Saratoga, California
Saratoga is a city in Santa Clara County, California, United States. Located in Silicon Valley, in the southern Bay Area, it had a population of 31,051 at the 2020 census. Saratoga is known for its wineries, restaurants, and historic landmarks like Villa Montalvo, Mountain Winery, and Hakone Gardens.
History
The area comprising Saratoga was earlier inhabited by the Ohlone Native Americans. In 1847, European settlers created a settlement at what is now Saratoga when William Campbell, constructed a sawmill about southeast of the present downtown area. An early map noted the area as Campbell's Gap.In 1851, Martin McCarthy, who had leased the mill, built a toll road down to the Santa Clara Valley and founded what is now Saratoga as McCarthysville. The toll gate was located at the present-day intersection of Big Basin Way and 3rd St., giving the town its first widely used name: Toll Gate. During the Civil War, a woman wanted showed her support for the South by wearing a Confederate flag with the motto "Shall we not protect our cotton?” to a local ball. This caused quite stir in the area. In 1867 the town received a post office under the name of McCarthysville.
Early residents, who moved to Saratoga in 1881, were Mary Brown, widow of the abolitionist John Brown; her daughters Sarah and Ellen; and the husband of the latter, James Fablinger. All of them are buried in the Madronia Cemetery.
The town soon industrialized with the building of a furniture factory, grist mill, tannery, and paper factory. To commemorate this newfound productivity, the town was renamed again in 1863 as Bank Mills. In the 1850s, Jud Caldwell discovered springs which were called Pacific Congress Springs because the water had a mineral content similar to Congress Springs in Saratoga Springs, New York. In 1865 the town received its final name, Saratoga, after the city in New York. At the same time a resort hotel called Congress Hall was constructed at the springs, named after the famous resort Congress Hall at Saratoga Springs, New York. California's Congress Hall attracted tourists to the area until it burned down in 1903. These events would eventually lead to Saratoga being listed as a California Historical Landmark in 1950.
Saratoga became agricultural like much of the rest of the valley; a few vineyards and orchards from this period remain today. The Miller-Melone Ranch is the last remaining prune ranch home in Saratoga and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on April 1, 1993. After World War II, the town quickly became urbanized, and it incorporated in 1956 mostly to avoid being annexed by San Jose. A slogan during the campaign to incorporate the city of Saratoga was "Keep it rural," according to historian Willys I. Peck. Today the city serves as a bedroom community for upper class Silicon Valley tech workers and executives.
Saratoga drew notoriety for the suicide of Audrie Pott, a 15-year-old Saratoga High School student, September 2012. The three teenagers who were charged with sexually assaulting Pott pleaded guilty and served time in juvenile hall for the sexual assault. Saratoga High School is depicted in Steven Spielberg's 2022 film The Fabelmans.
Geography
Saratoga is bordered by Cupertino and San Jose to the north, a small portion of Campbell and Los Gatos to the east, and Monte Sereno to the southeast. Saratoga is located at. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of, all of it land. Within its borders, Saratoga includes lush redwood forests, foothills suitable for wine grapes and sunny valley floor once covered with prune and apricot orchards, now with suburban homes, schools and churches.Neighborhoods in Saratoga include Brookview and Pride's Crossing in the north part of the city, Blue Hills and Greenbrier in the northwest area, and Congress Springs in the southwestern corner of Saratoga. The Golden Triangle, a name invented by real estate agents, is an area bounded by Saratoga Avenue, Saratoga-Sunnyvale Road and Cox Avenue. The Golden Triangle consists mostly of four-bedroom ranch homes on quarter acre lots that are gradually being replaced by Mediterranean custom designs. Northeast of the Golden Triangle is a neighborhood known as Saratoga Woods, a small community located behind Prospect High School north of Cox. Bellgrove Circle is a popular neighborhood located next to Route 85. The land of Bellgrove Circle, once used as a vineyard, was previously owned by Paul Masson Winery and is east of Saratoga Avenue and north of Routet 85. Kentfield is south of Route 85 and east of Saratoga Avenue. Parker Ranch is a very affluent neighborhood with minimum lots, west of Saratoga-Sunnyvale Road and up into the hills. The downtown area along Big Basin Way is known as the Village.
