Graton, California


Graton is an unincorporated town and census-designated place in west Sonoma County, California, United States. The population was 1,683 at the 2020 census. Graton's ZIP code is 95444. The town also has a culinary reputation attributed to two restaurants in the area.
The town of Graton is roughly from the California coastline. Graton's agriculture was historically concentrated on apple farming, but like most of rural Sonoma County it now focuses on wine production.

Geography

Graton has a total area of, all land.
Graton is located at the southeastern end of Green Valley, on the east bank of the seasonally flooding Atascadero Creek. The elevation ranges from approximately above Mean Sea Level at Atascadero Creek to MSL at Oak Grove School.
Graton is noted as lying at the approximate furthest southern and eastern extent of Russian colonization of the Americas. Research on Fort Ross has indicated that several farms were developed inland from the coastal fur trading fort in northwestern Sonoma County. These farms or ranches were used for producing additional food and for agricultural projects conducted by Fort Ross's agronomist Yegor Chernykh. In 1836, a farm was established along Purrington Creek, between what are now the towns of Occidental and Graton. There Chernykh erected barracks and five other structures, and grew vegetables, fruit, wheat, and other grains. Chernykh also developed a large vineyard, introducing what has since become a major crop in the area.

Climate

This region experiences warm and dry summers, with no average monthly temperatures above. According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Graton has a warm-summer Mediterranean climate, abbreviated Csb on climate maps.

Demographics

2020

The 2020 United States census reported that Graton had a population of 1,683. The population density was. The racial makeup of Graton was 1,279 White, 10 African American, 11 Native American, 25 Asian, 4 Pacific Islander, 135 from other races, and 219 from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 298 persons.
The census reported that 99.2% of the population lived in households, 14 people lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and no one was institutionalized.
There were 678 households, out of which 153 had children under the age of 18 living in them, 318 were married-couple households, 44 were cohabiting couple households, 215 had a female householder with no partner present, and 101 had a male householder with no partner present. 212 households were one person, and 123 were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.46. There were 422 families.
The age distribution was 280 people under the age of 18, 96 people aged 18 to 24, 377 people aged 25 to 44, 446 people aged 45 to 64, and 484 people who were 65years of age or older. The median age was 49.9years. For every 100 females, there were 81.6 males.
There were 725 housing units at an average density of, of which 678 were occupied. Of these, 514 were owner-occupied, and 164 were occupied by renters.
In 2023, the US Census Bureau estimated that the median household income in 2023 was $108,750, and the per capita income was $64,330. About 22.2% of families and 19.3% of the population were below the poverty line.

2010

At the 2010 census Graton had a population of 1,707. The population density was. The racial makeup of Graton was 1,402 White, 10 African American, 29 Native American, 25 Asian, 3 Pacific Islander, 144 from other races, and 94 from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 322 people.
The census reported that 99.2% of the population lived in households and 0.8% lived in non-institutionalized group quarters.
There were 680 households, 193 had children under the age of 18 living in them, 304 were opposite-sex married couples living together, 90 had a female householder with no husband present, 19 had a male householder with no wife present. There were 35 unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 18 same-sex married couples or partnerships. 188 households were one person and 73 had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.49. There were 413 families ; the average family size was 3.03.
The age distribution was 343 people under the age of 18, 131 people aged 18 to 24, 352 people aged 25 to 44, 643 people aged 45 to 64, and 238 people who were 65 or older. The median age was 45.9 years. For every 100 females, there were 90.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.8 males. The median resident age is 48.2 years, compared to the California average of 36.2 years.
There were 723 housing units at an average density of, of which 72.2% were owner-occupied and 27.8% were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 0.6%; the rental vacancy rate was 2.6%. 72.0% of the population lived in owner-occupied housing units and 27.2% lived in rental housing units.
The median household income was $83,082, and the median family income was $87,641. The median per capita income for the CDP was $35,410. For comparison, statewide California median per capita income in the 2010 Census was $27,885.

Government

Graton is represented by the following elected officials:

Education

The school districts are Oak Grove Union Elementary School District and West Sonoma County [Union High School District].

Notable people