Susanville, California
Encyclopedia
Susanville is the county seat of Lassen County
Lassen County, California
Lassen County is a county located in the northeastern portion of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2010 census, the population was 34,895, up from 33,828 at the 2000 census...

, California, United States. Susanville is located on the Susan River
Susan River (California)
The Susan River is a northeastern California river of approximately length that drains from an arid plateau of volcanic highlands along the Great Basin Divide to intermittent Honey Lake. The river flows from eastern Lassen County from east of Lassen Volcanic National Park generally east past...

 in the south-central part of the county, at an elevation of 4186 feet (1276 m). The population was 17,974 at the 2010 census, up from 13,541 at the 2000 census. Susanville, a former logging and mining town, is the site of the High Desert State Prison, California (not to be confused with High Desert State Prison, Nevada
High Desert State Prison, Nevada
High Desert State Prison is a state prison in unincorporated Clark County, Nevada, near Indian Springs. It is the largest institution of the Nevada Department of Corrections and the newest having opened on September 1, 2000.-Facilities:...

) and California Correctional Center
California Correctional Center
California Correctional Center is a state prison in the city of Susanville in Northern California.-Facilities:CCC's missions are "to receive, house, and train minimum-custody inmates for placement into one of the institution's 18 Northern California conservation camps" and "to provide meaningful...

. High Desert State Prison, a maximum-security facility, opened in 1995; the California Correctional Center, a minimum-medium security facility, opened in 1963. The prisons and their effects on the community were featured on the PBS
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....

 documentary, Prison Town, USA
Prison Town, USA
Prison Town, USA is a 2007 documentary film about Susanville, California, a small, rural town that tries to resuscitate its economy by building a prison...

. P.O.V.
P.O.V.
POV is a Public Broadcasting Service Public television series which features independent nonfiction films. POV is a cinema term for "point of view"....


Geography

Susanville is located at 40°24′59"N 120°39′11"W.

The elevation of Susanville is approximately 4258 feet (1,297.8 m) above sea level. It is considered a gateway city to Reno
Reno, Nevada
Reno is the county seat of Washoe County, Nevada, United States. The city has a population of about 220,500 and is the most populous Nevada city outside of the Las Vegas metropolitan area...

 on U.S. Route 395
U.S. Route 395
U.S. Route 395 is a U.S. Route in the western United States. The southern terminus of the route is in the Mojave Desert at Interstate 15 near Hesperia. The northern terminus is at the Canadian border near Laurier, where the road becomes Highway 395 upon entering British Columbia. At one time, the...

.

According to 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...

, the city has a total area of 8.0 square miles (20.8 km²), of which 7.9 square miles (20.5 km²) is land and 1.07% is water.

Eagle Lake
Eagle Lake (Lassen County)
Eagle Lake is a lake in Lassen County approximately 15 miles north of Susanville, California. It is the second largest natural lake entirely in the state of California, United States....

 is located 15 miles (24.1 km) north of the town.

History

Susanville was named after Susan Roop, daughter of Isaac Roop
Isaac Roop
Isaac Newton Roop was a lifelong member of the Whig party, United States politician, and pioneer.-Biography:Roop was born in Carroll County, Maryland. He married his tutor, Nancy Gardner, on December 24, 1840...

, an early settler. The present name was adopted in 1857. The Susanville post office was founded in 1860. Susanville incorporated in 1900.

Climate

Susanville has a semi-arid climate with cold winters and very warm, mostly dry summers. Average January temperatures are a high of 40.4°F and a low of 20.8°F. Average July temperatures are a high of 88.8°F and a low of 50.8°F. Temperatures reach 90°F (32°C) or higher on an average of 34.9 days annually. Temperatures drop to 32°F (0°C) or lower on an average of 153.8 days annually; freezing temperatures have been recorded in every month of the year and summer nighttime temperatures are usually cool. The highest recorded temperature in Susanville was 106°F on July 25, 1928, and the lowest recorded temperature was -23°F on February 1, 1956.

