Crescent City, California, United States

🇺🇸 Crescent City (Taa-’at-dvn; Kohpey; Daluwagh) is the only incorporated city in Del Norte County, California; it is also the county seat. Crescent City is named for the crescent-shaped stretch of sandy beach south of the city. The population includes inmates at Pelican Bay State Prison, also within the city limits, and the former place Crescent City North annexed to the city. The city is also the site of the Redwood National Park headquarters, as well as the historic Battery Point Light. Due to the richness of the local Pacific Ocean waters and the related catch, and ease of access, Crescent City Harbor serves as home port for numerous commercial fishing vessels.

The city is on the Pacific coast in the upper north-western part of California, about 20 mi (32 km) south of the Oregon border. Crescent City's offshore geography makes it unusually susceptible to tsunamis. Much of the city was destroyed by four tsunami waves generated by the Great Alaskan earthquake off Anchorage, Alaska in 1964. More recently, the city's harbor suffered extensive damage and destruction from tsunamis generated by the March 11, 2011 earthquake off Sendai, Japan. Several dozen vessels and many of the docks they were moored to were destroyed as wave cycles related to the tsunamis exceeded 8 ft (2.4 m).

The climate of Crescent City is moderate, with cool summers for its latitude as a result of intense maritime moderation. Nearby inland areas behind the mountains have significantly warmer summer temperatures.

History The area that is now known as Del Norte County was and still is inhabited by the Yurok (Klamath River Indians) and Tolowa Nations of indigenous peoples. The first European American to explore this land was pioneer Jedediah Smith in the early 19th century. He was the first European American to reach the area overland on foot in a time before the European Americans knew anything about such a distant territory. For him it was literally "Land's End" — where the American continent ended at the Pacific Ocean. In 1855, the U.S. Congress authorized the building of a lighthouse at "the battery point" (a high tide island on the coast of Crescent City) which is still functioning as a historical landmark.

European explorers first visited the area by ship in the late 1820s. Europeans began moving to the area in the 1850s. Crescent City was incorporated as a city in 1854.

Historic ships • Crescent City was a 113 t (111 long tons; 125 short tons) schooner built in 1848 by Joshua T. Foster of Medford, Massachusetts • The Brother Jonathan, a paddle steamer, crashed on an uncharted rock near Point St. George, off the coast of Crescent City, California, on July 30, 1865 • A 1906 ship named Crescent City was the former Jim Butler, a 701 t (690 long tons; 773 short tons) steam schooner built by Lindstrom Shipbuilding Company in Aberdeen, Washington, that wrecked in the Channel Islands, off Santa Cruz Island, in 1927 • The SS Emidio, a 6,912 t (6,803 long tons; 7,619 short tons) tanker of the General Petroleum Corporation (later Mobil Oil), was the first casualty of the Imperial Japanese Navy's submarine force action on California's Pacific Coast on December 20, 1941. The damaged tanker broke up on the rocks off Crescent City. The remaining pieces of the ship are now California Historical Landmark #497

Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 2.415 sq mi (6.25 km²), of which 1.963 sq mi (5.08 km²) (81.3%) is land and 0.452 sq mi (1.17 km²) (18.7%) is water. Fishing and crabbing, tourism, and timber are the major sources of income in Del Norte County. Elk Creek flows into the Pacific Ocean at Crescent City. Its nearest Californian place of any size to its interior is Happy Camp separated by roughly 42 mi (68 km) by air, but, due to the unsuitable terrain, it is much farther by road. The nearest city is fellow coastal city Brookings, Oregon, around 20 mi (32 km) to its north. The Humboldt Bay area encompassing Eureka and Arcata is more than 60 mi (97 km) to its south. Crescent City is as far north in latitude as Chicago, Middle Island in Ontario, Canada, as well as New England on the Atlantic side. It is as much as nine degrees latitude north of San Diego at the southern tip of the state. Crescent City is closer to Vancouver, Canada (838 km (521 mi)) than to Los Angeles (1,003 km (623 mi)).

Education The public schools of Crescent City are part of the Del Norte County Unified School District, which encompasses all of the public schools in Del Norte County. The following are schools within Crescent City or its immediate vicinity. • Del Norte High School is the only public high school in Crescent City, located on the northern edge of town. It replaced the earlier high school that was more centrally located, and which remains today as a public-access gymnasium and county offices • The Bess Maxwell Elementary School is the older of two elementary schools in the northern part of town that are located near the high school. Bess Maxwell serves grades 1–5. In its earlier years, it was a K–6 school • The Castle Rock Charter School is a K–12 charter school that provides personalized education to students, and is the liaison school for parents who home school their children. It operates the Tah-Ah-Dun American Indian Magnet School to provide for the unique requirements of American Indian students who might be at risk. (Tah-Ah-Dun is the Tolowa name for Crescent City, honoring the Tolowa village that stood on present-day Crescent City.) The school is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges • Crescent Elk Middle School is the oldest operating school site in town, centrally located in Crescent City. The site was originally a K–8 school, but slowly shed grade levels to other schools as it became a 4–6 school with a separate 7–8 program, then the 6–8 program that it is today • Mary Peacock Elementary School is the newer of two elementary schools that are located near the high school. The creation of Pelican Bay State Prison caused an increase in housing demand in the Crescent City area, and an increased school district population. This school was built to address that demand, but is not directly associated with the prison • Joe Hamilton Elementary School is a K–5 school located near Crescent Elk Middle School. It was founded as a K–3 school • Pine Grove Elementary School has been a K–5 school for many years. It serves the eastern part of Crescent City • Sunset High School is another Crescent City high school with its own child care center

Transport Highway access is provided by U.S. Route 101, which runs directly through the city, connecting the Oregon Coast to the north and Eureka to the south. U.S. Route 199 begins north of Crescent City and runs north-east to Grants Pass, Oregon. The junction of U.S. Routes 101 and 199 is one of only two junctions of two U.S. Routes in California, the other being the junction of U.S. Routes 6 and 395 in Bishop.

SkyWest Airlines formerly served Del Norte County Airport (also known as Jack McNamara Field) as United Express until April 7, 2015. Most flights connected to San Francisco International Airport. PenAir contracted to begin serving the airport with Saab 340 turboprop aircraft beginning September 15, 2015. Contour Airlines currently operates flights from Crescent City (CEC) to the Oakland International Airport (OAK).

Local public transit is provided by Redwood Coast Transit and by various taxi companies. Crescent City is also served by Curry Public Transit, and POINT.

The Crescent City Harbor serves as a commercial fishing port for salmon, shrimp, tuna, cod, and dungeness crab commercial fishing vessels. The Harbor is also home to multiple fishing and non-fishing related businesses and harbor governmental offices. The Crescent City Harbor also has several pleasure boat docks.

Attractions • In town ◦ Battery Point Lighthouse ◦ Crescent City Harbor ◦ Del Norte County Historical Society Main Museum ◦ SS Emidio Memorial • Nearby ◦ Del Norte Coast Redwoods State Park ◦ Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park ◦ Lost Monarch (tree)—Largest known Coastal Redwood by volume. ◦ Pelican Bay State Prison ◦ Redwood National and State Parks ◦ St. George Reef Lighthouse ◦ Smith River National Recreation Area ◦ Tolowa Dunes State Park ◦ Trees of Mystery

Annual events • Fourth of July fireworks display – July • Sea Cruise Car Show Weekend – Columbus Day Weekend – October.