Wrightwood, California facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Wrightwood, California
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Downtown Wrightwood is dotted with many old resort cabins from the 1930s.
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Location in San Bernardino County and the state of California
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 Wrightwood, California
Location in the United States
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| Country |  United States |
| State |  California |
| County | San Bernardino |
| Area | |
| • Total | 5.929 sq mi (15.357 km2) |
| • Land | 5.926 sq mi (15.348 km2) |
| • Water | 0.003 sq mi (0.009 km2) 0.06% |
| Elevation | 6,208 ft (1,892 m) |
| Population
(2010)
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| • Total | 4,525 |
| • Density | 763.20/sq mi (294.65/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-8 (PST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-7 (PDT) |
| ZIP code |
92397
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| Area codes | 442/760 |
| FIPS code | 06-86594 |
| GNIS feature ID | 2409630 |
Wrightwood is a small town in San Bernardino County, California. It's located high up in the mountains, about 6,208 feet (1,892 m) above sea level. In 2010, about 4,525 people lived there. This was more than the 3,837 people who lived there in 2000. Wrightwood is about 77 miles (124 km) northeast of Los Angeles. It is also a stop along the famous Pacific Crest Trail.
Contents
History of Wrightwood
How Wrightwood Started
Wrightwood is in a valley covered with pine trees in the San Gabriel Mountains. In the 1800s, Nathan and Truman Swarthout first used this area for cattle ranches. Later, the main ranch, owned by Sumner Wright, was divided into smaller pieces for homes and businesses. By the 1920s, a community had grown there.
People who loved to ski found great slopes above the Swarthout Valley. This ski area was first called Big Pines. Until 1937, it was part of a park run by Los Angeles County. After WWII, Big Pines opened its 1946–47 ski season with a new chairlift. It also had the Sepp Benedikter Ski School.
New roads were built that connected to major highways. This made it much easier to get to Wrightwood without difficult mountain driving.
Important Events in Wrightwood
In 1934, two black bears were shot by people living in Wrightwood. A man named J. Dale Gentry, who was in charge of the California Fish and Game Commission, tried to get charges filed against them. One man was found not guilty, and the charges against the other were dropped.
What used to be a vacation spot is now home to over 4,000 people who live there all the time. Serrano High School opened in 1982 in the nearby town of Phelan. This school also serves students from Wrightwood and Piñon Hills.
In August 2016, some people in Wrightwood had to leave their homes. This was because of the Blue Cut Fire, a large wildfire in San Bernardino County. In September 2020, the Bobcat Fire also caused warnings for people in Wrightwood to be ready to leave.
Geography and Climate
Where Wrightwood Is Located
Wrightwood covers about 5.9 square miles (15 km2) of land. Almost all of it is land, with only a tiny bit of water.
Wrightwood's Weather
Wrightwood has a Mediterranean climate. This means it has warm, dry summers and cool, wet winters. Because it's high in the mountains, the summers are much cooler than in the hot areas nearby. However, summers still don't have many thunderstorms.
In winter, the high elevation means it gets a lot of rain and snow. Even with snow, the daytime temperatures usually stay above freezing. This means snow on the ground can melt easily and isn't always reliable for long periods.
