Chualar, California
Chualar is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in the Salinas Valley of Monterey County, California, United States. Chualar is located southeast of Salinas, at an elevation of. The population was 1,185 at the 2020 census.
Geography
Chualar is located in northeastern Monterey County at. U.S. Route 101 runs along the southwest side of the community, leading northwest to Salinas and southeast to Soledad.According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of, all of it land.
In her Spanish and Indian Place Names of California, Sanchez states that chualar was the indigenous word for an abundant and native goosefoot. This plant could possibly be Chenopodium californicum, the California goosefoot. In his 1500 California Place Names, William Bright writes that the name is Spanish for "where the chual grows," chual being Mexican Spanish for pigweed or goosefoot, and derived ultimately from Nahuatl tzoalli.
History
The Chualar post office opened in 1871, closed in 1873, and re-opened in 1874.At a railroad crossing about one mile south of town, a bus carrying Mexican migrant workers collided with a train in September 1963, killing 32 passengers and injuring 25. It was the most serious road accident in U.S. history, and helped spur the abolition of the bracero guest worker program. The portion of U.S. Route 101 where the accident occurred was named the "Bracero Memorial Highway" on the 50th anniversary of the accident in 2013. At that time two survivors of the crash were still alive.
On December 4, 2019, a levee near Chualar was partially breached at 2 pm. Highway 101 was shut down due to the broken levee. Children were stranded at the local school with a few teachers overnight. The levee break also caused a nursing home to be evacuated.
Chualar was once owned by the Johnson family. They ran cattle on their 15,000+ acre ranch.
Demographics
Chualar first appeared as a census designated place in the 2000 U.S. census.2020
The 2020 United States census reported that Chualar had a population of 1,185. The population density was. The racial makeup of Chualar was 123 White, 0 African American, 67 Native American, 9 Asian, 0 Pacific Islander, 603 from other races, and 383 from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1,143 persons.The whole population lived in households. There were 252 households, out of which 148 had children under the age of 18 living in them, 173 were married-couple households, 15 were cohabiting couple households, 34 had a female householder with no partner present, and 30 had a male householder with no partner present. 15 households were one person, and 5 were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 4.7. There were 230 families.
The age distribution was 377 people under the age of 18, 116 people aged 18 to 24, 350 people aged 25 to 44, 241 people aged 45 to 64, and 101 people who were 65years of age or older. The median age was 30.3years. For every 100 females, there were 113.9 males.
There were 262 housing units at an average density of, of which 252 were occupied. Of these, 107 were owner-occupied, and 145 were occupied by renters.
In 2023, the US Census Bureau estimated that the median household income was $66,250, and the per capita income was $20,437. About 15.9% of families and 17.5% of the population were below the poverty line.
2010
The 2010 United States census reported that Chualar had a population of 1,190. The population density was. The racial makeup of Chualar was 337 White, 1 African American, 2 Native American, 11 Asian, 0 Pacific Islander, 827 from other races, and 12 from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1,151 persons.The Census reported that 1,190 people lived in households, 0 lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 0 were institutionalized.
There were 245 households, out of which 179 had children under the age of 18 living in them, 160 were opposite-sex married couples living together, 49 had a female householder with no husband present, 22 had a male householder with no wife present. There were 17 unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 4 same-sex married couples or partnerships. 9 households were made up of individuals, and 5 had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 4.86. There were 231 families ; the average family size was 4.79.
The population was spread out, with 429 people under the age of 18, 137 people aged 18 to 24, 330 people aged 25 to 44, 235 people aged 45 to 64, and 59 people who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 26.6 years. For every 100 females, there were 103.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.1 males.
There were 251 housing units at an average density of, of which 112 were owner-occupied, and 133 were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 0%; the rental vacancy rate was 1.5%. 553 people lived in owner-occupied housing units and 637 people lived in rental housing units.