San Luis Obispo (Spanish for 'St. Louis the Bishop'; san LOO-iss ə-BISS-poh; Spanish: [san ˈlwis oˈβispo]; Obispeño: tiłhini) is a city in and the county seat of San Luis Obispo County, California, United States. Located on the Central Coast of California, San Luis Obispo is roughly halfway between the San Francisco Bay Area in the north and Greater Los Angeles in the south. The population was 47,063 at the 2020 census.
San Luis Obispo was founded by the Spanish in 1772, when Saint Junípero Serra established Mission San Luis Obispo de Tolosa. The town grew steadily through the Mexican period before a rapid expansion of San Luis Obispo following the American Conquest of California. San Luis Obispo is a popular tourist destination, known for its historic architecture, vineyards, and hospitality, as well as for being home to California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo.
History
The earliest human inhabitants of the local area were the Chumash people. One of the earliest villages lies south of San Luis Obispo and reflects the landscape of the early Holocene when estuaries came farther inland. The Chumash people used marine resources of the inlets and bays along the Central Coast and inhabited a network of villages, including sites at Los Osos and Morro Creek. The tribal site on present-day San Luis Obispo was named tiłhini (Obispeño for 'Place of the full moon').
Spanish period
During the Spanish Empire expansion throughout the world, specifically in 1769, the Franciscan Junípero Serra received orders from Spain to bring the Catholic faith to the natives of Alta California; the idea was to unify the empire under the same religion and language. Mission San Diego de Alcalá was the first Spanish mission founded in Alta California that same year.
On September 7, 1769, an expedition led by Gaspar de Portolá entered the San Luis Obispo area from coastal areas around today's Pismo Beach. One of the expedition's three diarists, padre Juan Crespí, recorded the name given to this area by the soldiers as Cañada de Los Osos ("cañada" translates as "valley" or "canyon," and Osos translates to "bears"). The party traveled north along San Luis Obispo Creek, turned west through Los Osos Valley, and reached Morro Bay on September 9.
In 1770, Portola established the Presidio of Monterey and Junípero Serra founded the second mission, Mission San Carlos Borromeo de Carmelo in Monterey. The mission was moved to Carmel-by-the-Sea in the following year.
In 1772, as the people of Presidio of Monterey and Mission San Carlos Borromeo de Carmelo faced starvation owing to a lack of supplies, Commander Pedro Fages, a member of the Portolá expedition, led a hunting expedition to la Cañada de los Osos ("Bears Canyon") to bring back food. Over twenty-five mule loads of dried bear meat and seed were sent north to relieve the missionaries, soldiers, and neophytes (baptized natives). After this, Junípero Serra decided that la Cañada de los Osos would be an ideal place for the fifth mission.
The area had abundant food and water supplies, the climate was also very mild, and the local Chumash were very friendly. With soldiers, muleteers, and pack animals carrying mission supplies, Junípero Serra set out from Carmel to reach the Valley of the Bears. On September 1, 1772, Junípero Serra celebrated the first Mass with a cross erected near San Luis Creek. The next day, he departed for San Diego, leaving Fr. José Cavaller with the difficult task of building the mission. Fr. José Cavaller, five soldiers and two neophytes began building the Mission San Luis Obispo de Tolosa, which would later become the town of San Luis Obispo. Both the mission and town were named after Louis, bishop of Toulouse, France, known in Spanish as "Luis, obispo de Tolosa".
Mexican period
When the Mexican War of Independence from Spain broke out in 1810, all California missions had to become virtually self-sufficient, receiving few funds or supplies from Spanish sources. Beginning soon after Mexico won her independence from Spain in 1821, anti-Spanish feelings led to calls for expulsion of the Spanish Franciscans and secularization of the missions. Because the fledgling Mexican government had many more important problems to deal with than far-off California, actual secularization did not happen until the mid-1830s.
After 1834, the mission became an ordinary parish, and most of its huge land holdings were broken up into land grants called ranchos. The ranchos were given by Mexican land grant from 1837 to 1846, with the mission itself being granted in the final year. The central community, however, remained in the same location and formed the nucleus of today's city of San Luis Obispo.
American period
Following the American Conquest of California, San Luis Obispo was the first town incorporated in the newly formed San Luis Obispo County. It remains the center of the county to the present. Early in the American period, the region was well known for lawlessness. It gained a reputation as "Barrio del Tigre" (or Tiger-Town) because of the endemic problem. Robberies and murders that left no witnesses were carried out on along the El Camino Real and elsewhere around San Luis Obispo for several years. Finally a gang of eight men committed a robbery with three murders and a kidnapping at the Rancho San Juan Capistrano del Camote in May 1858, that uncharacteristically left two witnesses alive. This brought about the formation of a vigilance committee in the County that killed one, the suspected leader of the gang Pio Linares, and lynched six others, a total of seven men suspected of such misdeeds (the most lethal in California history). Members of the committee remained influential members of the community for decades.
The ranchos remained focused on cattle after the conquest of California. With the discovery of gold, the county experienced a major economic surge with the rising price of beef, with the highest prices coming in 1851. The county remained focused on cattle until 1863, when a drought left most ranchos devastated. Residents quickly turned to other venues, leading to the breaking up of many of the ranchos and a major change in the economic climate of the town, which focused less on cattle ranching and more on dairies, agriculture, and mined goods from then onward.
