Petaluma is a city in
Sonoma CountySonoma County, located on the northern coast of California, is one of the northernmost counties of the nine county Greater San Francisco Bay Area, U.S. Its population as of July 2008 is estimated at 466,741 by the United States Census Bureau's American Community Survey. Its population at the 2000...
,
CaliforniaCalifornia is the most populous state in the United States, and the third largest by area. California is the second most populous sub-national entity in the Americas, behind only São Paulo, Brazil...
, in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It is estimated that the 2006 population was 54,660
Located in Petaluma is the
Rancho Petaluma AdobeRancho Petaluma Adobe is the name of a historic ranch house built from adobe bricks that was owned and constructed by General Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo, commandant of the Sonoma Pueblo from 1834 to 1857. It is the largest example of the Monterey Colonial style of architecture in the United States...
, a
National Historic LandmarkA National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance. All NHLs are listed in the National Register of Historic Places...
. It was built beginning in 1836 by General
Mariano Guadalupe VallejoMariano Guadalupe Vallejo was a Californian military commander, politician, and rancher. He was born a subject of Spain, performed his military duties as an officer of Mexico, and shaped the transition of California from a Mexican district to an American state...
, then
CommandantCommandant is a military or police title or rank. In the French, Spanish and Irish militaries it is a rank equivalent to Major. In anglophone nations it is a senior title often given to the officer in charge of a large training establishment or academy.-India:In the British Indian Army, the...
of the San Francisco Presidio. It was the center of a vast 66,000 acre (270-km²) ranch stretching from
Petaluma RiverThe Petaluma River is a river in the California counties of Sonoma and Marin that becomes a tidal slough near its mouth. It springs from farmlands southwest of Cotati and flows generally southward through Petaluma's old town and of marshes to end at San Pablo Bay.The western slopes of Sonoma...
to
Sonoma CreekSonoma Creek is a stream in Northern California. It is one of two principal drainages of Southern Sonoma County, California, with headwaters rising in the rugged hills of Sugarloaf Ridge State Park and discharge to San Pablo Bay, the northern arm of San Francisco Bay...
. The
adobeAdobe is a natural building material made from sand, clay, and water, with some kind of fibrous or organic material , which is shaped into bricks using frames and dried in the sun. It is similar to cob and mudbrick. Adobe structures are extremely durable and account for some of the oldest extant...
is considered one of the best preserved buildings of its era in Northern California.
Petaluma is a transliteration of the
Coast MiwokThe Coast Miwok were the second largest group of Miwok Native American people. The Coast Miwok inhabited the general area of modern Marin County and southern Sonoma County in Northern California, from the Golden Gate north to Duncans Point and eastward to Sonoma Creek...
phrase
péta lúuma which means
hill backside and probably refers to Petaluma's proximity to
Sonoma MountainSonoma Mountain is a prominent landform within the Sonoma Mountains of southern Sonoma County, California. At elevation of , Sonoma Mountain offers expansive views of the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Sonoma Valley to the east...
.
Petaluma has a well preserved, historic city center which includes many buildings that survived the
1906 San Francisco earthquakeThe San Francisco earthquake of 1906 was a major earthquake that struck San Francisco, CA and the coast of Northern California at 5:12 A.M. on Wednesday, April 18, 1906. The most widely accepted estimate for the magnitude of the earthquake is a moment magnitude of 7.8; however, other values have...
.
Demographics
As of the
censusA "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.In other words every 10 years...next one would be in 2010 The term is used mostly in connection with...
of 2000, there were 54,548 people, 19,932 households, and 14,012 families residing in the city. The
population densityPopulation density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans. It is a key term used in geography....
was 3,953 people per square mile (1,526/km²). There were 20,304 housing units at an average density of 1,471/sq mi (568/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 84.16% White, 1.16% African American, 0.54% Native American, 3.91% Asian, 0.17% Pacific Islander, 6.08% from
other racesRace and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the United States Census Bureau and the Federal Office of Management and Budget , 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 3.98% from two or more races. 14.64% of the population were Hispanic.
There were 19,932 households out of which 36.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.3% were married couples living together, 10.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.7% were non-families. 22.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.70 and the average family size was 3.16. The age distribution is: 26.2% under the age of 18, 7.2% from 18 to 24, 31.5% from 25 to 44, 24.1% from 45 to 64, and 11.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 95.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.9 males.
The median
incomeIncome is the consumption and savings opportunity gained by an entity within a specified time frame, which is generally expressed in monetary terms. However, for households and individuals, "income is the sum of all the wages, salaries, profits, interests payments, rents and other forms of earnings...
for a household in the city was $61,679, and the median income for a family was $71,158 (these figures had risen to $68,949 and $85,513 respectively as of a 2007 estimate). Males had a median income of $50,232 versus $36,413 for females. The
per capita incomePer capita income means how much each individual receives, in monetary terms, of the yearly income generated in the country. This is what each citizen is to receive if the yearly national income is divided equally among everyone. Per capita income is usually reported in units of currency per year...
for the city was $27,087. About 3.3% of families and 6.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.2% of those under age 18 and 7.1% of those age 65 or over.
History
The
Coast MiwokThe Coast Miwok were the second largest group of Miwok Native American people. The Coast Miwok inhabited the general area of modern Marin County and southern Sonoma County in Northern California, from the Golden Gate north to Duncans Point and eastward to Sonoma Creek...
Indians resided in southern Sonoma County, and Petaluma was originally the name of a Miwok village east of the Petaluma River. A number of other Coast Miwok villages were also located in and around what is now Petaluma; Wotoki, immediately to the south of the village of Petaluma, on the opposite side of the river, Etem, Likatiut, and Tuchayalin, near downtown Petaluma, and Tulme and Susuli, just north of what are now the city limits of Petaluma.
