San Clemente
In addition to becoming known as the Western White House during the Nixon Presidency, my mother and sister both live in San Clemente. So, I know this city very well. Many ‘native Orange Countians’ like it because it is the closest thing the ‘old Orange County’ they remember growing up.
The population of San Clemente was 63,522 at the 2010 census. Located On the California Coast, midway between Los Angeles and San Diego at the southern tip of the county, it is known for its ocean, hill, and mountain views, a pleasant climate and its Spanish Colonial style architecture. San Clemente's city slogan is "Spanish Village by the Sea". The official City flower is the Bougainvillea and the official City tree is the Coral tree.
History
Prior to the arrival of the Spanish, the area was inhabited by what came to be known as the Juaneño Indians. Long admired by explorers and passing settlers, it remained virtually uninhabited until 1776, when Mission San Juan Capistrano was established by Father Junipero Serra and led both Indian and Spanish settlers to set up villages nearby. After the founding of Mission San Juan Capistrano, the local natives were conscripted to work for the mission.
Property rights to the land exchanged hands several times, but few ventured to build on it until 1925, when former Mayor of Seattle, Ole Hanson, with the financial help of a syndicate headed by Hamilton Cotton, purchased and designed a 2,000-acre community.
Hanson believed that the area's pleasant climate, beautiful beaches and fertile soil would serve as a haven to Californians who were tired of "the big city". He named the city afterSan Clemente Island, which in turn was named by the explorer Vizcaino in 1602 after Saint Clement, whose feast day occurs on November 23, the day of Vizcaino's arrival on the island.
Hanson envisioned it as a Spanish-style coastal resort town, a "Spanish Village" ("By the Sea" was added years later.) In an unprecedented move, he had a clause added to the deeds requiring all building plans to be submitted to an architectural review board in an effort to ensure that future development would retain some Spanish-style influence (for example, for many years it was required that all new buildings in the downtown area have red tile roofs).
Hanson succeeded in promoting the new area and selling property to interested buyers. The city was to consist of buildings built in the classic Spanish style with red tile roofs. He built public structures such as the Beach Club, the Community Center, the pier and San Clemente Plaza, now known as Max Berg Plaza Park, which were later donated to the city. The area was officially incorporated as a City on February 27, 1928 with a council-manager government.
Referring to the way he would develop the city, Hanson proclaimed, "I have a clean canvas and I am determined to paint a clean picture. Think of it - a canvas five miles long and one and one-half miles wide!" Read more
Largest Historic Landmark in San Clemente: Soon after San Clemente ( The Spanish Village) was incorporated, the need for a "Fire House" was realized. The headlines in San Clemente’s first newspaper, "El Heraldo de San Clemente" June, 1928 read: "Building to house local fire department will be constructed by popular subscription and turned over to the city when completed!" Individual subscriptions were received in the amounts from $6.00 to $1500.00 from the local citizenry.
In 1969, an event occurred which accelerated the growth and reputation of San Clemente. In that year President Richard Nixon purchased a Spanish mansion in the southern part of town that Hamilton Cotton had built in 1927. This "Western White House" became the site of numerous historical meetings. The Old City Plaza also at one time had a small Nixon museum inside when the city occupied the premises.
Nixon's "Western White House"
In 1968 President Richard Nixon bought part of the H. H. Cotton estate, one of the original homes built by one of Hanson's partners. Nixon called it "La Casa Pacifica", but it was nicknamed the "Western White House", a term now commonly used for a President's vacation home. It sits above one of the West Coast's premier surfing spots, Trestles, and just north of historic surfing beach San Onofre. During Nixon's tenure it was visited by many world leaders, including Soviet Premier Leonid Brezhnev, Mexican President Gustavo Díaz Ordaz, Prime Minister of Japan Eisaku Sato, and Henry Kissinger, as well as businessman Bebe Rebozo.
Following his resignation, Nixon retired to San Clemente to write his memoirs. He sold the home in 1980 and moved to New York City, later to Saddle River, New Jersey, and then eventually to Park Ridge, New Jersey. The property also has historical ties to the Democratic side of the aisle; prior to Nixon's tenure at the estate, H.H. Cotton was known to host Franklin D. Roosevelt, who would visit to play cards in a small outbuilding overlooking the Pacific Ocean.
Climate
San Clemente enjoys a mild climate where temperatures tend to average around the 70's. The warmest month of the year is August with an average temperature of 79 degrees Fahrenheit. The coldest month is December with an average temperature of 64 degrees Fahrenheit. The annual rainfall in 2010 was 10.5 inches and the annual days of sunshine was 310.
Transportation
Interstate 5 runs through San Clemente. The Foothill Transportation Corridor has proposed to connect Mission Viejo to the Orange/San Diego county line and proposes to run along the east side of San Clemente and through San Onofre State Beach on its way to I-5.
