Gold Beach (Tolowa: yan-shu’-chit, yan-shuu-chit’-dvn on the Oregon Coast. The population was 2,241 at the 2020 census.
History
The community was originally named Ellensburg in the 1850s, but later took the name Gold Beach after a beach near the mouth of the Rogue River where hundreds of placer mines extracted gold. An Ellensburg post office was established in 1853, changed to Ellensburg in 1877, and changed to Gold Beach in 1890.
Although Gold Beach had been a community since the middle of the 19th century, and the county seat since 1859, its current incorporation charter only dates to 1945.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and is water.
Gold Beach is bordered to the north by the Rogue River and Barley Beach, also known as Bailey Beach.
Climate
Gold Beach has cool, very wet winters and mild, relatively dry summers. The location is heavily influenced by the moderating waters of the Pacific and the cool offshore currents. As a result, the temperature swings are very narrow for a climate of its latitude. According to the Köppen climate classification system, Gold Beach has a warm-summer Mediterranean climate (Csb). Between 1948 and 2014, the average maximum temperature in January was about , and the average minimum was about . Annually, there are high temperatures of on an average of only 0.1 days and there are low temperatures of or lower on an average of 9.2 days. The record high temperature was on September 10, 1973. The record low temperature was on January 21, 1962.
The average annual precipitation between 1948 and 2014 was about , mostly falling between October and April.
According to the Trewartha climate classification, it has a subtropical climate and is one of the northernmost North American locations to have one.
Demographics
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, Gold Beach had a population of 2,341. The median age was 53.1 years. 15.0% of residents were under the age of 18 and 27.1% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 92.7 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 92.1 males age 18 and over.
0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 100.0% lived in rural areas.
There were 1,088 households in Gold Beach, of which 20.1% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 42.4% were married-couple households, 22.2% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 28.2% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 35.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 18.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
! Race !! Number !! Percent
|-
| White || 2,013 || 86.0%
|-
| Black or African American || 8 || 0.3%
|-
| American Indian and Alaska Native || 61 || 2.6%
|-
| Asian || 23 || 1.0%
|-
| Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander || 6 || 0.3%
|-
| Some other race || 27 || 1.2%
|-
| Two or more races || 203 || 8.7%
|-
| Hispanic or Latino (of any race) || 146 || 6.2%
|}
2010 census
As of the census of 2010, there were 2,253 people, 1,070 households, and 614 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 1,322 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 91.5% White, 0.3% African American, 2.0% Native American, 0.8% Asian, 0.6% from other races, and 4.7% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.9% of the population. The schools, Riley Creek School and Gold Beach High School, are located in Gold Beach.
The entire county is in the Southwestern Oregon Community College district.
Notable people
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- Gregory Harrison — actor; was a resident of Gold Beach for 15 years.
- Travis Rush — country singer; grew up in Gold Beach.
- Bridgette Wilson — actress, Miss Oregon Teen USA 1990, Miss Teen USA 1990
Transportation
- Gold Beach Municipal Airport
Media
Newspapers
The Curry County Reporter is the region's newspaper, established in 1914.
Radio
- KGBR 92.7 FM - Classic Hits
See also
- Steamboats of the Oregon Coast
References
External links
- City of Gold Beach Official Site
- Entry for Gold Beach in the Oregon Blue Book
- Gold Beach Chamber of Commerce