According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 20,105 square miles (52,070 km2), of which 20,057 square miles (51,950 km2) is land and 48 square miles (120 km2) (0.2%) is water.
Prior to European contact, the indigenous peoples that resided in modern-day San Bernardino County were the Taaqtam (Serrano) and ʔívil̃uqaletem (Cahuilla) peoples who lived in the San Bernardino Valley and the San Bernardino Mountains; the Chemehuevi and the Kawaiisu peoples who lived in the Mojave Desert region; and the 'Aha Makhav (Mohave) and the Piipaash (Maricopa) peoples who lived along the Colorado River.
Spanish Missionaries from Mission San Gabriel Arcángel established a church at the village of Politania in 1810. Father Francisco Dumetz named the church San Bernardino on May 20, 1810, after the feast day of St. Bernardino of Siena. The Franciscans also gave the name San Bernardino to the snowcapped peak in Southern California, in honor of the saint and it is from him that the county derives its name.[9] In 1819, they established the San Bernardino de Sena Estancia, a mission farm in what is now Redlands.
Following Mexican independence from Spain in 1821, Mexican citizens were granted land grants to establish ranchos in the area of the county. Rancho Jurupa in 1838, Rancho Cucamonga and El Rincon in 1839, Rancho Santa Ana del Chino in 1841, Rancho San Bernardino in 1842 and Rancho Muscupiabe in 1844.
Agua Mansa was the first town in what became San Bernardino County, settled by immigrants from New Mexico on land donated from the Rancho Jurupa in 1841.
Following the purchase of Rancho San Bernardino, and the establishment of the town of San Bernardino in 1851 by Mormon colonists, San Bernardino County was formed in 1853 from parts of Los Angeles County. Some of the southern parts of the county's territory were given to Riverside County in 1893.
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 20,105 square miles (52,070 km2), of which 20,057 square miles (51,950 km2) is land and 48 square miles (120 km2) (0.2%) is water.[10] It is the largest county by area in California and the largest in the United States (excluding boroughs in Alaska).[11] It is slightly larger than the states of New Jersey, Connecticut, Delaware and Rhode Island combined, and is also slightly larger than Switzerland. It borders both Nevada and Arizona.
The bulk of the population, nearly two million, live in the roughly 480 square miles south of the San Bernardino Mountains adjacent to Riverside and in the San Bernardino Valley in the southwestern portion of the county. About 390,000 residents live just north of the San Bernardino Mountains, in and around the roughly 280 square-mile area that includes the Victor Valley. Roughly another 100,000 people live scattered across the rest of the sprawling county.
The Mojave National Preserve covers some of the eastern desert, especially between Interstate 15 and Interstate 40. The desert portion also includes the cities of Needles next to the Colorado River and Barstow at the junction of Interstate 15 and Interstate 40. Trona is at the northwestern part of the county, west of Death Valley. This national park, mostly within Inyo County, also has a small portion of land within San Bernardino County. The largest metropolitan area in the Mojave Desert part of the county is the Victor Valley, with the incorporated localities of Adelanto, Apple Valley, Hesperia, and Victorville. Further south, a portion of Joshua Tree National Park overlaps the county near the High Desert area, in the vicinity of Twentynine Palms. The remaining towns make up the remainder of the High Desert: Pioneertown, Yucca Valley, Joshua Tree, Landers, and Morongo Valley.
The mountains are home to the San Bernardino National Forest, and include the communities of Crestline, Lake Arrowhead, Running Springs, Big Bear City, Forest Falls, and Big Bear Lake.
The San Bernardino Valley is at the eastern end of the San Gabriel Valley. The San Bernardino Valley includes the cities of Ontario, Chino, Chino Hills, Upland, Fontana, Rialto, Colton, Grand Terrace, Montclair, Rancho Cucamonga, San Bernardino, Loma Linda, Highland, Redlands, and Yucaipa.
Adjacent counties
National protected areas
- Angeles National Forest (part)
- Death Valley National Park (part)
- Havasu National Wildlife Refuge (part)
- Joshua Tree National Park (part)
- Mojave National Preserve
- San Bernardino National Forest (part)
- Sand to Snow National Monument (part)
More than 80% of the county's land is owned by the federal government.[12] There are at least 35 official wilderness areas in the county that are part of the National Wilderness Preservation System. This is the largest number of any county in the United States (although not the largest in total area). The majority are managed by the Bureau of Land Management, but some are integral components of the above listed national protected areas. Most of these wilderness areas lie entirely within the county, but a few are shared with neighboring counties (and two of these are shared with the neighboring states of Arizona and Nevada).