Pioneered by the Spanish in 1776, the Petaluma area was part of a 66,000 acre (270-km²) Mexican land grant of 1834 by Governor
Jose FigueroaGeneral José Figueroa , governor of Alta California from 1833 to 1835, who oversaw the secularization of the missions of California....
to
Mariano Guadalupe VallejoMariano Guadalupe Vallejo was a Californian military commander, politician, and rancher. He was born a subject of Spain, performed his military duties as an officer of Mexico, and shaped the transition of California from a Mexican district to an American state...
called
Rancho PetalumaRancho Petaluma was a Mexican land grant in present day Sonoma County, California given in 1834 by Governor José Figueroa to Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo...
. In 1836, Vallejo began construction of his
Rancho Petaluma AdobeRancho Petaluma Adobe is the name of a historic ranch house built from adobe bricks that was owned and constructed by General Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo, commandant of the Sonoma Pueblo from 1834 to 1857. It is the largest example of the Monterey Colonial style of architecture in the United States...
a ranch house in Petaluma, which his family often used as a summer home, while he resided in the neighboring town of
SonomaSonoma is a historically significant city in Sonoma Valley, Sonoma County, California, USA, surrounding its historic town plaza, a remnant of the town's Spanish colonial past. Sonoma today is a center of wine industry for the Sonoma Valley AVA Appellation, as well as the home of the nationally...
. Vallejo's influence and Mexican control in the region began to decline after Vallejo's arrest during the
Bear Flag RevoltThe California Republic, also called the Bear Flag Republic, was a government proclaimed by settlers on June 14, 1846, in Sonoma in the then-Mexican province of California...
in 1846.
Pioneers flocked into Petaluma from the eastern United States after the discovery of gold in California in 1849. The town's position on the Petaluma River in the heart of productive farmland was critical to its growth during the 19th and early 20th centuries. Sailing scows, such as the scow
schoonerA schooner is a type of sailing vessel characterized by the use of fore-and-aft sails on two or more masts with the forward mast being shorter or the same height as the rear masts...
Alma (1892), and
steamersA steamboat or steamship, sometimes called a steamer, is a ship in which the primary method of propulsion is steam power, typically driving propellers or paddlewheels....
plied the river between Petaluma and San Francisco, carrying agricultural produce and raw materials to the burgeoning city of San Francisco during the
California Gold RushThe California Gold Rush began on January 24, 1848, when gold was discovered by James Wilson Marshall at Sutter's Mill, in Coloma, California. News of the discovery soon spread, resulting in some 300,000 men, women, and children coming to California from the rest of the United States and...
.
Volpi's is an old
speakeasyA speakeasy was an establishment which illegally sold alcoholic beverages during the period of United States history known as Prohibition...
that now operates as a bar and restaurant. There were also brothels, one of which is now Old Chicago Pizza on Petaluma Boulevard North, which used to be the main thoroughfare until US Highway 101 was constructed in the 1950s.
Petaluma soon became known for its grain milling and chicken processing industries, which continue to the present as a smaller fraction of its commerce. At one time, Petaluma was known as the "Egg Capital of the World", sparking such nicknames as "Chickaluma". Petaluma hosted the only known Poultry drugstore and is the place where the egg incubator was invented by Lyman Byce in 1879.
In fact one of the largest historic chicken processing plants still stands in the central area of town; this 1930s brick building is no longer used for the chicken industry, but is being evaluated for preservation and change of use. Even though it is no longer known as the Egg Capital of the World, Petaluma maintains a strong agricultural base today with dairy farms, olive groves, vineyards, berry and vegetable farms. The city is proud to protect its Greenbelt of farmland.
According to the Army Museum at the Presidio, San Francisco, Petaluma was relatively unharmed during the
San Francisco earthquakeThe San Francisco earthquake of 1906 was a major earthquake that struck San Francisco, CA and the coast of Northern California at 5:12 A.M. on Wednesday, April 18, 1906. The most widely accepted estimate for the magnitude of the earthquake is a moment magnitude of 7.8; however, other values have...
of April 18, 1906, due to significant investment of stable bedrock underlying the region. As one of the few communities in the region left standing after the earthquake, Petaluma was the staging point for most Sonoma County rescue and relief efforts.
Petaluma is today the location of many distinguished, well-preserved pre-1906 buildings and Victorian homes on the western side of the river. The downtown has suffered many river floods over the years and during the Depression commerce declined. A lack of funds prevented the demolition of the old homes and buildings. In the 1960s there was a counter-culture migration out of San Francisco into Marin County and southern Sonoma County, looking for inexpensive housing in a less urban environment. The old Victorian, Queen Anne and Eastlake houses were dusty gems waiting to be discovered and restored. Historic iron-front buildings in the downtown commercial district were also rescued. Traffic and new home development for the most part was rerouted to the east of downtown by the construction of the 101 freeway.
With its large stock of historic buildings, Petaluma has been used as the filming location for numerous movies set in the 1940s, '50s, and '60s (see list of movies below). The historic McNear Building is a common film location.
Petaluma pioneered the time-controlled approach to development. After Highway 101 opened in 1969, residential development permits tripled, from 300 in 1969 to 900 in 1971. Because of the region's soaring population in the sixties, the city enacted the “Petaluma Plan” in 1971. This plan limited the number of building permits to 500 annually for a five year period beginning in 1972. At the same time Petaluma created a redbelt around the town as a boundary for urban expansion for a stated number of years. Similar to
Ramapo, New YorkRamapo, formerly known as New Hempstead and then Hampstead, is a town in Rockland County, New York, United States located north of New Jersey; east of Orange County, New York; south of the Town of Haverstraw and west of the Town of Clarkstown and the Town of Orangetown...
, a Residential Development Control System was created to distribute the building permits based on a point system conforming to the city's general plan to provide for low and moderate income housing and divide development somewhat equally between east and west and single family and multi-family housing.
The stated objectives of Petaluma's time controlled growth management were to ensure orderly growth; to protect the city's small town character and surrounding green space; to provide a variety of housing choices; and to maintain adequate water supply and sewage treatment facilities.