Annual precipitation averages 15.26 inches. There are an average of 59 days with measurable precipitation. The wettest year was 1907 with 33.51 inches and the driest year was 1976 with 5.33 inches. The most rainfall in one month was 12.30 inches in March 1907. The most rainfall in 24 hours was 5.04 inches on January 31, 1897. Annual snowfall averages 36.0 inches. The most snowfall in one year was 89.0 inches in 1937, with the most in one month 65.5 inches in January 1895.

2010

The 2010 United States Census reported that Susanville had a population of 17,947. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...

 was 2,238.7 people per square mile (864.4/km²). The racial makeup of Susanville was 11,269 (62.8%) White, 2,249 (12.5%) African American, 612 (3.4%) Native American, 198 (1.1%) Asian, 111 (0.6%) Pacific Islander, 2,928 (16.3%) from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

, and 580 (3.2%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4,259 persons (23.7%).

The Census reported that 9,439 people (52.6% of the population) lived in households, 108 (0.6%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 8,400 (46.8%) were institutionalized.

There were 3,833 households, out of which 1,357 (35.4%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 1,645 (42.9%) were opposite-sex married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...

 living together, 499 (13.0%) had a female householder with no husband present, 233 (6.1%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 327 (8.5%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships
POSSLQ
POSSLQ is an abbreviation for "Persons of Opposite Sex Sharing Living Quarters," a term coined in the late 1970s by the United States Census Bureau as part of an effort to more accurately gauge the prevalence of cohabitation in American households....

, and 16 (0.4%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 1,161 households (30.3%) were made up of individuals and 405 (10.6%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.46. There were 2,377 families
Family (U.S. Census)
A family or family household is defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes as "a householder and one or more other people related to the householder by birth, marriage, or adoption. They do not include same-sex married couples even if the marriage was performed in a state...

 (62.0% of all households); the average family size was 3.05.

The population was spread out with 2,559 people (14.3%) under the age of 18, 2,547 people (14.2%) aged 18 to 24, 7,633 people (42.5%) aged 25 to 44, 4,024 people (22.4%) aged 45 to 64, and 1,184 people (6.6%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33.6 years. For every 100 females there were 273.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 327.3 males.

There were 4,256 housing units at an average density of 530.9 per square mile (205.0/km²), of which 1,974 (51.5%) were owner-occupied, and 1,859 (48.5%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 3.4%; the rental vacancy rate was 7.7%. 5,039 people (28.1% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 4,400 people (24.5%) lived in rental housing units.

2000

As of the census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...

of 2000, there were 13,541 people, 3,516 households, and 2,250 families residing in the city. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...

 was 2,294.8 people per square mile (886.1/km²). There were 3,882 housing units at an average density of 657.9 per square mile (254.0/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 76.0% White, 12.5% African American, 3.2% Native American, 1.1% Asian, 0.9% Pacific Islander, 3.5% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

, and 2.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 15.6% of the population.

There were 3,516 households out of which 37.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.4% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...

 living together, 13.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.0% were non-families. 29.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 3.10.

In the city the population was spread out with 20.0% under the age of 18, 13.6% from 18 to 24, 41.5% from 25 to 44, 17.1% from 45 to 64, and 7.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 198.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 231.6 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $35,675, and the median income for a family was $45,216. Males had a median income of $29,973 versus $27,044 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...

 for the city was $13,238. About 11.0% of families and 14.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.5% of those under age 18 and 9.1% of those age 65 or over.

Government and infrastructure

Two California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation
California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation
The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation is responsible for the operation of the California state prison and parole systems. CDC&R is the second largest law enforcement or police agency in the United States behind the New York City Police Department which employs approximately...

 facilities, High Desert State Prison
High Desert State Prison (California)
High Desert State Prison is a maximum security state prison that houses level IV inmates located in Susanville, Lassen County, California.-External links:*...

 and California Correctional Center
California Correctional Center
California Correctional Center is a state prison in the city of Susanville in Northern California.-Facilities:CCC's missions are "to receive, house, and train minimum-custody inmates for placement into one of the institution's 18 Northern California conservation camps" and "to provide meaningful...

, are in Susanville.

Politics

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...

