Modoc County California Warrant Search

Modoc County, California Modoc County is a county located in the far northeast corner of the U.S. state of California, bounded by the state of Oregon to the north and the state of Nevada to the east. As of 2000, its population was 9,449. The current county seat is Alturas, the county's only incorporated city. Previous county seats include Lake City and Centerville, which are now ghost towns. The county's official slogans include, 'The last best place,' and 'Where the West still lives.'A large portion of Modoc County is federal land. The presence of several federal agencies, including the United States Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service, Bureau of Indian Affairs, and the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, forms a significant part of the economy and provide services to this rural area.Modoc is the only county in California bordered by both Nevada and Oregon, and is one of only two counties in California bordering more than one US state (the other being San Bernardino County, bordering Nevada and Arizona in the southern part of the state). History Prior to the arrival of Europeans in the region, Native Americans inhabited the county. The Modoc people, who lived at the Klamath River headwaters, were a prominent tribe that broke away from the Klamath tribes to the north in Oregon, and the name of the county was derived from this tribe. The county was home to two other major tribal groups: the Achumawi (or Pit, for which the Pit River is named), and the Paiute. The first European explorers to visit Modoc County were American explorer John C. Frémont and his traveling party (including Kit Carson) in 1846, who had departed from Sutter's Fort near the confluence of the American and Sacramento Rivers where the city of Sacramento lies today.The county's Native Americans resisted heavily the colonization of the region by the Europeans. The Modoc War (or Lava Beds War) of 1872–73 brought nationwide attention to Modoc during its protracted battles when a large number of US Army soldiers were unable to overtake a significantly smaller band of Modoc warriors who hid themselves in the lava tubes that are now the Lava Beds National Monument. The War began after the American government made a pretense of purchasing the territory belonging to the Modoc people from the Klamath people, and forced the Modoc people to move to the Klamath Reservation in Oregon. Some Modoc people left the reservation, because the Klamath people made it clear that the Modoc were not welcome there. A companion of Captain Jack shot General Edward Canby at a peacemaking session, leading to the siege at Captain Jack's Stronghold. Native Americans were unfamiliar with siege warfare, and the Modoc surrendered only after they were weakened by starvation.The northern boundary of California, and eventually Modoc County, had been established as the 42nd parallel since the time of Mexican possession, but in the absence of a reliable survey of the 120th meridian, the eastern boundary of northern California was a subject of contention before Modoc County formed. The Territory of Utah requested jurisdiction to the summit of the Sierra Nevada. The Warner Mountains were then believed to be a part of the Sierra Nevada, so this would have included Surprise Valley, but California denied the request.In 1856, the residents of Honey Lake Valley reckoned the 120th meridian to be west of their valley, placing them in Utah territory, and attempted to secede therefrom and form a territory they called Nataqua. Due to the angle at which the meridian would exist in order for this to be so, Nataqua would have included Modoc County. In 1858, the Territory of Nevada, with its capital now in Carson City, successfully seceded from Utah, and assumed jurisdiction to the summit of the Sierra Nevada until the 120th meridian was surveyed in 1863.After Nevada was granted statehood in 1864, the region of current Modoc County was placed within jurisdiction of Shasta County, California, and Siskiyou County was, in turn, generated from Shasta County in 1852. Modoc County itself was formed when Governor Newton Booth signed an Act of the California Legislature on February 17, 1874 after residents of the Surprise Valley region lobbied for the creation of a new county from eastern Siskiyou County land. The county residents considered naming the newly formed county after Edward Canby, who had recently perished in battle against the Modoc; the idea of naming the county 'Summit' was also considered, but the populace eventually settled on 'Modoc.'The Dorris Bridge post office opened in 1871, was renamed Dorrisville in 1874, and due to its central location, Dorrisville became the county seat when Modoc County formed that year, even though both Adin and Cedarville were then larger towns. In 1876, it was renamed Alturas, which means 'The Heights' in Spanish. The census of 1880 showed a population of 148. However, settlement continued over the next two decades, until the city was officially incorporated on September 16, 1901; the county's only incorporated city.Settlement of the county began in earnest in the 1870s, with the timber, gold, agriculture, and railroad industries bringing most of the settlers into the area. The county was a crossroads for the Lassen Applegate Trail which brought settlers north from Nevada to the Oregon Trail and south to trails leading into California's central valley. Early settlers included the Dorris, Belli, Essex, Scherer, Trumbo, Flournoy, Polander, and Campbell families.Several thousand acres just south of Newell served as the temporary exile for thousands of Japanese-American citizens during World War II at the Tule Lake War Relocation Center, a Japanese American internment camp. A historical marker still stands along State Route 139 in Newell. Tule Lake was the largest of the 'segregation camps.' On November 8, 2005 Senator Dianne Feinstein called for the camp to be designated a National Historic Landmark. In December 2008 it was designated by President George W. Bush as one of nine sites—the only one in the contiguous 48 states—to be part of the new World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument. Geography According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 4,203 square miles (10,887 km²), of which 3,944 square miles (10,215 km²) is land and 259 square miles (672 km²) (6.17%) is water.There are 2.25 persons per sq mi, making this one of the most sparsely populated counties in California.The county is very diverse geographically. The northwestern edge of the county is dominated by the Medicine Lake Highlands, the largest shield volcano on