The controlled development plan attracted national attention in 1975 when the city was taken to court by the Construction Industry Association. The city's restriction was upheld by the
9th Circuit CourtThe U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit is a U.S. Federal Court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts:* District of Alaska* District of Arizona...
in 1975 and the
Supreme CourtThe Supreme Court of the United States is the highest judicial body in the United States, and leads the federal judiciary. It consists of the Chief Justice of the United States and eight Associate Justices, who are nominated by the President and confirmed with the "advice and consent" of the Senate...
denied a Petition for Writ of
CertiorariCertiorari is a legal term in Roman, English, and American law referring to a type of writ seeking judicial review. Certiorari is the present passive infinitive of Latin certiorare,...
in 1976. This court ruling still forms the foundation for most local growth management ordinances in California.
Despite this proud history of planned development, the Petaluma City Council voted on April 13, 2009, to eliminate the entire planning department and lay off the whole planning staff.
In the late 1990s, Petaluma was also known as
Telecom ValleyTelecom Valley is an area located in Sonoma County, California specifically the Redwood Business Park of Petaluma, California.-History:Telecom Valley is the term coined for the North San Francisco Bay Area Highway 101 corridor between Petaluma and Santa Rosa in Northern California. It was derived...
due to the telecom startup companies that seemed to multiply from one another, and offer great riches if you were lucky enough to be an early stockholder or employee. One success story was that of the employees of Advanced Fibre Communications (AFC) (now Tellabs), or Cerent, which was purchased by
CiscoCisco Systems, Inc. is a multinational corporation with more than 65,000 employees and annual revenue of US$36.10 billion as of 2009. Headquartered in San Jose, California, it designs and sells networking and communications technology and services....
. Some Cerent employees went on to purchase the
Phoenix TheaterThe Phoenix Theater is an all-ages club located in Petaluma, California. The Phoenix Theater was first built in 1896 as the Hill Opera House. Although the theater had good business, it was nearly destroyed by a fire in the early 1900s. Consequently, the theater had to be shut down. By 1925, it had...
, a local entertainment venue, which was once an opera house.
Petaluma has been notable in the tech world again recently, due to technology broadcaster
Leo LaporteLéo Gordon Laporte is an American technology broadcaster and author. A native of Providence, Rhode Island, he now lives in Petaluma, California with his wife Jennifer and two children, Henry and Abby....
hosting his TWiT.tv podcast network (including a
national radio programThe Tech Guy is a nationally syndicated radio show, hosted by Leo Laporte of TechTV and TWiT.tv fame. The show, which was first exclusively broadcast on KFI AM 640 in Los Angeles, California, was picked up for syndication by Premiere Radio Networks in January 2007...
syndicated by
Premiere Radio NetworksPremiere Radio Networks is an American radio network. It is the largest syndication company in the United States based on popularity of programming...
) from a small cottage in the city.
Geography and environmental factors
Petaluma is located at . It has a total area of . of that is land and the remaining is water. Water is 0.72% of the total area.
Petaluma enjoys a mild Mediterranean climate.
Monthly climate averages (1951-1980)
| Month |
High (°F) |
Low (°F) |
Precip. (inches) |
| January |
56 |
38 |
5.95 |
| February |
61 |
40 |
3.97 |
| March |
64 |
41 |
2.64 |
| April |
68 |
42 |
1.71 |
| May |
72 |
46 |
0.31 |
| June |
78 |
50 |
0.17 |
| July |
83 |
51 |
0.05 |
| August |
83 |
52 |
0.08 |
| September |
83 |
51 |
0.25 |
| October |
76 |
47 |
1.4 |
| November |
66 |
42 |
5.85 |
| December |
57 |
38 |
4.33 |
The
National Weather ServiceThe National Weather Service , once known as the Weather Bureau, is one of the six scientific agencies that make up the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration of the United States government...
's cooperative station in Petaluma had a record high temperature of on June 2, 1960. The record low temperature of was recorded on November 14, 1916, and December 14, 1932. The wettest year was 1998 with and the dryest year was 1976 with . The wettest month was February 1998 with . The most rainfall in 24 hours was on December 27, 2004. Although snow is rare in Petaluma, 1.5 inches fell in January 1916.
Petaluma is situated at the northernmost navigable end of the
Petaluma RiverThe Petaluma River is a river in the California counties of Sonoma and Marin that becomes a tidal slough near its mouth. It springs from farmlands southwest of Cotati and flows generally southward through Petaluma's old town and of marshes to end at San Pablo Bay.The western slopes of Sonoma...
, a tidal estuary that snakes southward to
San Pablo BaySan Pablo Bay is a shallow tidal estuary that forms the northern extension of San Francisco Bay in northern California in the United States. It receives the waters of the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers, via Suisun Bay and the Carquinez Strait on its east end, and it connects to the Pacific Ocean...
. Pollution levels in the river, once considerable, have improved in recent years. A significant amount of the city is in the river's flood plain, which overflows its banks every few years, particularly in the Payran neighborhood.
Principal environmental noise sources are U.S. Route 101, Petaluma Boulevard, Washington Street and other major arteries. The number of residents that live in a zone of noise exposure greater than 60 CNEL is approximately 4,000.
Immediately to the southwest is Helen Putnam Regional Park, accessible from Chileno Valley Road. This park of has trails for hiking, cycling and horseback riding and is one of two parks named in honor of former mayor Helen Putnam who served from 1965-1979; the other is Putnam Plaza on Petaluma Boulevard. Lying above the city of Petaluma on the northwest flank of
Sonoma MountainSonoma Mountain is a prominent landform within the Sonoma Mountains of southern Sonoma County, California. At elevation of , Sonoma Mountain offers expansive views of the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Sonoma Valley to the east...
is the
Fairfield Osborn PreserveThe Fairfield Osborn Preserve is a 411 acre nature reserve situated on the northwest flank of Sonoma Mountain in Sonoma County, California. There are eight plant communities within the property, oak woodland being the dominant type. Other communities include chaparral, Douglas fir woodland,...
, a nature reserve with a diversity of native
floraIn botany, flora has two meanings. The first meaning, flora of an area or of time period, refers to all plant life occurring in an area or time period, especially the naturally occurring or indigenous plant life...
and
faunaFauna is all of the animal life of any particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is flora.Zoologists and paleontologists use fauna to refer to a typical collection of animals found in a specific time or place, e.g...