 Susanville is located in the 1st Senate
California State Senate
The California State Senate is the upper house of the California State Legislature. There are 40 state senators. The state legislature meets in the California State Capitol in Sacramento. The Lieutenant Governor is the ex officio President of the Senate and may break a tied vote...

 District, represented by Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

 Ted Gaines
Ted Gaines
Edward M. Gaines is a California State Senator, representing the 1st Senate district. He won a January 4, 2011, special election to replace the late Dave Cox and took office two days later...

, and in the 3rd Assembly
California State Assembly
The California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature. There are 80 members in the Assembly, representing an approximately equal number of constituents, with each district having a population of at least 420,000...

 District, represented by Republican Dan Logue. Federally, Susanville is located in California's 4th congressional district
California's 4th congressional district
California's 4th congressional district is a congressional district located in the U.S. state of California. It covers the northeastern corner of California along Route 395, encompassing El Dorado, Placer, Nevada, Sierra, Plumas, Lassen, and Modoc counties, as well as parts of Butte County...

, which has a Cook PVI
Cook Partisan Voting Index
The Cook Partisan Voting Index , sometimes referred to as simply the Partisan Voting Index , is a measurement of how strongly an American congressional district or state leans toward one political party compared to the nation as a whole...

 of R +11 and is represented by Republican Tom McClintock
Tom McClintock
Thomas Miller McClintock II is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2009. He is a member of the Republican Party. He is a former Assemblyman and state Senator...

.

Media

The primary local news source is the Lassen County Times, a newspaper published every Tuesday.

Susanville in popular culture

Susanville is mentioned in the Quentin Tarantino
Quentin Tarantino
Quentin Jerome Tarantino is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, cinematographer and actor. In the early 1990s, he began his career as an independent filmmaker with films employing nonlinear storylines and the aestheticization of violence...

 films, Reservoir Dogs
Reservoir Dogs
Reservoir Dogs is an American crime film marking debut of director and writer Quentin Tarantino. It depicts the events before and after a botched diamond heist, but not the heist itself. Reservoir Dogs stars an ensemble cast: Harvey Keitel, Steve Buscemi, Tim Roth, Michael Madsen, Chris Penn, and...

 and Jackie Brown
Jackie Brown (film)
Jackie Brown is a 1997 American crime drama film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino. It is an adaptation of the novel Rum Punch by American novelist Elmore Leonard and pays homage to 1970s blaxploitation films....

. In Reservoir Dogs, Joe states that Marcellus Spivey is doing 20 years in Susanville for "bad luck" and in Jackie Brown, the character of Louis says he served four years in Susanville, presumably at California Correctional Center
California Correctional Center
California Correctional Center is a state prison in the city of Susanville in Northern California.-Facilities:CCC's missions are "to receive, house, and train minimum-custody inmates for placement into one of the institution's 18 Northern California conservation camps" and "to provide meaningful...

.

Actor Danny Trejo
Danny Trejo
Dan "Danny" Trejo is an American actor who has appeared in numerous Hollywood films, most notably in roles as an antagonist, or anti-hero.-Early life:...

 served some time in the California Correctional Center in Susanville.

In the film Pink Cadillac, Susanville is said to be only 25 miles (40.2 km) from Reno, NV., not the true distance of 86 miles (138.4 km).

On the Vandals
The Vandals
The Vandals are an American rock band established in 1980 in Huntington Beach, California. They have released ten full-length studio albums and two live albums and have toured the world extensively, including performances on the Vans Warped Tour...

 album The Vandals Play Really Bad Original Country Tunes
The Vandals Play Really Bad Original Country Tunes
The Vandals Play Really Bad Original Country Tunes is an album by the southern California punk rock band The Vandals, released in 1999 by Kung Fu Records. Essentially a re-release of their 1989 album Slippery When Ill, it contains 8 of the 10 songs from that album along with 2 newer, previously...

is a song called Susanville, about a trucker who has been driving for so long he can't remember what his cargo is or where he is heading. He recalls a girl called named Mary in Susanville, but following the lyrics of the song this could just as well be a girl named Susan in Marysville
Marysville, California
Marysville is the county seat of Yuba County, California, United States. The population was 12,072 at the 2010 census, down from 12,268 at the 2000 census. It is included in the Yuba City Metropolitan Statistical Area, often referred to as the Yuba-Sutter Area after the two counties, Yuba and...