Demographics
| Race / Ethnicity | Pop 2000 | Pop 2010 | % 2000 | % 2010 | ||
| White alone | 19,434 | 15,431 | 11,538 | 65.12% | 51.56% | 37.16% |
| Black or African American alone | 110 | 91 | 98 | 0.37% | 0.30% | 0.32% |
| Native American or Alaska Native alone | 34 | 24 | 24 | 0.11% | 0.08% | 0.08% |
| Asian alone | 8,664 | 12,331 | 16,829 | 29.03% | 41.20% | 54.20% |
| Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone | 2 | 23 | 38 | 0.07% | 0.08% | 0.12% |
| Other race alone | 37 | 56 | 147 | 0.12% | 0.19% | 0.47% |
| Mixed race or Multiracial | 606 | 936 | 1,252 | 2.03% | 3.13% | 4.03% |
| Hispanic or Latino | 936 | 1,034 | 1,125 | 3.14% | 3.46% | 3.62% |
| Total | 29,843 | 29,926 | 31,051 | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% |
2020
The 2020 United States census reported that Saratoga had a population of 31,051. The population density was. The racial makeup was 37.9% White, 0.3% African American, 0.1% Native American, 54.3% Asian, 0.2% Pacific Islander, 1.1% from other races, and 6.1% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.6% of the population.The census reported that 99.5% of the population lived in households, 0.0% lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 0.5% were institutionalized.
There were 10,830 households, out of which 34.6% included children under the age of 18, 73.7% were married-couple households, 2.1% were cohabiting couple households, 15.6% had a female householder with no partner present, and 8.6% had a male householder with no partner present. 14.4% of households were one person, and 10.5% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.85. There were 8,981 families.
The age distribution was 19.9% under the age of 18, 7.6% aged 18 to 24, 14.8% aged 25 to 44, 34.0% aged 45 to 64, and 23.7% who were 65years of age or older. The median age was 49.9years. For every 100 females, there were 96.9 males.
There were 11,264 housing units at an average density of, of which 10,830 were occupied. Of these, 85.3% were owner-occupied, and 14.7% were occupied by renters.
In 2023, the US Census Bureau estimated that the median household income was $241,348, and the per capita income was $123,743. About 2.7% of families and 3.7% of the population were below the poverty line.
2010
The 2010 United States census reported that Saratoga had a population of 29,926. The population density was. The racial makeup of Saratoga was 16,125 White, 94 African American, 41 Native American, 12,376 Asian, 23 Pacific Islander, 202 from other races, and 1,065 from two or more races. There were 1,034 Hispanic or Latino residents of any race.The census reported that 29,727 people lived in households, 34 lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 165 were institutionalized.
There were 10,734 households, out of which 4,024 had children under the age of 18 living in them, 7,893 were opposite-sex married couples living together, 608 had a female householder with no husband present, 213 had a male householder with no wife present. There were 159 unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 44 same-sex married couples or partnerships. 1,740 households were made up of individuals, and 1,115 had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.77. There were 8,714 families ; the average family size was 3.11.
In Saratoga, 7,173 people were under the age of 18, 1,390 people were aged 18 to 24, 4,678 people were aged 25 to 44, 10,598 people aged 45 to 64, and 6,087 people who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 47.8 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.6 males.
There were 11,123 housing units at an average density of, of which 9,258 were owner-occupied, and 1,476 were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 0.7%; the rental vacancy rate was 4.3%. 26,201 people lived in owner-occupied housing units and 3,526 people lived in rental housing units.
In 2011, Bloomberg Businessweek reported that the average household income was $237,804 with an average household net worth of $1,516,018.
Economy
The 2016 Coldwell Banker Home Listing Report listed Saratoga as the most expensive housing market in the United States. In 2010, Bloomberg Businessweek named Saratoga the most expensive suburb in California. According to CNN Money, 70.42% of Saratoga households have an income greater than $100,000.Saratoga was ranked by Forbes in 2009 as one of America's top 20 most-educated small towns. Bloomberg Businessweek named Saratoga's zip code 95070 the 18th richest zip code in America in 2011. In 2018, data from the American Community Survey revealed that Saratoga was the 8th wealthiest city in the United States.