Except as noted, these wilderness areas are managed solely by the
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Bernardino_County,_California Bureau of Land Management and lie within San Bernardino County:
- Bigelow Cholla Garden Wilderness
- Bighorn Mountain Wilderness (part)
- Black Mountain Wilderness
- Bristol Mountains Wilderness
- Cadiz Dunes Wilderness
- Chemehuevi Mountains Wilderness
- Cleghorn Lakes Wilderness
- Clipper Mountain Wilderness
- Cucamonga Wilderness
- Dead Mountains Wilderness
- Death Valley Wilderness (part)
- Golden Valley Wilderness
- Grass Valley Wilderness
- Havasu Wilderness (part)
- Hollow Hills Wilderness
- Joshua Tree Wilderness (part)
- Kelso Dunes Wilderness
- Kingston Range Wilderness
- Mesquite Wilderness
- Mojave Wilderness
- Newberry Mountains Wilderness
- North Mesquite Mountains Wilderness
- Old Woman Mountains Wilderness
- Pahrump Valley Wilderness (part)
- Piute Mountains Wilderness
- Rodman Mountains Wilderness
- Saddle Peak Hills Wilderness (part)
- San Gorgonio Wilderness (part)
- Sheep Mountain Wilderness (part)
- Sheephole Valley Wilderness
- Stateline Wilderness
- Stepladder Mountains Wilderness
- Trilobite Wilderness
- Turtle Mountains Wilderness
- Whipple Mountains Wilderness
Demographics
2010
| Historical population | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1860 | 5,551 | — | |
| 1870 | 3,988 | −28.2% | |
| 1880 | 7,786 | 95.2% | |
| 1890 | 25,497 | 227.5% | |
| 1900 | 27,929 | 9.5% | |
| 1910 | 56,706 | 103.0% | |
| 1920 | 73,401 | 29.4% | |
| 1930 | 133,900 | 82.4% | |
| 1940 | 161,108 | 20.3% | |
| 1950 | 281,642 | 74.8% | |
| 1960 | 503,591 | 78.8% | |
| 1970 | 684,072 | 35.8% | |
| 1980 | 895,016 | 30.8% | |
| 1990 | 1,418,380 | 58.5% | |
| 2000 | 1,709,434 | 20.5% | |
| 2010 | 2,035,210 | 19.1% | |
| 2020 | 2,181,654 | 7.2% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census[13] 1790–1960[14] 1900–1990[15] 1990–2000[16] 2010[17] 2020[18] |
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Bernardino_County,_California
2020 census
(NH = Non-Hispanic)
| Race / Ethnicity | Pop 2010[17] | Pop 2020[18] | % 2010 | % 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| White alone (NH) | 677,598 | 566,113 | 33.29% | 25.95% |
| Black or African American alone (NH) | 170,700 | 173,322 | 8.39% | 7.94% |
| Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) | 8,523 | 8,412 | 0.42% | 0.39% |
| Asian alone (NH) | 123,978 | 176,204 | 6.09% | 8.08% |
| Pacific Islander alone (NH) | 5,845 | 6,173 | 0.29% | 0.28% |
| Some Other Race alone (NH) | 4,055 | 12,117 | 0.20% | 0.56% |
| Mixed Race/Multi-Racial (NH) | 43,366 | 68,400 | 2.13% | 3.14% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 1,001,145 | 1,170,913 | 49.19% | 53.67% |
| Total | 2,035,210 | 2,181,654 | 100.00% | 100.00% |
Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos can be of any race.
2011
| Population, race, and income |
|---|
Places by population, race, and income
| Places by population and race |
|---|
| Places by population and income |
|---|
2010 Census
The 2010 United States Census reported that San Bernardino County had a population of 2,035,210. The racial makeup of San Bernardino County was 1,153,161 (56.7%) White, 181,862 (8.9%) African American, 22,689 (1.1%) Native American, 128,603 (6.3%) Asian, 6,870 (0.3%) Pacific Islander, 439,661 (21.6%) from other races, and 102,364 (5.0%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1,001,145 persons (49.2%).[26]
| Population reported at 2010 United States Census |
|---|
2000
As of the census[27] of 2000, there were 1,709,434 people, 528,594 households, and 404,374 families residing in the county. The population density was 85 people per square mile (33/km2). There were 601,369 housing units at an average density of 30 per square mile (12/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 58.9% White, 9.1% African American, 1.2% Native American, 4.7% Asian, 0.3% Pacific Islander, 20.8% from other races, and 5.0% from two or more races. 39.2% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 8.3% were of German, 5.5% English and 5.1% Irish ancestry. 66.1% spoke English, 27.7% Spanish and 1.1% Tagalog as their first language.
There were 528,594 households, out of which 43.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.8% were married couples living together, 14.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.5% were non-families. 18.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.6% had someone 65 years of age or older living alone. The average household size was 3.2 people, and the average family size was 3.6 people.
The number of homeless in San Bernardino County grew from 5,270 in 2002 to 7,331 in 2007, a 39% increase.[28]
In the county, the population was spread out—with 32.3% under the age of 18, 10.3% from 18 to 24, 30.2% from 25 to 44, 18.7% from 45 to 64, and 8.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 30 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.2 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $42,066, and the median income for a family was $46,574. Males had a median income of $37,025 versus $27,993 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,856. About 12.6% of families and 15.80% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.6% of those under age 18 and 8.4% of those age 65 or over.