.

Rapper Spice 1 mentions his friend serving time in prison in Susanville in one of his songs.

Susanville is mentioned in the 1973 movie Slither (1973 film)
Slither (1973 film)
Slither is a 1973 comedy film starring James Caan. It was directed by Howard Zieff.This was the first screenplay by W. D. Richter, who went on to adapt stories like Invasion of the Body Snatchers and Big Trouble in Little China for the screen and directed the cult film The Adventures of Buckaroo...

 starring James Caan, Peter Boyle and Sandra Kellerman.

Notable natives and residents

  • Aaron Duran
    Aaron Duran
    Aaron "Geek in the City" Duran is an American writer and media producer in Portland, Oregon, of Mexican and Italian descent. He is the host of , webmaster of , and a regular guest on the Cort and Fatboy Show and The Rick Emerson Show...

    , Writer, Media Producer
  • Mike Leach, Texas Tech's former head football coach was born in Susanville
  • Mike Skinner
    Mike Skinner (NASCAR)
    Mike Skinner is an American driver in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. He is the primary driver of the #60 Big Red Soda Toyota Camry for Germain Racing. He is the father of former NASCAR drivers Jamie and Dustin Skinner...

    , NASCAR
    NASCAR
    The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is a family-owned and -operated business venture that sanctions and governs multiple auto racing sports events. It was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1947–48. As of 2009, the CEO for the company is Brian France, grandson of the late Bill France Sr...

     driver
  • Ken Shamrock
    Ken Shamrock
    Kenneth Wayne Shamrock is an American mixed martial arts fighter, UFC Hall of Famer and professional wrestler...

    , UFC Hall of Fame, Former WWF (WWE) Superstar
  • John Hargrave
    John Hargrave
    John Gordon Hargrave , nicknamed 'White Fox', was one of the leading figures in the Social Credit movement in British politics.-Early life:...

    , owner Zug.com
    Zug.com
    Zug is a comedy website that was founded in 1995 by Sir John Hargrave and Genevieve Martineau.-History:Beginning as a webzine, the site featured weekly comedy articles from Sir John Hargrave and a host of collaborators...

  • Frank Shamrock
    Frank Shamrock
    Frank Shamrock is a retired mixed martial arts fighter. Shamrock was the first to hold the UFC Middleweight Championship and retired as the four-time defending undefeated champion...

    , Mixed martial arts
  • Ryan O'Callaghan
    Ryan O'Callaghan
    Ryan O'Callaghan is an American football offensive tackle for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League. He was drafted by the New England Patriots in the fifth round of the 2006 NFL Draft...

    , NFL player for the Kansas City Chiefs and former New England Patriots
  • Frank Cady
    Frank Cady
    Frank Cady is an American actor best known for his recurring and popular role as storekeeper Sam Drucker in three US television series during the 1960s: Petticoat Junction, Green Acres and The Beverly Hillbillies.-Career:...

    , Played Sam Drucker, on Petticoat Junction, Green Acres, and Beverly Hillbillies, CBS Shows, 1960's
  • Jack Ellena
    Jack Ellena
    Jack Duane Ellena is a former American football player.Ellena played offensive tackle for coach Red Sanders at UCLA from 1952 to 1954. He was a member of the Bruins team that won the 1954 Rose Bowl and was named that year's FWAA & UPI national champions...

    , UCLA All American football player, later played with the Los Angeles Rams, was born and raised in Susanville.
  • Benjamin "Coach" Wade, Reality Television Contestant (Survivor: Tocantins, Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains & Survivor: South Pacific
    Survivor: South Pacific
    Survivor: South Pacific is the twenty-third season of the American CBS competitive reality television series Survivor, which premiered on Wednesday, September 14, 2011. The season was filmed in the vicinity of Upolu, Samoa, which is the same filming location as season 19 and season 20, and it will...

    ).

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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