At the south end of town is located Camp Pendleton and Trestles surf beach, Additionally, the city is served by numerous daily trains operated by Amtrak and Metrolink between Los Angeles and San Diego.
Demographics
The 2010 United States Census reported that San Clemente had a population of 63,522. The racial makeup of San Clemente was 54,605White, 411 African American, 363 Native American, 2,333 Asian, 90 Pacific Islander, 3,433 from other races, and 2,287 from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 10,702 persons.
The Federal census statistics from the 2000 census showed that the population density was 2,833.4 inhabitants per square mile. There were 20,653 housing units at an average density of 1,171.8 per square mile. The racial makeup of the city was 87.92% White, 0.77% African American, 0.61% Native American, 2.64% Asian, 0.14% Pacific Islander, 5.11% from other races, and 2.81% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 15.89% of the population.
As of the city's 2010 census, there were 68,763 people and 25,514 housing units in the city. 90% of the adult population is a high school grad or higher. 5.5% of the population are considered below the poverty line.
As of 2010 the median family income was $87,200. The per capita income for the city was $34,169. As of March 2010 the Median Home Value was $605,500.
In the city the population was spread out with 24.1% under the age of 18, 7.2% from 18 to 24, 31.5% from 25 to 44, 24.1% from 45 to 64, and 13.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 102.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100.9 males.
Surfing legacy
San Clemente catches swells all year long. Going from South to North, they include Trestles (technically just south of the city line), State Park, Riviera, Lasuens (commonly mistaken as Lost Winds),The Hole, T-Street, The Pier, Linda Lane, 204, North Beach, and Poche Beach.
San Clemente is also the surfing media capital of the world as well as a surfing destination. It is home to Surfing Magazine, The Surfer's Journal, and Longboard Magazine, with Surfer Magazine just up the freeway in San Juan Capistrano.
The city has a large concentration of surfboard shapers and manufacturers including Lost Surfboards, Stewart Surfboards, Cole, Timmy Patterson Surfboards, Terry Senate and Dewey Weber Surfboards. Additionally, many world renowned surfers were raised in San Clemente or took up long-term residence in town, including Shane Beschen, Mike Parsons (originally from Laguna Beach), and many others.
San Clemente High School has won 6 out of 7 most recent NSSA national surfing titles. One title was won by Capistrano Connections Academy.
Education
The city is served by Capistrano Unified School District.
Within the city, there are six elementary schools, three middle schools, and one high school. There is also one virtual public K-12 school: Capistrano Connections Academy with flexible hours for students. The elementary schools are: Concordia Elementary; Truman Benedict; Vista Del Mar; Las Palmas; Marblehead Elementary; and Lobo Elementary. The middle schools are Bernice Ayer, Shorecliffs, and Vista Del Mar.
San Clemente High School has an IB (International Baccalaureate) Program and a large number of advanced placement courses. San Clemente High School is well rounded and versatile going from top national winning dance teams to first place award winning orchestra, bands, and voice groups; they even got the chance to perform their skills in places like Hawaii (marching band), Carnegie hall (madrigals and orchestra), and many others.
Las Palmas Elementary is well known for its dual immersion program.
Media
San Clemente was the setting of the MTV reality show, Life of Ryan.
It was also the setting of the 2005 film Brick. The town was chosen because it was particularly close to the director Rian Johnson who lived there and went to San Clemente High School, which was the school depicted in the film. Many of the locations in the film are still identical to the real ones, with the exception of the Pin's house which was flattened a week after exterior shooting; the interior was constructed in a local warehouse. The phone booths that were used all through the film are mostly props that were placed on location.
Notable Natives and Residents
- Donald Baillargeon, international television host
- Lon Chaney, Jr., actor
- Sue Enquist, Hall of Fame UCLA Softball Coach
- Greyson Fletcher, professional skateboarder/ actor
- Jorge Garcia, Actor
- Ole Hanson, former mayor of Seattle and founder of San Clemente
- Annie Hardy, musician with Giant Drag
- Carl Karcher, founder of Carl's Jr. and CKE Enterprises
- Karch Kiraly, Olympic gold medalist in volleyball
- Colin McPhillips, professional longboarder
- Richard Nixon, 37th President of the United States and Pat Nixon, former first lady
- Tommy Witt, longboard surfer
- Dominic Purcell, actor
- Michael Robertson, author
- Ryan Sheckler, professional skateboarder
- Katie Vernola, Playboy Playmate Miss June 2010
- Paul Carter, Surfer/Shaper/Artist. sanclementesurfboards.com
- Cara Fawn, mainstream science fiction actress and producer
- Rian Johnson, director
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