Santa Cruz Island
| Native name: Limuw, Michumash | |
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| Geography | |
| Coordinates | 34°00′N 119°43′W / 34.000°N 119.717°W |
| Area | 250 km2 (97 sq mi) |
| Length | 35 km (21.7 mi) |
| Width | 10 km (6 mi) |
| Highest elevation | 740 m (2,430 ft) |
| Highest point | Devils Peak |
| Administration | |
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United States
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| State | California |
| County | Santa Barbara |
| Demographics | |
| Population | Rangers and tourists are the only residents |
Santa Cruz Island is the largest of the eight islands in the Channel Islands of California, located off the coast of California. The island, in the northern group of the Channel Islands, is 22 miles (35 km) long and from 2 to 6 miles (3.2 to 9.7 km) wide with an area of 61,764.6 acres (249.952 km2). Santa Cruz Island is located within Santa Barbara County, California. The coastline has steep cliffs, gigantic sea caves, coves, and sandy beaches. Defined by the United States Census Bureau as Block 3000, Block Group 3, Census Tract 29.10 of Santa Barbara County, the 2000 census showed an official population of two persons. The highest peak is Devils Peak, at 2450+ feet (747+ m). It was the largest privately owned island off the continental United States but is currently part-owned by the National Park Service (NPS owns 24%, and the Nature Conservancy owns 76%).
A central valley splits the island along the Santa Cruz Island Fault, with volcanic rock on the north and older sedimentary rock on the south. This volcanic rock was heavily fractured during the uplift phase that formed the island and over a hundred large sea caves have been carved into the resulting faults. One of these, Painted Cave, is among the world's largest.
Santa Cruz Island has many species found nowhere else on earth, including for instance the island scrub jay and the Santa Cruz Island fox (Urocyon littoralis santacruzae), a subspecies of the island fox.
Archaeological investigations indicate that Santa Cruz Island has been occupied for at least 10,000 years. It was known as Limuw (place of the sea) or Michumash in the Chumash language. The people of the Chumash Indian tribe who lived on the island developed a highly complex society dependent on marine harvest, craft specialization and trade with the mainland population. . The Santa Cruz Island Chumash produced shell beads that they used for currency, which formed an important part of the overall Chumash economy. Native villagers had no known contact with Europeans until the 16th and early 17th centuries. Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo, who is credited with the first European exploration of the California coast, observed at least six villages, though he and his crew did not come ashore. Cabrillo named the island San Lucas.
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Wikipedia