Albion was named in 1844, as a reference to when Sir Francis Drake landed on the northern California coast and called it "New Albion". Albion was an ancient name for Britain, from the Latin word albus, meaning "white", a reference to the White Cliffs of Dover.[8]
Geography
Albion lies directly on California's State Route 1 (Shoreline Highway) north of Elk and south of Mendocino and Little River. It lies just north of the intersection of State Route 1 with State Route 128. Albion Ridge Road leads east from the town center. The side roads on Albion Ridge Road are labeled from B through Q.
Shot of Albion Head and Albion Bridge from the ocean
The nearest beaches include Navarro Beach to the south and Handley Beach at the head of Albion Ridge Road.
Albion has two bridges, one spanning the Albion River and the other Little Salmon Creek. The Albion River Bridge, built in 1944 when steel and concrete were in short supply, remains as the last wooden bridge still in use on State Route 1.
The ZIP Code is 95410. The community is inside area code 707.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP covers an area of 1.85 square miles (4.8 km2), of which 0.04 square miles (0.10 km2), or 2.0%, are water.[1]
Schools
The town belongs to the Mendocino Unified School District,[9] and children attend Albion Elementary School or Mendocino K-8 School until third grade, then Mendocino K-8 School and Mendocino High School.[10]
The Census reported that 156 people (92.9% of the population) lived in households, 12 (7.1%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 0 (0%) were institutionalized.
There were 82 households, out of which 13 (15.9%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 20 (24.4%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 8 (9.8%) had a female householder with no husband present, 5 (6.1%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 8 (9.8%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 1 (1.2%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 36 households (43.9%) were made up of individuals, and 15 (18.3%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.90. There were 33 families (40.2% of all households); the average family size was 2.55.
The population was spread out, with 20 people (11.9%) under the age of 18, 10 people (6.0%) aged 18 to 24, 40 people (23.8%) aged 25 to 44, 64 people (38.1%) aged 45 to 64, and 34 people (20.2%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 50.3 years. For every 100 females, there were 115.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 108.5 males.
There were 112 housing units at an average density of 60.4 per square mile (23.3/km2), of which 54 (65.9%) were owner-occupied, and 28 (34.1%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.8%; the rental vacancy rate was 17.6%. 105 people (62.5% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 51 people (30.4%) lived in rental housing units.
^Durham, David L. (1998). California's Geographic Names: A Gazetteer of Historic and Modern Names of the State. Clovis, Calif.: Word Dancer Press. p. 7. ISBN1-884995-14-4.
