Fun Facts about Pleasanton, California

In late January, I’m moving back to my mom’s house in Pleasanton, California, a place I spent most of my childhood in, but don’t know much about.  I did a bit of research today, and here’s some interesting tidbits I came up with:

• Pleasanton is a mid-sized city in the Southeast Bay Area with a population of about 66,000 people.
• The city is named after Alfred Pleasonton, a Union cavalry general. A typo by a US government employee led to the name of the city being misspelled “Pleasanton.”
• The area of Pleasanton was first inhabited by the Ohlone native peoples.
• The Spaniards called the town Alisal.
• In the 1850s, the town was called “The Most Desperate Town in the West” and was ruled by bandits and desperados, including Joaquin Murrieta, who was the inspiration behind Zorro.
• According to the latest US Census, Pleasanton is the wealthiest midsize city in the nation. In 2007, the median household income was $113,345.
• Pleasanton is number 63 in CNN Money Magazine’s list of “The Best Places to Live” in 2010, and was also named one of “Americans’ Top Hometown Spots” in the United States in 2009 by Forbes.

It’s a quaint and friendly city, that has managed to keep its character while also growing at a dramatic rate in the past 15 years.  The downtown Main Street area is still vibrant and busy, despite a large shopping mall and population growth pushing people outside of the city center.  Lots of seasonal events bring the city together like the Alameda County Fair and the winter holiday parade.

While not someplace I plan on staying for too long, I do like Pleasanton quite a bit.

[cc-licensed image by John K from Flickr.com]