Hercules, California
| Hercules, California | ||
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| City | ||
| City of Hercules | ||
Refugio Valley Park
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| Motto: "The Dynamic City on the Bay" | ||
 Location of Hercules within California |
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 Hercules, California
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| Coordinates: 38°01′02″N 122°17′19″W / 38.01722°N 122.28861°WCoordinates: 38°01′02″N 122°17′19″W / 38.01722°N 122.28861°W | ||
| Country |
 United States
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| State |
 California
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| County | Contra Costa | |
| Incorporated | December 15, 1900 | |
| Government | ||
| • City Manager | Steve Duran | |
| • City Council |
Mayor John Delgado Vice Mayor Myrna De Vera Bill Kelly Sherry McCoy Dan Romero |
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| • State Leg. |
Sen. Nancy Skinner (D) Asm. Tony Thurmond (D) |
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| • U. S. Congress | Mike Thompson (D) | |
| Area | ||
| • Total | 18.179 sq mi (47.084 km2) | |
| • Land | 6.205 sq mi (16.072 km2) | |
| • Water | 11.974 sq mi (31.012 km2) 65.87% | |
| Elevation | 79 ft (24 m) | |
| Population (2010) | ||
| • Total | 24,060 | |
| • Density | 1,300/sq mi (510/km2) | |
| Time zone | PST (UTC-8) | |
| • Summer (DST) | PDT (UTC-7) | |
| ZIP code | 94547 | |
| Area code(s) | 510 | |
| FIPS code | 06-33308 | |
| GNIS feature IDs | 1658738, 2410746 | |
| Website | www |
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Hercules is a city in western Contra Costa County, California. Situated along the coast of San Pablo Bay, it is located in the eastern region of the San Francisco Bay Area, about 10 miles (16 km) north of Berkeley. Hercules has a 2010 population of 24,060 according to the U.S. Census. Hercules was founded in 1881 as a company town for the Hercules Powder Company, one of several explosive manufacturers that were active along the Pinole shoreline in the late 19th to the mid 20th century. Starting in the 1970s, Hercules was heavily redeveloped as suburban bedroom community that lies along the I-80 corridor in Eastern Contra Costa County. Hercules has a very ethnically diverse population.
Contra Costa County’s first inhabitants arrived in the area six to ten thousand years ago, including the Bay Miwok people and the Huichin Ohlone People; however there were no known significant settlements in the Hercules area.
The land that would become Hercules was part of a tract of land known as “Pinole y Canada del Hambre” which was granted in 1823 to Ygnacio Martinez (for whom the city of Martinez, California was named after) for his service as the commandant of the Presidio of San Francisco. This grant was reconfirmed in 1842 as Rancho El Pinole. In 1848 this area became part of the United States with rest of California. Contra Costa County was created in 1850 as one of California’s original 27 counties. The Central Pacific Railroad (later part of Southern Pacific) ran the first rail lines across Hercules’ waterfront in late 1878, as the main route for the Transcontinental Railroad was realigned via train ferry through the purpose-built town of Port Costa then to Richmond and Berkeley to connect at the Oakland Pier. The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad came through the area around 1899.
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