. Nearby to the southeast is
Tolay LakeTolay Lake is a shallow freshwater lacustrine water body in southern Sonoma County, California, United States. The lake, nestled within the southern vestiges of the Sonoma Mountains, is the site of significant Native American prehistoric seasonal settlement...
, the site of prehistoric seasonal settlement by
MiwokMiwok can refer to any one of four linguistically-related groups of Native Americans, native to Northern California, who spoke one of the Miwokan languages in the Utian family...
and Pomo tribes. It is flanked by the unincorporated communities of
PenngrovePenngrove, California 94951, USA is a small, unincorporated community in Sonoma County, between Petaluma and Cotati at the intersection of Old Redwood Highway and Petaluma Hill Road, nestled in the foothills of Sonoma Mountain....
to the north and
LakevilleLakeville is an unincorporated community in Sonoma County, California, United States. It is located near the Petaluma River about southeast of Petaluma....
to the south.
Film locations
Ever since 1973, Petaluma has served as a location for many major films, including:
- American Graffiti
American Graffiti is a 1973 coming of age comedy-drama film co-written/directed by George Lucas, and starring Richard Dreyfuss, Ron Howard, Paul Le Mat, Charles Martin Smith, Cindy Williams, Candy Clark, Mackenzie Phillips and Harrison Ford...
(1973) Sonoma shooting was at Old Adobe Road, Frates Road, Petaluma Blvd., Gilardi's Baitshop on Bodega Avenue for the liquor store scene, Petaluma High School, and the downtown parking lot for the police car scene, (also San RafaelSan Rafael is the county seat of Marin County, California, United States. The city is located in the North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. In 2007, the U.S...
and Tamalpais High School in Marin CountyMarin County is a county located in the North San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, across the Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco. As of 2007, the population was 248,096. The county seat is San Rafael and the largest employer is the county government. Marin County is...
).
- Heroes
Heroes is a 1977 comedy drama film directed by Jeremy Kagan and starring Henry Winkler and Sally Field. Harrison Ford plays a stock car driver in Sedalia, Missouri who keeps a stolen machine gun in his motor home...
(1977) Locations include Petaluma, California Petaluma Raceway.
- Cujo
Cujo is a 1983 horror film based on the novel of the same name by Stephen King. It was directed by Lewis Teague from a screenplay by Lauren Currier. The film was #58 on Bravo's 100 Scariest Movie Moments.-Plot:...
(1983) Locations include Petaluma, Santa RosaSanta Rosa is the county seat of Sonoma County, California, United States. As of January 1, 2008, the population of Santa Rosa was approximately 161,496 residents...
and MendocinoMendocino is a census-designated place in Mendocino County, California, United States. Mendocino is located south of Fort Bragg, at an elevation of 154 feet...
.
- Explorers
Explorers is a 1985 science fiction, fantasy film targeted at a family audience. It was the first feature film for both River Phoenix and Ethan Hawke. The story was written by Eric Luke and the film was directed by Joe Dante....
(1985) Locations include Petaluma.
- Howard the Duck
Howard the Duck is an American comedy science fiction film, directed by Willard Huyck and produced by George Lucas. Loosely based on the comic book of the same name, the film focuses on Howard, an alien from a planet inhabited by anthropomorphic ducks, is transported to Earth, where he meets...
(1986)
- Peggy Sue Got Married
Peggy Sue Got Married is a 1986 comedy-drama film directed by Francis Ford Coppola, and starring Kathleen Turner as a woman on the verge of a divorce, who finds herself transported back to the days of her senior year in high school....
(1986) Locations at Santa Rosa High School and Petaluma.
- Basic Instinct
Basic Instinct is a American thriller/neo-noir film, directed by Paul Verhoeven and written by Joe Eszterhas, starring Sharon Stone, Michael Douglas, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Leilani Sarelle and George Dzundza....
(1992) 3 day shoot in Petaluma and Rohnert ParkRohnert Park is a city in Sonoma County, California, United States, located approximately north of San Francisco. The estimated 2006 population was 41,083. It is an early planned city modeled directly after Levittown, New York and Levittown, Pennsylvania. Rohnert Park is the sister city of...
, with other scenes in Carmel and San Francisco.
- Merlin's Shop of Mystic Wonder (1996) Exterior of the titular shop is Kentucky St. This film is mostly known for being featured on Mystery Science Theater 3000
Mystery Science Theater 3000, often abbreviated MST3K, is an American cult television comedy series created by Joel Hodgson and produced by Best Brains, Inc...
- Phenomenon
Phenomenon is a 1996 drama, romance, and fantasy film written by Gerald Di Pego, directed by Jon Turteltaub, and starring John Travolta, Kyra Sedgwick, Forest Whitaker, and Robert Duvall....
(1996)
- Max, 13
Max, 13 is the 1999 debut feature film of director by Tomales native Abe Levy, revolving around a 13 year old boy coming of age in rural Northern California. This film featured Marshall resident, Max Hurwitz, who continues to reside in Marshall as well as Petaluma.-Cast:*Max Hurwitz ... ...
(1997) 4 day shoot in Petaluma and 10 day shoot in TomalesTomales is a census-designated place on State Route 1 in Marin County, California, United States. The population was 210 at the 2000 census. The largest employer in Tomales is Tomales High School, which has a student body of approximately 250.-Geography:Tomales is located at , above Keys Creek,...
- Inventing the Abbotts
Inventing the Abbotts is a 1997 drama film and romance film directed by Pat O'Connor, starring Joaquin Phoenix, Billy Crudup, Liv Tyler, Jennifer Connelly, and Michael Keaton. The screenplay by Ken Hixon is based on a short story by Sue Miller. The original music score is composed by Michael Kamen...
(1997)
- Flubber (1997) church scene filmed partially at Open Door Christian church in Petaluma
- Lolita
Lolita is a 1997 film directed by Adrian Lyne and was the second screen adaptation of the novel by Vladimir Nabokov. The film stars Jeremy Irons as Humbert Humbert and Dominique Swain as Dolores "Lolita" Haze...
