente Island, one of the Channel Islands of California...
, and the shrub
Shrub
A shrub or bush is distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and shorter height, usually under 5–6 m tall. A large number of plants may become either shrubs or trees, depending on the growing conditions they experience...
s San Clemente Island bushmallow
Malacothamnus clementinus
Malacothamnus clementinus is a rare species of flowering plant in the mallow family known by the common name San Clemente Island bushmallow. It is endemic to San Clemente Island, one of the Channel Islands of California, where it is known from fewer than ten occurrences in the steep, rocky seaside...
and Blair's wirelettuce
Munzothamnus
Munzothamnus is a monotypic genus of flowering plants in the daisy family containing the single species Munzothamnus blairii, which is known by the common name Blair's wirelettuce, or Blair's munzothamnus. It is endemic to San Clemente Island, one of the Channel Islands of California. It grows...
. A unique subspecies of toyon, ssp. macrocarpa, also grows here, as do two rare subspecies of the royal larkspur
Delphinium variegatum
Delphinium variegatum is a species of larkspur known by the common name Royal larkspur. It is endemic to California, where it grows in mountains, valley and coast in woodlands and grasslands...
.
Government and infrastructure
The Los Angeles County Sheriff's DepartmentLos Angeles County Sheriff's Department
The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department is a local county law enforcement agency that serves Los Angeles County, California. It is the fourth largest local policing agency in the United States, with the New York City Police Department being the first. The second largest is the Chicago Police...
(LASD) operates the Avalon Station in Avalon
Avalon, California
Avalon, or Avalon Bay, is the only incorporated city on Santa Catalina Island of the California Channel Islands, and the southernmost city in Los Angeles County. Besides Avalon, the only other center of population on the island is the small unincorporated town of Two Harbors...
, Santa Catalina Island
Santa Catalina Island, California
Santa Catalina Island, often called Catalina Island, or just Catalina, is a rocky island off the coast of the U.S. state of California. The island is long and across at its greatest width. The island is located about south-southwest of Los Angeles, California. The highest point on the island is...
, serving San Clemente Island.