Landmarks in Concord, California

In Contra Costa County, California, Concord is the largest city. The city had a population of 122,067 at the 2010 census which made it the 8th largest city in the San Francisco Bay Area. Founded by Salvio Pacheco in 1869 as the city of Todos Santos, the name was changed to Concord within months. The city is a major metropolitan East Bay suburban hub within the San Francisco Bay Area and is located 29 miles (47 km) east of San Francisco.

History

The valleys north of Mount Diablo were populated by the Miwok people, who hunted elk and fished in the numerous streams that flowed from the mountain into the San Francisco Bay. Spanish explorers began to visit the region in 1772 but did not settle there. In 1834, Salvio Pacheco (to whom the nearby town of Pacheco is named) was granted the Mexican land grant Rancho Monte del Diablo at the base of Mount Diablo.

Concord was established on the initiative of Pacheco in 1869 under the name of Todos Santos ("all saints"; a name stillborn between Willow Pass Road and Salvio Street in the central city square and park). It gained notoriety in the 19th century when most Pacheco residents moved to Concord to escape the fire and flood destruction that devastated Pacheco's formerly thriving economy. On 5 February 1905 Concord was incorporated.

A large farming region was the region around Concord, in the nearby Ygnacio and Clayton Valleys. Grown crops comprised grapes, walnuts, almonds, wheat, hay, and even tomatoes. The area to the east (now the Concord Naval Weapons Station site) was the site of a few huge wheat ranches over 5,000 acres (20 km2), and was nearly a wheat sea all the way to the marshes bordering Suisun Bay. Many vineyards were abandoned during Prohibition and replaced with walnut orchards. Cement was developed by the town of Cowell, which is now integrated into Concord.

The first Concord post office opened in 1872.

Geography

Concord is located at 37°58′41″N 122°01′52″W. It is 29 miles (47 kilometers) northeast of San Francisco, 22 miles (35 km) northeast from Oakland, 65 miles (105 km) southwest of Sacramento, and 51 miles (82 km) north of San Jose.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 30.5 square miles (79 km2), all of it land.

The core of downtown Concord is Todos Santos Plaza, which occupies a whole block of the city and is renowned for its farmers' market, free summer concerts and a wide number of restaurants around it. Most of the city in the immediate vicinity of downtown has been recently redeveloped, with new high-density housing and condominium developments to take advantage of the proximity to public transport and the parking area. Despite this, there remain concerns of violence and homelessness in the downtown area.

To the north and east of downtown is the old suburban area of Concord, with many homes dating back to the pre-World War II era. In the far northern fringe of town is a largely industrial area, dominated by the Tesoro Golden Eagle Refinery (which is not even within city limits). The city's southeastern area, centered along Clayton Road, is mainly residential and was developed mostly in the 1960s and 1970s. In the city's southwest area is the mostly Latino community known as Four Corners, centered around the Monument Boulevard and Oak Grove Road intersections.

Concord is bordered on the west by Pleasant Hill and the unincorporated community of Pacheco, on the south by Walnut Creek, on the southeast by Clayton, on the northeast by Pittsburg, and on the north by the unincorporated community of Bay Point. While it shares no boundary with Concord, Martinez (the county seat) is located on the northwest almost immediately adjacent to Concord. The North Concord BART station is also known as Martinez BART.