(1997)
- Videoplasty (1998) Concert footage of the funk-metal outfit Primus
Primus is an American funk metal band currently composed of singer and bassist Les Claypool, guitarist Larry "Ler" LaLonde, and drummer Tim "Herb" Alexander....
, shot at the Phoenix Theatre.
- Pleasantville
Pleasantville is an Academy Award-nominated 1998 film written, produced, and directed by Gary Ross. Released by New Line Cinema in New Zealand on September 17, and stars Tobey Maguire, Reese Witherspoon, Marley Shelton, William H. Macy, Joan Allen, and Jeff Daniels. Don Knotts, Paul Walker, Jane...
(1998) filmed at intersection of Petaluma Boulevard and Western Ave.
- Mumford
Mumford is a 1999 comedic feature film written and directed by Lawrence Kasdan. It is set in a small town where a new psychologist gives offbeat advice to the neurotic residents...
(1999)
- Cheaper by the Dozen (2003 film)
Cheaper by the Dozen is a American comedy film about a family with twelve children . The film takes its title from the 1948 biography of Frank Bunker Gilbreth and Lillian Moller Gilbreth and their twelve children, but other than the title and the concept of a family with twelve children, the film...
- The Hamiltons
The Hamiltons is an independent horror film directed by the Butcher Brothers and the highly-acclaimed winner of the Santa Barbara International Film Festival and the Malibu International Film Festival...
(2005)
- Molotov Alva
Molotov Alva and His Search for the Creator: A Second Life Odyssey, originally titled My Second Life: The Video Diaries of Molotov Alva, is a 2007 American documentary film created by Douglas Gayeton...
(2007)
- The Tree of Life (2010)
U.S. Coast Guard
The U.S. Coast Guard operates the Chief Petty Officer Academy at
Training Center PetalumaTraining Center Petaluma is a Coast Guard training facility in the northern California counties of Sonoma and Marin. Approximately 4,000 students train there each year. It was formerly the U.S. Army Two Rock Ranch Station....
just outside Petaluma, near
Two RockTwo Rock is an unincorporated community in Sonoma County, California, United States. It is located on Stemple Creek in a rural area west of Petaluma...
. The Academy trains senior non-commissioned officers (
Chief Petty OfficerChief Petty Officer is a Non-commissioned officer or equivalent in many naval services and coast guards.-Canada:Chief Petty Officer refers to two ranks in the Canadian Navy...
s) for both the U.S. Coast Guard and the U.S. Air Force.
California National Guard
The
California National GuardThe California National Guard is the component of the United States National Guard in the U.S. state of California. It comprises both Army and Air National Guard components and is the largest national guard force in the United States with a total authorized strength of 22,900 soldiers and airmen...
operates an
armed forces facilityThe California Army National Guard is a component of the California National Guard, the United States Army and the United States National Guard. The California Army National Guard is composed of about 20,000 soldiers. Nationwide, the Army National Guard comprises approximately one half of the US...
in Petaluma, at 580 Vallejo Street.
Local
The mayor of Petaluma is Pamela Torliatt, a former City Councilwoman. The vice mayor is Teresa Barrett. The other five council members are David Glass (a former Mayor of Petaluma), Mike Harris, Michael Healy, David Rabbitt, and
Tiffany RenéeTiffany Renée is a member of the Petaluma City Council in Petaluma, California. Renée, a Latina from Fair Oaks, California, has been an environmental policy advocate and community organizer...
.
State and Federal
In the
state legislatureThe 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...
Petaluma is located in the 3rd
SenateThe California State Senate is the upper house of the California State Legislature. There are 40 State Senators. The state legislature meets in the state capital, Sacramento. The Lieutenant Governor is the ex officio President of the Senate and may break a tied vote...
District, represented by
DemocratThe Democratic Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. It is the oldest political party in continuous operation in the United States and it is one of the oldest parties in the world. In the U.S...
Mark LenoMark Leno is an American politician, representing California's 3rd Senate district, which includes parts of San Francisco and Sonoma County, as well as the entirety of Marin County. He was elected in 2008 and is the first openly gay man to serve in the Senate...
, and in the 6th
AssemblyThe 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 Democrat
Jared HuffmanJared Huffman is the assemblyman for California's 6th State Assembly district, which includes all of Marin and southern Sonoma counties...
. Federally, Petaluma is located in
California's 6th congressional districtCalifornia's 6th congressional district stretches up the Pacific coast north of the San Francisco Bay. It covers Marin County and most of Sonoma County, including the cities of Santa Rosa, Rohnert Park, Petaluma, Novato, San Rafael, and Mill Valley...
, represented by Democrat
Lynn WoolseyLynn C. Woolsey is an American politician and educator from Petaluma in Sonoma County, California. She is a member of the Democratic Party and a U.S. Representative since 1993, representing . The district includes all of Marin County and most of Sonoma County...
.
Education
There are two comprehensive high schools in Petaluma. They are
Petaluma High SchoolPetaluma High School is a public high school located in Petaluma, California. Petaluma High School's rival is Casa Grande High School. Petaluma High School is located in the relatively small town of Petaluma, California. Though known for its FFA and other agricultural programs, Petaluma High is...
and
Casa Grande High SchoolCasa Grande High School is a public high school in Petaluma, California. The current principal is Ms. Linda Scheele. The only returning assistant principal is Eric Backman. Stephen Owens, formerly VP at Kenilworth Junior High is one of the new APs. One other new one is yet to be hired...
. Casa Grande High School has a notable Academic Decathlon team, which has represented Sonoma County for the last 23 years in the state-level competition. There is an annual football game between the two schools' teams known as the "Egg Bowl".
Santa Rosa Junior CollegeSanta Rosa Junior College is a community college located in the city of Santa Rosa in Sonoma County, California. Founded in 1918, it is the tenth oldest community college in the state. Santa Rosa Junior College was modeled as a "junior" version of nearby University of California at Berkeley. It...
has a rapidly growing second campus on the Sonoma Mountain Parkway, on the east side of town. There is also a Roman Catholic high school,
St. Vincent de Paul High SchoolSt. Vincent de Paul High School is a private, Roman Catholic high school in Petaluma, California. It is located in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Santa Rosa in California...
