San Quentin is a small unincorporated community

Unincorporated area

In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...

 in Marin County

Marin County, California

Marin County is a county located in the North San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, across the Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco. As of 2010, the population was 252,409. The county seat is San Rafael and the largest employer is the county government. Marin County is well...

, California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

. It is located west of Point San Quentin, at an elevation of 30 feet (9 m).

San Quentin is adjacent to San Quentin State Prison

San Quentin State Prison

San Quentin State Prison is a California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation state prison for men in unincorporated San Quentin, Marin County, California, United States. Opened in July 1852, it is the oldest prison in the state. California's only death row for male inmates, the largest...

; located just east of the prison, it is also known as San Quentin Village or Point San Quentin Village. It has 40 single-family houses and a condominium complex with 10 units, and its population is about 100.

The town was originally housing for the prison's employees and their families. Residents rent their driveways to media vans during controversial executions. The reporters are attracted to the place because it is the only place in California where prisoners are executed and many death penalty abolitionists appear and demonstrate against the practice. This garners much media attention.

The village is served by Golden Gate Transit

Golden Gate Transit

Golden Gate Transit is a public transportation system serving the North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in California, United States. It mainly serves Marin and Sonoma Counties, and also provides limited service to San Francisco and Contra Costa County.Golden Gate Transit is one of three...

 route 42 and 40 between Richmond

Richmond, California

Richmond is a city in western Contra Costa County, California, United States. The city was incorporated on August 7, 1905. It is located in the East Bay, part of the San Francisco Bay Area. It is a residential inner suburb of San Francisco, as well as the site of heavy industry, which has been...

 and El Cerrito del Norte BART stations

El Cerrito del Norte (BART station)

El Cerrito del Norte, frequenly shorterned to del Norte, is one of two BART stations in El Cerrito, California, just east of the Cutting Boulevard interchange of Interstate 80 parallel to San Pablo Avenue and the Ohlone Greenway straddling the Richmond border. Del Norte opened to revenue service on...

 across the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge

Richmond-San Rafael Bridge

The Richmond – San Rafael Bridge is the northernmost of the east–west crossings of the San Francisco Bay in California, USA, connecting Richmond on the east to San Rafael on the west end...

 in Contra Costa County and San Rafael Transit Center

San Rafael Transit Center

The San Rafael Transportation Center , in San Rafael, California, is the main transit center for Marin County. From San Rafael, passengers can travel throughout Marin County, to San Francisco, Contra Costa, and Sonoma Counties...

 in downtown San Rafael

San Rafael, California

San Rafael is a city and the county seat of Marin County, California, United States. The city is located in the North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area...

. The community is in ZIP code

ZIP Code

ZIP codes are a system of postal codes used by the United States Postal Service since 1963. The term ZIP, an acronym for Zone Improvement Plan, is properly written in capital letters and was chosen to suggest that the mail travels more efficiently, and therefore more quickly, when senders use the...

 94964 and area code 415

Area code 415

North American Area code 415 is the Californian telephone area code for San Francisco and its northern suburbs .-History:415 was one of the original three area codes in California, established in 1947...

.

Government and infrastructure

The United States Postal Service

United States Postal Service

The United States Postal Service is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for providing postal service in the United States...

 operates the San Quentin Post Office. A post office operated at San Quentin for a time in 1859, and from 1862. The Tamal post office is a substation of the San Quentin post office.

In the state legislature

California State Legislature

The California State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of California. It is a bicameral body consisting of the lower house, the California State Assembly, with 80 members, and the upper house, the California State Senate, with 40 members...

, San Quentin is located in the 3rd Senate District

California's 3rd State Senate district

California's 3rd State Senate District is one of 40 California State Senate districts. It is currently represented by Democrat Mark Leno of San Francisco.-District profile:...

, and in the 6th Assembly District

California's 6th State Assembly district

California's 6th State Assembly District is one of 80 districts in the California State Assembly. It is currently represented by Democrat Jared Huffman of San Rafael.-District profile:...

. Federally, San Quentin is in California's 6th congressional district

California's 6th congressional district

California's 6th congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of California that stretches up the Pacific coast north of the San Francisco Bay...

.