Miranda, California

Miranda
—  census-designated place  —
Miranda Location in California
Coordinates: 40°14′05″N 123°49′25″W / 40.23472°N 123.82361°W / 40.23472; -123.82361Coordinates: 40°14′05″N 123°49′25″W / 40.23472°N 123.82361°W / 40.23472; -123.82361
Country	United States
State	California
County	Humboldt County
Area[1]
– Total	1.499 sq mi (3.884 km2)
– Land	1.491 sq mi (3.863 km2)
– Water	0.008 sq mi (0.021 km2)  0.54%
Elevation[2]	351 ft (107 m)
Population (2010)
– Total	520
– Density	346.8/sq mi (133.9/km2)
Time zone	Pacific (PST) (UTC-8)
– Summer (DST)	PDT (UTC-7)
ZIP Code
GNIS feature IDs	228824; 2611441
U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Miranda, California; U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Miranda, California

Miranda (formerly, Jacobsen's)^[3] is a census-designated place^[4] in Humboldt County, California.^[2] It is located 2.5 miles (4 km) northwest of Phillipsville,^[3] at an elevation of 351 feet (107 m).^[2] The ZIP Code is 95553.^[5] The population was 520 at the 2010 census.

The town was named by a former postmistress and is within a five minute walk of the south fork of the Eel River, amidst giant redwood trees. Miranda is on the Avenue of the Giants between Myers Flat to the north and Phillipsville to the south.

The post office was opened on August 26, 1905. It is unclear when exactly it became a settlement prior to that, though older residents will tell you the earliest they can remember is their folks coming up from San Francisco during the California Gold Rush era of the 1840s and '50s.

Besides the post office, the town boasts one restaurant, a resort, market, and gas station (all owned by the Eldridge family), a Seventh-day Adventist church, a meetinghouse of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon), a small, rural high school encompassing grades 8-12, a Community Grange, two gift shops, and an active Volunteer Fire Department. There is a glass gallery one mile south of Miranda on the Avenue of the Giants in the historical unincorporated area formerly known as Firhaven.

South Fork High School is the only regular high school of Southern Humboldt Unified School District. The school's name refers to the South Fork of the Eel River. Osprey Learning Center, an alternative continuation high school, is located across the football field from SFHS in facilities that formerly housed the now-defunct Miranda Junior High School.

The ZIP Code is 95553. The community is inside Area code 707. Elevation is said to be 351 feet at the town sign, though the terrain is generally not flat and encompasses sea level to over 2,000-foot elevations. Miranda is in the PST zone and observes Daylight Savings.

Demographics

2010

The 2010 United States Census^[6] reported that Miranda had a population of 520. The population density was 346.8 people per square mile (133.9/km²). The racial makeup of Miranda was 439 (84.4%) White, 4 (0.8%) African American, 13 (2.5%) Native American, 4 (0.8%) Asian, 1 (0.2%) Pacific Islander, 31 (6.0%) from other races, and 28 (5.4%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 75 persons (14.4%).

The Census reported that 512 people (98.5% of the population) lived in households, 8 (1.5%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 0 (0%) were institutionalized.

There were 243 households, out of which 74 (30.5%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 88 (36.2%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 30 (12.3%) had a female householder with no husband present, 20 (8.2%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 22 (9.1%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 1 (0.4%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 92 households (37.9%) were made up of individuals and 19 (7.8%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.11. There were 138 families (56.8% of all households); the average family size was 2.72.

The population was spread out with 117 people (22.5%) under the age of 18, 31 people (6.0%) aged 18 to 24, 127 people (24.4%) aged 25 to 44, 185 people (35.6%) aged 45 to 64, and 60 people (11.5%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41.3 years. For every 100 females there were 94.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.2 males.

There were 265 housing units at an average density of 176.7 per square mile (68.2/km²), of which 134 (55.1%) were owner-occupied, and 109 (44.9%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 0.7%; the rental vacancy rate was 0%. 291 people (56.0% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 221 people (42.5%) lived in rental housing units.

2000

According to the U.S. Census Bureau,^[7] at about the year 2000, Miranda's total population was approximately 857. This figure, however, encompasses a much larger geographic area than Miranda proper. The official town population listed on the Miranda welcome sign is significantly lower. Only 5.6% were under 5 years of age, while 75.4% were over 18 and 8.3% over 65. A marginally high 14.7% of those over 18 were civilian veterans. Of those over age 5, 24.6% were of disability status. Majorly of one race (97.3%), Miranda is home to 91.8% White (unspecified origin), 0.5% African American or Black, 2.9% American Indian or Alaskan Native, 0.6% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, 1.4% of some other race, and 4.6% Hispanic or Latino. Median household income was $17,422, while median family income was slightly higher at $21,146. Nearly one third (29.4%) of the population as individuals were below the poverty line. Total occupied housing units were 391 out of 505 total units, leaving 114 vacancies. Median value of single-owner occupied homes was $114,400.

Politics

In the state legislature Miranda is located in the 2nd Senate District, represented by Democrat Noreen Evans, and in the 1st Assembly District, represented by Democrat Wesley Chesbro. Federally, Miranda is located in California's 1st congressional district.

References

1. ^ U.S. Census
2. ^ ^{a b c} U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Miranda, California
3. ^ ^{a b} Durham, David L. (1998). California's Geographic Names: A Gazetteer of Historic and Modern Names of the State. Quill Driver Books. p. 108. ISBN 9781884995149. 
4. ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Miranda, California
5. ^ USPS ZIP Code lookup tool
6. ^ All data are derived from the United States Census Bureau reports from the 2010 United States Census, and are accessible on-line here. The data on unmarried partnerships and same-sex married couples are from the Census report DEC_10_SF1_PCT15. All other housing and population data are from Census report DEC_10_DP_DPDP1. Both reports are viewable online or downloadable in a zip file containing a comma-delimited data file. The area data, from which densities are calculated, are available on-line here. Percentage totals may not add to 100% due to rounding. The Census Bureau defines families as a household containing one or more people related to the householder by birth, opposite-sex marriage, or adoption. People living in group quarters are tabulated by the Census Bureau as neither owners nor renters. For further details, see the text files accompanying the data files containing the Census reports mentioned above.
7. ^ 2000 U.S. Census

External links

• South Fork High School
• Miranda Travel & Resource Guide