. The campus of the unaccredited
Institute of Noetic SciencesThe Institute of Noetic Sciences was co-founded in 1973 by former astronaut Edgar Mitchell and industrialist Paul N. Temple to encourage and conduct research on human potentials...
is also located in Petaluma.
Transportation
Highway 101 is the main freeway through town.
State Route 116State Route 116 is a state highway in the U.S. state of California in Sonoma County. The route runs from State Route 1 on the Pacific coast near Jenner to State Route 121 south of Sonoma....
also runs through town as Lakeville Highway. Other major streets include East Washington Street, North and South McDowell Boulevards, and Petaluma Boulevard.
Petaluma is served by
Petaluma TransitPetaluma Transit is the public bus service in the city of Petaluma, Sonoma County, California. The system links with Sonoma County Transit for further travel within the county and Golden Gate Transit for travel to Marin County and to San Francisco....
,
Golden Gate TransitGolden Gate Transit is a public transportation system in the San Francisco Bay Area in California, United States. It mainly serves Marin and Sonoma Counties, and also provides limited service to San Francisco and Contra Costa County.-Description:...
and by
Sonoma County TransitSonoma County Transit is a public transportation system based in Sonoma County, California.-Cities and communities served:As the primary bus system in the county, Sonoma County Transit operates to the following communities, listed by zones from south to north:Sonoma Coast and Russian River:*...
bus services.
The nearest major airports are
San FranciscoSan Francisco International Airport is a major international airport located south of downtown San Francisco, California, United States, adjacent to the cities of Millbrae and San Bruno in unincorporated San Mateo County. It is often referred to as SFO...
and
Oakland International AirportOakland International Airport , also known as Metropolitan Oakland International Airport, is a public airport located south of the central business district of Oakland, a city in Alameda County, California, United States...
. General aviation is served by the
Petaluma Municipal AirportPetaluma Municipal Airport is a public airport located one mile northeast of the central business district of Petaluma, a city in Sonoma County, California, USA. The airport covers and has one runway. It is mostly used for general aviation.-External links:*-See also:*List of airports in the San...
.
Notable events
Petaluma held the world arm-wrestling championships from 1952 to 2003. (The championships were moved to
Reno, NevadaReno is a city in and the county seat of Washoe County, Nevada, United States. The population was 180,480 at the 2000 census; in 2008, its population was estimated at 217,016, making it the fourth-largest city in the state after Las Vegas, Henderson and North Las Vegas, and the largest outside of...
in 2004 due to a lack of sponsorship; the 2007 finals were held in
BulgariaBulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a country in the Balkans in south-eastern Europe. Bulgaria borders five other countries: Romania to the north , Serbia and the Republic of Macedonia to the west, and Greece and Turkey to the south...
.) In the comic strip
PeanutsPeanuts is a syndicated daily and Sunday comic strip written and illustrated by Charles M. Schulz, which ran from October 2, 1950, to February 13, 2000 , continuing in reruns afterward...
,
SnoopySnoopy is a fictional character in the long-running comic strip Peanuts, by Charles M. Schulz. He is Charlie Brown's pet beagle. Snoopy began his life in the strip as a fairly ordinary dog, but eventually evolved into perhaps the strip's most dynamic character — and among the most recognizable...
aspired to be a champion arm-wrestler (or "wrist-wrestler", as they were then called) and was shown in a series of 1968 strips headed for Petaluma. Alas, Snoopy was disqualified, as he had no thumb.
Petaluma received national attention when 12-year-old
Polly KlaasPolly Hannah Klaas was an American murder victim whose case gained national attention. At the age of 12, she was kidnapped at knife point from her mother's home during a slumber party in Petaluma, California, on October 1, 1993. She was later strangled...
was kidnapped from her home at knifepoint on October 1, 1993 and later raped and
murderMurder, as defined in common law countries, is the unlawful killing of another human being with intent , and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
ed by
Richard Allen DavisRichard Allen Davis is a convicted murderer, whose criminal record fueled support for passage of California's "Three strikes law" for repeat offenders...
. The community pulled quickly together to publicize the disappearance and to form the
Polly Klaas FoundationThe Polly Klaas Foundation is a 501 public charity organization devoted to preventing crimes against children, assisting in the recovery of missing children, and lobbying for legislative assistance. The foundation was formed October 23, 1993 to search for Polly Klaas. Its executive director is...
for missing and exploited children.
Petaluma was the location for an episode of Dateline's "
To Catch a PredatorTo Catch a Predator was a reality television show that featured a series of hidden camera investigations by the television news-magazine Dateline NBC devoted to the subject of identifying and detaining those who contact people they believe to be below the age of consent over the Internet for sexual...
" where the authorities arrested 29 men in three days.
The annual summer Sonoma-Marin Fair held in Petaluma plays host to the World's Ugliest Dog Contest.
Petaluma hosts a "Butter and Eggs Day Parade" in April of each year celebrating its heritage as the "Egg Basket to the World" and dairy production.
Notable residents
Notable past and present residents include:
- Mitchell Altieri
Mitchell Altieri is an American film director, producer and writer.His first feature film Lurking in Suburbia was discovered by Sundance Film Festival programmer Trevor Groth and went on to become a film festival favorite...
, film director
- Lloyd Bridges
Lloyd Vernet Bridges, Jr. was an American actor. Bridges starred in television series, and appeared in more than 150 films.-Early life:...
, actor
- Jeremey Colson, drummer for Steve Vai
Steven "Steve" Siro Vai is an Italian American instrumental rock guitarist, songwriter, vocalist, producer, beekeeper, and actor. After starting his professional career as a music transcriptionist for Frank Zappa, Vai would also record and tour in Zappa's backing band starting in 1980...
- Clark Coolidge
Clark Coolidge is an American poet born in Providence, Rhode Island.Often associated with the Language School, his experience as a Jazz drummer and interest in a wide array of subjects--- including caves, geology, bebop, weather, Salvador Dalí, Jack Kerouac, and movies--- often finds...