the U.S. West Coast. The Lava Beds National Monument lies partly within the northwest corner of the County. Also along the western edge of the county is the massive Glass Mountain lava flow. The southwestern corner of the county is a unique ecosystem of isolated hardwoods (oaks) and volcanic mountains with intermountain river valleys.The northern half of the county is the Modoc Plateau, a 1-mile (1.6-km) high expanse of lava flows, cinder cones, juniper flats, pine forests, and seasonal lakes. Nearly 1 million acres (4,000 km²) of the Modoc National Forest lie on the plateau between the Medicine Lake Highlands in the west and the Warner Mountains in the east. The plateau supports large herds of mule deer (Odocoileus Hemionus), Rocky Mountain Elk (Cervus Canadensis), and pronghorn antelope (Antilocapra Americana). There are also several herds of wild horses on the plateau. The Clear Lake National Wildlife Refuge and Long Bell State Game Refuge are located on the plateau as well. The Lost River watershed, which later drains into the Klamath River basin, drains the north part of the plateau, while southern watersheds either collect in basin reservoirs or flow into the large Big Sage Reservoir, which sits in the center of the county, which later flows into the Pit River.Below the rim of the Plateau is Big Valley in the extreme southwest corner of the county, and the large Warm Springs Valley that forms the bottom of the Pit River watershed that runs through the county. The north fork and south fork of the Pit River come together just south of Alturas. The River collects hundreds of other small creeks as it flows south towards Lake Shasta, where it joins the Sacramento River and drains into the San Francisco Bay.The eastern edge of the county is dominated by the Warner Mountains. The Pit River originates in this mountain range. Hundreds of alpine lakes dot the range, all of which are fed by snow-melt and natural springs. East of the Warner Range is Surprise Valley and the western edge of the Great Basin.Hot Springs and lava caves are common to Modoc County. There are some geothermal energy resources available in the county, though their viability is highly variable.A great diversity of plants are found in Modoc County, since this is situated within the biodiverse California Floristic Province. Numerous native trees are found in the county including Garry Oak and Washoe Pine trees. Jeffrey Pine and Ponderosa Pine are also found in large numbers. Cities and towns Adin Alturas California Pines Canby Cedarville Davis Creek Day Eagleville Ft. Bidwell Lake City Likely Lookout Newell New Pine Creek Stronghold Tionesta National protected areas Clear Lake National Wildlife Refuge Lava Beds National Monument(part) Modoc National Forest(part) Shasta National Forest(part) Modoc National Wildlife Refuge(part) Tule Lake National Wildlife Refuge(part) Major highways U.S. Route 395 State Route 139 State Route 299 Additionally, the eastern Modoc County cities of Eagleville, Cedarville, Lake City, and Fort Bidwell are connected via Surprise Valley Road, which runs from the southern county line to the Oregon border. Public transportation The Sage Stage is a dial-a-ride service providing trips within Modoc County. It has also provided trips as far away as Klamath Falls, Oregon, and Reno, Nevada. Airports There are general aviation airports near Alturas (Alturas Municipal Airport and California Pines Airport). Other airports include Cedarville Airport, Eagleville Airport, Fort Bidwell Airport, and Tulelake Municipal Airport. Demographics As of the census of 2000, there were 9,449 people, 3,784 households, and 2,550 families residing in the county. The population density was 2 people per square mile (1/km²). There were 4,807 housing units at an average density of 1 per square mile (0/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 85.94% White, 0.69% Black or African American, 4.21% American Indian, 0.61% Asian, 0.07% Pacific Islander, 5.69% from other races, and 2.78% from two or more races. 11.51% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.The largest ethnicities/ancestry groups in Modoc county include: 15% English, 14% Irish and 13% German. 90.4% spoke English and 8.8% Spanish as their first language.There were 3,784 households out of which 29.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.6% were married couples living together, 8.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.6% were non-families. 28.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 2.91.In the county the population was spread out with 25.6% under the age of 18, 5.7% from 18 to 24, 23.3% from 25 to 44, 27.7% from 45 to 64, and 17.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 102.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.7 males.The median income for a household in the county was $27,522, and the median income for a family was $35,978. Males had a median income of $30,538 versus $23,438 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,285. About 16.4% of families and 21.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 29.7% of those under age 18 and 8.6% of those age 65 or over.Modoc County has the lowest median household income of any county in California.In 2005, the median home price reached $100,000 for the first time ever, over a 40% increase since 2000. Much of this can be traced to an influx of residents from other parts of the state, who find the housing bargains attractive. Some of these are retirees who have sold their houses for large profits in other parts of the state, using the proceeds to live on, while others are people who are able to telecommute. This sudden rise in housing prices become unaffordable for locals, who find themselves unable to purchase homes given their limited incomes. Politics Modoc is a strongly Republican county in Presidential and congressional elections. It is the most Republican county in California. The last Democrat to win a majority in the county was Lyndon Johnson in 1964.Modoc is part of California's 4th congressional district, which is held by Republican Tom McClintock. In the state legislature Modoc is in the 2nd Assembly district, which is held by Republican Doug La Malfa, and the 1st Senate district, which is held by Republican Dave Cox.On Nov. 4, 2008 Modoc County delivered the most lop-sided vote in favor of John McCain of any county in California, with 67.9% of voters opting for the Republican. The county also voted 74.2 % in favor of Proposition 8 which amended the California Constitution to ban same-sex marriages; only Kern and Tulare counties voted in higher proportion, both opting for the Proposition with 75.4% of the vote.