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Information & Facts about Imperial County, California

Attractions & other Information - Climate - Economy - Genealogy - Geography -
Government - History - Libraries - Location - Organizations & Groups -
Other Facts & Figures - Population - Schools

Government

Imperial County homepage

County Of Imperial
940 Main Street
EL Centro, CA 92243
Phone: 760-353-0763

Imperial County Administrative
940 W Main St # 208
El Centro, CA 92243-2839
Phone: 760-339-4290

City of Brawley
City of Calexico
City of Calipatria
City of El Centro
City of Imperial

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Population:

1980 - 92,100
1990 - 109,303
1994 - 135,900
1998 -142,143
2004 - 152,448
2005 - 155,823

Population Density
2000 - 37.3 per square mile.

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Location:

Here is a map page for the county

Bordering areas:
Mexico to the south,
Riverside County to the north,
San Diego County on the west
State of Arizona on the east.

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Climate:

The area is main desert with a hot and dry climate.

Average winter low: 35
Average summer high: 110
Average yearly high: 89.6
Average yearly low: 55.0

Average annual rainfall: 2.92 inches
Average relative humidity: 25%

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Other Facts and Figures:

Median age: 29 years.

Per capita income:
2002 - $20,382
2004 - $21,794

Median Household income:
2003 - $32,610

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History:

History of Imperial County

Try this history page

Imperial County was the last of California's 58 counties to be formed when it was created from a part of San Diego County on 7 August 1907. . It is possible that gold was discovered and searched for here in Imperial County before the "gold fever" set in around Sutter's Mill in northern California in 1849. The first known visit to the area by non-native inhabitants was in the mid 1500's by Hernando de Alarcon who also discovered the Colorado River. Later more explorers came to the area. Settlements were here as early as 1858 but the area didn't begin to grow effectively until water was brought in around 1901.

Imperial County was formed in 1907.

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Geography:

Elevation varies from 235 feet below sea level at the Salton Sea to 4,548 feet at Blue Angel Peak
Total area: 4,597 square miles
Total land area: 4,174.7 square miles

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Genealogy:

US GenWeb Project Genealogy page for Imperial County
Cemetery Records for Imperial County

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Libraries:

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Schools:

Imperial County Office of Education
1528 S Waterman Ave
El Centro, CA 92243-4142
Phone: 760-337-1070

County Superintendent Of Schools
1398 Sperber Rd
El Centro, CA 92243-9621
Phone: 760-339-6464

San Diego State, Imperial Valley Campus at Calexico
Imperial Valley Campus
720 Heber Avenue
Calexico, CA 92231
Telephone: (760) 768-5520
Fax: (760) 768-5568

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Economy:

Imperial county ranks #3 in the nation in the production of lettuce and in the production of sugar beets.
2004 County economic profile

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Organizations & Groups

Better Business Bureau
Serving San Diego and Imperial Counties
5050 Murphy Canyon, Suite 110
San Diego CA 92123
Office Hours: M-F 8:00AM - 5:00PM
Operators: M-F 9:00AM - 4:00PM
Automated Voice Response Phone:
(858) 496-2131 24 hours
Fax: (858) 496-2141

Imperial Chamber of Commerce
El Centro Chamber of Commerce and Visitors Bureau
Brawley Chamber of Commerce

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Attractions & Other Information

Information on Imperial County

Southeast Information Center
Imperial Valley College Museum
Ocotillo Offramp/Interstate 8
11 Frontage Road
Octillo, CA 92259
Mailing Address:
P.O. Box 430
Octillo, CA 92259
Phone: 760-358-7016
Fax: 760-358-7827

Imperial Sand Dunes - east of El Centro and Brawley. Also see this picture of the Glamis Sand Dunes

El Centro Regional Medical Center

The Navy Blue Angels - Imperial County is the winter home for the Blue Angels. Winter demonstrations and an air show are features of their stay here in the Valley.

The Brawley Cattle Call

See this page for many links for Imperial County, including places to go and things to see.

Tumco/Hedges Ghost Town - east of El Centro near the Imperial Sand Dunes

Pioneers Park Museum
Pioneers Museum and Cultural Center of the Imperial Valley
373 East Aten Road (Exit I-8 at Hwy 111 North to Aten Road)
Imperial, CA 92251
Phone: (760) 352-1165
FAX: (760) 352-5411
run by the Imperial County Historical Society

The Desert View Tower - overlooking the southern area of Anza-Borrego Desert State Park and the desert of Imperial County. The area below the tower is known as In-Ko_pah Gorge, Devil's Canyon, and Mountain Springs Grade. The stone tower was completed by Bert Vaughn in 1923 as a commemoration to the pioneers who crossed the desert and mountains and also to honor the builders of the railroad and highway that made the journey so much easier.

Mount Laguna Observatory
The Mount Laguna Observatory (MLO) was dedicated on June 19, 1968. Arrangements may be made for star gazing and planetarium shows.

California Historical Landmarks in Imperial County.

Take a photo tour of Imperial County.

Salton Sea

Salton Sea International Bird Festival

Sonny Bono Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge
At 227 feet below sea level, the Salton Sea in southern California is one of the lowest spots in the United States. It also is one of the hottest -- summer temperatures are over 100 degrees over half the year! It has less than one inch of rain during a year! It is 35 miles long and from 9 to 15 miles wide with 115 miles of shoreline. The depth is about 40 feet. Because of the great evaporation during the summer and the fact that it has no outlet, the sea is 10 percent saltier than the Pacific Ocean. It is the largest salton sea west of the Rockies.

The Salton Sea was formed in 1905 when the Colorado River flooded out of its man-made irrigation canal and inundated the dry basin of the Imperial Valley

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This page was last updated on 19 April 2010 at 3:11 pm
This page was created 9 August 1999