, poet
- Joe Enochs
Joseph “Joe” Enochs is a retired American soccer player who spent the majority of his career at German Second Division club VfL Osnabrück. He began his professional career with the San Francisco United All Blacks before moving to Germany to sign with FC St. Pauli. He never played for the first...
, soccer player of VfL OsnabrückVfL Osnabrück is a German football club in Osnabrück, Lower Saxony.-Foundation to WW2:The club has its origins in the coming together on 17 April 1899 of the memberships of the "wild" clubs Antipodia, Germania, and Minerva to create Fußball Club 1899 Osnabrück...
(Germany)
- Greg Errico
Greg Errico is an American musician/record producer, best known for being the drummer for the popular and influential psychedelic soul/funk band, Sly & the Family Stone...
, original Sly and The Family Stone drummer, rock and roll hall of fame inductee, and musical producer
- Jimmy Ferguson, lead singer of the Irish folk group, The Irish Rovers
The Irish Rovers are a popular and long-running Canadian Irish folk group created in 1963 and named for the traditional song "The Irish Rover"...
- Douglas Gayeton
Douglas Gayeton is an award-winning American multimedia artist, filmmaker, writer, and photographer who divides his time between a farm in Northern California and Pistoia, a medieval Tuscan town....
, filmmaker, photographer, multimedia pioneer
- Jeff Gerstmann
Jeff Gerstmann is an American video game journalist and former editorial director of the gaming website GameSpot and the founder of the gaming website Giant Bomb. He began working at GameSpot in the fall of 1996, around the launch of VideoGameSpot when GameSpot separated PC and console games into...
, Former Editor in Chief at Gamespot, now of GiantBomb.com
- Jonny Gomes
Jonathan Johnson Gomes is a Major League Baseball outfielder for the Cincinnati Reds.-Early years:...
, baseball player of the Cincinnati RedsThe Cincinnati Reds are a Major League Baseball team based in Cincinnati, Ohio, USA. They are members of the Central Division of the National League....
, born and raised in Petaluma
- Norman Greenbaum
Norman Greenbaum is a singer-songwriter. He studied music at Boston University. Greenbaum is best known for his song "Spirit in the Sky", which sold two million copies across 1969 and 1970. This disc sold over one million by May 1970 alone, and received a gold disc awarded by the R.I.A.A....
, singer songwriter
- Liz Harris
Grouper is the solo project for electro-acoustic ambient/noise musician Liz Harris, of Portland, Oregon. Harris' music is a mixture of softly-strummed acoustic guitar and her delicate, dreamy vocals, both of which are heavily drenched in reverb....
, electro-acoustic ambientAmbient music is a musical genre that focuses largely on the timbral characteristics of sounds, often organized or performed to evoke an "atmospheric", "visual" or "unobtrusive" quality.- History :...
/noiseIn common use, the word noise means unwanted sound or noise pollution. In both analog and digital electronics, noise or signal noise is an unwanted random addition to a wanted signal; it is called noise as a generalisation of the audible noise heard when listening to a weak radio transmission...
musician
- Tommy Heath
Tommy Heath is the lead singer/rhythm guitarist/occasional keyboardist of Tommy Tutone, a 1980s rock band most famous for their top 5 hit, "867-5309/Jenny." A common misconception is that Tommy Tutone is the name of the lead singer; it is the name of the band. The lead singer's name is Tommy Heath...
of Tommy TutoneTommy Tutone is a power pop-rock band, best known for its 1982 hit "867-5309/Jenny", which peaked at #4 on the Billboard Hot 100. Although it is usually referred to as a San Francisco band, it was actually based in Willits, California, at the time that "Jenny" was released...
, musician
- Anita Hoffman
Anita Hoffman was born Anita Kushner and was a Yippie activist, writer, prankster, and the wife of Abbie Hoffman.Hoffman helped her husband plan some of the most memorable pranks of the Yippie movement...
, wife of 1960s radical Abbie HoffmanAbbot Howard "Abbie" Hoffman was a social and political activist in the United States who co-founded the Youth International Party...
- Brainerd Jones
Brainerd Jones was an American architect who designed and built most of the architecturally significant buildings in Petaluma, California....
, Architect
- Agent M
Emily Grace Whitehurst, also known as Agent M was the lead singer of the now-defunct California punk rock band Tsunami Bomb, and is currently the singer of The Action Design. She is the sister of fellow musician, the late Logan Whitehurst.Whitehurst joined Tsunami Bomb in 1998 after the departure...
, Gabe Lindemann, Mike Griffen, formerly of Tsunami BombTsunami Bomb was a punk rock band from Petaluma, California that formed in 1998 and broke up in October 2005.-History:The band was started by bassist and songwriter Dominic Davi, who enlisted Kristin McRory as Tsunami Bomb's original female vocalist...
, musicians
- Pauline Kael
Pauline Kael was an American film critic who wrote for The New Yorker magazine from 1968 to 1991. Earlier in her career she was published by City Lights, McCall's and The New Republic....
, movie critic, born in Petaluma
- John Mark Karr
John Mark Karr is an alleged pedophile who made a false confession regarding the unsolved murder of six-year-old JonBenét Ramsey....
, infamously falsely confessed to killing JonBenét RamseyJonBenét Patricia Ramsey was an American child beauty pageant queen made famous by her murder and the subsequent media coverage. She was found dead in the basement of her parents' home in Boulder, Colorado, nearly eight hours after she was reported missing...
- Polly Klaas
Polly Hannah Klaas was an American murder victim whose case gained national attention. At the age of 12, she was kidnapped at knife point from her mother's home during a slumber party in Petaluma, California, on October 1, 1993. She was later strangled...
, murder victim
- Marvin Klebe, Founded and led The Cinnabar Opera Theater
- Gabby La La
Gabby Lang, better known by her stage name, Gabby La La, is a vocalist and multi-instrumentalist , signed to Prawn Song Records. Her music is self described as "fun, unique, crazy kooky." La La's eccentric debut album, Be Careful What You Wish For..., is a collaboration with Les Claypool that...