San Luis Obispo once had a burgeoning Chinatown in the vicinity of Palm Street and Chorro Street. Laborers were brought from China by Ah Louis in order to construct the Pacific Coast Railway, roads connecting San Luis Obispo over the Cuesta Pass to Paso Robles and from Paso Robles to Cambria, and also the 1884 to 1894 tunneling through Cuesta Ridge for the Southern Pacific Railroad. The town's Chinatown revolved around Ah Louis Store and other Palm Street businesses owned and run by Chinese business people. Today, Mee Heng Low chop suey shop is all that remains of the culture, although a slightly Chinatown-themed commercial development has been planned. A display of some of the unearthed relics from this period can be seen on the first floor of the Palm Street parking garage, which was built over the location where Chinatown once stood. The San Luis Obispo Historical Society (adjacent to the Mission) also contains rotating historical exhibits.
San Luis Obispo was also a popular stop en route to Los Angeles. U.S. Route 101 and California State Route 1 were constructed with the rise of car culture. Due to its popularity as a stop, it was the location of the first motel in the world, the Milestone Mo-Tel.
Geography
San Luis Obispo is located on U.S. Route 101, about 31 miles (50 km) north of Santa Maria.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 13.45 square miles (34.8 km2), of which 13.3 square miles (34 km2) is land and 0.15 square miles (0.39 km2) (1.09%) is water.
San Luis Obispo is on the West Coast of the United States and in the Central Coast of California. The Pacific Ocean is approximately 11 miles (18 km) west of San Luis Obispo. The Santa Lucia Mountains lie just east of San Luis Obispo. These mountains are the headwaters for San Luis Obispo Creek, whose watershed encompasses 84 square miles (220 km2) surrounding the city and flows to the Pacific Ocean at Avila Beach.
San Luis Obispo is a seismically active area; there are a number of nearby faults including the San Andreas Fault. The Nine Sisters are a string of hills that partially run through San Luis Obispo. They are geologically noteworthy for being volcanic plugs. Six of the nine peaks are open to the public for recreation.
Climate
San Luis Obispo experiences a warm Mediterranean climate (Köppen climate classification Csb). On average it has 50 days with measurable rain per year, mostly during winter months. Summers are generally warm and sunny, often with morning fog from the Pacific coast. Winters are generally not very cold, though below freezing lows occur 2.6 nights per year on average. Measurable snowfall in San Luis Obispo has not officially been recorded since records began in 1870, although photos show about 0.3 inches (0.76 cm) fell in 1922 and snow flurries were reported in both 1988 and 2006. Temperatures do, however, vary widely at any time of the year, with 80 °F (27 °C) readings in January and February not uncommon.
Although heat extremes above 110 °F (43.3 °C) have been recorded, the maritime moderation is generally strong due to the proximity to the cool ocean waters. The hottest temperature on record is officially at 113 °F (45 °C) on September 6, 2020, although a 120 reading was reported in the local news. Nights remain cool year round due to cold-current ocean air in summer and being in a valley subject to inversion, although seldom cold. The warmest night recorded was 75 °F (24 °C) on September 22, 1939, and the coldest day at 40 °F (4 °C) on December 11, 1932. Precipitation averages about 22 inches (560 mm) per year, almost all of which falls between November and April.
Demographics
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, San Luis Obispo had a population of 47,063 and a population density of 3,537.2 inhabitants per square mile (1,365.7/km2).
The census reported that 97.0% of the population lived in households, 2.2% lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 0.8% were institutionalized. In addition, 99.5% of residents lived in urban areas and 0.5% lived in rural areas.
There were 19,772 households, out of which 20.0% included children under the age of 18. Of all households, 33.4% were married-couple households, 6.8% were cohabiting couple households, 33.1% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present, and 26.7% had a male householder with no spouse or partner present. About 33.1% of households were one person, and 12.1% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.31. There were 9,020 families (45.6% of all households).
The age distribution was 14.6% under the age of 18, 25.7% aged 18 to 24, 25.2% aged 25 to 44, 18.3% aged 45 to 64, and 16.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31.4 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.7 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 95.3 males age 18 and over.
There were 21,562 housing units at an average density of 1,620.6 units per square mile (625.7 units/km2), of which 19,772 (91.7%) were occupied. Of occupied units, 41.5% were owner-occupied and 58.5% were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.2%, the rental vacancy rate was 4.9%, and 8.3% of housing units were vacant.
2023 ACS 5-year estimates
In 2023, the US Census Bureau estimated that the median household income was $66,711, and the per capita income was $45,462. About 6.5% of families and 30.0% of the population were below the poverty line. However, this number may include many college students who have little or no income.
2010 census
The 2010 United States census reported that San Luis Obispo had a population of 45,119. The population density was 3,489.4 inhabitants per square mile (1,347.3/km2). The racial makeup of San Luis Obispo was 38,117 (84.5%) White, 523 (1.2%) African American, 275 (0.6%) Native American, 2,350 (5.2%) Asian, 65 (0.1%) Pacific Islander, 1,973 (4.4%) from other races, and 1,816 (4.0%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 6,626 persons (14.7%).
The Census reported that 43,937 people (97.4% of the population) lived in households, 967 (2.1%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 215 (0.5%) were institutionalized.