| Climate data for Wrightwood, California, 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1997–2012 | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 67 (19) |
67 (19) |
74 (23) |
79 (26) |
87 (31) |
91 (33) |
96 (36) |
93 (34) |
87 (31) |
80 (27) |
72 (22) |
67 (19) |
96 (36) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 47.6 (8.7) |
47.6 (8.7) |
54.3 (12.4) |
60.3 (15.7) |
69.1 (20.6) |
78.0 (25.6) |
83.3 (28.5) |
81.9 (27.7) |
75.0 (23.9) |
64.4 (18.0) |
54.8 (12.7) |
47.5 (8.6) |
63.7 (17.6) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 36.6 (2.6) |
36.4 (2.4) |
41.8 (5.4) |
46.1 (7.8) |
54.0 (12.2) |
61.2 (16.2) |
67.9 (19.9) |
66.7 (19.3) |
60.6 (15.9) |
50.5 (10.3) |
41.8 (5.4) |
36.0 (2.2) |
50.0 (10.0) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 25.6 (−3.6) |
25.3 (−3.7) |
29.3 (−1.5) |
32.0 (0.0) |
38.8 (3.8) |
44.3 (6.8) |
52.5 (11.4) |
51.4 (10.8) |
46.2 (7.9) |
36.7 (2.6) |
28.8 (−1.8) |
24.6 (−4.1) |
36.3 (2.4) |
| Record low °F (°C) | −2 (−19) |
8 (−13) |
7 (−14) |
14 (−10) |
25 (−4) |
29 (−2) |
36 (2) |
35 (2) |
29 (−2) |
19 (−7) |
9 (−13) |
6 (−14) |
−2 (−19) |
| Average precipitation inches (mm) | 4.37 (111) |
4.93 (125) |
1.85 (47) |
0.80 (20) |
0.79 (20) |
0.08 (2.0) |
1.06 (27) |
0.31 (7.9) |
0.38 (9.7) |
1.21 (31) |
1.14 (29) |
4.14 (105) |
21.06 (534.6) |
| Average snowfall inches (cm) | 10.5 (27) |
24.8 (63) |
8.3 (21) |
7.2 (18) |
1.6 (4.1) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.5 (1.3) |
3.6 (9.1) |
5.3 (13) |
61.8 (156.5) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) | 5.3 | 8.6 | 5.1 | 4.7 | 1.9 | 0.5 | 1.9 | 1.8 | 1.5 | 2.9 | 3.2 | 5.0 | 42.4 |
| Average snowy days (≥ 0.1 in) | 3.0 | 5.3 | 2.8 | 2.7 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 1.0 | 2.5 | 17.8 |
| Source 1: NOAA | |||||||||||||
| Source 2: National Weather Service | |||||||||||||
People of Wrightwood
Population in 2010
In 2010, the US Census reported that 4,525 people lived in Wrightwood. Most of the people were White (91.2%). About 11.9% of the people were Hispanic or Latino.
All 4,525 people lived in homes. There were 1,857 households. About 29.8% of these households had children under 18. The average household had 2.44 people.
The population included:
- 1,046 people (23.1%) under 18 years old.
- 957 people (21.1%) aged 25 to 44.
- 1,610 people (35.6%) aged 45 to 64.
- 611 people (13.5%) who were 65 or older.
The average age in Wrightwood was 44.3 years. For every 100 females, there were about 105.5 males.
Most homes were owned by the people living in them (74.9%). The rest were rented (25.1%). In 2010, the average household income in Wrightwood was $72,231. Only a small number of people (4.6%) lived below the poverty line.
Education
Public schools in Wrightwood are part of the Snowline Joint Unified School District. Students in Wrightwood go to these schools:
- Wrightwood Elementary School (Kindergarten to 5th grade)
- Pinon Mesa Middle School (6th to 8th grade)
- Serrano High School (9th to 12th grade)
- Snowline Academy Homeschool (Kindergarten to 12th grade)
- The Heritage School (Kindergarten to 8th grade, a parent choice school)
- Snowline Adult School
Mountain High Resort
Just west of Wrightwood is Big Pines. This is where you'll find Mountain High Resort. It's a very popular place for skiing and snowboarding. The resort has three different mountains.
Notable People from Wrightwood
Many interesting people have connections to Wrightwood:
- Earl W. Bascom (1906–1995) – A rodeo champion, actor, inventor, and artist. He used to be a school teacher in Wrightwood.
- Frank Bogert (1910–2009) – A rodeo professional and actor who later became mayor of Palm Springs. He grew up in Wrightwood.
- Aldous Huxley (1894–1963) – A famous author who lived in Wrightwood for several years.
- Geoffrey Lewis (1935–2015) – An actor who spent a lot of his younger years in Wrightwood.
- Maddie Mastro (born 2000) – An American snowboarder who competed in the Winter Olympics in 2018 and 2022.
See also
In Spanish: Wrightwood para niños