, musician
- Leo Laporte
Léo Gordon Laporte is an American technology broadcaster and author. A native of Providence, Rhode Island, he now lives in Petaluma, California with his wife Jennifer and two children, Henry and Abby....
, Radio Host/Netcaster/Author
- Abe Levy
Abe Levy is a writer/director originally from Tomales, California. His films include 'Max, 13', 'It's alright ma ', 'The Aviary' and 'One of Our Own' as well as numerous short films and music videos. He often works with wife and writing/producing partner Silver Tree. He also works as a freelance...
, film director
- The Mommies
The Mommies is the name of an American female comedy duo whose real-life tales of suburban life, domestication, family, marriage and other odds and ends, would serve as their comedic trademark....
, comedy duo
- Patrick Monahan
Irish American singer Patrick "Pat" Monahan is the lead singer and songwriter for the Grammy award winning band Train. He is a successful solo artist, and has collaborated with multiple artists...
, Lead singer of Train (band)Train is a Grammy Award-winning rock band formed in San Francisco, California. To date, three of their albums have peaked in the top 10 of the Billboard 200 and have sold a total of over 4 million albums in the US. Three of their songs have been top 20 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 including their...
- Marcia Muller
Marcia Muller is an American author of fictional mystery and thriller novels.Muller has written 25 novels featuring her Sharon McCone female private detective character. Vanishing Point, won the Shamus Award for Best P.I. Novel. Muller had been nominated for the Shamus Award four times previously...
, mystery writer, Mystery Writers of America Grand Master
- Alex Navarro, Former Editor at Gamespot, now of Harmonix
- Richard A. Penry
Richard Allen Penry was a United States Army soldier and a recipient of the United States military's highest decoration—the Medal of Honor—for his actions in the Vietnam War.-Biography:...
, Medal of HonorThe Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States government. It is bestowed on a member of the United States armed forces who distinguishes themselves "conspicuously by gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while...
recipient (buried in Cypress Hill Memorial Park; Penry Park at Kentucky & Mary is named for him)
- Lori Marie Pera, The City's First Miss Petaluma
- Bill Pronzini
Bill Pronzini is a highly-regarded and very prolific American writer of detective fiction. He is also an active anthologist, having compiled more than 100 collections, most of which focus on mystery, western, and science fiction short stories.He published his first novel, The Stalker, in 1971...
, mystery writer, Mystery Writers of America Grand Master, born in Petaluma
- Dean Radin
Dean Radin is a researcher and author in the field of parapsychology. He is Senior Scientist at the Institute of Noetic Sciences, in Petaluma, California, USA, on the...
, parapsychologist, author
- Marta Randall
Marta Randall is a science fiction writer.In addition to writing numerous science fiction novels and short fiction, Marta Randall has edited for New Dimensions and Nebula Awards 19....
, author
- Winona Ryder
Winona Laura Horowitz , better known under her professional name Winona Ryder, is an American actress who has appeared in film genres ranging from drama and comedy to science fiction. Her first significant role was as a goth teen in the 1988 Tim Burton film Beetlejuice, which won her critical and...
(Horowitz), actress (Petaluma High SchoolPetaluma High School is a public high school located in Petaluma, California. Petaluma High School's rival is Casa Grande High School. Petaluma High School is located in the relatively small town of Petaluma, California. Though known for its FFA and other agricultural programs, Petaluma High is...
Class of 1989)
- Silver Tree
Silver Tree is a film producer originally from Petaluma, California. She is most known for her independent film The Aviary. She wrote the story and produced the movie with her husband Abe Levy, freely based upon her own life as a flight attendant. She also designed the sets and the wardrobe. She...
, film writer/producer
- Logan Whitehurst
Logan Whitehurst , was an American musician. His career began as the drummer for the band Little Tin Frog from 1995 until 2000, although he is best known as a founding member of Californian indie rock band The Velvet Teen and as a solo artist performing under the name Logan Whitehurst and the...
, musician/comedian
- Lynn Woolsey
Lynn C. Woolsey is an American politician and educator from Petaluma in Sonoma County, California. She is a member of the Democratic Party and a U.S. Representative since 1993, representing . The district includes all of Marin County and most of Sonoma County...
, U.S. Congressional Representative (former vice mayor)
Petaluma in popular culture
In the computer game
Sim City 2000, "Petaluma" is frequently a neighbor to the city the player builds.
The 2007
Michael OndaatjePhilip Michael Ondaatje OC is a Sri Lankan-born Canadian novelist and poet of Colombo Chetty and Burgher origin. He is perhaps best known for his Booker Prize-winning novel, The English Patient, which was adapted into an Academy-Award-winning film.-Life and work:Michael Ondaatje was born in Sri...
novel
Divisadero-Mexico:* Divisadero, Chihuahua, a town on the Copper Canyon railroad* Divisaderos, Sonora-United States:* Divisadero Street, in San Francisco* Divisadero, Visalia, California- Other :*Divisadero , a novel by Canadian author Michael Ondaatje...
is partly set on a farm situated near Petaluma.
Petaluma City Ballet was established in 1981 and is the only regional ballet company in the City of Petaluma and the Sonoma County area.
A musical piece called And on the Seventh Day Petals Fell in Petaluma, inspired by a garden in Petaluma, was created by
Harry PartchHarry Partch was an American composer and instrument creator. He was one of the first twentieth-century composers to work extensively and systematically with microtonal scales, writing much of his music for custom-made instruments that he built himself, tuned in 11-limit just...
in 1963.
Petaluma is briefly mentioned by a suitor in
Harold and MaudeHarold and Maude is a 1971 film directed by Hal Ashby. The film, featuring slapstick, dark humor, and existentialist drama, revolves around the exploits of a morbid young man, Harold , who drifts away from the life that his detached mother prescribes for him, as he develops a relationship with...
.
In the episode of the television show
M*A*S*HM*A*S*H is an American television series developed by Larry Gelbart, adapted from the 1970 feature film MASH . The series is a medical drama/black comedy that was produced in association with 20th Century Fox Television for CBS...
'The Topper', character B.J. Hunnicutt mentions a "Petaluma lumberjack festival."
External links