The history of Copperopolis is closely tied to the Civil War. The 19 million pounds of copper mined in the 1860's made Calaveras County second in national production of this ore. Mining, workshop sites, and other historical artifacts from this era remain alongside buildings that have been restored by the perseverance and ingenuity of some townspeople.

"Copper's" population at its historical height was between 2,000 and 4,000, which is where the current population stands. Always a pioneer spirit, Copperopolis no longer holds claim to any working mines, but visitors and residents are drawn by the recreational attractions which include a beautiful 18 hole golf course winding through the old oaks and rolling hills, and Lake Tulloch, a year round water wonderland.

Unlike most of the other mining towns in the county, Copperopolis' claim to fame isn't gold, but copper. It was founded 1860 by William K. Reed, Dr. Allen Blatchly, and Thomas McCarty, at the site of the second big discovery of copper ore in the region (the first was nearby Telegraph City). The town grew rapidly, as the need for copper during the Civil War bullets was great. The copper was sent to Stockton and then on to San Francisco, where it was loaded onto ships and taken around Cape Horn before finally arriving in smelters on the East Coast.

After the war ended, the expense of mining and shipping copper proved to be too high and the population dwindled as the mines closed. However, a Boston company purchased the mines in the 1880s and mining operations resumed. The town went through boom periods during the two World Wars, when demand for copper went up again. By the time the mines closed in 1946, according to the U.S. Bureau of Mines, they had produced 72,598,883 pounds of copper worth over $12 million. No copper mining has been done since.

Demographics

As of the censusGR2 of 2000, there were 2,363 people, 959 households, and 717 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 42.4/km² (109.9/mi²). There were 1,374 housing units at an average density of 24.7/km² (63.9/mi²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 90.22% White, 0.68% Black or African American, 1.61% Native American, 1.90% Asian, 0.17% Pacific Islander, 1.65% from other races, and 3.77% from two or more races. 8.55% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 959 households out of which 27.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 63.0% were married couples living together, 8.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.2% were non-families. 19.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.46 and the average family size was 2.81.

In the CDP the population was spread out with 23.0% under the age of 18, 5.1% from 18 to 24, 22.2% from 25 to 44, 31.3% from 45 to 64, and 18.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females there were 98.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.3 males.

The median income for a household in the CDP was $41,677, and the median income for a family was $46,339. Males had a median income of $42,125 versus $30,833 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $23,530. About 8.6% of families and 12.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.3% of those under age 18 and 9.4% of those age 65 or over.

Learn more about this city

County of CALAVERAS, CA official site

State of California official site